Did Anyone Know that Rob Wegner is an Acclaimed Author?

A little known fact that our own Rob Wegner, is an acclaimed expert on famous Deerslayers of the past.

Check it out here.




Okay, maybe it COULD be a different Rob. But I think our Rob has the skills...

Weekend Recap

Our second week in "The Office" series.

Speaker: Rob Wegner

Topic: Whatever it Takes - Integrity in the Workplace
Attendance: 5,669

Encouraging to see growth from last week's attendance. Hoping to build momentum through this series.

We've had quite a few hits on the www.myofficesecrets.com site. Some moving stories as well.

The Arts:

Prelude: Typical by Mutemath - one of my new all time favorite guitar riffs at the beginning of this song. Incredible that they were here at GCC about a year and a half ago. Amazing band.

Worship
Let God Arise by Chris Tomlin
Salvation is Here by Hillsong United
Both pretty straight from the record arrangements. However, we shorten the Salvation is Here by cutting some of the bridge out. A great energy set of two songs that Trace chose.

Media
How to Be Lazy at the Office and Still Get Paid
This media was meant to show how we can not steward our time well at work. I love the creative treatment that Albert Martin (our young media man) did on the visual effects throughout. One thing I think we learned from this media was to make sure to do voiceovers prior and then shoot to that, rather than the other way around. Makes comic timing quite a bit easier.

Message
Rob reminded us of having integrity under pressure using the Shadrach, Meschach, and Abednego form Daniel. A great re-telling of the story that brought it back to life for me. A few quotables:
- "Who do I trust more, and earthly king or my heavenly King?"
- "The question is what kind of world do you want to live in?"
Prayer - "God give us the wisdom to know what's right and give us the courage to do what's right no matter how hard it is."
Take away for me - My integrity is my witness.

Song Special
Be the One by Jeremy Camp
We keyed up this song from E to A for Angie Henry to sing. A good message to end the service with.

Nice job everyone! Looking forward to this coming weekend.

The Gift of Presence

Alright, I just got past my birthday and I did get a few sweet "presents", like some new kicks - Bullboxers. I likey.


And a new drum plug in for audio recording. EZ Drummer from Toontrack. Wicked awesome, realistic drum sounds for cheap!!!


I really likey!

But for all of that, I've learned something new this past few weeks.

The Gift of Presence.

Have you ever been in a situation where you were talking with someone, and you knew that they were there physically, but not tracking with you mentally? We've all been on both sides of this. I, too often, have been the one not, literally, PRESENT. I think that this is one of the greatest gifts that you can give someone. In a world of quick sound bytes, newsflashes, and IMs, it's really refreshing to have someone's undivided attention.

My challenge is to give this gift as often as I can. I think that's how Jesus was. When he was with someone, he was WITH SOMEONE. We catch glimpses of this every so often with people around us, and it is magical. Especially as a husband and dad, I want to give this gift to my family. So, I'll stop blogging now, and go give them my presence. Peace.

80's Rockin the Volunteers

Check out this awesome volunteer appreciation media from River Valley Church in Minnesota. It ROCKS FOREVER!

Midweek Service

Thursday night was a special night. Lisa and I had the chance to lead worship for the first time since we've been at GCC. It was a great night with my brother, Jason Miller speaking. We launched our new "Bigger Than" series.

Set list:

O For a Thousand Tongues - the version we do has an added refrain (by Matt Adams) with the text "all glory to You, forever, and ever, and ever."
Speak to Me by Dave Luebben - Just an amazing moment to hear my wife sing the words "if there's anything in my life that doesn't honor You tonight, I'm listening Lord, speak to me." Holy moment for me.

Then Jason used a story of former Notre Dame soccer star Greg Dalby to launch us into a message on Psalm 71. You could feel the pain that Greg is going through and really sense a friend, Jason, who empathizes with him.

When the Tears Fall - a new one for us, by Tim Hughes. "When the tears fall, still I will sing to You." Amazing text. My hope was that it provided a time of healing for people to know that they are not alone in their pain. God and our community included.

We then did a medley of Blessed Be the Name/You Never Let Go, both by Matt Redman. I thought that this would work well since they are both in the same key of B and they're content is similar. What I didn't anticpate is that I did the faster one first. Not the best transition. In retrospect I would have switched them. Not too bad but could have been better.

Spoken transition here (I'm really working on getting better at these). The idea that God is not finished with us. He may be, as Jason said, "doing something in us so that he can do something through us."

You are the Light by Steve Fee - a song we introduced last week seemed to work really well again. I'm thankful that Steve finally got signed by INO records. Should expect some great things there.

We finished the night upbeat with Lincoln Brewster's Let the Praises Ring. It was only me on acoustic, but it gave the people a chance to clap and celebrate considering most of the night was on the reflective side.

All in all, it felt like a good night. I'm so thankful that we've been here now 4 years!!! I love this church!

MyNakedPastor.com

A friend of mine, Heredes Ribiero, is a worship leader at Flamingo Road Church down in the land of Miami, FL where pastors go when they are ready to retire. Okay, he's in his twenties, so maybe he's just a bit wimpy when it comes to cold weather. Either way, he's my brother in Christ. They're launching a new series down at Flamingo called MyNakedPastor.com where they'll be following around their lead pastor Troy Gramling 24 hours a day for a month. Reality TV baby! on the net. Live streams. Troy is going to join us this year for Innovate 07 which is exciting. The series launches on 9/9 at 9am, which means that while Troy is at Granger, he'll be webcasting. Very cool. Looking forward to seeing how God uses that series. Also looking forward to hanging with Heredes, Allen DiStefano, and crew.

