Catalyst Session 2: Marcus Buckingham

So I finally got my thoughts collected from the Catalyst Conference we went to last week. I already shared my thoughts from session 1 with Andy Stanley.


Session 2 featured Marcus Buckingham, a British-born management consultant and author. He has a very unique message that has impacted me and many others from our team greatly. Here are my notes:

-Overall message is to focus making your strengths stronger, instead of your weaknesses. That is the key to growth.
-What is the job of a manager? To turn people's talent into performance by speeding their talent up to meet the goals of the team. He also said that great managers believe the success of their people is important...they actually love to help people grow. It fuels them.
-How do they do that? By finding out what is unique about each person and captilalizing on it. They help people refine their strengths.
-He made the statement that if you invert bad, you get not bad. You don't get great or excellent.
-How do you better yourself? Focus on who you are, not who you aren't. He said to allow yourself 25% of your daily activities to cover those things that aren't your strengths (things that have to get taken care of because of your position and responsibilities), and focus the other 75% on things that are your strengths.
-3 Myths that he presented:
1. As you grow, your personality changes. (TRUTH: As you grow, you become more and more of who you are.)
2. You'll grow the most in your areas of weakness. (TRUTH: You'll grow the most in your areas of strength.)
3. The team needs you to chip in whatever it takes. (TRUTH: The team needs you to step up in your strengths.)

A final quote he left us with: "And the day came when the risk it took to remain in the bud became greater than thet risk of coming out as a blossom."

My question to you is this: are you willing to take the risk and be who you are, who God made you to be...to grow stronger in the areas where you are strongest?

Reflections on Sunday

Another weekend at TNC has come and gone. It's so cool to be a part of God's work every week! It is also extremely humbling. As I think about this past weekend, here are some thoughts:

-people's lives are being changed. We had two connection cards turned in this Sunday from people wanting to become Christ-followers! There have been 3 or 4 others throughout these past few weeks.
-the new setup in the gym is pretty cool. I'm just blown away by what God has provided for us to make this transition. From the money, to the equipment, to the people...He has been in it all!!!!
-there's been some incredible energy in the services. The past few weeks, especially, it seems everyone is starting to feel more and more at home in the gym. I think the biggest hurdle we've had to face in this transition has not been the setup and operation of all the new equipment. No, it's been the loss of the intimate environment we had in the auditorium. But I'm beginning to see a new life being breathed in our church. I'm excited to continue watching it!
-the sex series has been a timely one. In our day and age of the internet and media, sex is everywhere. It is vital that we hear the truth from the word of God on this subject. We wrap up the series this week with a message on sexual healing and how to deal with guilt related to past mistakes.

I'm pumped to see what God has in store for us in the next series, Facing the Giants, and beyond that.

I do plan to follow up my last post with a few words on the Catalyst Conference the staff and lead team went to last week. I will do that over the next few days. Until then...

Catalyst

Hello from the Atl. That's right, I'm in Atlanta with the staff for the Catalyst Conference. It's a two day conference focusing on inspiring leaders with fresh ideas and creative approaches. And I have to say we have NOT been disappointed!

I'd like to break down the whole conference by speaker, but that won't happen right now as it's almost 11:00P and I've been up since 4:30A! I will share a little from the first speaker, Andy Stanley from Northpoint Community Church.

His scripture focus was from the Old Testament book of Daniel. And from this passage is where the central point of Andy's message came from: that the Most High God is sovereign over the kingdoms of men and gives them to anyone He wishes and sets over them the lowliest of men. Translation: everything (specifically leadership in this case) is on loan to us and temporary and we are held accountable for what we are given. The bottom line is that we should never hold tightly to anything because those things are God's in the first place and we are just temporary stewards of those things.

It's a powerful truth for all of us to start applying to our lives. So I'll let you chew on that until next time...

Makin' a joyful noise

Well, I've already blown my blogging schedule, and I've only been on it one week! Go Kevin.

I'm still blown away at how awesome Sunday's services were. We were making a joyful noise! I loved the competition between the floor and the balcony dwellers. The walls were shaking!

As I've reflected on the services, something has struck me. We don't make enough noise sometimes. I think we have either been too conditioned to be respectful and reverent in our worship or we've become disconnected from our emotions. Many times through the Psalms we are told to make a joyful noise. (Better a joyful noise from the heart than a pretty song without heart!) Just look at that phrase:

Joyful = an emotion you can't contain
Noise = a celebrative sound that doesn't necessarily sound good

My hope is that people are beginning to understand that the presentation of worship isn't what's important...it's whether it's coming from the heart...whether it's sincere. Worship should always be our response to God in our lives...the overflow of our love and adoration for Him. It's grateful hearts celebrating what God did to set them free from the chains of sin and despair.

I look forward to every Sunday at TrueNorth because I know that people are learning and practicing this life-changing principle. Have a good week!

Facedown's a-comin'

I've started turning my attention to our next installment of Facedown, which is October 29. I am so pumped about this one! I don't want to give anything away, but I can already tell you this is going to be one incredible night.

As each Facedown develops, they take on their own personality. That's what I love...each one is different. This one I've really felt God stirring in my heart that Facedown needs to go back to it's roots this time. What are those roots? Glad you asked!

Facedown is founding on Leviticus 9:23-24. In the Bradford translation (which means I'm giving a quick look at it) God's glory appears to all the people as He consumes their first offering with fire. When they saw it, the Israelites shouted for joy...but then, realizing that God had actually accepted the offering, they fell facedown with a holy fear. Those are the pillars of Facedown: shouting for joy and falling facedown. So, you could almost call this one getting back to the basics. We will encounter God that night through humbled hearts bent towards seeking His glory.

Stay tuned as things develop!

Let's Go Tigers, Let's Go

I know today isn't Thursday, but I had to post this. My Tigers (Go Mizzou) broke the Top 25 this week. Let's go Tigers, let's GO!

I realize that I'm probably the only Mizzou fan in the CSRA (except for my son!), but when your team starts 4-0 for the first time since Noah and the ark, you HAVE to celebrate!

You Never Let Go

So I decided after a few weeks of sporadic blogging that I'm going to put myself on a schedule (or a "shed-ule" like they say in the UK). So for those of you faithful readers out there (both of you), I'll be posting on Mondays and Thursdays. And that's that.

Reflecting on yesterday's services, the highlight for me was the new song "You Never Let Go". What a powerful song! It has hit me lately that people are walking around wounded all the time. And how powerful it is to know that God isn't letting go of us...that He's always with us, through the calm and through the storm. If the song hit you in a powerful way, do me a favor and put a comment here with this post about your thoughts on the song.

Well, have a great week and we'll blog at you on Thursday!

Blessed Be Your Name

Lately life has been a mess. The obvious is that 4 kids keeps us busy. So has the transition to the gym for the church. And not to mention my other duties as a husband, a father, a worship leader, a journey team leader, etc. So you can imagine the craziness of life!

