2012 Olympic Ministry: London

Paper Work

2011-06-17T22:51:00.000-04:00

The information packets for London came together a few weeks ago. There is plenty of paper work to fill out and though we've been talking about a trip to London for while, it seems the time has passed rather quickly. (The initial deadline has come and gone.) Everything will be on an expedited schedule to make sure all the information and deposits are turned in. Several people have asked for information packets and I hope to find out soon who will be throwing their hat in the ring to go.

As the one year mark approaches there will still be plenty of information to be finalized: airfare, work assignments, who's going, where's the closest Starbucks (only kidding-slightly) and that's before we even leave!

This trip will feel like it has a longer "crunch time" even though it is over a year away. With deposits due in mid June and December, visas for travel and airfare to pay for, even without having team meetings scheduled yet, it will feel like every time you turn around you're hearing something about London. I hope that gets you excited because at the end of the day I hope we are reminded of why we're going and Who has called us to go. Get ready for the journey!

Blog to change

2010-03-23T11:47:00.001-04:00

For those interested and following, the blog name will soon change from 2010 Olympic Ministry: Vancouver to Olympic Ministry: London. There is much planning to be done and interest in the opportunity is expected to be high. Keep checking in as things will start rolling before we know it!

Home

2010-02-20T21:49:00.000-05:00

Team 1 made it home safely last night. On our way in from Charlotte, we stopped in Gaffney, SC to grab a quick bite to eat and when we returned to the church bus we were riding, someone had placed a note on the driver's door that read:

"To Whomever,
Please pray for me. I'm in desperate need of prayer. God will know who I am and my prayer needs. The devil has me. I'm at my end.
God Bless U
Crying out"

We looked to see if we could find who may have left the note, but didn't really see anyone. We stopped and prayed for this individual and I ask you to do the same. It serves as a reminder that we are surrounded by hurting people who need to know that God cares for them. We may come home from a mission trip, be we never leave the mission field.

As promised, there are some pictures up. Great first blog Christy! Keep it up.

Carrying on the Torch

2010-02-20T00:18:00.003-05:00

Well this is my first time ever to "blog" (Bryan, aren't you proud of me?!) so I will try to spell things right and do it correctly.

As you know, the rest of Team 1 left today and when I woke up this morning (for the last time) it felt very strange to be here all alone. I missed my teammates and the CO team that was also staying here at Royal Heights Baptist in Delta, BC. I had a leisurely morning and then headed out on my own to meet up with a good friend and fellow missionary, Debbie Wohler (NAMB missionary for over 30 years in Tahoe, CA). We spent the day today enjoying the beauty that God has created here in the city of Vancouver through Stanley Park. As we walked and walked and walked, God brought several people across our path to share "More Than Gold" pins with. Our day together ended with meeting up with Stasia again -- Bryan has already blogged about her. Danielle was also with her today and it was good to speak with them again. Stasia and I both commented on how crazy it was that we continue to run into one another. As Bryan said earlier, I really do feel that God has brought us together for a reason -- so please continue to pray with me that He will open the door for more conversation with this young lady.

I was able to end my day on a high note -- riding on the train or bus always seems to be the best opportunities to encounter people that we can share with. There was a family of 6 (Mom & Dad, Grandpa, and 3 children) who got off the train with me and we were all waiting on the same bus together. The children were young (2, 5, and maybe 8) and had a long, tiring day and the little guy especially was just a wee bit cranky. I began to converse with them as we waited for the train and asked them if the children had gotten into pin trading yet. Mom replied "No, but their Dad had a bunch of pins at work and left them there. But he's going to bring them to them tomorrow!" I asked where he worked and he replied the Vancouver airport. I asked what he did and he said he was a fireman there. Immediately I thanked him for helping to keep the airport safe for us. He looked at me and said, "No one has ever said that to me before!" A simple act of saying "thank you" to someone who spends their life's work serving and protecting others can go such a long way! We can do this whether we are on a mission trip to the Olympics or just checking out at the grocery store at home. I challenge all of us to spread the love of Jesus just by going that extra mile to be kind.

Anyway, I pulled some of the Visa mascot pins out of my pocket and presented each child with their very 1st olympic pin and you would have thought I'd given them gold. I proceeded to give them each a More Than Gold pin from Athens, I think (thanks Lee!); and then gave Mom a Vanocouver MTG pin. You see, as Christians we really do have something to offer the world that is worth More Than Gold -- a relationship with Jesus Christ. I told her a little bit about it and then she read the back of the card that explains the colors out loud to her family right there at the bus station! She proceeded to tell me that they were also Baptist and she had helped to prepare hot chocolate earlier in the week at another transit station. What a blessing this encounter was to me!

Teams 2/3 arrive tomorrow and I plan to go to the train station and meet them. Continue to pray for us and for all the volunteers serving through MTG throughout this next week. I will talk to you again!

Christy

Back to the U.S. Eh!