Grace

Here's an amazing quote from Philip Yancey from "What's So Amazing About Grace":

"Grace means there is nothing we can do to make God love us more - no amount of spiritual calisthenics and renunciations, no amount of knowledge gained from seminaries and divinity schools, no amount of crusading on behalf of righteous causes. And grace means there iss nothing we can do to make God love us less - no amount of racism or pride or pornography or adultery or even murder. Grace means that God already loves us as much as an infinite God can possibly love."

Letting that line sink in - "there is nothing we can do to make God love us more."

Nothing I can do to make God love me more.

Nothing I can do.

Nothing.

I feel a time of meditation coming on. :)

Drip, Drip, Drop

Our good friends from Grand Rapids, the Oldenbergs visited us today, with a new package in tow - their sixth child, Phoebe. Yeah, you read that right, SIXTH! Amazing! We had a great time. The kids had a chance to play "drip, drip, drop" which is basically duck, duck, goose but with water. Thanks Camp Lakewood for that idea - Jen Winkelman, it's all your fault!!! Yeah, the kids got wet.

On another note, Sophie lost her 2nd tooth just after they left. It was just kinda hanging there (gross, I know). Glad it's out! Hopefully, the tooth fairy will make another stop. Check out the note to the fairy. Ah, got to love the deals made even at a young age!

Mr. 37

Yep, today is the day. 37 years old. A card from my daughter, Anna, gave me my new title of "Mr. 37." I'm liking it.


I'm officially getting middle-aged. Kinda like a fine wine, hopefully getting better with age. I feel a heck of a lot younger than I used to. Maybe since I was a high school teacher in my twenties, I was trying to seem older to earn the respect of students. Now that I'm running with a younger bunch, I'm wanting to live as young as possible.

Here's another card from Sophie - check out the "Rolling Stones" T-shirt she drew on me.


Very cool! I love my family!!!

Weekend Recap

We launched our "Office" series this weekend. We had been using several billboards around town (see Tim Stevens post on this here) to stir up a bit of buzz about this series.

Our arts teams did a great job of pulling everything together.

Prelude - We started with a fun prelude using "The Office" theme music (which was only 30 seconds) but Trace and the team teased it out a bit longer. The first thing which was really cool was that the entire team dressed in black and white office attire which is quite different than our usual casual feel. A fun change.

Worship Songs -
You are Good (Lincoln Brewster version)
All to You (Lincoln Brewster as well)
Yeah, we're fans of the man from CA. Our new guitarist Mark Pitcher, though not tall in stature, served up some big licks to really be a fine addition to the team. Welcome Mark! I really love the way Trace Rorie (my worship leading co-hort) fills in the sound with the Taylor T5 guitar. It hits the multi-function of an electric/acoustic, though I think he mostly used the electric sound.

Special - Takin' Care of Business by Bachman Turner Overdrive
Since it was the title of the week, we couldn't resist. J Aquila really sold the song well. Along with our BGVs, http://www.blogger.com/img/gl.link.gif, Laura Waltz, and Kathy Sellers who added a little bit of dance moves - the whole song was a high energy start to the series.

Media - The Office Parody
Here our team wrote an original script which helped get us in the office frame of mind. One of our guitarists, Dave Taylor, made his acting debut as the Dwight character. My boss, Butch Whitmire, does a great job of bringing the goods in the part of Michael. A well produced media with the challenge of competing with the show itself (which we showed a clip from later). I think the team did a great job.

Message - Rob Wegner
A solid message about "doing whatever we do as unto the Lord". Giving God our best. No matter what we actually are doing.

Media - Doors Recap
This was a brilliant media produced by one of our volunteers, Russ Nelson, who used the David Crowder Band song "Oh the Glory of it All". Just seeing the faces on the people who crossed the line of faith. Very powerful and motivating to stay strong doing what God has called us to do - reach the lost!

A great launch to the weekend. Nice work everyone.

The Nod

I had a cool experience in Sam's Club the other day (yeah, we love their pizza - and the fountain Diet Coke has the best carbonation mix around). I had seen a woman from GCC named Jennifer there before. At that time she mentioned how much she like the church, etc. Now, Jennifer is what I would consider very outgoing on the shyness scale, so I figured, she's connected. All is well.

So, this past Sunday, I was up on stage playing the prelude (where we don't sing) and just strumming along. I saw Jennifer and one of her kids walk in. And seeing her, I just kinda nodded toward her to say "hey". No big deal.

Fast forward to after church, and another trip to Sam's Club for a cool, refreshing fountain Diet Coke as a reward for a hard weekend's work. I see Jennifer in line with her kids. She calls me over, and after complimenting my wife's new haircut, she tells me how much she appreciated "the nod" that I had given her a that morning from the stage.

Now, my usual "store conversations" with people from GCC center around, the quality of the music, or the drama that was great, etc. But Jennifer notices "the nod". She went on to say how much it meant that she was recognized and felt "part" of GCC because of that simple gesture. She hasn't connected yet and would really like to. I gave her a few on-ramp options and hope she'll find a place.

Great reminder for me of two things:
1. People want to belong. As high of quality of production that any church can bring can only last for so long. People want to know and be known.
2. People are watching and how you live matters. As great as my intentions were for delivering a well performed set of songs, Jennifer remembered "the nod". Our ministry goes well beyond what we think in encompasses. Kind of sobering, but also a challenge to live in the moment. More on that soon.

Wisdom from a Friend

My friend, Heather Novak has recently lost a friend named Dave. She sent out this bit of inspiration after he had passed:

Honor Dave and people you have lost in your life by enjoying every minute you have that much more...be grateful, even celebratory about what you have, who you are, and where you are in your lives RIGHT NOW.

And humbly accept the love that comes into your life...let people love you, and don't be afraid to love people back. We can be so afraid of getting hurt we never really unleash ourselves to connect...I am learning this about myself...I cannot be the only one. LIVE. LOVE. Live your love out loud.