Today it hit me when we were singing Blessed Be Your Name how God wants us to rely on Him despite our circumstances. If I can learn how to bless His Name regardless of what I'm going through, then I think I've taken a step closer to His heart.

It's been cool to watch the response to that song as we sing it at TNC. I have begun to realize that people connect with that song because life is messy and messed up! I'm so thankful for a God who cares about me...who loves me regardless of what or who I am.

Laughter is healing

Tonight our Jteam just had a social night. We started a new group with two awesome leaders (Jon and Jennifer Pruett), so we kept it simple tonight. After eating and doing some announcements, we played catch phrase. What a blast! I haven't laughed like that in a while.

I've always wondered what it is about laughing that can be so healing. Life has been so crazy busy lately, I needed tonight!

On another front, here's a picture of the gym on Saturday from TNC photographer Zaki Rucker:



Thanks Zaki! What a great start to a new season at TrueNorth!

We made it!

Well, we finally made it to the NAHS gym yesterday! After months of planning, purchases and preparation, we did it and it excited all expectations. God is amazing!!! I think the most powerful moment of the service was during the song "My Desire". God took over at that point and really spoke to a lot of hearts. He really worked in me through it.

So we have turned the page to a new era for TrueNorth. We've added a bunch more seats allowing more people to come in and experience the change. I'm so pumped at what our amazing God has in store for us.

To Him be the glory!

You Never Let Go

Matt Redman's new song, You Never Let Go, has been ringing in my ears this evening. There's so much hurt and pain out there...so much hopelessness and despair...so much loneliness and feelings of having no purpose...this song is a great comfort. Here are the words of the chorus:

O no, You never let go through the calm and through the storm
O no, You never let go through every high and every low
O no, You never let go, Lord, You never let go of me

I think we forget sometimes that God is with us. It's easy to feel abandon at times because we can't feel Him near us. I love the poem called footprints. The author speaks this very thought of abandonment by God...but then he realizes that God has been carrying Him.

It's interesting to me that, with all the excitement of TrueNorth moving to the gym this weekend, this would be the thought I blog about. But I think there are quite a few out there that feel this way. Those that are feeling this way have been near to my heart lately. So here's a shout of encouragement: God never lets go of you.

FryPod

Yesterday, Chuck and I went to Burger King (or as my 6 year old says, Booger King) for lunch. As I got to the register, I notice a new spin on Apple's iPod...the FryPod. I think it's brilliant!

I've seen a lot of churches do iPod type series...maybe we'll be the first to do FryPod. You never know!

Bye Bye Bye

Yesterday we bid farewell to the auditorium...or, as in the words of the immortal boyband NSync, "bye bye bye"...

It's been an amazing two years in the auditorium. God has done some incredible things through TNC in that building. To think back over these two years, I'd have to say some of my favorite moments were Facedown and Dunk'd services. Seeing people admit publicly their devotion to Christ is amazing, and we've seen a bunch do it in the auditorium! And then to see people engage their hearts with God's through Facedown worship has been equally as moving.

So now we embark on a new adventure...the gym. The setup is going to be quite elaborate. The capabilities to take production of our services to a new level has me pumped up and ready to go! And, more important than the bells and whistles are the number of seats that we are able to add so that we can reach more people with the life-changing news of Christ. That's what it's all about!

I hope you will make it a point to be there this Sunday for our new adventure into the gym and it's dunk'd! We get to see about 30 people confess Jesus Christ as Lord and Savior of their lives!!!! That's good stuff!!!!

Blogger's Block

So I've been in a bit of a "bloggers block" lately...either nothing to write about or no time to write! As many of you know, we're moving to the gym on September 10. Waht an exciting time for TNC because we're going to be doubling our seating capacity. After seeing huge numbers the past two weeks (we had 521 in the 2nd service last Sunday, and the auditorium only seats 480!) this is a very timely move.

Other exciting stuff coming up is auditions on September 18 & 19. I'm always wary of announceing auditions because i don't think we get a true representation of what's out there. Most people assume that we would never use certain instruments because we are a guitar driven band. But that's just not true! As a matter of fact, my buddy Brian is playing trumpet for us on a song next week. I'm looking into using some strings soon. So, if you can play an instrument and you feel like you could contribute to the music at TrueNorth, sign up!

Lastly, Facedown is a month away! I'm so pumped! It will be on October 1, which is a Sunday evening service...and we'll be doing it in the gym. Good stuff! It's going to be powerful, so mark it on your calendars now.

Oh! One more thing. We've started a blog for our Creative Arts groups. Check it out at www.creativeartsblog.blogspot.com. We will use this a lot to communicate with those in the Artist Circle and the Writer's Fellowship.

Until next time...

Creative Arts

Last night we kicked off two exciting new groups at TrueNorth...the Artist Circle and the Writer's Fellowship. We had close to 25 there which blew me away! There was a cool energy from everyone there. I am so pumped about getting these two groups started!

24

Laurie and I have become hooked on "24". I know...where have we been? I think everyone I know watches that show. To be honest, we haven't wanted to become slave to the TV every week, so we recently started renting the DVDs of Season 1. Good stuff!

I've had some people ask me for some more pictures of Ella. Well, here's my little princess practice her yoga...just like her mom!

Lastly, for those interested in the Arist Circle or Writer's Fellowship, we are having our first meeting Monday night at Nacho Mama's. We'll start to gather around 7P. I'm pumped about these two groups getting kicked off!

Until next time...

The Party's Just Getting Started!!!

Wow! Yesterday was an amazing day at TrueNorth! We celebrated two years of joining God in His work. How awesome is it to be able to serve the Creator of the universe? Sometimes I don't completely grasp what a privilege and honor it is to be used by God on Sundays. He doesn't need me...but He wants to use me! How cool is that?

So the turnout was unbelieveable with 1217! That would be our third largest attendance to date. (We had close to 1700 at Easter '06 and then somewhere over 1300 for a Dunk'd service in the spring '06.) Please "hear me this morning" (Stevie D original right there baby!): when I mention numbers, it's not pointing praise to us as TrueNorth. No, it's all about pointing the praise to God, who has grown this church beyond our wildest dreams. We were talking today in staff about how many times we have to adjust what we are doing on the fly because God has sent waves of growth our way.

The coolest parts of the service were these:

1) knowing that 180 TrueNorthers participated in the celebration by voting for their favorite songs. That was cool!

2) The video testimonies were incredibly powerful. Jay and Laura Knotts were in one part and what they had to say hit me hard. They are some amazing friends to us and we been a small part of their journey...so to hear them say that TrueNorth has provided healing and freedom for them, I had to fight back tears. It's a beautiful thing when God's people do what we are designed to do: love God and love each other.

