Christian Be-Leaf-ers!

Courtesy of this page.

Looking Back Part 2: On Life at True North Records

Hey everybody, this is an article that I wrote for a small publication about a year ago and I thought I'd share it here. I hope you enjoy it.

God has given me a lot of experiences in my life in my nearly 24 years on this earth. From band trips to Montreal, Vancouver and Ottawa to great youth conferences in Toronto and Niagara Falls. From awesome places like summer camp to a mission trip to Mexico. Oh yes, I've been inside the CBC building, CTV Agincourt, MTV Canada and CTS Burlington.

I have Community Living to thank for the fact that I am currently employed at a Canadian record label. That's my foot in the door for future opportunities. My internship at CTS did the same. I'm not exactly sure what my future holds, but I know that I have been given a unique opportunity to bless the community that I am a part of at work and outside of it.

True North Records is an ordinary workplace with some extraordinary experiences. I recently had my picture taken with Bruce Cockburn's latest JUNO award win. I don't think many people can say that they have held a JUNO award before nor can they say that they have attended the JUNO Awards. I've also had the privilege to meet some really neat artists like Murray McLauchlan and Gowan (in addition to Manafest who is not on the label). Not to mention that I’ve made some really neat connections in the music industry. Not that it makes me more special, because I'm not the only person to have multiple extraordinary experiences that help shape me as a person. But I didn't ask for this. I didn't see this possibility when I graduated college. The chance of this experience was given to me and I chose to take it. For that, I am grateful.

About a year and three months ago my case worker told me that she had been made aware of a job opportunity for me that involved music. True North Records had approached CLB saying they had a job opening and they hoped CLB could recommend a potential employee; CLB had thought that I was that potential employee. Now my first choice career was for a television/video related environment but at this point I was not about to complain. So we went to the interview (a rather casual one) and I got the job...before the interview started. I was happy. My mom was happy...when I told her. My case worker was very happy! I'm not sure even she thought Community Living would actually be of help to my situation in searching for a media related job. But it happened and it made lots of people happy. Getting this job meant a lot to me and those around me. It’s no secret that having a job provides a huge boost to one’s self-esteem.

The job that I got at True North Records was a position working in the warehouse shipping and receiving product (mostly CDs and DVDs) as well as keeping it organized. My first impression of the job was that it was a great entry level position because I knew that most media related companies start new people at basic positions so that the company can get used to the person and the person can gain their trust. I had no problem with that because I was prepared for it. What I wasn't prepared for was the fact that I turned out to be a lot better than most of the people who worked the position before - at least the shipping part anyway. This fact was really good because not only did my excellence and precision in handling consumer orders conform well to any good company's expectations but they also conformed to my Christian values. The people were also really good to work with and they have helped me out a lot.

At the end of my first week I got invited to go to a Bruce Cockburn concert... for free! Yep, that's right, the perks started one week in. It was a fun night and I learned a lot about Bruce Cockburn; specifically that he wrote one of my favourite Barenaked Ladies songs - “Lovers in a Dangerous Time.” Over the last year, I have learned even more about the Canadian music industry: Where it's been, where it is, and where it's going.

Then there is my JUNO Awards experience. I went with our entire office as we were offered the chance to go at a discounted price. There was a lot of fun had and the nights were late. We went to the welcome ceremony, the Awards Gala (where most of the awards were handed out), and the actual Awards ceremony where the more popular awards were given out as well as major performances. I got to see Blue Rodeo, one of my family's favourite bands, perform live and receive special recognition for their achievements in Canadian music. That moment was a special for me and one of my favourite moments of the trip. I met a lot of neat people and I got to see Captain Kirk himself, William Shatner, in person. That was just cool. My friends might have been a little jealous.

I think it's needless to say that the last year and a half has had real special moments for me in my life as I did not expect any of them. They just showed up and I took advantage of the opportunity. My life has since been changed for the better as I now also have a better idea of what I want in life and I have a clearer picture to model my life after, whether it happens at True North Records or elsewhere.

What can someone expect to take from this piece? I would hope that someone who reads this and is inspired by it learns to take any opportunity given to them wherever possible and squeeze out whatever experience that they can gain from it. I don't just mean the special experiences, but the mundane ones as well because that's where I received the clearer picture on how I want my life to be run according to God's purpose. Although I am not sure of what my long term future looks like, I know that if I let God lead me and guide me, I’m going to add to my life experiences and hopefully improve my quality of life as well as that of others.