There's some good wisdom to be found in that. Something deep about connection. Moving past the fear. Realizing that we all need to jump into that abyss of uncertainly. Letting others know how you feel. Good stuff Heather.

Back to School Fun

Very fun. New teachers. New friends. Very exciting!

AND, Mom's working in the building as well! God is good.

Weekend Arts

We had a blast this weekend!

For prelude, Dustin brought the goods on Daughtry's "Home".

Our two worship songs were:
Mighty to Save (Hillsong) - we keep the energy up throughout on this for our weekend crowd. A bit slower song than we normally do, but it's lyrics trump the tempo. I made a drum track which seems to provide a good groove.
Everlasting God (as perf. by Lincoln Brewster) - pretty straight forward on this one. After having experienced this year's Leadership Summit, the line "You're the defender of the weak" had enhanced meaning.

We did a drama called "The Memory of Water" written by our own Kristin Baker and performed by Lisa Deselm
which made a really touching moment happen.

Finally, Tim Prugh and I got to sing "Baptism" by Kenny Chesney and Randy Travis. Beautiful song with my favorite phrase "down with the old man, up with the new."

Several medias were played promoting baptism at Coveleski Stadium in Sept., but my favorite was "My Cubicle" from Eaglebrook Church in Minnesota. You'll have to click on the link on their site to view. Worth the extra click. Nice work.

Everyone did a great job! Keep it up teams!

Over 600!!!

What an awesome weekend! Over 600 people gave their lives to Christ during the 5 services at GCC. Amazing!

Highlights for me:

1. A 90 year guy, named Homer, missed the message to go up with everyone else and ended up walking through during the last song!
2. Seeing a couple, who are no longer together, both go through the doorway.
3. Watching another couple, breakdown in tears over their decision. I had a chance to meet up with them at Walmart after and they couldn't say enough how much our church has helped their family.

Can't wait to see the highlight video coming soon.

Check out the 10:30am service here until 8/12. Click on the last weekend's service icon.

231 So Far

As of Saturday night, we have given away 231 Bibles to new believers in Christ! Very exciting. God's Spirit is moving! Updates as we get them.

This is the Weekend

This weekend we will be asking people to cross the line of faith by walking through a doorway we have set up onstage. Pastor Mark Beeson, has evangelism flowing through his blood. It's at the heart of GCC. He talks about a farming approach to evangelism where we plant seed, water, fertilize, and patiently wait for people to be ready and then we harvest. Rather than asking people to make a decision for Christ every week, we do it only 1-2 times per year. Part of his rationale in this is that most thinking people don't make lifechanging decisions in 20 minutes. I agree.

Lisa (my wife) and I are so grateful to have the chance to serve together on this very special weekend in the life of our church. I remember back to a year or so ago when my daughter Anna, signed the Da Vinci "Last Supper" as a marker for her accepting Christ.


Having something like a doorway to walk through, a bridge to cross, a painting to sign - all these are like the altars that people in the Old Testament made when they met with God. Like the "ebenezer" or memorial stone that Samuel erected after a great victory over the Philistines. So people could, in fact, raise their doorway, or stone, or bridge moment when they sing "Come Thou Fount of Every Blessing". Yeah, Ebenezer is a little dated in the common language department.

Seeing How People Date

Hey,

If you're a married person, could you take a second and respond to the poll in the right column? Just getting some info on how often married people actually keep up in the dating department. 3 days left to submit your vote. Thanks.

When You Do What You're Made to Do

Dr. Bob Laurent, shared this video with us at New Community this past week. Paul Potts, a reserved guy, brings tears through his passion for singing opera. I think we can all relate. When we see people doing what they're made to do, we are moved. The world is a little better. A challenge to us all. Watch.

Holy Molar!

(Alright, technically it was an incisor. But holy incisor wasn't really working as a title)
Our little girl, Sophie, jumped through a rite of passage yesterday, at Evan Almighty (three thumbs up from Lisa, Anna, and Sophie). Her first tooth - outta there! Luckily she wasn't eating any popcorn when the tooth popped out.


Man, the tooth fairy has upped her prizes. I hear first teeth run $5! Dang. Back when I was a kid...

One Day Workshops

Today is one of our One Day Workshop days at GCC. We're doing a Maximizing the Arts workshop within this. A little lighter turnout than normal with only about 13 people, but still should be fun. My bros, Jason Miller and Trace Rorie (yeah, that's him above, the one with the good hair...) get to do our Developing a Worshiping Church session.

I always look forward to networking with other churches at events like these. It's a little humbling to consider that we have any influence in how people across the country do church. For whatever reason, God has decided to entrust us with this responsibility. I pray we're faithful in that call.

A Video for Every Teen to See

I was listening to my iPod today while cutting the grass and "Untitled" from Simple Plan came on. What a moving song, but add the video, and it is beyond words touching. There are certain things that I'm filing away for my girls as they grow, like Rob Bell's sermons on modesty. I think this video will hit the list. Nothing new here, just a reminder of something cool.

In the Little Things

Finding God in the little things:

1. My daughter Sophie riding her bike without training wheels. Realizing that day after day is literally a "letting go" (as I let go of the handlebars) of my kids. Putting them in God's hands.

2. Installing a drop ceiling with can lighting in our basement. Every step completed is a mini-celebration for Lisa and I. Painting done. Yahoo! Grid set in place. Yippee! Lighting installed. Hurray! Lighting actually works and hasn't burnt the house down. Hallelujah!!! Reminds me of creation, when God took a moment between steps to say "it is good". Enjoying the fruits of His labor.

3. Walks with just my wife and I this week. Realizing I got the best woman in the world for me. She is simply awesome. And I love her.

A New Look for Dan...

Coming this weekend...

Something different about Dan's appearance.

Hint: You may consider my new look a good "deal".