I could talk about so much more, but I'll spare you the long-winded-ness.

Happy Birthday TNC!

Big day planned!

Tomorrow is the big day at TrueNorth! We celebrate 2 years of turning spiritual seekers into passionate followers of Christ. It's been an amazing ride so far, I can't imagine what the future has in store for us.

I would encourage to get there early because we are expecting a huge crowd for both services. Lots of people are hearing about what God is doing at TNC and they want to experience the change for themselves.

See you tomorrow!

THANK YOU!!!!

Well the voting has ended. Thank you, TrueNorth, for particpating in the celebration this past week! We had 180 votes cast, which has just blown me away. So, I'm sure you want to know what songs were at the top. I'd love to share it with you, but you'll have to wait until Sunday!

Something exciting and new that we are introducing this week is our new logo:



It embodies who we are as a church...our motto, Lift Up Love In Live Out, is the centerpiece of the design. So, we'll be bringing out some new t-shirts this week as well as some other cool things.

God is doing some exciting things at TrueNorth and we're just riding the wave of His goodness as long as it goes!

TNC in the news...

TrueNorth made the news this weekend. Diane Cho with Channel 12 news came to video and interview some of our people. It's a very good video about our church!

Also, wanted to remind you that today (Tuesday) is the last day to vote for your favorite songs. The top picks will be in this week's set list. It's a great way for everyone to participate in the celebration.

Oh, if you haven't watched Steve's message from Sunday, you should! It was an incredible message reminding us that church does not exist to consume your life and be your only source of spiritual food. It's purpose is to equip you to do ministry and to feed yourself. Watch it on our website.

There are a lot of exciting things happening at TNC these days. As you may know, we celebrate two years this Sunday! We've also just brought on a new staff member, Gene Jennings. Gene brings a wealth of experience, knowledge, and passion to the table. I'm already convinced he's a tremendous asset to our team!

BABY UPDATE - Laurie and Ella are doing well. Can't believe it's already been a week! Of course, the next thing I know she'll be starting school...it's amazing how fast they grow up. And big brothers love her to death! God has blessed us in so many incredible ways!

Ouch!!!

A friend sent me this video the other day. I have no clue what they are saying, but all I can say is "OUCH!!!"

Click Here

We are family...

We left the hospital (or hos-ti-bull as Stephen calls it!) today. It's good to be home! It's even better to have all six of us together. I've missed my boys the past two days and so has Laurie. We are so blessed! Ella is the sweetest thing. How is it that I'm so blessed with this family God has given me? I'll never understand it...but I also won't complain!

Don't forget to vote for your favorite songs that we do at TrueNorth! As a way to celebrate our 2 year old birthday, we are letting you participate in selecting the songs that make the set list. So don't forget to vote! (Voting ends August 15, 2006).

You are so beautiful...to me

That song's been ringing in my ears all day because my beautiful baby daughter is here!!!!! And I have to say, I'm in love. Here are her stats...

Ella Rose Bradford
Born at 11:35A on Monday, August 7, 2006
Weighing in at 7 pounds 7 ounces
Standing at a mighty 20.5 inches

And did I mention she's beautiful?

Momma's doing well. I have to say that she's amazing because I COULD NOT endure what she's been through the past few weeks. She always tells me that men would die if they had to go through labor. I strongly concur!

So we are a family of six now. As a friend of mine told me today, we now reach automatic gratuity at restaurants...yikes! Oh well, as Stevie D says, we're doing our part to grow the church!

Chris Brown Band

We were so blessed to have the Chris Brown Band come and lead us in worship today. It was very nice to have the day off and actually come to church with my family! (Which we have never done at TrueNorth.)

Anyway, Chris and his band have a CD out that you canbuy here. Look for us to be adding their song "Absorb" to our set list very soon!

Also, a shout out to the boys (and girl!) of Stainless. They rocked the house today with Bon Jovi's "Wanted: Dead or Alive". We are so incredibly blessed at TrueNorth to have the talented musicians we have. God is so good!

Well, tomorrow morning Laurie and I are heading to the hospital so she can be induced. We are so excited to meet Ms. Ella! Please pray for us that everything will go smoothly. Until next time...

Tozer Chapter 4

Tozer's next chapter, Born to Worship God, is a reminder to why we were originally created. From the title, you can guess that it is to worship God. He says that, in God's plan, we were created to be in a perfect fellowship based on adoring worship of the Creator and Sustainer of all things. As he says, "The chief end of man is to glorify God and to enjoy Him forever."

But, we entered into a foggy state of mind because of sin. Adam and Eve initiated it through their disobedience and each of us continue it every day. And because of this, we no longer know the purpose of our existence. We have become a people who look for hope and pleasure in anything and everything.

Here's the cool part...God refused to give up on us. You see, "He created man so He could look into each of us and see a greater reflection of His own glory than He could see reflected in the starry skies above." (Tozer, Whatever Happened to Worship, p53) So He said, "I'm not giving up on these people...I will not write them off and blot them from My memory." Praise God that He didn't!

He sent Jesus, His Son, who was the reflected glory of God, to save us...to bring us back to Him. And through His life, His death, and His resurrection, "the bells in heaven ring out because lost man had now been redeemed. The way of pardon and forgiveness had been opened for sinners." (p55)

We have been created (and recreated) to worship God. Through Jesus Christ, our Marvelous Light, we can reclaim our original purpose for existence...worshiping our God, Father, Son and Spirit, with everything we are...and the rest of our lives will flow out of this relationship in acts of service, love, relationships and much more!

bBlink

My brother, Brian, who happens to be the designer of here.

First Impressions...

Here's a really good video that we should all watch. It's from a worship leader at a church in California. He visited another church and carried his video camera around discretely. Check out his experience...



With viewing this, we should evaluate ourselves at TrueNorth. How do we make people feel when they visit? I'd be curious to see what a first impression video at TNC would be like...

Tozer Chapter 3

After a week of craziness, I read chapter 3 in Tozer's "Whatever Happened to Worship?" Excellent chapter. The title is "Much That Is Called Worship Is Not".

At the beginning, Tozer sets up the framework by proving the point that we are designed for worship. Everyone will worship something. One statement he made that caught my attention right off the bat was that "it is plainly possible to have religious experience and forms of worship that are not at all acceptable to God."

To illustrate his point, he mentions an old church he stumbled upon when visiting Mexico. Shortly after walking in, a woman enters, holding a bag, and walks straight to the altar at the front of the room. She proceeds to bow at the feet of a statue of Mary. He watched her face and the emotion that she was pouring out to this inantimate object. You see, people of all religions (and no religions) will passionately worship something. It could be money...or success...or family. But Tozer's point is that these are not acts of worship that are pleasing to God.

