Moving?

Just wanted to say thanks to all of you who stop by here and check out my blog! It's been pretty wild getting to know people in the blog world that are spread out all over the world (cheers to you guys in AUS!!)

I know there are a lot of you who actually link here. I am considering moving my blog over to another host - don't know which one yet (suggestions?).

Some of you link to the 'blogspot.com' address and I need you to start pointing (linking) to my domain address, mikejonesblog.com... this should get you over to my blog no matter where I have it.

So00000, PLEASE update your links if you would to the mikejonesblog.com address.

Where do you have your blogs posted? Pros/cons?

Thanks all!
Peace.

Blind Date

Probably one of my favorite commercials of all time.

Peace.

Orchard Rewind Episode 7

Setlist from 4/22 with commentary and (for the first time) video clips from the service. Sound and video are very crude but you get the rough idea.

You notice a lot of things when you actually video tape a weekend :) For example, I didn't realize I was so pasty looking :)) I'm sure some sun and better video imaging can take care of that!

How was your weekend?

Peace.

Adam Sandler and Kevin James

Just watched a trailer for the movie Chuck & Larry coming out in July.

I don't know - it looks pretty funny. Hopefully they didn't show all the funny parts in the trailer. It'll be nice to have Adam Sandler in a funny role again. Kevin James is pretty funny himself so I'm betting on it being a good summertime flick to go check out.

You can also check out more info on the movie here.

Peace.

Don't Wait Any Longer

I have been silent on this (at least in the blog world) as long as I can... there have been several posts that have discussed this horrible incident and I have had nothing new to add.

I am broken hearted for the families of those who were murdered, for the friends of those who lost their lives, for the people that those lives might have impacted. I am sad for Cho and his family too. It seems easy to get angry and I think I probably would had it been my child or my friend, but the truth is this guy was a lost, hurting kid too.

Where does it end? Death and violence have surrounded us. Maybe it has been there all along and we have just become oblivious to it until something of this magnitude happens. Does it have to be worse and worse every time for us to notice? God, I hope not. The truth is that people are dying everyday, every minute. What are we doing about them? How are we celebrating their lives, or reaching out to the person next to us not knowing what tomorrow brings?

If nothing else, I hope that it moves us to action. Those of us who are followers of Jesus have got to act NOW. There is an urgency behind what we have been called to do. Lives are at stake and there is no time to lose, no time to wait until we've got our ducks in a row. God has called us to love those around us like there is no tomorrow.

If you've been waiting to talk to someone, to mend a relationship, to start a relationship, or to share what God has done for you with someone else... don't wait any longer. If you've been waiting to make a connection with Jesus because you just feel like you're good enough or you don't have all the answers yet... don't wait any longer.

If you are a church leader, what are you doing in your church right now to reach those outside of your walls? Those on the inside have already found Jesus; they're already in the lifeboat. What are doing to reach those that don't yet know him?

Sorry about the download, but this is my blog and I just needed to get this stuff out of my head. I haven't been able to stop thinking about it. This sums up why I am so passionate about The Orchard and the way we do church... our focus will always be more about those who don't know Jesus than those who already do. If you already know Jesus, jump on board and get involved in helping us accomplish what God has called us to do. Time is of the essence and every weekend counts because it may be our one and only time to reach, touch, love, or affect someone who is lost.

For those of you who have been involved in life-altering, tragic, heartbreaking situations this week - I'm praying for you. Remember that God is good, He sees more than we see, and He redeems. That is something no one can take away. Scott gave a timely message on this subject last Sunday - who knew (God did... He sees more than I see).

Another great post on this topic, though there are lots.
Thanks for letting me bear my thoughts.

Peace... please.

Orchard Rewind Episode 6

Finally up and going.
Setlist from 4/15/07.

Peace.

"Overwhelmed by the din..."

Wow! Just read Seth Godin's post in response to the Washington Post article about Joshua Bell...

