The Catalyst for Seasons of Purpose

Over 12 Years ago when I was with Dance for Joy Ministries, I was still using my marketing and publicity skills acquired from years working as an arts administrator.  All the company members worked very hard on that concert in many different ways. Marketing and publicity was my contribution which is why we were able to get this article from the New York Times.  As I read through this review and saw my name mentioned I was emotionally blown away. I think it took this article for me to realize that God had gifted me with something, and it was high time that I identify what those gifts are and pass them down before it is too late. Therefore, by that summer, I was given the vision for Seasons of Purpose. About a year later I met "somebody" who later became my husband. He became a part of the Seasons of Purpose vision. Reading this again I realize that 3 of the other dancers mentioned in the article were in my wedding party.  They are really gifted teachers, choreographers, and dancers...so blessed to be their friend. And blessed to have a mentor like Ms. Iris Cloud who let me discover what God had put inside of me decades earlier but I had buried for such a long time. And thanks to my Boston friends who always believed in me...they weren't shocked by the article at all..I however, couldn't stop crying. Now I (we) need to stoke that fire of inspiration, gifting, and anointing and move forward. Look out 2012...it's a new season and we are destined to fulfill our purpose to communicate the gospel through text, movement, and cultural development. 
 http://www.nytimes.com/2000/06/21/arts/dance-in-review-heart-of-gospel-in-movement.html

Time Squared

Day #3. We are into the third day of fast/prayer/ and reading ONE MONTH TO LIVE. It is wonderful to seek the face of God. Unfortunately, my body feels like it has been hit by a Mack truck that decided to run over me again on the way back. I don't think its the fast...but spending the day with a group of highly kinetic 2nd graders that have a reputation around the school as being a handful...well. So that would have been tiring on a good day, but on this day...really a workout. I was on my feet for hours today.

On day #3 the book focuses on how do we spend our time? If I want to squeeze the most out of this life, my marriage, my ministry...I desperately need to recalibrate how I am using my time. And the Shooks bring up in the book an area my husband has been after me for years "the Productivity Paradox." In other words, if I take the time to sabbath, to rest, to recharge...STOP WHAT I AM DOING for a period of time...I actually will be more productive. My pastors practice it all the time...I don't know why I've been so hard headed? What activities am I doing that are actually wasted time? And what keeps me from using time more effectively. The book suggest that I monitor this for the rest of the month. Well you don't have to tell me twice.

Looking for this to be a productive and effective year for SEASONS OF PURPOSE. So Amen to working efficiently and resting effectively.

Living Passionately

Day #2 of Living My Life as if I only have one month to live. As I follow my home church in this time of prayer and fasting Pastor Marc reminded us today to live our lives passionately. How can I approach this..by 1) accepting the grace as a gift from God 2) Managing my time 3)Remaining connected to the source 4)Defrost My Dreams 5) To Not be Afraid of the Mountain 6) L-I-V-E. It would take a while to explain this but the area I really need to attack is the time management issue. The other is to "defrost my dreams." He encouraged us to take that dream off the back burner and put it on the front burner. So I am asking my self WHY HAVEN'T I STARTED MY SCHOOL YET...ugh.

So on the day #2 I want to live this life passionately and not wait until the "someday" when I get off my bum and do something. It's time to act now!!!!! As we pray and fast together I sense an open heaven and a closer communion with the Lord. I can't report any specifics of what God has said to me but it was like the static from the fall is gone...the line is clear...my heart, mind and will is ready to receive. So...I look forward to what God will tell me about Primitive's Worshipping Arts ministry, look forward to how God will lead Martin & I in developing Seasons of Purpose, how I can impart what God has given me to bless others in worshipping arts ministry, and what God has for me to do to finance our home and ministry.

Dear God I open my ears this day to hear from you...I am thankful for the Bible that speaks Words of life to me today, and I thank you for all my friends, family, and especially my husband who have inspired me to live passionately and fulfill my dreams.

All We Ask - A Couples Prayer Danced by Martin & Angela Bowman of Seasons of Purpose

I thank God for the opportunity to bless a missionary couple to Haiti 2 weeks ago at my cousin's Gospel Dance concert in Providence Rhode Island. We also had the opportunity to bless our Pastor Marc and Pastor Enid with the same dance the following week. Some changes were made to fit our pastors but they like the missionaries had years of ministering side by side. I thank God for a spouse who is willing to let the creative God blow the breath of life in him so he can let creativity flow through him. When God has us doing that together to bless others...well people just get blessed and we just try to be obedient. As we get ready to celebrate another anniversary, I celebrate the dance with my Lord and the dance with my husband-partner-friend-co-laborer in the ministry.

Morning Musing

I'm curious to know what the blog looks like if you post throughout the day so I'm going to try this. It occurred to me last night as I was preparing for bed that some people who read this blog may get my various activities confused because I just talk about my activities and don't differentiate.

I have various postings that involve our activities at our local church called Primitive Christian Church, Rev. Dr. Marcos Rivera is the Senior Pastor. Pastor Enid Rios-Rivera is the Executive Pastor and heads the Women's Ministry also known as the Sisterhood of PCC. As the Minister of Worshipping Arts at the church I often speak of activities that we (my husband & I) are involved in whether it is the Dance Ministry (Worship Warriors--Karen Hunter my assistant [Martin doesn't participate in this unless it is all men called the PCC Levites or he sometimes helps me with the boys when they dance to show them "guy steps"] or the Drama Ministry (Martin has acted and written a number of the scripts). Then this summer we did the Dance, Pageantry, and Drama intensives.

