There HERE!!

I can't believe it! Today is the day when we install our new screens!

We are getting two new, widescreen format, sidescreens that are about 7 Feet tall and 12 feet wide. These have already been installed and they look killer just by themselves!!

You wouldn't think that just changing the size of the side screens and going to widescreen format would make that big of a difference but, let me tell you... huge difference!

Here's a few more pics (taken with the my laptop) for you to check out. More to come as the day progresses.

Can't wait for the center screen to go up - they are working on the framing for it now. It's going to be sweet!































Peace.

Pudding Diet

So I think I've stumbled on to the most perfect diet.

After hearing a commercial for pudding cups that have only 60 calories each, I figured out the best diet I could ever go on.

I happen to love pudding - yes it's a weakness. But there is almost nothing like homemade chocolate pudding! In fact, when Kristen and I first got married, she use to make me my own bowl of homemade chocolate pudding for my birthday instead of a cake! No joke.

At any rate, with each cup only 60 calories each, you could have 20 of them a day and still only have about 1200 of your calories for the day!

That's it!
Who's with me?

Peace.

Sunday Setlist

10.07.07 Setlist

Let the Praises Ring - Lincoln Brewster
Mighty To Save - Hillsong United
Talk - Coldplay
Lean On Me - Club Nouveau

Today went pretty well considering I think I'm getting sick. My throat is killing me and my sinuses are a mess.

Luckily I don't have a very busy week this week... that's a joke of course.

Screens go up this week, along with new projector and switcher. We also have a couple of other events to schedule around so it will be interesting. Saturday night services start the 20th, and my arts teams are ready! Should be great.

Hope your week goes great!
Peace.

12 Months Ago...

Hard to believe that it was only 12 months ago I joined the Orchard team. So much has happened in the last year it seems almost unreal.

I am proud to be part of a healthy, growing staff that strives to hear God's voice and then obey Him. I don't think I have grown more in my life than in the last year on this team.

It has also been awesome to be part of a healthy, growing, and loving church family! You guys are great and I never tire of telling others about you. God continues to do amazing things in your lives and the stories you've shared with me over this last year have been incredible! Never give up your boldness. Never stop being excited about being a part of this community. Allow the passion you have for leading others to Jesus to keep burning within you - may that fire never be quenched!

Thank you for sharing your lives and this past 12 months with my family and me!
Here's to the next 12!
Peace.

Baptism Video

Just saw an article someone sent me that was written up in a 'Christian' magazine. The article ridiculed us for our Baptism Instructional video we posted earlier this summer. They never said our name (at least in the snippet of the article I saw), but they had a picture in the article of the ending shot of the video.

Hilarious.

We've taken the heat over it and yet it continues to be checked out. We've had the video watched on google video almost 13 thousand times!! Who's watching it?

Amazing how things can be taken out of context in such an.... wait what was the word that was used.... egregious (yeah that's it) way.

The video was funny.
We had fun making it.
I think people were put at ease about what to expect when being baptized.
100 people committed their lives to Christ in baptism just a few weeks later.

Great how God moves.

OK... I'm done with it. Just had to get it out of my system and this is my blog, after all.
Peace.

Psalm 119

Been thinking about this verse that I was led to this morning:

Psalm 119: 89-96 (from the Message)
What you say goes, God,
and stays, as permanent as the heavens.
Your truth never goes out of fashion;
it's as up-to-date as the earth when the sun comes up.
Your Word and truth are dependable as ever;
that's what you ordered—you set the earth going.
If your revelation hadn't delighted me so,
I would have given up when the hard times came.
But I'll never forget the advice you gave me;
you saved my life with those wise words.
Save me! I'm all yours.
I look high and low for your words of wisdom.
The wicked lie in ambush to destroy me,
but I'm only concerned with your plans for me.
I see the limits to everything human,
but the horizons can't contain your commands!

God has saved me. My focus is on His plans for my life. I am limited as human being but God has no limits!

Peace.

Innovate - Big Idea Session Notes 2

One of the things I heard Dave Ferguson and Eric Bramlett talk a little on yesterday was the relationship they have on staff. Dave is the lead pastor and Eric is the creative arts guru.

Here's what I wrote down from their discussion:
Creative arts director and lead pastor need to be on the same page - key relationship.

Creative arts needs permission to take risk (needs the permission from the lead pastor). Art is about risk - all art. Churches are risk adverse and this is why we repel artists.

Artists need trust from lead pastor. The lead pastor needs to know/trust that the creative arts director is going to risk for the sake of the cause and the mission.