2010-02-19T05:32:00.000-05:00

Well our time here has quickly come to an end and I write this while we wait for our 3:30 a.m. ride to the airport. We have had many great experiences that have made an impact on us. I want to encourage you to continue to follow the blog as I will continue to post about any follow up reports I receive and members from Teams 2 and 3 should be blogging right here to keep you up to date on Olympic ministry. (I promise pictures will come shortly after I get settled in at home.)

As ready as we are to be home, it is always a little sad to leave a place you have grown to know and love in such a small amount of time. We won't know the results a cup of hot chocolate or a pin will have, but we can pray for the seeds that have been planted. Other teams have had the privilege of being involved with people making decisions to become Christ followers. That is what it is all about. So whether we get to be present when it happens or find out down the road, it is great to hear and see God working in the hearts of people. Not only can you see Him at work in Vancouver, you can feel that He is doing something big and we are grateful to be a small part of it.

As the Olympics continue for another week, my goal is to take advantage of the opportunities that will be present at home when people see an Olympic pin or shirt and ask questions. Keep praying for Olympic ministry in general as soon we’ll turn our attention to the possibilities that London 2012 and Sochi 2014 present.

One of our team members, Christy, will be working with the next teams that arrive on Saturday. We have run into a young lady name Stasia (Anastasia) three times now. We think there is a reason for it and Christy will be the one to find out, so please continue to pray for her.

As I wrote earlier, keep following the blog. There are some stories that have yet to be written, thus they have yet to be read. Here is a brief one now.

I commented on the amazing worship service we had Sunday. The church we have called home for 10 days now is really doing some big things here in Delta, BC. They have already had 21 baptisms this year! In fact they baptized two that morning and will baptize three more this Sunday. The pastor challenged the congregation to have 500 people here for the Easter service. They are not afraid to think big.

They have a wonderful praise and worship band and at times the leader sounded like the lead singer from Pearl Jam. I know that comparison can be interpreted different ways, but as I said, the band is wonderful.

Another church story has to do with where we prepared our hot chocolate and coffee that we served. We worked in the Holy Rosary Rectory at the Holy Rosary Cathedral. Before we left for the last time tonight I asked if we could see the cathedral. One of the priests was kind enough to take us in. Built in the 1930s, it is a beautiful facility. The priest told us how the site was chosen, when the first building was built and later renovated and how the organ had to be removed and refurbished. I knew from hearing similar stories when my high school choir would sing in various churches that this process was not cheap. I looked at the priest and said, “That had to cost several hundreds of thousands of dollars.” “Oh, much more,” he said, “it was at least six figures.” We waited until we left the cathedral to laugh at the exchange and make sure that hundreds of thousands of dollars were still in the six figure range!

The Team

2010-02-16T04:30:00.000-05:00

I cannot describe in detail the experiences the others are having, but there are some great stories to tell. I'll give a quick summary by way of introducing our team members, which I should have done earlier.

Lee is our walking GPS. He has us well trained in how to get around the city. His ability to quickly learn the transit system has allowed him opportunities to speak and share with people as we travel.

Vickie has become a pin trading machine and she uses it to springboard right into where people are spiritually. She has yet to meet a stranger.

Christy has a great casual way of talking to people that opens more doors than she realizes. The great thing is that she steps right through without hesitation.

Marie is a senior in college who is bound for foreign missions and has used her personality to draw attention from the locals and start some great conversations.

George also uses pins to connect with people and he has a way of making you feel you’re being invited to talk a while.

We have all used our southern accents to get into conversations with people. Well, almost all of us. It works "ya'll." While we're in a group people will guess we're from Texas or Georgia or Alabama. I have had people guess I am from all over the map! From a local Vancouverite to a Brit to a New Englander and on a few occasions a correct southeastern US guess.

I still need to blog about the amazing service we experienced at church on Sunday. It was neat to wake up and already be at church for worship! I'll see if I can get some of the team to share a story from the trip. It has been amazing. Keep praying for all the volunteers, More than Gold as they ready to welcome a new wave of teams and for what God is doing in Vancouver. He is doing things we have yet to fully recognize.

Walkabout

2010-02-16T04:09:00.000-05:00

Since I have not completely explained what we are doing other than telling you about hot chocolate, I'll do that. We basically mass produce hot chocolate. We then transfer it into insulated canisters that go inside insulated backpacks with a dispensing arm attached-it is very cool. I'll try to have some pictures up soon. (I said try.) We head out like pack mules and offer free hot chocolate, (and sometimes water or coffee). We then give out around 800 cups in a four hour period. The work isn't hard, but the weight of the backpack wears on your knees and back. It is, however, worth its weight in gold as a conversation piece.

One such conversation was with Jamie. I met him on Sunday when he stopped for some hot chocolate. He is from Adelaide, Australia and is in his sixth month of a walkabout. A walkabout is an Australian term for a journey of discovery, self or otherwise. That may not be the most accurate definition, but that is what it basically is to me. We had a good conversation about various things for about 45 minutes and he got a refill and went to find his hostel.

I was kind of surprised when he was back again today ready for more hot chocolate. I took the opportunity to after a short while to ask him what he was looking for on his walkabout. He said he just wants to see all of the different places and cultures before he narrows down to the main thing he thinks he is supposed to find. I used that as an invitation to ask him what his spiritual thoughts were and he said he grew up in the Anglican Church.