An internationally acclaimed virtuoso violinist ignored in the D.C. metro station. He plays for the hundreds who pass by without most even noticing. Presentation and placement makes a huge difference.

What I think I like most is that Seth reminds that we get so caught up in our own lives and we get so bombarded with the advertising around us that we ignore the sweet sounds in life.

We forget to smell the roses.

What did you think of this? Do you agree with the conclusion?

Peace.

What Ya Got?

In honor of April also being International Guitar Month, I thought I'd throw this post out there for all of you guitarists. Even if you're not a guitarist, you have to appreciate these fine instruments. There's hardly a tune out there that doesn't have one playing in it somewhere (I said hardly :)

What kind of gear do you got?
What's your favorite axe to jam out on?

Here is what's currently in my gig rig:

* Ovation Celebrity CC026, 2003 Electric-Acoustic
* Ibanez Performer PF-400, 1977 Electric
* Fender Stratocaster, custom neck and pickups, 1969 Electric
* Jackson Performer w/ reverse headstock, 2000 Electric
* Steinberger Spirit, 2006 Electric

I find myself mostly playing my Ovation (which rocks if your an electric guitar guy) and my Strat (gives me a little different tone than my other guitarists).

For you non-guitar owners, you might not understand this but each guitar feels, sounds and plays differently and I have used them all depending on the situation/song/mood.

So, what ya got? Classical? Country? Rock? Metal? Jazz?
Whether you're a newbie, a veteran, a closet guitarist or you play every weekend - what's your fav to play?

Peace.

Hillsong United in Chicago

If you don't know already, Hillsong United is coming to the Chicago area on May 30th, 7:30pm.

I am encouraging everyone on The Orchard Creative Arts team to attend. It should be a great show and I'm told the facility they are using is awesome!

you can go here to buy tickets. The ticket price changes based on the date you buy them so don't miss out on this rockin' event! If you buy before April 15th you get the best ticket price.

Would love to know if you plan to attend here in Chicago.
Peace.

Easter... Planning Already for 2008?

Every week at The Orchard, we get together as a staff and discuss wins from the weekend and try to discover areas that need attention or improvement. Easter was a huge win, especially having so many volunteers involved over the weekend. Lot's of things we learned for next year, but a lot of things that went very well too.

Thinking about next year and what we might consider doing differently, I found this great post about Easter and the dates for Easter on Tim Steven's blog. I never knew (but always wondered) why the dates fluctuated so much.

Looks like the 2008 has Easter being set for March 23rd... a bit earlier next year.

Here's what it looks like for the next several years:

2009 - April 12
2010 - April 4
2011 - April 24
2012 - April 8

Peace.

Orchard Rewind Episode 5

Easter weekend.
Four services.
One helicopter.
10,000 eggs.

Great volunteers.
Great band.
Great vocalists.
Great production team.
Great message.

Great God!

Setlist and highlights from Easter weekend.
How was yours?

Peace.

Feels like...

Feels like I've dropped off the blogosphere. I hadn't read any blogs and hadn't posted in several days. This is one of my biggest weeks/weekends during the year and a lot of preparation, time and energy have gone into making our weekend at the Orchard one that will impact people's lives. A great team of volunteers, staff and leaders have put countless hours into this weekend.

What's funny is that we are making it very much like one of our regular weekends at the Orchard so that guests who show up don't see something this week and then show up next week to see something completely different. Yeah, we added a couple of extra lights but everything else was about the same.

So then why all the prep? While every weekend is important for us at the Orchard, this weekend in particular has the largest potential to reach people who would otherwise never come to church. Every weekend is our chance, maybe our only chance, to reach someone who doesn't know God. We take that very seriously - I take that very seriously in all that I am a part of there.

Hope you all have a great Easter weekend!
Peace.

Orchard Rewind 4

Setlist from 4/1/07.
Makin' Noise 2007 review,
and brief on Easter services.

Peace.