One warning he provides is that many are into picking what they worship about God. It's almost as if they don't like the whole "blood atonement for sin" thing, so they choose to focus on the rewards that you can get from God. Others choose to only focus on the death of Christ and don't celebrate the resurrection. Celebration is a missing jewel from many of our churches today. There must be a mixture of celebration and meditation. Tozer's point is that we must worship God for who He is, not who we want Him to be. There are things about God that may not be comfortable for us to worship, but we must because that is who He is.

He wraps the chapter up by reiterating the point that worship must be done in spirit and in truth (John 4:23-24). But what does that mean? I think he explains it better than I've seen anywhere, so I'll let him handle this one...

"Worship must be by the Holy Spirit and truth. We cannot worship in the spirit alone, for the spirit without truth is helpless. We cannot worship in truth alone, for that would be theology without fire. Worship must be in spirit and in truth! It must be the truth of God and the Spirit of God. When a person, yielding to God and believing the truth of God, is filled with the Spirit of God, even his faintest whisper will be worship."

Lastly, and I love this, he says that worship cannot happen without the impartation, or revelation, of the Holy Spirit. So worship starts with God, is revealed by the Spirit to us. And then it is reflected by us, like a mirror, back to God. It starts with Him, is through Him, and ends with Him. That is worship that is acceptable to God.

Until next time...

Gra-nan-de?

Last night I went to Starbucks. If you know me well enough, you know that I have a problem. It's not thang for me to drive 5 miles out of my way to get a grande vanilla latte. I need serious help!

So, I pulled into the parking lot and my 6-year old, Austin, asked me if we were going to Starbucks. I thought I'd be a wise guy and say "No, we're going to La Quinta!" in a fun, Speedy Gonzales kind of voice. Well, Speedy was still in me because when I ordered at the drive-thru, I said, "Yes, I'd like a gra-nan-de..." What is that? My buddy, Brian, that was with me asked why I need to drink caffeine!

Sometimes you just have to laugh at yourself...Ha!

Things to be excited about...

There are a few things coming up that I am very pumped about...

The biggest one is Ella coming real soon. We have had a week of false alarms, which isn't cool because it just makes you get your hope up and then nothing happens. But at least I know she'll be here in about week. (We have an induction date now!)

Next, we have some friends moving into town today. They are some very special people to our family and we've been wanting this for a couple of years now!

After that we've got Sunday's services. We had band practice last night and it went so good! TJ Barton is co-leading with us this week, which is really cool. The set list is a good one and I can already feel the Lord working in it.

Lastly, TrueNorth celebrates its two year anniversary on August 20. I can't believe it's been two years already! God has blessed so much and, with the move to the gym on September 10, I believe He's got a lot more in store for us!

Thinking about these things makes me realize how amazing hope is. When you hope for something, it helps you get through the day and it makes trials easier because you know something better is on its way.

In Colossians 1:27, Paul says that you and I have an amazing hope: Christ in you, the hope of glory. It's the ultimate hope...the hope that Christ will continue to transform us into who He wants us to be, one day culminating into the hope of glory: eternity with Him! What a day that will be! And that is a hope that will not fade away as long as our eyes are fixed on Him.

Taking rest

Life has been crazy to the nth degree lately...Laurie is nearing the end of the pregnancy and with that comes the usual discomfort and sleepless nights. And, as everyone married person should know, when your spouse is restless at night, chances are you won't sleep good either...which has been the case for me.

Today I've decided to take some rest...play some Crash Bandicoot with my boys...and wipe things out of my mind that have been stressing me. And it's been very nice. I hope each of you take a rest frequently. We need it.

I heard Rob Bell of Mars Hill Church and Nooma Videos talk recently about the importance of taking a sabbath every week. The sabbath refers to the Jewish custom of a designated day a week where there was no work...not even meal preparation! Rob said that he and his family take their sabbath every Saturday. It's all about what they do together. Nothing else.

How much better would our lives be if we'd learn to take a break every week from work? We are designed to work...it's what makes our lives rewarding. But, we're not designed to work ourselves to death.

Take some rest soon...it may be the best thing you ever added to your schedule!

Tozer Chapter 2

So I'm trucking along in my read of A.W. Tozer's book Whatever Happened to Worship? Just a 411 on me...I am a S---L---O---W reader. I think my biggest problem is that I get easily distracted. It's probably this ADD epidemic going through our church.

Anywho, I finished chapter 2 and the points I'm taking to heart are:

-Worship must be a constant state of mind.
-We can only go as deep into God as we are willing to go and...
-Once we are willing, the Spirit will be our guide.
-The living God has been willing to reveal Himself to our seeking hearts.
-God loves us for ourselves. He values our love more than He values galaxies of new created worlds. He remembers our frame and knows that we are dust.
-We please Him most by throwing ourselves into His arms with all our imperfections and believing that he understands everything---and loves us still.
-Fear of God is not intimidation, but extreme awe and reverence brought on by the Presence of God.

It still constantly amazes me that God is pursuing my heart and wants to take me deeper into His. Amazing!

A beautiful face

Laurie and I went to her doctor's appointment today. She's now 36 weeks along. Baby Ella will be here before we know it. It was really cool because they did a sonogram to check some measurements.

We got a special treat because the sonographer got a shot of Ella's face like now sono picture I've ever seen (and believe me, with three kids already, I've seen alot!). It was almost like we could see every single one of her facial features. There were the twos eyes just staring at us. And the smooshed up nose because she's so cramped. What a beautiful face! Can you tell I'm a proud daddy?

It hits me in those moments how anyone CANNOT believe in God. It's absolutely a miracle that a little baby can grow in such a tiny place (though most pregnant women would disagree on the tiny part!).

Less than four weeks until she's here...and I can't wait!

Last thing, I posted that new song, Light Up the Sky, over on my pure volume site. I'm excited about this new one as it's been two years in the making!

TNC Chick Blogs

Laura Owings and Jenny Lou Jones (aka Mama Chick) now have blogs. Check them out!

Light Up the Sky

So I wrote a new song this morning. I love creating things! The song is called "Light Up the Sky". It really speaks of being in the presence of God and letting Him light up our lives...and there's a hint of longing for Him to come and take His children home. I'm still tweaking things and hope to get it up on my pure volume site later today or tomorrow.

There's a part in the song that says "feel the passion in my heart / feel it building for your name / i want to sing out now / i want to shout it out loud". I love that! I can feel that passion rising in God's people...it's almost like a tsunami is rising up and getting ready to crash and spread God's glory all around. Chuck has been talking about this for a few days on his blog. As he said on Monday, the anthem of the Lord seems to be rising up not just a TrueNorth, but at many churches around the country.

Exciting stuff!

The beauty of the moment

Thinking back on this morning's services, I have to say I'm in complete awe of God. This morning was a powerful time of worship in the presence of God. His Spirit was present in a mighty way...and has been for a few weeks now. I've never experienced Sunday morning worship this way ever before. Sure, Facedown has always been powerful, but this has been different.

