268Blog

Saturday, May 31, 2008

The Wave Is Growing!














I could literally write for a week and not fully capture the scope of what happened here in Kampala today. But sadly, we are all both blown away and exhausted after being at the field all day and night, so this picture will have to tell the story for us tonight. Not to be outdone by their "new" Brazilian friends (we opened last night with a video clip of Passion Sao Paulo's ending last Saturday and the students chanting "Kampala, Kampala!"), tonight this poster appeared in the middle of a crowd of somewhere near 20,000 people when we talked about out next stop Tuesday night in France! We were floored!! It was a powerful ending to a weekend that has left us speechless. The students here have sunk their hearts into Isaiah 26:8, and now join the growing wave of students all over the world who want to live for His renown. Hearing them chat "Pair-ees, Pair-ees" in their beautiful Ugandan accent, and watching them give what some believe is the first ever offering by African students for people in a place like Paris, was crazy...and just like the Kingdom of God in that it turned everything upside down.

God was with us as we worshipped (more on this to come) and I shared the Indescribable message under the night sky (the damaged LED wall worked for the first time right before we started tonight's last session!!). One word. WOW! I'm afraid we're going to crash for now, pray for supernatural restoration, sleep with smiling Ugandan faces in our heads, thank the God who is the author of unstoppable grace and hopefully post more photos tomorrow! Much love from lovely Kampala! Louie and all the Passion Team.

Friday, May 30, 2008

The Images Say It All!

















































Thursday, May 29, 2008

Expectantly Waiting


















































































































































Hi from Kampala, where we had mostly sun during the day and tonight the sky is star-filled and clear. Thank you God. We are on the verge of something amazing, and we can feel it. Both darkness and light have a lot at stake in these days, but we are here in the name of the One who is light, and in Jesus' name we are expecting great things.

Above: Kampala streets; Press Conference yesterday; Wototo Village-a picture of God's beauty, order and care...and home to the future of Uganda; getting the field ready; a campus street; who are these people on my field?; volunteers who've come to help; students registering (20,000 so far!); drying out the LED panels which seem to be working fine!

For now, we are waiting on the gates to open and the Kingdom to come. Tomorrow is going to be a long and crazy day, so we may not be able to post a Blog tomorrow night. But, we'll let you know something as soon as we can. God will win the day! Don't stop praying. Louie

Wednesday, May 28, 2008

Hello Kampala!















Home of Passion Kampala














The word is out!














The field w/ a female dorm behind.














Grassroots marketing.















Keeping our stuff secure.














Making it happen.














Going to hang the LED wall here.
















After the storm.


About sunset we descended over massive Lake Victoria and touched down in Entebbe, Uganda. An adventurous 20-mile drive brought us into the chaos of Kampala rush hour (the infrastructure was built for 60,000 and there are over 2 million) and to our hotel. There's much to say and so many images I want to share (uploading one image is a labor of love), but tonight I want you to visualize this field filled with Ugandan students devoting their lives to make Jesus famous. Passion Kampala is happening on the main sports field at Makerere University, a campus of 36,000 students. So far, 12,000 are registered (it's free, but you need to register to get a wristband) and they are expecting twice that many inside the fence and who knows how many outside. While I was there set up was going smoothly and our crew was doing a great job getting the field ready, but an afternoon storm changed all that and sent one of the LED walls crashing to land face down in the rain soaked ground. As of now we're not sure what is or isn't going to work and ask for your prayers for our production crew.

We are quickly falling in love with this place and the spirit of the people, and as we've told them that Brazil is praying for them (and students in Kyiv, Stockholm, the US and the world), they can't believe it. So if you're out there, please cover this field and all of us in the expectant belief that God is going to win the day and use this weekend to change a nation. I'll be back tomorrow with more pics!
Louie

Monday, May 26, 2008

Tchau, Tchau SP and Brasil














We love crowds, but Passion has never been about thousands. This Movement is about people, and we will never forget the faces and the hearts of the Brazilian students who have joined the global wave for His renown. Soon, we'll be going through customs again and boarding a flight to continent number three (not counting NA where we began). After a stop over in JoBurg, SA, we arrive at Entebbe Airport in Uganda. We know God is preparing the way for something great in Kampala, but we feel very attached to Sao Paulo and still haven't gotten over Kyiv and Stockholm!

I know we say it a lot, but something was planted deep within the soil of the emerging generation of students here in Brazil and I believe with all my heart that seed is going to grow into a stunning tree that brings life, truth and purpose to this nation. We are so honored to be a small part of what our great God is doing here and will keep praying for all of you as we continue to circle the globe.

The little audio clip on the Passion Podcast really doesn't do justice to the feeling in the room, so this video clip will give you a little better glimpse into how special the worship was. As you watch, notice the aerial shots on the screen behind the lyrics to "God Of This City." The huge football stadium (Morumbi in SP, I think...can you guys confirm that?) brought a roar from the students as they saw the potential of their number growing to one day fill this place. Later, they started chanting the name of the stadium until the Rio crowd began to lift up the name of the national stadium (Estádio do Maracanã).

Visit our MySpace page and watch the top three videos...if you don't get goosebumps I can't help you!

Love you Brazil!! Louie

Saturday, May 24, 2008

Crazy, LOUD Brazil!!














Undignified!














Everyone looks so happy.














The future is now.














CT learns Portuguese.




















2100 Brazilians sound like 21,000.




















Passionate. Very cool T!














DCB blew up.














Beautiful night with beautiful people.














Yes.














They believe God is going to change this nation.














Thanks for coming to Passion Sao Paulo.














Where podcasts begin.














Lunch! Green shirt = amazing volunteers.














No rain during lunch? Can't be Passion!














Very much like to clap!














Me too.














Fran rock'in the national jersey.














Do Something Now. For shelters for kids.














And shampoo. Little things say God cares.

Friday, May 23, 2008

Oi Sao Paulo!



























































































































































Kyiv, Stockholm, Sao Paulo!

Hello Sao Paulo!

Finally, the doors opened and the line of thousands of waiting students made their way into Via Funchal for what turned out to be a massively loud celebration of the grace of God. We had been warned ahead of time that the Brazilians would be LOUD, and that was very much the case tonight. With the prayers of Stockholm and so many others behind us, we have launched stop three of the Passion World Tour here south of the Equator with an amazing first night and are eager to see what God has for us tomorrow. It is stunning and humbling to traverse continents to find a wave of students who are so passionate about making Jesus famous. There really is a generation united around the globe for His renown. Be back after tomorrow with more! LG