We had a light discussion of the various approaches the Anglican, Catholic and Protestant church take on spiritual concepts and I the shifted the conversation towards Jesus. I used the More than Gold pin and the symbolic colors to describe what Jesus had done.

I told him about the temple veil being torn from top to bottom after Jesus died on the cross and we now had direct access to God. This point was important because he had stated he didn't think the approach of needing to see a priest to communicate was God was right. And Jamie is right.

Now at some point in our conversation, Jamie had sat down a bag. I had really paid no attention to it or its contents, but then an odd thing happened. When I was talking about the temple veil being torn, with no rhyme or reason, the bag fell over and the heavy bottle of alcohol rang like a bell against the sidewalk. I think it was one of those simple, overlooked moments that God used to say to Jamie, that He is what he needs to be seeking. The look on Jamie's face at the sound of the bottle falling was not embarrassment over the revelation of what was in the bag, but one of shock as if the ringing bell was a wakeup call.

I shared my own spiritual walkabout with Jamie and he appreciated the use of the Aussie concept and said he would stop by on Wednesday to get a copy of the book of John. Please pray that God will do an amazing work in Jamie's life and let him know without a doubt that God loves him and wants a relationship with him.

Again without being present, it is hard to describe how conversations go in certain directions and you find yourself wondering why we talked about certain things-feel free to ask about anything that doesn't make sense. I wish we could share all the encounters we are having as they are many.

We have a day off tomorrow (thank you More than Gold) and we are going to Whistler for the Women’s luge finals. We're looking forward to the opportunites we'll have while on the transportation to the mountain.

I'll let you know about it!

From Russia- with love?

2010-02-14T13:09:00.000-05:00

We arrived at our set-up site (Holy Rosary Rectory) early to begin making coffee and hot chocolate. Shortly after we arrived, we were joined, unexpectedly, by a team of Russian volunteers. We quickly taught them what they were supposed to be doing and then sent them out with some of our team member to show them around.

The cultural difference was immediately made known. They asked if they could "preach at" the people after they gave them a cup of hot chocolate. I explained that "preaching at" would not be received very well by the people we were trying to minister to. Vancouver residents are very warm and welcoming and accepting of many things, which is good and bad. One thing that turns them away is the approach our Russian friends wanted to take. They couldn't understand that at first, so I told them to just hand out the hot chocolate and engage the people in conversation and see where it leads to. When one of them passed out a cup of hot chocolate, he looked at the lady and took a tract from his pocket and said, “Here, you need to read this.” She immediately turned and walked away.

I explained to them again the importance of staying within the guidelines we were asked to work in and that there is a reason for it.

Eventually, three teenage girls walked up for some hot chocolate. One spoke with a British accent, but her American friend quickly pointed out that she did that all the time to see if people would be able to tell if it was a fake accent. I asked the American where she was from and she answered Washington State. I said I am from the States too and she thought I was joking because she didn’t pick up on a Southern accent. When I said I am from Greenville, South Carolina, the friend with the former British accent, got really excited and asked, “Is that near Sovereign Grace?” In shock, I said yes, my church is not far from there at all and asked how she knew about it. She has friends there. It turns out that she and her friend who likes to talk with an accent are Christians!

This is where it gets fun. The third friend, April, is not a Christian and thinks there is no physical evidence to support the claims of Christianity and the life of Jesus. Remember, our Russian friends are watching all of this unfold before their eyes. One of them chimes is and asks, “Who do you think built the pyramids in Egypt? It was the Jews.” April responded, “Well I know it wasn’t aliens.” I didn’t know where the Russian was headed with his evidence, so I literally quietly prayed, “God, please shut this guy up.” I know that sounds terrible, but his approach was not getting anywhere with April.

So, I looked at April and I asked; “What kind of physical evidence are you looking for? She said just physical or scientific evidence. I knew she wasn’t going to immediately accept Biblical evidence, so I said, “Let’s look at governmental histories.” She said ok, so I started with the Roman Empire. It was the first world power to encounter Jesus. We know that Jesus lived because Roman history records how it dealt with Jesus. She accepted that. You can’t doubt the existence of someone who Rome proudly admitted they crucified.

April then admitted that Jesus lived, but she thinks He was a really big fraud that deceived a lot of people. There were some background comments she made that to include would lengthen this blog beyond the length you’re willing to read, so to jump to the point I knew of a statement I could make that would blow her away. (I had already quietly asked God to guide our conversation.) Not all of you will agree with what I said, but the West Coast view of the church is that all we do is try to force religion on people. With that in mind, I looked at April and asked, “What was Jesus’ message?” She said she didn’t know. I told her about the woman at the well and that Jesus’ message was simply that He loves us, regardless of where we are, but we need to be forgiven of the wrong we have done. She admitted that people sin, and said “look at society.” Here is what I said that I told her would blow her away; “The church has really messed up the message of Jesus and some have taken an approach that have pushed more people away from Jesus rather than bring them closer to Jesus.” Her eyes opened wide and her jaw dropped. She said, “I can’t believe you said that, wow. I don’t what to say.” A huge wall came down after that statement.