Thinking on it I'm seeing a new chapter in our church...a spirit of worship that happens anytime and anywhere. Whether it's on Sunday morning, at Facedown, or down at the river, the people of God at TrueNorth are surrendering themselves before God through expressions of love and devotion for Him.

I'm convinced that God has some incredible things in store for us this fall...His presence is with us and He's providing what we need to make the move to the gym possible. I couldn't close this post any better than this:

How great is our God, sing with me
How great is our God, and all with see
How great, how great is our God

Holy Ground

I posted a new song on my Pure Volume site today. The song is called "Holy Ground" which Zak and I opened up the June edition of Facedown with.

The story behind the original song by Geron Davis here.

Rick Warren blogs

For those of you blog readers out there, I discovered this morning that Rick Warren, author of the Purpose Driven Life, has started a blog. Check it out here.

Deep calls to deep

There's a David Crowder song called "My Hope" where he uses the lyric "deep calls to deep." It's a reference to a verse in Psalm 42...Deep calls to deep at the roar of your waterfalls. The first time I read that I quickly wondered what that meant. I knew it had something to do with my relationship to God, but what? And then I read this yesterday in Tozer's book:

"...we know Christ only as the Spirit enables us. How thankful we should be to discover that it is God's desire to lead every willing heart into depths and heights of divine knowledge and communion." (Whatever Happened to Worship, A.W. Tozer)

After reading this, it hit me. God pursues us...He calls us as deep calls to deep...His heart is calling to our hearts. It is a matter of the heart! But we must be willing to be lead into the depths and heights of God.

Oh, that I would be willing, knowing that "God desires to take us deeper into Himself." (Whatever Happened to Worship, A.W. Tozer)

Let me see the depths of You, o God of the universe!

247Think Defined

Tozer's just blowing my mind with this book...and I'm only into the second chapter!

Not to far into the chapter, he spells out the purpose of 247Think: "True worship of God must be a constant and consistent attitude or state of mind within the believer." That's a 24/7 lifestyle of worship! Right before that he says that "God's highest desire is that every one of His believing children should so love and so adore Him that we are continuously in His presence, in Spirit and in truth. That is to worship, indeed."

I couldn't have said it any better.

Center

I was just on Charlie Hall's website, and he has a section of videos that tell the story behind some of the songs. He wrote a song titled "Center" that we have sung at TrueNorth before, so I clicked on the link to watch the story behind the song. In the video he mentions a verse that the song is formed from, Colossians 1:16. It says, "For by Him all things were created, in heaven and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or dominions or rulers or authorities---all things were created through Him and for Him."

It's really hit me how Christ has not been the center of my life. I mean, I do a lot of things for Him, but I can't say He's constantly at the center...I'm so busy doing and going that I neglect to sit and soak. I miss those times of soaking in His presence.

We're singing that song this Sunday and I'm really looking forward to letting it brew in my heart. Last night at Journey Team, one of the girls closed our group in prayer and she asked God to infiltrate us. That's what I want...for God to penetrate my heart and become the center of it once again.

Freedom

Happy 4th of July! What a tremendous day to celebrate the sacrifice of our forefathers to give us the gift of freedom. It's really hit me this year that freedom isn't free. It always comes with a price. May we always express our support and gratitude to our brothers and sisters who fight to keep us free!

Change - the only constant

TrueNorth will be changing again real soon. It's seems to be the only constant thing about us! As Steve announced the past two Sundays, we are making the move across the courtyard to the NAHS gym. What an exciting time! It will give us the chance to reach even more people for Christ...and that's what it's all about! I read Chuck's blog today and he mentions all that has to be done to make this possible. We are researching what we'll need like crazy...and we're seeing people use their talents and energy to help make it happen. We are seeing such a fresh excitement that it reminds me of when we made the move from Hammond Hills Elementary to the auditorium. We will need more hands for set-up and teardown...but as a friends said, "Jesus bore the cross, and all we have to do is setup and teardown the gym every week." That's kingdom focus right there...putting the mission before self...

So I'll leave you today with some thoughts on Tozer's book, "Whatever Happened to Worship?" Chapter 1 is titled "Worship in the Christian Church." There is so much good stuff, it will take me a few days to share the insights. One quote that has grabbed me was this: I am of the opinion that we should not be concerned about working for God until we have learned the meaning and the delight of worshiping Him.

What does he mean by that? Is he saying that we have a "get out of work" card? No...that's not the point. We are created for one ultimate purpose...to worship God with passion and devotion...with our whole lives! But out of that 24/7 lifestyle we will gain a clearer vision of what God wants us to do with our lives. We'll see where He's at work and we'll join Him in that work, doing whatever we can. I have witnessed so many live this life at TrueNorth. People park cars, hand out programs, play with kids, teach Journey Teams, and tote equipment all for the sake of Christ. And the coolest thing is that our worship on Sunday carries into the week. God has changed lives all around our community and people are seeing it.

The journey is just beginning...

TNC Staffers blog

Mike Fiedler and Chuck Young have entered the world of the blog...joining myself and Mr. Tanner. Check out their blogs here: Mike Fiedler ~~ Chuck Young

I guess we'll be the church were everyone but the pastor blogs!

Whatever Happened to Worship?

So lately I've become very influenced by a mid-1900's preacher by the name of A.W. Tozer. Some of you may remember me blogging about a book of his I read a few months ago, The Pursuit of God. Now I've picked up another of his called Whatever Happened to Worship? I've read a few pages and Wow! it's already good.

I think I'm going to post some thoughts on each chapter as I read through it...if you want to read through it with me, pick up a copy at Family Christian Store or through Amazon. Here's a nugget from the book:

"I can safely say, on the authority of all that is revealed in the Word of God, that any man or woman on this earth who is bored and turned off by worship is not ready for heaven." Whoa! Did he really say that? That's a pretty bold statement...but it's true. Think of every picture we're given of heaven in the Bible. It's either a celebration or it's facedown worship. There's no yawning or rolling eyes. Just hardcore worship of the Triune God - Father, Son, and Spirit.

I can tell this is going to be a fun adventure through Tozer's thoughts on worship...

Reflections on Facedown

The day after Facedown always brings an afterglow for me. My mind is consumed with the night, thinking on the entire service...trying to unpack everything that went on. So I thought I'd list a few of my favorite moments:

- The thunder that the clapping hands made. What a joyful noise!
- The "That's My King" video. What a cool video! (Here's the link if you want to see it again: That's My King)
- The excitement and celebrative spirit of everyone there. (One guy even told me of his 70+ year old mother who was there that said she still had energy to burn after the night!)
- I loved the part on "Marvelous Light" when I went to tell everyone to put their hands in the air and they already were...and not only were all hands in the air, but everyone started singing without me!!!! AWESOME!
- Most importantly, I loved the fact that God got every single bit of praise, recognition, admiration, love, attention, affection, sound, word, voice, noise, and heart in the place. HE WAS THERE WITH US!

