Reflection on Ignition

Ignition was such an enjoyable, refreshing yet challenging experience for me personally! I was involved with the committee team helping out with the volunteer coordination. Seeing how awesome the actual four day gathering was, I feel that all the hardwork was worth it!

There were a number of artists and art expressions being shared and used as forms of worship during Ignition: dance, drama, music, story telling, poetry, visual arts, multi-media, stand-up comedy & anime etc. The professional standard productions on Friday and Saturday nights were really interesting and thought-provoking too!

During the 'Interactive Worship Experience' in the mornings, I really encountered God and experienced an awesome rhythm of worshiping together with other Christian artists corporately. The main idea through the book of Jeremiah 'I have chosen you, and before I formed you I knew you. I appointed you as a prophet to the nations' was very powerful. We were told to be alert to the other pictures God gave us in our lives.

And then there were times of fantastic worship through singing, dancing, flag & banner waving, painting, even a 'foot painting' experience, moving of 'rocks' to the foot of the 'cross' as a symbol of letting go and communion lunch. It was a great time of linking up with like-minded and like-hearted people in a safe place, networking, healing and sharing. My relationship with God was deepened and I believe a great sence of unity to engage the Australian community in a contemporary and relevant manner was achieved.

I've also learned about the importance of "Space". Each day throughout this gathering, I've had space with God, space with other artists, space to reflect on essential issues, space to move and to be still, space to heal, and space to get some learning - which I am very thankful for.

I attended the biblical story-telling and poetry worshops, and found that being a story-teller and a poet both require one important quality - 'being able to SEE and let the audience / reader SEE as well.' I learned that artists are servants of the audience, and story-teller should not be the focus, but the STORY itself. I was very touched by the concept! I also discovered that 'capturing' a moment is significant in poetry as in other art forms. Speaking of capturing moments, I've taken heaps of photos during the event, and felt like the photo taking was a way of me worshiping the Almighty God, the most incredible spring of living water.

Like nick said so beautifully, "I'm still buzzing from this weekend - the manifest presense of God the entire weekend was amazing. I spent most of the worship session yesterday in tears - but that's a good thing! eep. *buzz* " Good on ya Nick :)