I asked her, “What do you have to lose if what you believe is wrong?” She said she just thought the purpose of life was to die, and go back into the earth, but there was no overall purpose, maybe to be happy. I asked, “Why is it important to be happy, with no greater purpose?” She didn’t have an answer, so I said, God’s purpose for our lives is to have a relationship with Him and He was so set on that purpose that He sent Jesus to die on the cross for our sins. She said, “Yeah, that’s what my friends always tell me.” I said, “Do you know why they tell you that?” She answered, “Because they don’t want us to die and them go to heaven and me go to hell.” I said, “Exactly! They are telling you that because they love you.”

“Why doesn’t He just make us worship Him, if He’s God?” she asked. “Because that wouldn’t be relationship, He wants us to choose to worship Him,” I said. The story about Adam and Eve in Eden helped her understand and she said it made sense, but it was hard to understand. She said the part of her that thinks she is right is larger than the part of her that thinks she’s wrong. She admitted that the part of her that thinks she is wrong scares her. I told her “That is because you have a lot to lose if you are wrong.” “Yeah, my friends have told me about hell and what is it, eternity?” she asked.

She made a comment about her mom going crazy if she knew she was talking to someone from a cult. I laughed and said, well, we’re not a cult. She laughed and said she knew that, but her mom has the same view of religion. (Pray for her mom not to be a barrier to her accepting Christ.) As the conversation was winding down and I sensed the Holy Spirit was really working in her, you could tell she was struggling. She asked what day it was and I said it was Saturday. She asked, “God, why is this happening today?” I looked at her and said, “Because today is the day God wanted to tell you that He loves you.”

Her friend, who had been standing with her the whole time, put her arm around her. April said it was just too easy to believe in this stuff. I said, actually it is the hardest thing to do because you constantly have to confront all of this stuff that you have been dealing with.

I asked her friend to help her with the Bible April told me she had been given by her. I said take her through Matthew, Mark, Luke, John, answer whatever questions she has. I asked April to look at it objectively and that the truth would reveal itself.

I recommended a book she should read that speaks to people exactly where she is. I even gave her friend the money to buy it and they went to the book store to look for it.

I know without having been there to personally observe this hour long conversation, parts of the story don’t make sense, like me buying a book, but know that God is doing something in April’s life and she needs a lot of prayer for Him to do what He is trying to do. It was an amazing experience and even though the trip isn’t over, I feel it was that exact encounter that God brought me here to have.

Our Russian friends took in all of this in amazement and went away with a better understanding of how to interact with people. I told them they had free reign when it came to speaking with Russians because no one else would know what was being said anyway. They laughed and were happy with that freedom.

If you have read this far, thank you! Please pray for April and the two Christian friends God has placed in her life. Keep the team in your prayers and for the opportunities we have yet to experience.

Let's get it started

2010-02-13T01:58:00.001-05:00

We enjoyed watching the Olympic flame a couple of times yesterday. We got a break from orientation to watch it come by and then we attended a lighting ceremony in Vancouver where it spent the night. Today it will make its way to Olympic Stadium and light the cauldron during the Opening Ceremony. Vancouver is excited and ready for their moment in the spotlight.

We headed out from Delta this morning and made our way over to Granville Island and had fish and chips for lunch. After that experience we headed over to work in the Granville Station area.

We worked passing out coffee and hot chocolate to passers-by and served over 280 cups. Most people were very appreciative and interested in what we were doing and some were skeptical that anyone would give something for free. One person even commented that we shouldn't be giving away items to people who can afford to come to the Olympics. Some people saw our Salvation Army decals and thought the beverages were only for the homeless. Needless to say, there are plenty of opinions and people are glad to share them.

The team is doing a great job adjusting to the time change and has really been flexible. We are having a lot of fun serving together. We are expecting to interact with a lot of people over the weekend, so please pray for us and the opportunities that will be all around.

I hope you watched the Opening Ceremony. We saw some of it, but were travelling back to the church during the cauldron lighting. Tell us what you thought of it!

We learned late in the afternoon that SC had gotten a great snowfall. We're jealous! There is no snow in Vancouver.

Welcome to Canada

2010-02-11T12:38:00.002-05:00

We arrived in Vancouver at 11:45 PST and headed to customs. The rest of the team made it through fairly easily. My boarder agent however, felt like playing 20 questions. It started out simply enough.

"Why are you coming to Vancouver?" For the Olympics.

"What else?" Well, we were invited by some of the local churches to do some volunteer work.

"What do you mean?" We're going to be working at hospitality stations passing out water, coffee and information to visitors. This is where it got fun.

"Ok. Are you receiving any kind of benefit for your work like housing or monetary gain?" No, it cost me money to come here.

"Where do you work back home?" I'm a minister at a church.

"What church" Lee Road Baptist

"Is that just a Baptist church or Southern Baptist?" Yes, it's Southern Baptist. (At this point I'm thinking who is this guy and why does he know the difference between Baptist divisions?)