Thanks again to Steve Law and Jeff Kumrow for putting the recording together. Also, to every single production team member that put time and effort into setting up, running the service without a glitch, and then tearing down everything. And lastly, to the band for all the long hours in a hot auditorium making music together. I'm humbled and amazed at what God has done!

All glory and honor be to the Lord.

"...and the glory of the Lord appeared to all the people...and they shouted for joy and fell facedown." (Leviticus 9:23-24)

Day 12: It's finally here!

We are finally here...the day of Facedown! I am so pumped about it if you can't tell! God has been so good to us in getting here. I'd like to say I'm particularly blown away by and humbled to be apart of a group of individuals like the band. They have put a ton of work into getting ready for this recording. Hats off!

As the day moves on, I'd like to ask you to pray for some specific things:

1) Pray that God will be glorified.
2) Pray that we will focus on meeting Him rather than on recording a CD.
3) Pray that my voice gets better (I oversang a bit at practice Wednesday night--not good!).

Have an awesome day and we'll see you tonight! We're gonna PARTY!

Day 11: Only 1 Day Until Facedown!!!

It's almost here! I'm so excited about this edition of Facedown for so many reasons:

1) It's Facedown. I'm always excited to see the body of Christ so consumed with God that they don't care what they sound like or what they look like!!!
2) We're recording it!
3) The cool moving lights will be back.
4) Above all else, God will be lifted up and glorified!

As you go through this day, think about the song Radiate that we do at church. Psalm 34:4-5 says "I sought the Lord, and He answered me and delivered me from all my fears. Those who look to Him are radiant, and their faces shall never be ashamed." God radiates with praise. The sun shines it. The stars reflect it. His people live it and shout it! As we enter tomorrow night, we ask that God will come and illuminate that place, so that we can come and radiate with His praise!

Remember, worship is our response to God revealing Himself to us.

Lord- Illuminate that auditorium tomorrow night. And as You do, we shall respond with our voices in unison, radiating Your praise! Amen.

Day 10: Filled With His Glory

Habakkuk 3:2 - O Lord, I have heard the report of You, and Your work, O Lord, do I fear.

Whether you've been a part of it or heard about it, I'm sure many of you know of the amazing things God has done and is doing at TrueNorth. Many of you have been introduced to TNC because someone has told you to "come and see." God is definitely moving in our area and we have had the pleasure to be a part of it! But it isn't because we've done anything...

Habakkuk 2:14 says that "the earth will be filled with the knowledge of the glory of the Lord as the waters cover the sea." What an image! How do the waters cover the sea? Completely. And so it is with the glory of the Lord. The earth is completely covered with His glory. From the beautiful nature He's created to the countless lives He has changed. All of it has one purpose: reflecting His glory.

I'm excited to see God's glory lifted up at Facedown. And my prayer is that the recording does that very thing: lifts Him up and brings praise to Him!

O Glorious One- Blessed be Your name and may Your glory be lifted up for all to see. Consume this recording project so that it is filled with Your glory! Amen.

Day 9: Pursuing

Colossians 2:6 - Therefore, as you received Christ Jesus the Lord, so walk in Him, rooted and built up in Him and established in the faith, just as you were taught, bounding in thanksgiving.

Something Steve said in his message on Sunday really struck me. He mentioned that he's concerend that we tend to reduce salvation to a transaction - an exchanging of goods (our sins for His life).

There is a lot of truth in this. Yes, it's true, that Jesus' blood was shed to redeem you and me from sin's power. But He also shed His blood so we could have a relationship with God.

God is actively pursuing our hearts. He desires a close, intimate relationship with us...but all relationships are a two-way street. We must also pursue Him. After all, we love because He first loved us.

Father- thank You for Your sweet love. It blows my mind to think that You are pursuing a relationship with me. Help me to pursue You everyday. Amen.

Day 8: Psalm 84

God led me to Psalm 84 this morning. I love this Psalm! Verse 1 says "How lovely is Your dwelling place, O Lord of hosts! My soul longs, yes, faints, for the courts of the Lord; my heart and flesh sing for joy to the living God." Now that's poetry!

This is the cry of my heart. The things of this world bear down on us and we can get so consumed and stressed out with those things. My heart longs to be in the presence of God in those times...to sing for joy to our living God! It's a place I never want to leave.

This stirs to mind a song Zak and I have been working up for Facedown. The words in this song, "Holy Ground", are really powerful and help remind us that we should always approach the Lord with reverence and a desire to see more of Him. I'm so excited about this song, I hope to post it on my purevolume site today or tomorrow!

O Lord of hosts- as we stand on holy ground, may our hearts be filled with love and joy for You. Let us enter Your courts singing praise and bowing low before Your holiness. Let Your name be lifted up and be glorified!!!! Amen.

Day 7: Reflections

Just a short entry today. I have to say I was in awe by God today at church. In both services I felt God's presence in a strong way. Steve even made the comment that nobody wanted to leave!

I'm looking forward to that feeling Friday evening. As the song "Revolutionary Love" says, "I don't want to leave this place. No, I never want to leave this place."

Lord- I can't wait for Facedown...the energy and environment are always to so cool and amazing! Let Your glory be bright when we gather together to worship You! Amen.

Day 6: The Nearness of God

"But as for me, the nearness of God is my good." (Psalm 73:28)

"...let us draw near with a sincere heart in full assurance of faith..." (Hebrews 10:22)

"Draw near to God and He will draw near to you." (James 4:8)

O Holy God- our hearts cry is to be near You. When we gather, we come for You...to lift You up and to dwell in Your Presence. Purify our hearts as we await next Friday night, giving us sincere hearts. Amen.

Day 5: Worship 7 Days a Week

I'm going to let the late A.W. Tozer take it today. This is a great thought:

But the Lord is in His holy temple. Let all the earth keep silence
before Him.
--Habakkuk 2:20

So I've got to tell you that if you do not worship God seven days a
week, you do not worship Him on one day a week. There is no such
thing known in heaven as Sunday worship unless it is accompanied by
Monday worship and Tuesday worship and so on....

We come into God's house and say, "The Lord is in His holy temple,
let us all kneel before Him." Very nice. I think it's nice to start
a service that way once in a while. But when any of you men enter
your office Monday morning at 9 o'clock, if you can't walk into
that office and say, "The Lord is in my office, let all the world
be silent before Him," then you are not worshiping the Lord on
Sunday. If you can't worship Him on Monday you didn't worship Him
on Sunday. If you don't worship Him on Saturday you are not in very
good shape to worship Him on Sunday.

Lord, permeate my whole life with a spirit of worship--all week
long, every day. Amen.