Learning from Joseph

But Joseph replied, “Don’t be afraid of me. Am I God, that I can punish you? You intended to harm me, but God intended it all for good. He brought me to this position so I could save the lives of many people. No, don’t be afraid. I will continue to take care of you and your children.” So he reassured them by speaking kindly to them.
- Genesis 50:19-21 (NLT)

Joseph said this to his brothers. They plotted to kill him, sold him into slavery to end up thrown in jail for a crime that he was not guilty of. And when the time came, he forgave them. Can we do the same to those who have wronged us, intending to destroy us? It's not easy to do and it can feel like we're letting them off the hook completely.

And when God says that it is His responsibility to avenge those who do wrong to His children, we do not always trust Him to do that because we believe His concept of vengeance is very different from ours and He never acts on it when we might like Him to. However if we find the courage to let go and forgive (sometimes we need to ask God for it... multiple times) then the enemy (and consequently the person who wronged us) has no power over us, which can be very freeing if we let it free us.

The anger and shame doesn't have to rule over us. Somehow Joseph understood that. Somehow over the many years he spent in slavery and prison he found the strength to forgive those who wronged him and let God handle the situation. And he was rewarded for his faith.

It takes time. But over time we must learn to forgive. Anger poisons our minds and hardens our hearts. And we were never meant to live with anger eating away at our souls because it will kill us- literally.

I realize that people who have read this may have been hurt, recently or in years past. And that hurt covers a whole spectrum of things from broken promises to criminal acts. If you haven't already, (because some people are better at this than the rest of us) I urge you to at least look for the courage and the strength to forgive. And if justice needs to be done then seek it and let it be done. But if reconciliation can be found then there is a powerful healing that comes from God when we share the mercy that He's granted us once we've reconciled with Him.

I hope this finds all of you well. May you be at peace as we remember that Jesus has the last word. And that word could very well be resurrection. God bless you all.

and forgive us our sins, as we have forgiven those who sin against us. - Matthew 6:12

So THAT'S what it was...

Good Morning Everybody!

For the Soccer fans

Parties and Baptisms

I liked this weekend. For the last 9 years the first weekend of February has been truly special. Most of it has been because of the Snowflake youth retreat that always happens at this time. The last 6 years have also held an anniversary service for 24/7 Church and then a Super Bowl party right after.

It's really one of the best weekends of the year for me because I do something every day of it and it's a lot of fun. This year it was a bit different. I haven't attended Snowflake in 2 or 3 years now but something still happened on Saturday.

Friday I just rested at home. I had the option to do something if I wanted to, I just chose not to because I had already been doing something every other day during the week and I was tired. I also had to get up at 7am the next morning. I know, that's not horrible but I rarely wake up early on Saturday mornings. So I just went home after work and I just rested.

Saturday I went to a men's event at 24/7. Basically we watched a bunch of videos on what men need to be (according to the Bible... more on that at a later time) and talked about them in small groups.

In basic, they were talking about how men have become fairly quiet when it comes to properly balancing all life's parts together. I know this to be true. I have experienced it and I have seen it in other people. Our family and work lives have been blurred together and each part is demanding more time. How do we work with that? How do we deal with it well when we try to please everybody?

The videos gave some answers and left a few more things open (to be expected since it was a preview of a longer series). But it generally handled what a man is supposed to be very well. Although I'm expecting that my life will be a bit different than what the men in the videos were trying to portray (again, a topic for later). Overall it was informative and well done in its purpose. My criticism is that I didn't learn much; in fact it seemed to reinforce everything I already knew about what a man should be.

On Sunday, we had our anniversary service. It was great! The turnout was great. Four people were baptized! There was still a Super Bowl party and that was a lot of fun. I learned that my flip phone is now considered ancient among high school students... which is probably why I don't use it. I got to hang out with people I know and laugh at the special commercials with them.

All in all, it turned out to be a really good weekend. Perhaps it wasn't like a former high school weekend with a youth conference in Niagara Falls but it was still a lot of fun and a lot of good things happened that reflected what life has been like for the last year... or at least the last few months.

It gave me a greater appreciation of the smaller week-to-week experiences that I go through because without those small moments, the big moments aren't very big at all. This weekend throughout the next many years will probably maintain the significance whether I'm busy or not.

May you see the mundane things in life with a better appreciation for what they give you when you give to them. God bless all of you and have a great week.