Just Had to Share

I found this picture we took last month, and just had to share it. My beautiful ballerina, Sophie. Right before she went on stage for her first dance recital! She did great!

What Friends Do

So I'm on this journey to discover on a deeper level the meaning and signs of friendship. Being a natural competitor, I have often seen friends as "the competition" - not helpful in making friends. So I asked God the other day to show me more about friendship.

He answered.

Anna is still recovering from a tonsillectomy. Surprise. Ding-dong. Anna's friend, Sarah, brought a sweet present of a Webkinz dog. First, it was a great gift. Second, Anna had been wanting one. Third, they can play together since Sarah also has one via the internet. The days of kids talking through open windows to their buddy next door (think the movie "Big") are a-changing. Example one of friendship.

And then my good friends Gene and Mary brought a cool art thing for Anna to use as another gift. Two total surprises in one day. Not that friendship is all about gifts, but, the right gift at the right time for the right reason can show a lot of love. Friendship is cool.

1/2 Way There!!!

Another quick note - since today is the half way point of the year, you might ask: "Dan, how's the running thing going this year? Are you on track for 1000 miles in 2007?" And I might answer: "Why yes, concerned friend, I'm exactly on track for 1000 since I ran my 500th mile today! Very exciting. As far as those cars raced down in Indy a month ago! (Side note: I've actually run a total of 900 miles since last July 15th when I started really counting). New shoes are making a cool difference. Asics Gel 2120s are a great shoe. Very pleased.

Recovering

Yep, our little big girl did a great job. She seems to be recovering well. Thanks for your prayers. The doctor said that the adenoids and tonsils were "prime candidates" for removal. The surgery took about a half hour and Anna woke from the anesthesia about 10 min. after they were done. Lucky thing they finished on time.

Today is a bit more painful than yesterday. But jello and eating ice chips seems to be the diet of the day. Can you believe, a kid NOT wanting to eat ice cream?!!!

Prayers Please

Hey all,

If you could lift up a prayer on behalf of my daughter Anna who is having her tonsils out tomorrow. The doctor has said that that Anna is a stellar candidate for this surgery. Sometimes you want to be the best, other times... not so much. Anyway. My baby (she's 8) goes under general anethesia for her first time which can be a little scary. Thanks.

Because I Have Girls...

Like, did you totally, like, hear the totally awesome news! I mean, it's the biggest news EVER!

Hannah Montana/Miley Cyrus just released her second album today. It's a double album with Hannah on the first and Miley (the real girl) on the second. Yeah, I'll be heading to Target today to pick this one up for my ladies. All in all, a pretty good example of what a kid can do.

Sound Effects on Speed

I finally found this guy. He is flippin' amazing!!!

One More Mac or PC

Alright, I realize that these ads have been parodied to death, but I think this song almost approaches Wierd Al status. Think "White and Nerdy"...

Um... WOW!!!

I have to say that this year's Camp Adventure was absolutely AWESOME! It was great to have my friends, Corey Mann, DC Curry, and Johnny Keim leading the charge along with Papa B (Mark Beeson).

The thing that struck me most this week was watching the progression of kids' self-consciousness. Monday night, there were a lot of kids sort of "kickin' the tires" to see if this thing was real. Lots of glances to their friends if it was okay to worship God with passion. The great key in shifting this is the example that the outstanding counselors gave. Full-hearted worship, engaged, and passionate. As the week progressed we saw many kids commit their lives to Jesus on Wednesday. At the end of the night we brought out Chris Tomlin's "Party" (which can honestly be a bit cheesy) and it totally worked! The kids and counselors screaming out "We gonna PARTY - I was dead, now I'm alive!!!"

Check out updates and footage on Corey's site HERE.

Camp Adventure is Here!

Once again, we head down to Camp Adventure. I can't believe that this is Mark Beeson's 35th year of doing this!!! Talk about perseverance! Reminds me of Hebrew 10:23 "Let us not give up doing good, for at the proper time you will reap a harvest if you do not give up."

2 fave fotos from last year:


And...



Both from the longest slip and slide EVER!

My most favorite part of camp is the way these middle schoolers give their hearts to God. They are surrounded by leaders who truly love them and it makes a huge difference in the students willingness to express their love to God. Reports when we get back!!!

We're Back!

Hey there! Just in case you missed us, we're back from Disneyworld/beach vacation in sunny Florida! Much fun!

Several highlights:

1. We totally surprised the girls this time. We picked up Anna from school (which was supposed to be her last day until snow days arrived!) and brought her into the car. We had everything set since we drove down. The girls asked "where are we going?!!!" We told them to push play on the DVD player. "Welcome to Disneyworld!", said the narrator. (Cue happy tears from Anna) They couldn't believe it! We couldn't believe that we actually kept it a secret for over 6 months!!!

2. We got our own personal Spectromagic Parade at 11pm on the last day. The closest people to us were about 50 feet away. Several of the characters came an shook the girls' hands. Like this dragonfly!


3. Our hotel, Disney's Pop Century resort was fabulous. Here was the view of the pool (shaped like a computer!)


We stayed in the 80's/90's building. Our building had giant Rubik's Cubes for stairwell covers.


We would HIGHLY RECOMMEND this hotel to anyone who needs to stay within a budget. Very clean. Fun pop culture stuff all over from the 50's, 60's, 70's, 80's, & 90's.

4. We met one of the stars of the Lion King Show (Animal Kingdom) while we were on the street at MGM. Her name was, of all things, ANNA!