Day 4: Expressing The Response

Only eight days until Facedown! I'm so excited about next Friday night. Lots of stuff has been going on to get ready and of course there is the recording! I was talking to some friends last night about it and it hit me. We're not just recording the band. We're recording TrueNorth. Everyone there will be on this recording. After all, the purpose of it is to capture the heartbeat of TNC!

We had a great conversation last night at JTeam about the pros and cons of emotion in our relationship with God. We started discussing how we are emotional beings...God made us with the ability to laugh, cry, get excited, and get mad. And I believe with all my heart that He wants us to show these emotions in our relationship with Him...as long as they are grounded in our relationship with Him and they come from the overflow of love for Him.

Our discussion really centered around the worship service. We talked about how new believers have such an excitement for the change that God has brought to their life that they want to celebrate it. And then we pointed out how those who have been Christ-followers longer have matured in their faith.

There is a warning to both, though, that I'd like to bring up. On one hand, you can be so fixed on the emotion of it all that you start to worship the experience rather than God. It almost becomes an emotional high. On the flip side, you can be so "mature" that you forget to express your gratitude for what Christ has done for you. Remember yesterday's post...worship is our response to God. Actually, our entire relationship is our response to Him revealing Himself to us.

My biggest desire is for people to understand that when we allow ourselves to be lost in worship, to express our love for God, we will experience tremendous freedom and healing.

To be honest, I've been under a lot of stress lately because of things hitting me at the same time. On top of that, I haven't been sleeping all that great. And it's in this time that I long for God's presence the most...to lose myself before Him. There is healing in that moment. The things of this world don't seem to matter and it reminds me that He loves me and will carry me.

Father- thank You for carrying me. Thank You that I can bring my worries, my fears, my hurts to You. My prayer for next Friday is that many others will discover the freedom and healing that abides in Your presence. Amen.

Day 3: The Response

Yesterday we looked at seeing the revelation of God. Today I want to focus on our response to that revelation. The last part of the Leviticus passage says this:

"Fire came out from the presence of the Lord and consumed the burnt offering and the fat portions on the altar. And when all the people saw it, they shouted for joy and fell facedown." (Leviticus 9:24)

The background to this story is that the Israelites had just brought their first offering before God according to His instructions. So, you can guess that they were pretty nervous waiting to see if He would accept their offering. We all know that feeling...heart pounding, dry mouth, clammy hands. Oh, the anxiety of anticipating the unknown!

As this passage says, God sent fire out from His presence (He showed His glory!) and then consumed their offering. He accepted it. And their initial response is one of sheer joy and celebration: "...when all the people saw it, they shouted for joy..." Who could blame them? The God of the universe found favor in their offering.

But then it hits them. They've just caught a glimpse of God's glory. And they are filled with holy fear and drop to their knees, facedown before Him. This is where the preparation of the heart comes into play. When we see the glory of God, we should never dismiss it as something else. We should stop in our tracks and fall facedown before Him.

God- As You prepare our hearts for June 23, break our inhibitions and let us be free to respond to You in the way we feel led. Whether it's through shouting for joy, or through falling facedown, let us not worry about what others think. It's all for You and only You. Amen.

Day 2: The Revelation

Every Facedown service starts with a desire to meet with God...to see His glory and then to provide an environment where His people can respond to that revelation. Just like how we came to a relationship with Him: He revealed Himself and we responded.

The very last part of Leviticus 9:23 is where I want to go today. "...and the glory of the Lord appeared to all the people."

A few years back I had the privilege to play with some high school and college students at an event called Liberty on the Lake. We were one of four or five bands that played that evening for a few hundred people in the setting of the beautiful outdoors somewhere off Thurmond Lake (or Clark's Hill, depending on what side of the river you live on!). As the evening progressed a storm started to move into the area. The wind really picked up about half way through our set. As we got towards the end, we were playing a song called "God of Wonders" and lightening started striking in the distance.

So imagine with me this scene of heavy wind and powerful lightening across the lake from us while we're singing this song of the wonders of God. It was quite a moving experience! God gave us just a glimpse of His glory...mighty and awesome!

That's what we are seeking next Friday night. To catch a glimpse of the glory of God. I encourage you to ask God to prepare your heart to see Him.

Father- You are mighty and awesome. As Moses dared to ask so many years ago, we ask to see Your glory. Prepare our hearts to meet with You. Amen.

Day 1: A Celebration of Lives Changed

Good Monday to you! What an awesome weekend we had a TrueNorth!
Steve brought the story of the two builders, showing us how important it is to live a life founded upon the solid rock of Jesus Christ. And I think we found another hit song for our church...Party from the new Passion album, Everything Glorious.

And then last night we witnessed over 40 individuals profess Jesus as their Lord and Savior and then get dunk'd in the river! And that's where I want to start our journey to Facedown. Because if it weren't for the change that Christ makes in our lives, we could not approach the throne of God in worship. And we don't just approach the throne, we approach it with confidence (Ephesians 3:12). When we gather next Friday night, let us come with prepared hearts to encounter God and to approach Him boldly through Christ.

As I have mentioned, we have some cool stuff planned for Facedown. The biggest news is that we will be recording our first album at TrueNorth. You will not want to miss being a part of this incredible moment at TNC! I want to encourage you to check back everyday as we prepare our hearts to meet with God on June 23.

New song posted

I have posted another song on my pure volume site. Check it out here. This song is titled "Phenomenal". The imagery in the song comes directly from the scriptures. Check out Nahum 1:2-5 and Romans 1:20. Our God truly is huge!

Enjoy the song and let me know what you think...

Journey to Facedown

I can't begin to tell you how excited I am about this edition of Facedown. We are planning some cool things and you won't want to miss it!!!

Also, starting Monday, I will be posting devotional thoughts each day as a countdown to June 23. I hope you'll check in every day as God begins to prepare our hearts to encounter Him that night. It's going to be awesome!

Pure Volume Site

So, I've been looking for a way to post new songs that I write or arrange for people to hear, and I came across something called Pure Volume. They allow musicians to post their stuff for free! So here is my new pure volume site. Check it out and check back often to see what new stuff makes it up!

Re-energized

Our trip to Daytona Beach has been wonderful this week. We played in the ocean with the kids and caught some rays. I think I got a tan...with my fair complexion it's always hard to tell!

I definitely feel re-energized. I had been dragging the past few weeks and I think my brain needed some down time. I'm excited about June and what it has in store for TrueNorth:

-June 4 starts our summer series "Short Stories". We're going to walk through some of Jesus' parables and how they apply to our lives today.
-June 11 is Dunk'd at the river. What an exciting time to see 40+ people dunk'd for Jesus!
-June 23 is Facedown. If you haven't been to Facedown before, it is incredible. What is Facedown? It's our way of doing communion. We celebrate and meditate upon what Christ has done for us. This edition's theme? Freedom. More to come soon...

