The crusade, known for its precision timing, broke with its formal schedule at last night's Concert for the Next Generation - a concert dedicated to youth.

Jars of Clay and Michael W. Smith gave the outdoor crowd an appetizer they weren't expecting. Both bands took to the outdoor stage, playing 10 to 15 minutes a piece.

Those that thought they'd be bopping in front of a big screen outside the Corel Centre as the bands played indoors jumped and screamed as Jars of Clay took their positions onstage outdoors.

And the crowd responded with equal pleasure when two-time Grammy winner Michael W. Smith hopped on stage 10 minutes later. He started with songs from his older albums Eye 2 I and I'll Lead You Home before running through a medley, devoting a few minutes to favorites, including Place in this World and Friends, before heading inside. There was no band backing him up.

Everyone was pleased that he showed up outside and were amazed that they could see him so close up.

"I don't think I could be so close to this man without singing backup vocals," says Lisa-Marie Massey, who was singing along with Mr. Smith between snacking on an ice cream treat.

The set for both artists was longer on the inside. They played for about 45 minutes each. The excitable, jumping of the younger crowd during Jars of Clay toned down for Michael W. Smith's first couple songs off of older albums.

But the gentle sways turned into voices across the entire arena as almost everyone joined in through song or clapping on the floor when he started with Love Me Good off of his album Live the Life.

But the dancing and clapping didn't end there. Everyone broke into song when they knew the words or, at the very least hummed along until the end. The bands didn't speak too much about religion during their sets - preferring to leave that to Billy Graham.

"Our ministry is probably not as pointed as Billy Graham's is," says Dan Haseltine, the lead vocalist of Jars of Clay, before the concert. "It's merely a catalyst to get people thinking about spiritual issues. Something to get people pondering, what is this all really about?"

"Billy pretty much wraps that up in a nice neat package and gives it to people in which they can fully understand."

Between sets, athletes including gold medal speed skater Catriona Le May Doan, spoke about their relationship with God on a large TV screen in the parking lot.*

*Article transcribed from The Ottawa Citizen, Sunday, June 28, 1998, page A11.