5. We met up with Lindsay Wasik and her mom Dixie at Magic Kingdom. Ask Lindsay about her pirate encounter!



6. Anna's teacher, Mrs. Wolff and her husband Stan, hosted us for a great day on the beach at Cocoa Beach.



One of my favorite pix from the trip in Paris!(Epcot)

The Zimmers

We had an AWESOME dinner/swim/hangout with our friends, the Hoefts, last night. Now, if you know the Hoefts, you know they love themselves some WHO! We're talkin' THE WHO, as in Roger, Pete, John, and Keith. They had us watch this very funny clip of THE ZIMMERS who sing My Generation. The guys is 90!!! Rock on!

Right Things

When I first got to GCC almost 4 years ago (hard to believe), my very first day of work was - A STAFF RETREAT! I couldn't believe that the whole staff, around 50 of us at that point went on an overnight excursion to Oakwood Conference Center. Nice place. Beautiful lake.

For one of the sessions, Mark Beeson brought in Dave Engbrecht from Nappanee Missionary Church. He gave us a message that I still haven't forgotten. It was so simple that I couldn't believe that I was actually saying "WOW!" His basic premise was the following formula:


RT(right things) - F(Feelings) over T(Time) = DR(Desired Results)

If we do the right things regularly, no matter how we feel at the moment, and if we do them for a while, we'll get the results we desire. This pretty much works for most anything. You want to lose weight? Exercise and eat less (no matter if you want to scarf the Krispy Kreme Dozen) and you'll eventually get there. Want to get financial peace? Save more and spend less (no matter if the plasma screen is calling your name) and you'll eventually get there.

I have found this true in running. I have literally had to fight my body to get up in the mornings to get going. I'm seeing results. Me happy.

I'm also working on this for my voice. Using the Vocal Artistry CDs that we got a couple weeks ago, I'm seeing initial improvement already. Trying to extend my range and get rid of tension. We'll see where 6 months of consistency can go.

I'm really thankful to Dave for bringing this memorable message to us. I am benefitting.

Marvel vs. DC

Simple truths here...



And here...


And here...


Finally, here...


Ha. Ha. Ha. Ha.

Vocal Artistry: A SMASH HIT!

I can't say enough about how great of an experience everyone had the Vocal Artistry event that we hosted at GCC this weekend. We had 200 singers attend! Tim Carson has such a wealth of knowledge to share. We had two of our singers, Angie Henry and Bill Moore sing at the event and Tim had a chance to clinic them. Great voices to start, but then BAM! With the knobs he tweaked, both Angie and Bill sang with marked improvement.

I know that our team is going to benefit from the resources that Vocal Artistry has. I'm looking forward to using both the CD on Vocal Freedom (reducing tension, etc) and another on Vocal Strength (range extension, endurance, register blending). I realized how HEAVY I sing in order to get volume. Kinda like a golfer "muscle-ing" the ball. I hope to get some freedom from these habits that I've developed over the years.

I would recommend to any singer to get to one of the Vocal Artistry events.

Tim, thanks for all your time. You were awesome!

Kickin' It Up a Notch

You may not know this, but I'm a big fan of Diet Coke. Now I prefer Diet Coke with Splenda, or certainly a good FOUNTAIN DC from Speedway (where every 7th one is free!) or Sam's Club. So I figured it was inevitable that I try the relatively new Diet Coke Plus - vitamins and minerals and other stuff that's good for you (I guess that balances out the other chemicals...)

The verdict: sure. I guess. Nothing earth shattering. I guess it's good to get extra stuff? The taste was pretty much the same. Though the Ace-K sweetner might make it a little closer to the Splenda. Definately Diet Coke, whereas Diet Coke with Splenda basically tastes like regular Coke.

For more extensive research, check here.

Barbie and Authentic Worship?

The other night, I had the awesome privilege of catching a glimpse of what true worship might be from my youngest daughter, Sophie. I was sitting at my computer while she and her sister were watching "Barbie and the Magic of Pegasus" which they got for Easter from their grandma. This was their first time watching it. As it was approaching the end of the movie, I caught a glimpse of Sophie. Her eyes were WIDE OPEN with anticipation about what might happen. Would good conquer evil? Would the princess save the day?

Then it happened. I saw her eyes open even wider. A soft, barely audible sound began to form in Sophie's mouth. It gradually crescendoed to a full out "YEAH!!!!!!!!", as the evil wizard was defeated!!! Then as the fairies (formerly held captive) streaked across the screen: "WOW!" And then, "BUTTERFLIES!!!" And finally, "Hey! The blush (a flower) made a rainbow!"

Yeah, I couldn't stop grinning. One of those moments where the absolute WONDER of a child is completely captivating. She was so enthralled in this movie that she couldn't help but verbally SHOUT OUT her excitement!

So let's recap. First, the evil one is defeated. Second, the captives are set free. And finally, a rainbow appears. Any similarities to worship here? When's the last time I shouted in praise of my King who conquered sin and death. The captives, like you and me, are SET FREE!!! And the promise of the rainbow - that God will never give up on us. I think I'll let my daughter take the lead for a while. I think she gets what this worship thing is all about. Hm... "Faith like a child..." Where is that from again?

Bono on Idol

News is that tomorrow night, Bono will make a guest appearance on American Idol. More about the ONE Campaign and less about singing. Which, in my opinion, is not a bad thing. It will be cool to raise the awareness of the non-Oprah watching, Gap shopping, iPod listening public in order to get the word out about possibly the greatest humanitarian crisis of our generation. Check out some of the details here.

A Little Old Cheese

Sometimes a little old cheese isn't all that bad. :)

Remember this:


And this:


And this:


Oh, yeah, finally this:


Enjoy!

A Greater Glimpse

It's in the shadow of a day like yesterday at Virginia Tech that value of our ministry seems to come into focus. Here's the dismal truth: if the Church was really being the Church, people like this dude wouldn't be slipping through the cracks. Now, I understand about the Fall and whatnot, but it seems that if somehow, someone would have intercepted this man as a kid, we wouldn't have 32 dead today. Hindsight is 20/20, but I just hope that this generation, the ones on our watch would catch a greater glimpse of hope. A greater glimpse of peace. A greater glimpse of the love of Christ.