"So, are you an official volunteer?" We're not VANOC (Vancouver Olympic Committee) official, but we're with More than Gold, which has partnered with VANOC to help provide hospitality service during the games. After that, he looked at me a few seconds longer and finally stamped my passport and welcomed me to Canada.

We picked up our luggage and then took the train to the parking lot where our transportation was waiting to take us to Royal Heights Baptist Church. Things only got more interesting once we arrived as we were informed of the schedule for showers: men in the evening, ladies in the morning. Since it was evening, the men went ahead a showered and then settled into the cold, cold room and tried to sleep on the air mattresses. The church operates a preschool during the school year. Thus, some of the rooms they thought were available for volunteers to sleep in were not available.

We met with the team from Colorado for a devotional and prayer time this morning. We have orientation from 1:00 to 8:00 this evening and start work tomorrow. I'll let you know how it goes.

Thank you!

2010-02-10T11:03:00.000-05:00

Well, February 10 has arrived. Team 1 departs for Charlotte at 11:30 so while I wait for the team to arrive, I thought I would send out some "thank yous."

A lot goes into mission trips and while the people going get a lot of the attention; there is a huge supporting cast that makes it possible. So to the SCBC that said, let’s get involved in this opportunity and for helping us put teams together, thank you.

To the churches represented by the various team members; your prayers, support and encouragement are a vital part of making this trip a possibility, thank you.

To the families represented by the team members; for allowing us the time to be away, for understanding why we are going, and for your continuous love, prayers, and encouragement, thank you.

And most of all, we thank God for allowing us to be a part of His plan to tell people of His great love. He is the reason we go!

So close

2010-02-07T23:13:00.003-05:00

As I watched the half time show of Super Bowl XLIV (Congrats Who Dat!) the lights and lasers got me thinking about how close we are to the Opening Ceremony for the 2010 Winter Olympics. Less than two years ago our Beijing team stood in the midst of close to a million people watching in amazement the fulfillment of all the planning and artistry the Chinese poured into their spotlight moment. I began wondering then if any future host country would be able to present a more spectacular Opening Ceremony than that. We'll find out Friday.

I got to thinking about the story we hope to share with people while we're in Vancouver. As Jesus' story plays out in my mind I often think about how He came into the world. The details leading up to His arrival are incredible, but I find myself lingering on the part where His birth is heralded. The angels and heavenly host, the shepherds, the star, The Baby. And we think we've witnessed some amazing celebrations!

Next I think about the setting that created the mood at Calvary as Jesus died on the cross. The darkness, the earth shaking violently, the tears, the fear, the blood, the tomb. Wouldn't you love to hear some of the people who were there tell their stories in person? To be able to close your eyes and picture the stone rolling away from the tomb. To see the frozen guards and the folded grave clothes. To watch the reaction of the disciples as the risen Jesus appears to them. Now think about what it was like in heaven during that time! And humans think we can create the wow factor with fireworks and lights!

While none of us can give eye-witness accounts of Jesus' birth, death or resurrection, we can give accounts of what those events mean in our lives. When God rolled the stone away, all mankind was invited to the greatest Opening Ceremony of all time. We were invited to no longer be spectators, but participants in the celebration. It's my prayer that as we watch the fanfare of the Olympics unfold before us on February 12, that we would be reminded of the great privilege we have been given to share the love of Christ and invite others to join the celebration.

Down to the wire

2010-02-04T11:33:00.003-05:00

Our first team leaves for Vancouver next Wednesday, February 10! The time between when we started visioning for the trip and when we leave has flown by. We'll be housed at a church in Delta, BC with a team that is driving in from Colorado. The 40 of us will share two showers and sleep on air mattresses, lest anyone be concerned we're being spoiled while we're away!

The weather in Upstate SC has prepared us for the upper 40s and rainy days of Vancouver. We have been told to expect to walk a lot and be prepared to be outside for long ours. We will primarily be working at greeting stations that have been setup throughout the city. Our job will be to pass out information and welcome packets along with coffee and water. Our prayer is that we'll have many great opportunities to to have meaningful conversations.

The beauty of the Olympics is its ability to bring together a very diverse group of people from around the world. Regardless of the location of the host city, Olympic ministry always takes on an international feeling because the world literally comes to that one place. We look forward to sharing stories with you about the people we meet and where they are from.

Please keep all of the volunteers in your prayers as well as the people we'll meet. Pray for Vancouver and the great work God can do.

Six days...

One Month!

2010-01-12T13:30:00.002-05:00

One month from today the capital of the sports world will be located in Vancouver, British Columbia as the 2010 Winter Olympics are kicked off on February 12. The South Carolina Baptist Convention is sending two teams of volunteers to Vancouver to assist in projects such as working at hospitality stations passing out water, coffee and information, along with working at concerts and other events.

Team One leaves on February 10 and will return on February 19 after being relieved by Team Two on February 18. Please continue to pray for the team members as we prepare to go. Pray for safe travel and the people we will meet along the way. Pray for God to use the Olympics in a major way to show people His love for them.

Be sure to check the blog often, especially after February 10 as blog updates will swing into high gear with information about what is taking place. Feel free to post questions or comments and we'll work hard to answer you and keep you informed.

