12.30.07

Set List:

Let it Rise
That's Why We Praise Him
To the Ends of the Earth
Grace Flows Down
Go Light Your World
Hero (Ken Medema)
My Time on Earth (Billy Gillman)

Today was one of those red letter days for me. I got to preach today while Jon did a great job leading worship. I love it when Jon leads because he always comes up with just the right song for the message. Today he had 2. He put together a sequence for Hero and led me in. It was really well done. After I was done, Karen Manley did an amazing job on the song "My Time on Earth". It cemented the message. While I enjoyed preaching, and am grateful for the opportunity, I am ready to get back to what I do best.

Peace

Christmas Eve

Set list:
Oh Holy Night (Diane really did this one right)
What Child is This?
O Come All Ye Faithful
Away in a Manger
Angels We Have Heard On High
The Greatest Gift (a beautiful song by Michael Gleason)
Silent Night

This was one of the better Christmas Eve services I have been a part of. We used live drama elements, video and music. Joe did a great job with the children's teaching time (it was great for the adults too). I enjoyed getting to sing with Diane, and it was really cool to have Adam on piano.

Now I turn my attention to next week, where instead of singing, I will be preaching. I would covet your prayers as I prepare.

Peace

I'm Back

Merry Christmas. I am going to try this again. I have been extremely busy this Christmas season, but now I want to try and start blogging again. I will start by posting our set lists from the past Sunday. A worship leader that I respect does this and it is helpful. Plus it gives me something to plan for. I will also try to post about the Sunday as well. Wish me luck and give me grief if I fall behind.

5.13.07

What a cool day today was. I started out by waking up at 3 this morning (not the cool part) and couldn't go back to sleep (again, not the cool part). By the time I got to the church I was feeling much better. We got through sound check and it was one of those mornings where I knew that even though we didn't have a great sound check, things would be alright. And it was. We had a really great morning, and people were singing. When the service was over, I had to get to the sanctuary and sing the special. When I got to the sanctuary, I was blown away by the men of the choir, as they sang one of my favorite hymns, "Great is Thy Faithfulness". It was really cool.

The rest of this day has been a day of rest while keeping my wife outside playing in the dirt. Now I know this sounds crazy for mother's day, but you see my wife is happiest when she is out working in her flower beds. It was great for her.

I will try to write tomorrow.

See you in His presence...

5.12.07

You will never guess what I am doing. I am waiting for church to start on the internet. For the last few weeks I have been tuning in to LifeChurch.tv on Saturday night and listening and watching their internet campus. If you want to see what multi site ministry is for the connected generation, you should go there. They have rockin worship, and the message is always well done. The effort that goes into putting every weekend together is tremendous. The video quality is very good and the audio is mixed well. As a worship leader/designer, I enjoy being able to worship and only worship.

It is starting, I will see you in His presence...

5.11.07

Now, don't fall out. But this is my second post in 2 days. I sat through the "Maximum Impact" conference today. It was an enjoyable time for the first 1/3 and the last 1/3. The highlight was a talk by Malcolm Gladwell. He has written a book called "Blink", about the relying on your initial gut reaction in leadership. It was very liberating for me. I tend to rely on my first thought.

I am heading down to Fountain Square tonight to sing at the chili cookoff. I am not sure what to expect when I get there. I am not a big fan of singing outside, but...

Anyway. I will try to be back later.

See you in His presence...

5.10.07

Good morning,

I feel like I need to re-introduce myself after being silent for so long. I have been really busy lately and it is good to breathe for a minute. I just wanted to say that I am having an echo cardiogram to look at my aortic valve. I have a bi-cuspid valve, which is not a big deal except that it means that I am a little more likely to need a valve replacement in the future. I am not real sure how I feel about this today. I had a birthday since we last talked, (I turned 41) that kind of bothered me a little. I don't know why it did, but it did. Anyway...

I am going to try and be better about posting. I will let you know what happens with the echo.

See you in His presence...

3.14.07

Good morning,

I am here at work preparing to go preach at a local nursing home. I chose to talk about the Garden of Gethsemane. There were 2 reasons for this. 1st, it is a very disturbing passage for me because it truly shows the humanity of Jesus. It is not a Faith Shaker, but a Faith Strengthener for me. His dealing with human emotions and yet still focused on doing the will of the Father is a lesson that I needed this week, and I am hopeful the men and women of the nursing home can use as well.

The 2nd reason I chose the Garden was because I miss my own personal "Garden". I know this will sound strange, but my garden is sitting in a dark theatre (dramatic, not movie) and being alone with God. I have missed the stark-ness of the empty theatre, it is very soothing for me. Maybe next week. We will see.

I better go read my sermon one more time.

See you in His presence...