Maybe it's because I have kids now that I'm even more keenly aware of what loss might be to the parents of these young men and women. Two days ago, these people were looking forward to graduation, jobs, their lives. Today, a much different story. Overwhelming grief. Unending questions. Pain so deep that it is beyond what words could say. My heart breaks for these. The heart of Jesus breaks for these. The only hope is in the fact that Jesus conquered death and can bring beauty from ashes. Hope is in the resurrected Christ who makes all things new and can take the worst the world can bring, and use it for His glory.

Lord, show the world a greater glimpse of who You are today.

300

Ah, for the glory of Sparta!!!

Okay, this post really isn't about swords, death, glory, really at all.

It's about the goal that I have for running 1,000 miles in 2007.

Today I passed the 300 mark!

I guess the only battle that I'm really fighting here is Type II Diabetes that my dad has. My grandpa also had it. So, I'm in the fight against this formidable foe. Literally, the fight for my life. I don't have the disease yet. But I'm hoping that a reasonably good diet and regular exercise will keep the insulin shots at bay. Who said that you shouldn't run from your enemies?

The Orange Cometh

Just under a month and a group of people from GCC will be heading down to The Orange Conference put on by the reThink Group. Reggie Joiner, Lanny Donoho, and Sue Miller are the most notable from this organization. With just these three speaking it would have been amazing, but to add Donald Miller and Nancy Beach is just icing on the cake. A shout out to Lanny who emailed me on Easter morning just to say "hey". And yes, I will be reading God's Blogs (check out his new book, it looks very cool!)

It will be great to get together with leaders from all around the nation who are looking at what it means to put together ministry that will truly help families be the main disciplers of their kids. Let's face it. Again, we know that only so many hours are spent at a church, whereas tons of hours spent at home. How we train/partner with parents to disciple their kids is going to be the wave of the future.

I'm also looking forward to getting a chance to hang out with people I don't normally get to hang with. Our Youth ministry peeps: DC Curry, Judy Gregory, Johnny Keim, and (my man) Corey Mann. Also our Children's ministry crew: Georgia Fawcett, Amy Rembold, and Brian Davis (my roomate). My sense is that God is doing something cool to bring these youth ministry and children's ministry worlds together for discussion and ideas, not just on our team, but all across the nation. My prayer is for an explosion in Kingdom potential for the next generation. More as we get closer.

Finally Finishing "Simply Christian"

A few quotes from N.T. Wright in the final chapters of his newest book "Simply Christian":

"You can't reflect God's image without returning to worship to keep the reflection fresh and authentic."

"In the same way, worship sustains and nourishes fellowship; without it, fellwoship quickly deteriorates into groups of the like-minded, which in turn quickly become exclusive cliques - the very opposite of what Jesus's people should be aiming at."

"At the heart of the Christian ethic is humility; at the heart of its parodies, pride."

If you haven't read it, I would recommend it if you like a little more talk about orthodoxy (right belief) and a little less about orthopraxy (right behavior).

Next book I am looking forward to is Rob Bell's Sex God.

Much Fun with Live Space Invaders!

Check out this very fun stop-action version of Space Invaders!!!

Big Easter at GCC!

WOW! What a fantastic group of artists and technicians we have! An amazing group of over 50 volunteers/staff helped put together the programming for an incredible EIGHT Easter services this weekend. Our attendance was just over 10,000 people which is also amazing considering that Easter came right at the end of Spring Break! You can check out the service HERE.

Some highlights:

DC Curry (our youth director/former Notre Dame football star) helped bring the heat as Trace Rorie (my brother with the kickin' voice and best hair), my wife, Lisa and I performed the Black Eyed Peas song "Let's Get it Started".

For worship, we sang Charlie Hall's "Marvelous Light" and Chris Tomlin's "Let God Arise". Chris' song has that line in it that continues to ring true in my heart "Our God is the God who saves." I LOVE THAT cause it's so true. Over and over again, I get to see it in the lives of people around me. Props to our whole team who really showed the energy that these songs demanded. Tim and Steph, you guys rocked!

Lisa and I then had the chance to sing the Elephant Love Medley from Moulin Rouge. My man, Jeff Petersen did an outstanding job getting the background to look SO COOL! The scene went from day to night and then to fireworks at the end. The moon looked incredible. Not to mention the dry ice that the tech team put together. Yeah, we were floating on clouds. Great work guys!

Later, Trace sang The Killers "When You Were Young", complete with weird movements that Brandon Flowers (lead singer from The Killers) does. He sounded awesome. Finally, at the end, in traditional Easter fashion, we ended with Goo Goo Dolls' "Better Days". Particularly at the 7:30pm service on Saturday, I could sense the Holy Spirit doing something amazing in the room. Grace was offered and accepted. Forgiveness met us during this song. I talked to Trace after and mentioned that it was one of those "Fix You" moments. Beautiful.

Thanks again to everyone who did such a great job! Especially the band, Adam, Brian, Dustin. You all did so well, with so many different songs.

All in all, a great weekend and a great launch to our Sound Vows series which should be very helpful to many people. I'm looking forward to it.

New David Crowder Band Video

Hey check out the brand new anime' video of Foreverandever etc from DCB here.

Fun.

New Linkin Park

Oh yes, my friends. I've been waiting on this for a while. Like Good Charlotte, LP have gone to a little more radio friendly sound, but in a good way. Their pre-release "What I've Done" has some pretty weighty Jesus lyrics with:

Put to rest,
What you thought of me
While, I clean this slate,
With the hands,
Of uncertainty,
So let mercy come,
And wash away…

What I’ve Done,
I’ll face myself,
To cross out what I’ve become,
Erase myself,
And let go of what I’ve done…

Check out the video with very insightful recognition of the each person's responsibility for the sin of the world.



