Escapology and Easter

On Easter Sunday I whipped out my trusty handcuffs which are sold by Magic Dealers under the name 'Electronic Release'. These are by far the best and most convincing restraints in the business. Yet you are in and out of them within a flash. Even when people can see you escaping they are still baffled as to how you get out because it so fast.

This year I shared the story of a boy in Sunday School class who told the group proudly what Jesus said when he resurrected from the dead. He said "Ta Daa!"

I loved that story and invited the congregation to have a "Ta Da" moment with the resurrected Christ in their lives.

The handcuffs were used to tell the story of how even death can hold Jesus down and that even though he experienced all the worse things that life could throw at him - prejudice, loss, grief, injustice, pain. humiliation, torture and death - Jesus overcame. Death could not hold him (escape from handcuffs) and he gives everyone of us the hope and knowledge that we too can overcome whatever life throws at us.

I love the verse which says that the Spirit who raised Christ from the dead is the same Spirit who lives in us who believe in him. We need to have that Ta Da encounter with the Risen Lord to experience the reality and joy of his presence in us.

The choir who were sat behind me and could see the whole escape are still trying to figure out how I escaped so fast.

Happy Easter!

Magical Sunday School teacher!

Here's an email I received from a creative Sunday School teacher who is not a magician but wanted to recreate the magic of Mose's travels through the desert. With no training in magical knowledge she did a great job in imagineering how to bring about some special effects.

Hi Andrew

You inspired me for life!

For kid's klub we did the travel through the desert this afternoon.

To split the sea doesn't require so much skill...next bitter water was fun...(I did a false ceiling (cling wrap) in a rubbermaid plastic jug...filled it with bicarbonade of soda water that I served all the kids ...since we had to add a stick - I added a chop stick that poked a whole & whalla FRESH water!!!)

For manna I did some wafers on a ceiling fan...they even tasted like honey...after I scrapped of the icing... I had someone to switch the plug on...

I hid the hose pipe with an special nozzle in the garden. When I hit it with a stick my helper turned the tap full force - it squirted like 4- 6 m far. I had such a surprised crowd...one was even in tears...the other complained about getting wet - it was so much fun.

All this in order to say to the children that we have an awesome, great, mighty, powerful majestic GOD!!!

PS. Did you ever try cling wrap over an toilet?

A while ago I received comments that there was nothing in my ebook for pre school children. The truth is I wonder how much Gospel Magic can be used with kids younger than 4 years old. I am determined though to offer some rersources for those who do work with this age group.

Please click below to learn how you can move beyond a glorified baby sitting service to pre-school kids into ministry. All good stuff. it's not magic - it's ministry!


Click Here!

Blessings

Roman Catholic Magic

Did you know that the label of Gospel Magic and Gospel Magician was first coined back a Roman Catholic priest back in the nineteenth century. St Don Bosco was a Salesian minister who noticed that the Church could not compete with fairs and enterainments. So he pioneered the use of preaching the Christian message using the techniques of fairgound performers. Today he is remembered as the patron saint of Catholic Gospel magicians.

I also discovered that there is an alternative society to the Fellowship of Christian Magicians called the Catholic Magicians Guild. Some had tried to join the FCM but found the theology of FCM too Calvinist!!! Some famous Catholic magicians include Mark Wilson and an American Catholic bishop.

I am learning a lot from the above book. Some of the stuff is very good Biblical teaching and others tend to foucs on stuff more distinctively Catholic. (For example he uses a Card Castle to illustrate the heirarchy of the church with the Pope at the top, though he is careful to top the Pope with the cross to show that Christ is the head of the church).

In short there is little which would be different from what Protestant Gospel magicians would share. Scripture abounds and the whole focus on the book is teaching people the Christian faith.

As an evangelical protestant I am tempted to focus on the things that divide - like the infallibility of the pope (I have yet to meet a Catholic who really belives that), the focus on Mary, the sale of indulgences, the role of the saints and birth control!

This book reminds me of how much there is in common. The focus is on a Trinity who revealed grace and mercy through the cross of Jesus. The structure of the book is on the Catechism of the Catholic church - but a lot of useful tricks and messages that will work in any denomination. I found a generous ecumenical spirit in the book which was gracious and Christlike and I appreciated that very much.

As it is the very first book on Gospel Magic for Catholics it is extremely well done. The description of each trick is clear, illustrations are aplenty, and the message is backed up by Scripture. It is a product to be proud of. I am glad to have it in my library and look forward to using the ideas in it as part of my ministry.

I only wonder which aspect of Calvinism he found in the FCM?

Steve Fearson

I don't know about you but I am very impatient when it comes to buying things. When I have an idea in my head I want to go and learn about it right away. The internet is a boon in this regard. When it comes to learning about magic and illusion the possibilities are endless.

One of my favourite sites is Download Magic. The reasons why I like this site is that the material is original, simple and applicable to my work as a minister. Steve Fearson is a great teacher and is very funny. I have bought his instant levitation illusion for instance, in which people see you step inside a box and see your feet rise off the ground with no apparent means of support. He tells you how to make his props and his products always leave a smile on my face.

In his writings he mentions his thankfulness to God and his involvement with his church. He comes across as a confident and successful man. He is certainly very creative.

So if you want instant access to novel magic his website is as below:

Click Here!

Some of the best known magicians in the business use his material. All his products are instantly downloadable. Another reason why I enjoy investing in magic from him. No waiting . . . aaaah!

Predicting the future

Derren Brown has caught the public imagination with his stunt of prediciting the national Lottery numbers in live time. The internet is buzzing with questions on how he did it with several answers being provided.

It begs the question though - Should Gospel magicians or preachers use prediction type tricks to share the Christian message. Some Christians feel that mind reading and the like is beyond the pale and should not be used at all. I disagree.

I use mentalism and prediction tricks all the time. My message at then is usually a confession that I really can't predict the future . . . but I do know someone who has the future in his hands - Jesus Christ. Sometimes that leads to a Biblical message about the amazing fulfillment of prohecies in the Bible.

So where can we go to learn some of these tricks? Of course you can find one or two Gospel magic mind reading tricks at http://www.gospelemagic.com/ but if you really want to get into Mentalism magic at a deeper level then checkout the following website on How to be a Master Mentalist:

Click Here!


Have fun

Learning magic the easy way

:ots of people usually ask me for a good reference book which they can use on line or simply to download instantly new ideas for tricks. There is just so much good stuff out there to help you get going in magic as a hobby.

Below is a website that will give you a good start. Check it out.


Click Here!


Have fun. As the Fellowship of Christian Magicians would say "Keep the secret - Share the Word"