The Torch Is Lit

2009-10-22T11:35:00.005-04:00

The flame for the Winter Olympics in 2010 was lit in Ancient Olympia, Greece today. It will make its way to Canada for the torch relay and its ultimate destination: Vancouver. Vancouver Organizing Committee CEO John Furlong commented, "More than just a sporting event, the Games offer us a unique moment to serve the cause of humanity and celebrate the human spirit." While the symbolism of the Olympics often focuses on the human aspect, Olympic Ministry provides the opportunity to share the love of Christ with people and the gift He offers, which is greater than physical ability and worth More Than Gold.

In 111 days the first Olympic Ministry teams will make their way to Vancouver. Be in prayer for the teams as they prepare and for the people they will meet. As the flame reaches the Olympic cauldron during the opening ceremony, pray that the love of God will spread through the land and that people will have a life-changing encounter with the Light of the World: Jesus Christ.

"You are the light of the world. A city on a hill cannot be hidden. Nor do people light a lamp and put it under a basket, but on a stand, and it gives light to all in the house. In the same way, let your light shine before others, so that they may see your good works and give glory to your Father who is in heaven." Matthew 5:14-16

And the winner is...

2009-10-02T22:13:00.002-04:00

Rio de Janeiro! While Chicago will have to wait for their chance to bid for the 2020 Summer Games, a US city could make things interesting by throwing their hat in for the 2018 Winter Olympics. Any city would have to decide quickly as the deadline is October 15. A few US cities were considering bids, but the USOC decided to focus on Chicago's bid and delay and Winter Games bid until 2022, but anything can happen.

Cities that we know will bid for 2018 are Pyeongchang, South Korea, Munich, Germany, and Annecy, France with Harbin, China strongly considering and even beginning to build venues to strengthen a bid. We'll have to wait until July 6, 2011 to find out!

In more relevant news:

Whistler has enjoyed its first snowfall, white gold as they call it. The scenery is going to be beautiful. We are about 130 days from the first team's departure for Vancouver. A little over four months until people will be intentional about sharing and showing the love of Jesus with the volunteers, athletes and spectators attending the 2010 Winter Olympics.

A little closer

2009-09-29T13:03:00.002-04:00

Three teams of Olympic volunteers from South Carolina met in Columbia on Saturday, September 26, to prepare for the upcoming games in Vancouver. After an overview of the ministry opportunities in the Vancouver area, we looked at creative ministry ideas that teams can use such as face painting, ballooning, and the ever popular pin trading that is always a hit at the Olympics. The importance of building relationships with the people we meet was also stressed. Interacting with and responding to people with respect goes a long way.

In other Olympic news:

While we know the locations of the next three Olympics, (Vancouver 2010, London 2012, Sochi 2014) the Summer Games of 2016 are yet to be decided and that is cause for excitement because our very own US city of Chicago, Illinois is one of four finalists (Madrid, Spain, Tokyo, Japan, and Rio de Janeiro, Brazil are the others) in the bid process. There is a large delegation going to Copenhagen this week to lobby for votes from IOC members. Landing the 2016 Olympics would be a huge accomplishment for the United States and would open up limitless opportunities for Olympic ministry. If Chicago secures the bid, it will be an unprecedented fifth time the United Sates has hosted the Summer Olympics and ninth time overall (four Winter Olympics). The announcement of the winning host city will take place this week! Regardless of location though, be in prayer for what God wants to do with Olympic ministry. No matter where the games are, we still have the opportunity to tell people about something that is worth far more than gold, and that is a relationship with Jesus.

Great News from Vancouver

2009-07-06T14:58:00.002-04:00

Here is another update from Janet in Vancouver:

Hi again everyone,

I know I just sent out our update yesterday, but I just had to share this as well (see below). I got it this afternoon from Bob Kraemer, the Director of Operations for More Than Gold.

Someone in the More Than Gold network knew someone who invited More Than Gold, on fairly short notice, to participate in a Canada Day parade in downtown Vancouver. The leaders of our Creative and Performing Arts group, Russ and Sandy Rosen, put together a float, live music and dance, and it was a huge hit with the crowd. God gave them great favour with the crowd and the organizers. This is a huge encouragement and blessing to us all! Pray that God continues to open doors like this.

Janet

Friends,

This is a brief report on the Canada Day Parade where More Than Gold was given the anchor position. Between 4:30 and 6:30 pm our volunteers arrived and became oriented to what would go on. The team of volunteers was led by our Creative and Performing Arts [CaPA] Working Group leaders Russ and Sandy Rosen. We were fortunate to be given a marshalling position on Georgia Street at Nicola which was the starting point of the parade. So we were able to watch other entries, which had assembled on side streets, march by our position and then we fell in behind the last one to begin our march up Georgia to Thurlow and down Thurlow several blocks toward Canada Place ending on West Pender.