New album "Minutes to Midnight" release on May 15th. I'll be buying.

At Long Last...

Lisa and I had the chance to perform this little number for our Volunteer Celebration back in February. It's "Taylor, the Latte Boy", made known by broadway singer, Kristin Chenoweth. Hope you enjoy it. BTW, I think my wife ROCKS!!!

MuteMath Video

If you haven't seen this, it is beyond cool. (props to my buddy Heredes for pointing this out) Every person in the band had to learn the song backwards to make it work. These guys are beyond talented!!! Hard to believe both they and Mat Kearney were just at GCC last year. Check it out!

If It's Helpful

About a year ago, God planted a phrase in my head that I've been using to focus. I generally say this in mornings while I run (which, by the way, is a great way to pray - yes, you can turn off the iPod!). Before I tell you this, let me give you the background.

First, there is the idea of God's will. Perfect. Sees the BIG picture. It's the part of the Lord's Prayer "Your kingdom come, Your will be done." I think anyone who believes in Jesus would say, "yeah, I'm down with that."

Second, there is this intersection of heaven and earth which takes place in the human heart - the will. As the Spirit resides in us, He is constantly conforming our hearts (our wills) into the likeness of Christ. The problem always is with our will. Often, we want to do, act, think in a way that is our own. We often feel that we know best. Or there are certain things/situations in which we often take control. As Christ takes over our lives, we want to not only act, but want to think/feel as Christ would. This isn't easy. As Corey Mann has said, "Sometimes we need to do laps." Just like the nation of Israel did in the desert.

So when, someone gets accolades for doing something great, our first impulse isn't jealousy, but praise. When someone rides up too close behind us in a car, we don't immediately throw back an expletive, but rather consider that they may be trying to get to something truly important. Or if someone doesn't call us back right away, instead of judging them in our hearts, maybe we grow some patience; understanding that maybe our agenda isn't the most important thing in the world.

OK... Finally... the phrase... (warning it's not earth shattering) ready...

"Lord, will in me Your perfect will."

Again, God's will intersecting our will. When I pray this, I'm asking that God would will (create, or form) in my heart (my will), His perfect will. I think the more I would approach situations from this perspective, the better off I'd be.

Recommendation: I have found it helpful to simply meditate on this phrase (as well as phrases like the Centering Prayer "Lord, have mercy on me, a sinner.") Or you could make up your own phrase. I advise to keep the phrase short. Repeating this all day in your inner dialogue with God might work. Or for a block of time focusing each word in the phrase and asking God to speak to your heart. Also, a great site for meditative prayer guidance is sacredgateway.com Hope this can encourage you today.

Guess Who's...

Yep, the birthday girl, Sophie, turned six yesterday!


And yes! She got a SWEET SET OF TAYE DRUMS!!! She is totally rockin' now! (Dad, may have to borrow them from time to time! :)) Really a family set as we try to give the VonTrapp family (think Sound of Music) a run for their Deutsch Marks. "The Hills are alive, with the sound of Vukmirovich..." I can hear it now... Okay, I can't.


It's hard to believe that our youngest is already SIX!!! We are so proud of her! The only unfortunate thing about her birthday was that THIS (see below) was what helped her get through the day...


Yeah, our girl has been sick. She made it through a half day of kindergarten, but then passed out at home. She was a trooper though!!!

Good Morning... Good Charlotte

Out 2day, Good Charlotte's - Good Morning Revival

They've lightened up the sound a bit with a bit more of All-American Rejects mixed in. A lot more radio-friendly than much of their earlier stuff. I particularly like the earlier released "The River", but the acoustic version (album only) is even cooler. The track "Misery" has the catchy hooks that these guys are famous for. We'll see where this album goes. Probably not as far as Green Day's "American Idiot", but it honestly seems to have a more positive outlook which I like. Though I do like me some Green Day on a regular basis.

God Tube

I may be about 10 months late on this, but have you checked out GodTube? Oh, man. So much potential for good, but CHOCK FULL of stuff that just about anyone could parody. Check out:

The Banana vs. The Athiest

I laughed OUT LOUD at this one:

Christian Clown Training

Check out this kid's potential:

Future Preacher Boy

We'll see where all this goes. Have fun.

Wisdom and Words

This is kind of difficult for me to say, since, in saying it, I might be the proverbial pot calling the kettle black. Alas, I think it needs to be said.

WORDS

"When words are many, sin is not absent. But he who holds his tongue is wise." Prov. 10:18

I've been thinking a lot lately about this issue of wisdom. It is an elusive thing. The whole beginning of Proverbs talks about how Wisdom cries out in the streets to be heard, and no one is listening. I wonder if we block out wisdom by our chatter. Three things to listen to:

1. God
2. Others
3. Yourself

In our constant noise, I think we really stop listening to all three - EVEN OURSELVES!

Some of the wisest people I know aren't necessarily older, nor have they been around the block a few more times. I think they're simply GOOD LISTENERS. These people don't rush to conclusions. They take time to consider things. Impulsive, they are not.(think Yoda, "hm...")


Another observation based on a conversation with a friend today:

BLOGS = WORDS

often:

BLOGS = MANY WORDS

potential for:

MANY WORDS = SIN

Warning to all: be WISE about what you put on your blog. There is so much potential for good things in this world of blogging, but to LISTEN as you type. Remembering that people don't know the inflection of your voice as they read your posts. My pastors Tim Stevens and Tony Morgan have a chapter on this in their book Simply Strategic Stuff. Ok. Now, go and blog wisely...

Odessy 2 and Me

Okay. So I've got this competitive streak in me. My earliest memory of me being this way, to a fault, was when I was 8. I owned an Odessy 2 video game. Now, everyone else had an Atari, but I wanted to be cooler, a little edgier, so I went with the Odessy (cool site here). One of my first games was Baseball.


