HILLSONG CHRISTMAS SPECATACULAR (2010)

Posted by thechurchtools On Wednesday, January 05, 2011


Hey it's been a while since I last blogged. Let me share with you what happened last month: mid-December 2010 I found myself climbing the Sydney Harbour Bridge, a day right before Oprah did the very same climb for her 'Oprah's Ultimate Australian Adventure'. As I'm plain scared of heights, it was terrifying initially. Literally you see everyone as small as ants and the fear of 'what-if' I fall and hit the pavement was running continuously in my mind. Sweaty palms didn't make this climbing experience any better. But once you climbed up the ladder, walking over the arch of the bridge was like walking up a flight of staircases, only not with an amazing, spectacular view! My brother, his girlfriend and myself along with one other friend took the 6.30pm climb but only began climbing approximately 40 minutes after because there's some house-keeping rules and basic climbing strategies to go through prior to climbing. Right now, Australia's having it's summer season and the sun goes down completely around 8pm mark. Give and take!

Will Smith is one of the many celebrities that have climbed the Bridge.


One of the experienced climbers who's worked there for 3 years informed us the view we saw that evening was ranked among his top 3 views over the time he's been working there. And I couldn't agree more, it was truly magnificent. Unfortunately pictures are with my brother so trust me on this. Once we're up at the peak of the summit, the sun was just about to completely set and gave this nice orange glaze across Sydney - remarkable for a $AUD290 bridge-climb price tag! It was at this time my brother got down on his knees and proposed to his girlfriend! Other climbers were making jubilant noises everywhere on the Harbour Bridge. Truly historic.



The afternoon before the proposal happened, we attended Hillsong Christmas Spectacular 2010 at the City Campus. It was fantastic. Musical + live music + drama and video all packaged up in a 2 hour session. Hillsong's Christmas Spectacular was entitled: Who Stole the Star?


Now, Christmas productions are actually quite hard to deliver. There's only so much baby Jesus you'd want to present to the viewers every year and this can quickly lose its 'WOW-FACTOR' impact. It's obvious much thought went into this years Christmas production. They've included characters such as Mr. Incredible, Gingerbread Man, Tooth-fairy, Batman and Superman along with Santa Clause to present to us the meaning and message of Christmas - that Jesus was God's present from God to us.



Plot

The story began showing and telling us the magnificence of a beautiful Star that is annually locked away after Christmas by 4 key holders. The Star is important in Christmas as it powers Santa Clause's sleigh and enables him to deliver presents to the children. Unfortunately, this one Christmas the Star was stolen from its regular resting place before the usual lock-up. And so time goes by with musicals commemorating events that happen throughout the year before approaching Christmas once again. Finally Christmas has approached, and just before Santa Clause and his elves were going to deliver the presents for the children, they found out that the Star is missing! Without the Star, Christmas will be ruined for everyone as no one can get presents from Santa Clause! This throws everything to disarray and it was believed that the culprit was one of the 4 key holders. A little boy who is visibly concerned about the situation asked his Dad about the the importance of the Star. The father revealed that the Star was given by God to direct the wise men to Jesus, and that Jesus was reason we celebrate Christmas today. One night the child prayed to God before sleeping, and subsequently after prayer a bright light interrupted his routine. He investigated it and found that the Tooth-fairy had stolen the Star because he felt that he was not acknowledged or cared for. The drama concluded with acts of forgiveness and Christmas was saved through further acts of love.


The drama ran in 3 parts. Hillsong's City Campus pastor would come on stage whilst set changes are being done behind the curtains. She would welcome the audience, initiate tithes and offerings and lead a prayer of acceptance to know and Jesus as God. The transitions were smooth from set to set and many people who wanted to know more about Jesus were given a Hillsong welcome pack that includes a bible and a small message in a CD from Hillsong senior pastor Brian Houston.



And if you're planning to fly down to Sydney, you may find yourself living in affordable accommodation! Like $1 per night near the airport anyone? This is especially affordable as you can literally find $1 on the streets if you pay a bit of attention.



Note: I will be uploading a short Christmas Spectacular video onto Youtube shortly after.


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