So what did it look like?
Three volunteers led the MTG entry carrying a banner with our snowflake logo and the words More Than Gold – Radical Hospitality. Next came a group of dancers led by Sandy; then a vintage red truck carrying our drummer, sound system and fiddle player, surrounded by four string musicians led by Russ who also led the vocals. Following in behind were approximately 80 volunteers clad in white T-shirts with a big bold More Than Gold logo..

So what happened?
As Russ and the group performed a rotation of 3 lively songs with clear Christian lyrics, including the prominent repetition in one of the joyful expression Hallelujah, the rest of us walked, danced and smiled our way along while handing out 2,000 small cards with our identification and how to say hello to people in 12 languages.

As we passed the last point for other entries to join the parade, Russ invited people to join in behind us and in front of several police motorcycles which marked the end of the parade. The reaction was phenomenal as hundreds of people joined in the dancing and singing and just had a great time celebrating. From the halfway point on, Bob fell back to a position where there were at least 300 people between he and the truck and took a look at literally thousands on the sides of the streets who were enthusiastically entering into our celebration. Karen was in the front – inviting people to join in the circle dances. When Russ would reach key climax points in the songs, people, unrelated to MTG, would jump in the air and wave small flags and their exuberance was infectious.

We thought, what a great picture of what we are trying to accomplish through More Than Gold. To have a group of Christians visible in celebration of our relationship with God and allow others to experience our joy and enter into God’s party… so their lives can be impacted with His love!

How did it end?
We came to the dispersal point and the crowd wanted us to do more. We really didn’t have permission to carry on, so we did one more verse with the truck parked at the curb on West Pender and then led in O Canada. The crowd gave us an appreciative round of applause and we eventually went on our own ways. One of the organizers told us, “what a great way to end the parade!”. Another said it was the highlight. One of the many asked, “What is More Than Gold all about?” As it was explained, she said, “oh, so the Christians are banding together for this hospitality, eh? That’s great!”

Vancouver Update

2009-06-03T14:52:00.003-04:00

Here is the latest from the MTG office in Vancouver. What do you think of their definition of hot?

Greetings from Vancouver!
We always tell visitors to be prepared for rain, but this week is sunny and hot! “Hot” here is anything above about 25 degrees Celsius (about 77 F). Schools get out at the end of June, but it feels like summer is pretty much here already. That means we have only 2 seasons before winter and the Olympics/Paralympics! We are working hard to get ready.

General Update
More Than Gold meetings continue to keep us both busy and driving all over the city. Yesterday we were both at the Hospitality Working Group meeting held at the Salvation Army Headquarters, and today Janet attended the Resources Working Group, held at Campus for Christ. Tomorrow, we have the Executive Committee, which includes the leaders of each Working Group plus all of the denominational representatives. There are now 15 denominations participating in More Than Gold, plus several major organizations. It is exciting to be part of the larger Body of Christ – to come together for a common purpose at such a strategic time as this! The overall leader of More Than Gold is emphasizing that we want to be known to the watching world in 2010 for our “radical hospitality” – extending the love and welcome of Jesus to all.
In May, we both participated in 5 evening meetings designed to introduce More Than Gold to even more local churches in various parts of Metro Vancouver. The vision and excitement is spreading. The finances are not keeping pace, so please join us in praying that critical needs will be met. As far as we can tell, this is not due to the recession, but rather local people with the means to give are holding back until they see sufficient “buy-in at the grassroots level” – which IS happening, so please pray that they may see it and be led to give.

Resources
The website (www.morethangold.ca) is still being revamped – the process has been much slower than anticipated – so the online store for ordering the witnessing pins and clothing and literature that we have been telling you about is not yet open. “Any day now…” Baptist churches and mission teams wishing to reserve quantities of pins, pocket guides, jackets, umbrellas, etc. can pre-order them (even an approximate quantity will do for now) by simply sending an email to either of us, and we will make sure you are the first to get your items officially ordered when the online store does open. Janet can email you a draft order form (prices might still be subject to change) upon request.

Hospitality Bags
(Welcome Kits for visitors/Care Kits for people who are homeless)
Kevin has a mission team from Mississippi serving with his church this week. Yesterday, he managed to “borrow” some of them to help us clean up and move furniture at our office to prepare space to store all of those items we are expecting in the mail. We are asking people all across North America to donate items for the bags, including travel-size packs of tissue, hand wipes, band-aids, lotion, etc. Please email or phone Kevin if you have not received the complete list and the suggested timeline for mailing items. Even though we suggested some of them be sent in May, it really is fine for you to send those items as you are able. Our goal is 28,000 bags!
Our estimate for each bag’s cost/value is $10, so if your church or group would find it more convenient to send funds for a certain number of bags, rather than actual items, we would gladly receive those funds. (Checks made out to More Than Gold, please.)
There is currently some talk of preparing special gifts for military personnel who will be brought in to provide security during the Games. More on that when we know more.

Mission Teams
Southern Baptists have been the first to send in mission team applications. We currently have about 150 volunteers who have applied to come. Kevin has taken on the job of receiving and filing forms, entering info into a database, and getting registration fees in to the More Than Gold office. An acceptance/information package will be emailed to each team leader as soon as it is ready. Every time the Mission Teams Working Group thinks we are ready with a document, it seems there is something that needs to be changed, corrected, added, etc. as we try to anticipate questions and answer them. Thank you for your on-going patience!