Yeah, you could move your guys, but all three outfielders moved at the same time. Very high tech... My best friend, Greg, an Atari owner, came over one day to play. Greg was pretty much awesome at whatever Greg tried. So I should have known better than to challenge him to a game of Odessy baseball. I figured I had home-video-game advantage. Welllll, that didn't work out too great for me. He utterly STOMPED me, like 30-7. And, of course, Greg had to do the rub it in victory dance/chant after "oh-yeah! I'm awesome! oh-yeah! I'm the greatest!" or something like that. Yeah, this didn't settle too well with me, as you can imagine. I pretty violently through my game controller at him and began to bawl like a baby. "I should be the champion! It's not even YOUR game!!!" Not only did I want to win, I wanted to push my competition down and see them fail.

Yeah, we didn't play that game too much after that episode. I remember it so well, because I think I still carry it with me. The attitude, not the game. It manifests itself a little differently now. Sometimes I catch myself not only wanting to be the best at something, but wanting others to not be fully successful. I don't mind if they're good at something different than me (Atari), but when it's MY game, whoo baby, that can send me into places I don't like to go. The sad thing is that I stop focusing on doing MY best and just work on being better than others. Subtle difference, but way different outcome.

God keeps working on me with this one as he puts people in my path who challenge me. You'd be surprised that it's not the obvious people in my professional life that I compete with in my mind. My friend, Jason Miller gave me a good word: "It's not WANTING to win that's bad, it's NEEDING to win." Putting things like success and approval in front of God. Sounds like idols to me.

Galatians 1:10 "Am I now trying to win the approval of men, or of God? Or am I trying to please men? If I were still trying to please men, I would not be a servant of God."

Have You Checked This Out?

I'm a BIG Beatles fan. I think they were (and are) masters of melody and of the unpredictable. This album has been out a while, but if you haven't already checked it out, check out the LOVE album. Based on the new Cirque du Soleil show out in Vegas. Check out the Beatles LOVE site HERE.


My wife, Lisa, who is even a bigger Beatles fan is more of a purist and isn't sure she likes the new stuff here. But if you likes you some Beatles and want to hear a new perspective from Sir George Martin's (their original producer) ears, then check it out. I particularly love the remix on track 16 "Octopus's Garden". Also the beautiful a cappella harmonies on the opening song "Because" are tight.

Coming in May to GCC

Cool opportunity that we're having this May (4th & 5th) to bring in Tim Carson, from Vocal Artistry.


Tim is a voice teacher/guru who will work with our vocal team (and others from the area) on topics like technique, stage presence, and communication. Check out the trailer and/or sign up for the workshop that's going to be here at GCC here.

Tim, we're excited to have you at Granger. Thanks for partnering with us.

Alright, I Admit It

Okay. When I was like 7 and 8, I watched Little House on the Prairie with my grandma. And, I even LIKED IT! Well, looks like Laura (Melissa Gilbert) is going to be playing Ma in a new musical version of the show with Patrick Swayze (think Chipendale dancing with Chris Farley)as Pa. Hm. Check it out here.

A Shout Out to a Brother in Miami (and his lady)

I thought I'd introduce you to a friend of mine from Miami. His name is Heredes (that's "air-uh-des") Ribiero. We met out at Saddleback's Purpose Driven Church conference last year, and then we hooked up again at Catalyst 2006. He's just accepted a new staff position at Flamingo Road Church in another part of Miami. Check out a hilarious video here of he and his wife singing. Talk about a guy with a heart for including people. Like Jesus would. I came to Atlanta alone, and soon he and his posse picked me up and treated me like a brother. Love you brother. Keep following God.

Helping Us Believe

One of the things that has hit me lately, (I'm going through the One Year Bible) is this issue of what it means to BELIEVE. I mean REALLY believe. Over and over again Jesus points out the faith of ordinary people who seem to "get it" and then contrasting it with those who SHOULD get it, but really don't.

One example is in Mark 9:14-29. A demon-possessed boy's father approaches Jesus. Having struggled for years with a boy that is untameable - he's at his end. He asks Jesus IF he CAN do anything to help. Jesus then reminds him (and us) that EVERYTHING is possible for those who believe. To which the man responds, (I LOVE THIS LINE) "I do believe; help me overcome my unbelief." So true. So honest. I've heard it said that that which is most personal is most universal. I think this applies here. That's SO ME!

I think that's why I can relate to the discples so well. One minute they're all, "YEAH, LORD! WHATEVER YOU SAY!" The next moment, "UH... 5000 people. Us... I mean, we don't even have the gift of hospitality." I wonder what would happen if our prayers would ask God to help us believe? How would that change our perspective? How would our time be spent? How would our resources be spent?

Pastor Mark really NAILED IT this weekend (check it out HERE)as he challenged people with "who do you say Jesus is?" It's this fundamental question that will literally shape our lives. For those of us who believe that He's God's son, and has died for us, and rose again, and sent His Spirit; we have to then live out of this dependence on God for EVERYTHING. Believing that God will follow through on His promises.

Dang it, now I gotta think about this stuff...

Big Bottoms...

No, I'm not talking about people's behinds. I am talking about a huge difference it makes to have a good subwoofer as part of the home studio set up. I was just able to get a kickin' new sub from M-Audio. The BX-10

It has a real punch without being muddy. Very cool feature of a footswitch kill if you want to hear your music without the sub. Much easier than reaching to find the off switch on the back, behind your desk. This is going to be so helpful in mixing for the large auditorium that we have. Since I create most of our backing tracks that go along with our music each weekend at GCC, it is going to make a huge difference to understand what the real impact of adding a few db to any given bass notes. More as songs develop.