Then there is Seasons of Purpose which is the ministry that God birthed in my heart in August 2000. Dance for Joy (Founder and Director, Iris Cloud) had just finished 2 concerts--the school concert and the company concert. Can we say exhausted? But out of that came a wonderful review from the New York Times. When I read the review and saw my name and my friends names I just cried. Did I really need the NYT to validate me??? No. But I finally got through my thick skull that God had given me something and I had better start giving it away before I forgot or couldn't move anymore. So...as I hid away with God at the Jersey shore in Ocean Grove NJ, He gave me a name and a ministry to birth called Seasons of Purpose. I am blessed that God gave me a husband that helps to fulfill this mission and has given shape to the ministry.

When we go out to different churches and events we function as Seasons of Purpose. Sometimes I invite members of PCC, former students from Nyack College, former DFJ members, and etc. It is exciting to see the body of Christ come together for a common goal to glorify the Lord! The life lessons I have learned at PCC I bring to Seasons of Purpose. Many of the lectures and lesson plans that I have used for my teaching artist gigs, Nyack College, and SOP workshops have come in handy at PCC.

I had no idea when Seasons of Purpose began that a husband would be involved. But one day when I was sitting in my office which I shared with Liz Rios and Betsy Rivera (about a year later I joined their church), I met this man (about a year 1/2 later I married him). This was October 2001 and we were all recuperating emotionally from September 11th. I thought Martin was some rich guy who could help DFJ that was shut down since it was so near the World Trade Center (part of the airplane engine literally was seen on the street in front of the building). He wanted to give money to a conference that the Advancement Office was running. So Martin had to come to my office. Betsy was out but he desperately wanted to pay. I said "I'll take your money"...and he was intrigued by that and started talking. We've been talking ever since...

The Women God Has Used in My Life

The 2 009 PCC Women's Retreat is over but we had a good time. I thank God for the women who have played a big role in helping me see the importance of having the Holy Spirit order my steps in His Word. Many thanks to Pastor Enid Rios-Rivera who encourages us in our steps and even demonstrated how to do that walk throughout the weekend. I just had to join her in that step and so did many others that night in the spirit and with their bodies.

And many thanks to Dr. Liz Rios...a fabulous speaker who encouraged us in so many ways. I know that Seasons of Purpose needs to take some new steps so the ministry can grow, but God used Dr. Liz to inform me that the first step will be a big step. I will have to go to war in this walk in the Spirit. And my next step will be a crucial one. I thank God for her bringing a word to us that was not an easy word to digest but a needed word for such a time as this. I thank God that He used Dr. Liz. I know her personally and have worked under her at 2 different jobs in NY, so I know that the message she brings is sincere. In other words, she is not one way before the people and then another way behind closed doors. She keeps it real, and endeavors to apply the word when it is easy and when it is really, really hard.

I know that if I want to grow deeper in my understanding of this walk, the Holy Spirit and the ministry of Seasons of Purpose, I must get deeper in His Word. It's time to take the Big Steps!

Artistic Expression

Today I'm thinking about the importance of artistic expression. We may see the world in black and white, but there is such an incredible spectrum to behold. The first creator is God Himself so He is the very author of creativity. He said "Let there be light." Until God spoke light into existence, there was no color. It is the light that enables us to see, identify, and experience color. Take a prism and hold it to the light and see the colors burst forth. It is from God alone that we can experience the rainbow splash of color that He wants us to behold. So how is it that sometimes we close ourselves off from the freedom of creativity.

At our recent drama intensive at our home church (Primitive Christian Church), we asked the participants on the graffiti board, "are we doing plays that are safe because they are in the church (meaning inside the church building)." And answers come back that no...we challenge the people, and another...we have to be sensitive. So I want to be that sensitive Christian but Seasons of Purpose wants to challenge the community to take a deep look and not try to sugar coat. The people I want to tell my story to live in a harsh reality, I want to be able to communicate but not compromise. This is a fun challenge to meet and I see that artists trying to communicate in relevant ways all face this challenge. So paint your world with color! Enjoy the creativity God has put in you. Don't be afraid to wrestle with the tough questions and push the envelope without compromising your faith.

Father's Day Tribute 2009

Today I'm thinking about my Dad and how much I miss him. He often put on his apron to clean all the pots and pans in the sink and then sat with a look of satisfaction after he was done. He loved to sit and listen to his kids and hear what they had to say. My Dad listened to me as I talked about the Lord and wondered where I got the wisdom. He knew it was from the Bible...the book he also grew to love. How I miss Dad's laugh, smile, turkey chili, and his bear hugs. Music: He played jazz music alot in my younger years and I attribute my love to jazz in all forms from this man. He really loved Afro-Cuban jazz. Dance: My father wasn't much on seeing concert dance but he did love African-American expression in movement, so if he knew it was Black...he was there. Drama: Same about drama...if the actors were black...he was on it. Think about all the years he couldn't see this expression on television and few on Broadway. When this man who worked for the Division on Civil Rights could finally see professional Black actors given opportunities...his heart just soared!!!
He lived his life through many seasons and when it was time, he went home to be with the Lord. He was proud of my accomplishments and was always a great example of a loving father. As SEASONS OF PURPOSE celebrates Father's Day, I want to remember the Dad who gave me birth and encouraged me in everything that I do.