Worship Team Update
"Where Are They Now?"— by Lindsey Webster
Urbana 2000 was unique to past Urbanas in many ways. One of the most noticeable ways was the addition of the worship team. This year's team, which was made up of four college students and one recent grad, joined together for 365 days of worship. Led by Matt and Sundee Frazier, the team devoted one year to becoming a living example of racial reconciliation and community, climaxing their experience with their participation in Urbana 2000. This marked the first time an Urbana worship team had been together on a long-term basis and the first time it included students.
I have had the privilege of calling the members of the team my friends. This year I saw them work though difficult issues, grow together, get angry, improve their technical music skills and ultimately come to see the image of God reflected in one another. The experience of watching these students I had grown to love be used so mightily by God in such a public arena is one I will ponder in my heart and retrieve every time I am reminded of this year's Urbana.
Since the convention, God has led the team members to new opportunities for growth and ministry. In their own words each member of the team describes what they have been up to since Urbana . . .
-
Lindsey Webster
Urbana 2000 team member
"Where Are They Now?"
Achlai Ernest
Scott Hayes
Helyn Luisi
Grace Liao
Stefphan Worrell
Sundee Frazier
Matt Frazier
Achlai
Ernest
New
horizons have been neatly paved for me as I continue to serve God in full
time ministry. I will be spending the next 7 months in Madison working
with the Nehemiah Community Development Corporation, an urban mission
ministry. The Corporation was founded and is presided over by Rev. Alex
Gee, whom some of you may remember as Urbana 2000's Prayer Director. I
am also assisting in the Academic Center for Excellence summer programming
development in collaboration with other local church leaders. I continue
to be under the umbrella of Inter-Varsity Christian Fellowship of Canada.
Scott
Hayes
I
am currently in my final semester of college in Mankato, Minnesota. Graduation
has been a long time coming and I am greatly anticipating the end of my
school career! I am currently looking for an entry-level engineering position
in the Davenport, Iowa, area. I'm hoping to relocate there to be near
a good friend who shares the same vision for musical ministry that I do.
Our goal is to begin writing and performing together as soon as we can.
Together we will focus on creating music with challenging and encouraging
lyrics for Christians and non-believers. Hopefully we may soon be playing
at a campus near you! If that plan falls through I would like to relocate
to the nearest set of mountains! Wherever I end up, I desire to continue
to be involved in cross-cultural ministry and continue to serve God with
my musical gifts.
Helyn
Luisi
What
does one do after a year of regimen devoted to music, worship, and cross-cultural
exchanges? That's what I've been trying to figure out since the end of
January. I've had the opportunity to be at home with my family in Miami
working at a restaurant where cultures are definitely clashing and my
worship lifestyle is definitely challenged. Currently I'm working to
save
money for my last semester of college in the fall. I am working in a
restaurant where there are Hispanics, French Creole, Anglo Americans,
African Americans,
high school drop outs, college students, people on jail work release
programs, single moms, a pastor, Christians and non Christians and some
in between,
and four managers (they have their own culture and sub group; the boss
group:) God used the Urbana internship to teach me about life and what
it means to serve Him as a lifestyle of worship. Working outside of a "holy huddle" has been an experience in which I can daily apply
the values I learned from the year and at Urbana 2000. I can see God answering
my prayers at work and at home. When the fall semester begins and I finally
graduate, what I "do" when I grow up, and what I'm "doing" as
I grow up will hopefully be a lot of what I did on the worship team,
and what I'm doing now - 365 Days of Worship.
Grace
Liao
For
now I have moved back to Ohio and I am enjoying some vacation time. I
plan to serve as volunteer staff with the Ohio-State University IV chapter
during spring term. This fall, I will be moving to L. A. and attending
physical therapy school at University of Southern California for the next
three years, God willing. I hope to continue to play the violin for God's
glory wherever I am led.
Stefphan
Worrell
Since
Urbana, God has led me back to school to pick up where I left off before
taking the year internship. I am currently enrolled at Cornerstone University
in Grand Rapids, Michigan. This semester the transition has been good
and the classes I am taking I relate better to and am getting good marks
in them. For the time being I have put aside drumming. I miss it and I
am looking forward to the summer time when I can get back to what I love,
drumming.
Sundee
Frazier
Two
days after Urbana 2000 I flew to Los Angeles with Matt to soak in some
warmth and enjoy a little rest. After returning to Madison and replying
to all of the kind emails from Urbana delegates, I started a five week
leave of absence that Barney Ford and I had agreed I would take after
Urbana. During this time I pursued my passion -- writing. I finished
a
book that I've been working on for a couple years -- a primer on ethnic
identity issues for multiracial people. The book will be released early
in 2002 by InterVarsity Press under the title "Check All That Apply:
Finding Wholeness as a Multiracial Person." I also started my second
novel for adolescents. I went back to LA to speak at a conference for
multiracial students and then I flew to North Carolina for IV's national
Black staff development conference where I had the pleasure of leading
worship once again. It's been a full time of creating, teaching, learning
and recuperating. Now on to deciding what's next . . .
Matt
Frazier
I
have spent the vast majority of my waking hours finishing the audio mixing
and other details for the Live CD from Urbana. I have also been responding
to emails from Urbana 2000 delegates eager to learn more about music and
worship. In my spare time I've been putting the finishing touches on my
own web site and debut solo recording of deep and provocative songs (www.taimusic.com).
Sundee and I have also been planning for a Spring vacation in Italy by
booking hotels on the internet and taking an introductory Italian course
through a local university.
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