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[ag-news] AG NEWS #1782: February 24, 2010
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AG-NEWS: Wednesday, February 24, 2010
Please send story leads to news@xxxxxx for consideration
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**Worship leader wins singing competition, opportunity to record CD
Lisa Pratt and her husband Matt, Captain in U.S. Army, lead worship
at Radiant AG in Colorado Springs. Lisa named winner of 2009
Operation Rising Star contest, Army's version of American Idol.
Winning provided her with opportunity to record demo CD and sing at
various Army events.
**AG chaplain combats African AIDS crisis
Assemblies of God Air Force chaplain, Lt. Col. Rex Williams,
working to promote HIV and AIDS prevention in Africa as
military units in some regions unable to function due to high
infection rates. Williams states faith-based approach has
potential to be extremely effective. AIDS has now surpassed
malaria as leading cause of death in Africa. Learn more about
AG Chaplaincy at http://chaplaincy.ag.org.
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**WORSHIP LEADER WINS SINGING COMPETITION, OPPORTUNITY TO RECORD CD
Both Lisa Pratt and her husband, Matt, a Captain in the U.S. Army,
lead worship at Radiant Assembly of God in Colorado Springs,
Colorado. Matt plays the acoustic guitar and Lisa, who has been
involved with worship teams since eighth grade, sings.
Little did they know that Lisa's singing experience would lead her
to win a national singing contest and an opportunity to record a CD.
Lisa, 25, was named winner of the 2009 Operation Rising Star singing
contest, held November 20, 2009, in Washington, D.C.
Operation Rising Star is the Army's version of American Idol. It is
a program that allows service members and their families to
experience a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity that allows them to
record a demo CD and take their shot at stardom. A competition is
held at every Army installation worldwide and one winner from each
installation competes for one of only 12 spots at the national
competition in Washington, D.C.
Pratt was motivated to sing in the contest by a combination of
several things. "I was a vocal major in college, I'm married to a
very patriotic Army officer and I have a passion in my heart that
can only be satisfied when I sing and perform," Pratt says. "When
the Army offered this competition, I saw it as a chance to express
my love for each of these things simultaneously."
Pratt first competed in the contest in 2008, a week after her
husband was deployed to Iraq. She took second place in the Operation
Rising Star contest that year.
"When this year's contest rolled around I was determined to compete
again," Pratt said. "So, one year later, the same time that I said
goodbye to my husband a year earlier, I competed again ... only this
time my husband made it home from Iraq in time to support me!"
Matt traveled from Fort Carson, Colorado to watch her perform and be
a part of the audience when the winner was announced. "It was a
pretty emotional night for us," Lisa says. "It was the first time
that Matt has had the opportunity to hear me perform ? he was always
out on a field exercise or deployed overseas."
When she first signed up to compete, Pratt says she never thought
she would make it this far. "When I made the top 12, I was shocked.
When I made the next cut to the top six, I was astonished. When I
made the final cut to the top three, I was overcome with gratitude
because I knew that God had blessed me with this amazing
opportunity," she says.
As an award for winning the contest, the Pratts received an
all-expenses-paid trip to Pasadena, California. There she recorded a
three-song CD at Firehouse Recording Studios. According to Matt,
Lisa also had her very own vocal coach for recording ? one of the
ladies singing background vocals in the movie "Avatar." Lisa also
had vocal coaching from Deborah Byrd, a vocal coach and arranger for
the television shows American Idol and Canadian Idol.
One of the songs that was recorded on her demo CD was written by
Greg and Denise Erway, worship leaders and mentors of Lisa's. They
attend the church that Matt and Lisa grew up in ? Lawton (Oklahoma)
First Assembly ? and where Matt's parents, Gary and Debbie Pratt,
are on staff.
After recording, the Pratts also had the opportunity to attend a
live recording of the Jay Leno show and meet Leno himself. In
addition, Lisa will be traveling and singing to different events for
the Army this year, including the Army Ball in Washington, D.C.
"My faith drives the passion in my music," she says. "I want to
communicate that feeling through every note I sing ? whether I'm
singing at an Army event or leading worship at my church.
"When I lead worship, I am free to express my heart to God in a way
that only the music inside of me can communicate," Pratt continues.
"There is a passion that exists in me to clearly communicate my
thankfulness to my Maker through worship. I am able to communicate a
story and the passion in my heart through the music I sing ? whether
it be patriotic songs or worship songs."
--Becca Hodge
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**AG chaplain combats African AIDS crisis
An Assemblies of God Air Force chaplain is involved in a unique
effort to reduce the spread of AIDS in Africa through faith-based
education.
As part of a program sponsored by the U.S. Department of Defense in
conjunction with the Department of State, Lt. Col. Rex Williams has
made several trips to Africa in recent months to promote HIV and
AIDS prevention. In 2009, Williams met with Christian military
chaplains in Namibia and Botswana. Plans are in the works for a trip
to Kenya as well.
"The infection rates of several African militaries, particularly in
the southern part of the continent, are over 20 percent," says
Williams, who is based at Ramstein Air Base in Germany. "With such
high infection rates, some units are so decimated that they are no
longer able to function as a military unit. Militaries as a whole
are severely challenged in their ability to function."
Williams challenged the African chaplains to use their positions as
spiritual leaders to call soldiers back to morality.
"A faith-based approach has the potential to be extremely effective
because it targets behavior," Williams says. "Unlike Western
countries, the vast majority of Africans state that they are persons
of faith. Atheism and agnosticism are comparatively rare."
According to the U.S. Congressional Research Service, AIDS has
surpassed malaria as the leading cause of death in Africa, and it
kills many times more Africans than war.
"Over the years, the U.S. military has reached out in numerous ways
to help countries in crisis," says Scott McChrystal, military/VA
representative for the Assemblies of God. "I can think of no health
issue needing our support more than the HIV/AIDS situation in
Africa."
More information about AG Chaplaincy can be found at
http://Chaplaincy.ag.org.
--Christina Quick, Pentecostal Evangel
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For a regularly updated list of upcoming significant Assemblies
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or ordering pages--see the following address:
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