Please continue to pray for us, for wisdom, strength, energy, good use of resources and time, and anything else the Lord brings to mind (drop us a line and let us know of those items!). Thank you!

Three teams - One purpose

2009-05-23T16:18:00.003-04:00

The SC Baptist Convention is sending three teams to Vancouver. I am leading one of those teams to Vancouver in February 2010. It will be my second visit, though my first for Olympic ministry. I have sent out packets to a number of people who expressed interest and some that I invited to go with us. I am very interested in the chaplaincy part. Hopefully we can get the training they require-if not, then whatever ministry is needed! I live in Lexington, SC and go to Willow Ridge church. There may be a few team members from WR. Praying about who God will lead to join our teams!

Registration has started

2009-05-14T14:30:00.004-04:00

A lot has taken place since the last post, including NBC running the first commercial for the 2010 Olympics. Talk about a head start! Information packets have been prepared and you can download the file by going to the SCBC Website.

Your information will be sent to the appropriate team leader once the packet is returned.

Meanwhile, here are some prayer requests from our MTG contact in Vancouver:

• More housing for volunteers to become available in both Vancouver and
Whistler.
• Openness by VANOC leaders to utilize More Than Gold volunteers and resources.
• Local churches to step forward and commit to involvement.
• Success of five regional church involvement meetings taking place over the
next two weeks.
• Continuation of the spirit of unity and cooperation between the Christian
community in Vancouver and Whistler.

They also sent this picture to get us excited about the mission project:

An evening view of False Creek, the Burrard Street Bridge, and English Bay

Real Life Training

2009-03-04T12:02:00.003-05:00

The meeting scheduled for March 2 at the South Carolina Baptist Convention was held and we discussed alot. At first, I was not sure if I would make it because of the six inches of snow that fell on March 1. I considered it real life training for driving at the Winter Olympics and hit the road to Columbia.

The meeting was productive as we outlined team sizes and deadlines for applications as well as expectations for team members. We will really start recruiting team members beginning in April with teams limited to 15 members each.

As we work on the trip details, please continue to be in prayer as to your role in Vancouver in 2010.

First Meeting Planned

2009-02-19T16:02:00.002-05:00

We are going to have our first meeting at the South Carolina Baptist Convention building on March 2. The three team leaders will sit down and talk about what our ministry approach will be as a team and look at dates for getting things rolling.

If you were to look at the state in three sections, the Upstate, Midlands, and Lowlands or Coast, are covered by the three team leaders. As we meet, we will find out if there is a need for more than that, which would be a good thing.

More Than Gold in Vancouver is expecting a big response so they have bumped the application deadline date from November 1 to June 1 so they will be able to accommodate everyone. That is also a good problem, but also speeds things up quite a bit! We have to talk about dates for a pre-trip to Vancouver as well as start building our teams who have to apply with MTG and then start training for the event. All of this on top of regular church events like mission trips and VBS with less than a year to go!

We are "Twitter"pated

2009-02-10T16:10:00.002-05:00

If you have never seen Walt Disney's "Bambi," then the title makes no sense. In hopes of being able to better update you on what is going on with preparations for the 2010 Vancouver Games, I will be using twitter, yet another amazing technological creation like blogging, to keep you up to date.

You can go to twitter.com to set up your own account and follow me! After you join, go to twitter.com/BryanPittman and click "Follow." This is a great way to send and receive quick updates or "tweets" so you know the latest that is taking place.

On the Olympic front, we will hit the one year mark this week! February 12 will start the countdown and I am sure it will fly by. We will have plenty of leadership and team meetings as well as a pre-trip to Vancouver in late summer. MTG has launched their Web site; www.morethangold.ca and you can what they have planned, what they hope to do and what is coming up next as the Games draw closer.

Plans are underway

2009-02-05T15:51:00.001-05:00

With just over a year to go before Vancouver and Whistler open their arms to the world, plans are well underway to take teams from South Carolina, and elsewhere, to help with ministry opportunities naturally created by the Olympics. As with previous Olympic ministry events, you can check here for the latest information on what is taking place to make it happen.

I am excited about this blog because unlike the Beijing blog, I can give you full details as to where we will be going and what we will be doing without having to work to remain anonymous or avoid typing anything that would draw attention from the Web watchers we were warned about in Beijing.

So what is taking place a year out? Lots of ground work. The South Carolina Baptist Convention is laying the foundation to equip team leaders and team members who have a passion for Olympic ministry. While the SCBC is the local body we are working through, we will fall under the direction of More Than Gold or MTG.

MTG is an amazing organization that formed several years ago with their trademark snowflake logo. The idea was to minister to people at sporting events in an effective way. The rest is history as MTG has been a huge influence in many Olympics since 1996. They work to build relationships with the local organizing committees which allows for a better working environment when it comes time for teams to arrive.

Over the next weeks and months, I will be laying the ground work for this blog so you will have an idea of what our Olympic ministry will look like in Vancouver and Whistler, British Columbia, Canada.