In this relationship:
Planning - artists need/want to plan. Gives them a canvas in which to work, to be creative. Teaching is an art as well and needs to be woven and planned together. Not just a setup for the teaching, but something working all together. Advanced planning allows you (lead pastor) to suspend skepticism on risky ideas.

Proximity - have to be in close proximity, in time and space with the lead pastor so that they can be on the same page. Trust and friendship.

Parameters - we ask: does it contribute to the big idea (not just a song or video for fun but goes with the idea)? Is there anything about the idea that distracts from the big idea? (not necessarily just offensive, IF it will take people closer to the idea) but take away from an idea. A positive review on an element can be just as distracting if people focus on that and not on the big idea.

Anyway, thought this was very insightful for you all working together in similar environments.
Peace.

Innovate - Big Idea Session Notes

In my previous post I was in the middle of a session at the Innovate 2007 conference with dudes from CCC. Here's some of the notes I jotted down regarding the Big Idea and planning for the weekend:

More information = less clarity
One Big Idea = more clarity and action

Goal of the Big Idea - a community of transformation not information.

Big Idea Planning Timeline (this is for ONE idea or series):
One year out - meet with lead team, teaching pastors and those involved in areas that will be affected by planning of messages - 2 day meeting to plan a year.

10-13 weeks out - teaching team takes lead and creates a document (mini essays) that talk about the series, topics, paragraphs, scriptures of what will be talking about. Big Idea drafts. These are sent out to everyone. This is the beginning document.

9 weeks out - day of creative meetings - brainstorm adult experience. Beginning middle and end of service planned, focus times, sketch ideas, message outlines, etc. Kids and small groups (and students) experiences are hammered out during this week as well.

5 weeks out - reviewing what we've learned regarding the planning of this big idea. Taking a look at what we said 4 weeks prior, do we have video shoots put together, dates scheduled for the various elements, does it all still make sense. Review.

3 weeks - manuscripts of teaching is completed and sent out. The teaching pastor receiving it finalizes it and adds/subtracts to make it personalized from them. Media pieces developed for message at this time.

2 weeks - cue sheet, transitions, reviewing. Sometimes things don't work but meticulously going over every piece to make sure it is all together.

1 week out - changes if necessary, but everything else is just a thumbs up to make sure that everything is good to go and working properly.

Thought this was a really good session. So if you ever get a chance to check out a Big Idea session with these guys, I recommend it.

I actually heard some things from Dave and Eric this time that I did not pick up on before. More on this in another post.

Innovate 2

In my previous post I was in the middle of a session at the Innovate 2007 conference with dudes from CCC. Here's some of the notes I jotted down regarding the Big Idea and planning for the weekend:

More information = less clarity
One Big Idea = more clarity and action

Goal of the Big Idea - a community of transformation not information.

Big Idea Planning Timeline:
One year out - meet with lead team, teaching pastors and those involved in areas that will be affected by planning of messages - 2 day meeting to plan a year.

10-13 weeks out - teaching team takes lead and creates a document (mini essays) that talk about the series, topics, paragraphs, scriptures of what will be talking about. Big Idea drafts. These are sent out to everyone. This is the beginning document.

9 weeks out - day of creative meetings - brainstorm adult experience. Beginning middle and end of service planned, focus times, sketch ideas, message outlines, etc. Kids and small groups (and students) experiences are hammered out during this week as well.

5 weeks out - reviewing what we've learned regarding the planning of this big idea. Taking a look at what we said 4 weeks prior, do we have video shoots put together, dates scheduled for the various elements, does it all still make sense. Review.

3 weeks - manuscripts of teaching is completed and sent out. The teaching pastor receiving it finalizes it and adds/subtracts to make it personalized from them. Media pieces developed for message at this time.

2 weeks - cue sheet, transitions, reviewing. Sometimes things don't work but meticulously going over every piece to make sure it is all together.

1 week out - changes if necessary, but everything else is just a thumbs up to make sure that everything is good to go and working properly.

Thought this was a really good session. So if you ever get a chance to check out a Big Idea session with these guys, I recommend it.

I actually heard some things from Dave and Eric this time that I did not pick up on before. More on this in another post.

Do U Innovate

Sitting in Dave Ferguson's breakout session at Innovate 2007. He's talking about the Big Idea and how we can impact people by reducing the amount of info we are giving out and giving out the same idea - big idea - in all environments at our churches. Eric Bramlett is sharing about a couple of series that they did where the adults (weekend services), the kids (weekend services) and small groups all talk about the same big idea.

Anyway, are you here at Innovate? Any of you guys checking out this conference and how God is going to use you to make your mark? Let me know.

Heard Guy Kawasaki and Mark Beeson speak this morning. I'll have my notes up shortly for you to check out and ponder.

Innovate or die!
Peace.