God has really impressed on me this week how blessed we are to be alive. His creation is absolutely beautiful! And He wraps His loving arms around us everytime the wind blows or the sun shines. How awesome it is to be alive!!!!

The Beach!!!

Laurie and I packed up the kids today to go on a little roadtrip to Daytona Beach. Nice. We actually have never been to the beach together...there's a first for everything. I didn't grow up going to the beach a lot, and haven't really tried it much as an adult, but that's probably because of the incredibly fair skin I have. The sun doesn't like me. I'm convinced of it!

Anyway, we pulled in around 6pm tonight. Got the van unloaded and the kids settled. One thing that is really cool about our room is the balcony that you can go out on and admire the view. As I was out there, it hit me how endless the ocean is. I mean, there was no end as far as I could see. It made me think on God. He is so BIG and HUGE...and ENDLESS. I have a feeling I'm going to be hit with some much need inspiration this week! Until next time...

Ouch!!!

So, I experienced a very humbling thing Sunday night. I was playing basketball with some guys at the high school and things were going pretty good, with the exception of my out-of-shapeness! I had the ball, cut to the left and then stopped to cut to the right. I should actually say that my body went to the right, but my left knee kept going to the left! Long story short, my knee popped out and popped back in. Probably THE most painful thing I've ever gone through in my life!

I bring this up because I've come to realize that I take some very simple things for granted...like walking. Laurie has had to help me tie my shoes or take off socks. It's been very humbling...and frustrating! But through it all, I've felt God telling me to appreciate the little things.

It doesn't look like anything is serious (probably just a sprain!), but even if there is something serious, I'm learning to take things in stride and be thankful for what I do have! As Job said, "the Lord gives and the Lord takes away!"

TNC brings the funk!

Today we started our new series, Da Vinci Defunked, today and I have to say it's off to a great start! We got a little funky today, with Brad Nichols singing lead on "Play That Funky Music". It was a fun change-up to our services.

Steve did an excellent job starting this series and also looking at "The Mary Myth". If you weren't there, check it out here. What an incredible opportunity we have to engage a culture with something that is relevant to their lives.

Hope to see you back for the last two weeks of Da Vinci Defunked!

Worship Like a Child

Relevant Magazine has a great article posted on their website about worshipping God like a 1st grader. I have noticed in my short stint on this planet that people become more "refined" as that get older, which can be good and bad.

Wisdom is a treasure that only comes with age. I can't wait to get older for that very reason! But what about the passion of someone younger? When I went to the Passion Conference in Nashville back in January, I got to experience the worship of 18,000 college students...all on fire for Christ! They were uninhibited.

We're all capable of this. Go to a college football game. It's amazing how many "grown adults" make fools of themselves over a game that lasts a few hours, but those same people won't even consider acting the same way for the everlasting God who has saved them from sin and death.

I'm guilty of this too. Oftentimes I don't feel like it, or I'm focused on myself. Self-centeredness is the biggest obstacle to worship. That is why self-sacrifice is a key ingredient to entering the presence of God.

Next time you're in worship, think about what Christ has done for you and then let your heart respond how it wants to. Don't worry about who is watching. Just let it go. That's the sacrifice of praise.

Missions

Perry Noble, pastor of NewSpring Church in Anderson, SC, had a great post on missions this past week. Check it out here!.

He makes a really great point. Yes, we are to take the gospel to everyone in every part of the world. But sometimes we forget that there are missions ops in our back yard. There are countless people that we come in contact with that haven't heard the gospel or had a bad experience with church. We MUST be the light to this darkened world and reach out to the people...and that has to start in our town!

His Space

We wrapped up our His Space series today. A series that looked at how to change My Space into His Space. I think this series has been very relevant to our lives today because it took a fresh angle on how to live the Christian life in today's world. LIke Steve said today, we're to live in the world...not away from it.

So I'm curious to hear your thoughts on the series. What spoke to you the most? What have you taken away and applied to your life? How has God changed you through this series? I'd love to hear your feedback! Just leave your comment(s) and feel free to respond to someone else's thoughts. Let's open up the discussion!

Freedom isn't Free

My JTeam talked last night about how to win over temptation. Something we talked a lot about was how hard it is to be a Christ-follower in today's culture. It is so easy to compromise today because we can justify in our minds that we're not as bad as the world. But what we don't realize is how far removed from God the culture has become today. If we are content staying just one step away from the world, we are still going to drift away from God. It's a 24 hour, 7 day a week battle!

Something our pastor, Steve, mentioned in his message a few weeks ago was that freedom isn't free. Think of America. We have soldiers all over the world fighting for our freedom. To stay free, we must sacrifice something...we must fight!

Galatians 5:1 says that "it is for freedom that Christ set us free." Christ didn't set us free so we could continue to live bondaged to the same struggles. No, He set us free so we could enjoy life the way it is truly meant to be lived...FREE. I would encourage you to look at your life and see what things continue to tempt you. Once you realize what they are, avoid them! Don't continue putting yourself in temptations way. As the last part of Galatians 5:1 one says, "stand firm, therefore, and do not submit again to a yoke of slavery."

The Da Vinci Code

So there is a buzz going around right now about a new movie coming out based on the best-selling book "The Da Vinci Code". The movie stars Tom Hanks, so you can bet that it will be a good movie with a large turnout. We've decided to do a series titled "Da Vinci Defunked" starting on May 14th to discuss some very disturbing and flat-out wrong beliefs portrayed in the book.

To prepare for this, I decided to read the book. So far I'm only half way through it, and I have to say that Dan Brown is an incredible writer. He brings all the elements of a good book: suspense, twists, strong characters, and mystery. Unfortunately, the bad theology has just entered into the story and my stomach is turning! The accusations made throw mud in the face of everything we believe as Christians.

And that is why we are doing this series...to educate people that, though it's a good story, it is still a fictional book. This book could cause a lot of new Christians to doubt their faith. Because of that, I encourage you to be at TrueNorth for that series. We have some cool stuff planned for this series!

Finding God in everyday life...

...that's what this blog is all about. It's about learning to worship God as you work, eat, breathe...it's a lifestyle!

A friend of mine, Paul, posted a cool blog about finding God in t-shirt artwork. It brought home a strong point for me: even in the "things of this world" we can still find traces of God. If you really think about it, nothing in this world is original. God did it before we could do. He said it before we could speak. He was and is and is to come.

Now, the world distorts what God intended to be good and beautiful, but at the very core of everything is HIS original intent in creating us and this world we live in...to glorify HIM.

New words for worship

The band had practice last night like we normally do on Thursdays. Afterwards, I was playing a new song I've been working on for McKenna to get her thoughts on it. The song is called Phenomenal. The imagery in the song is inspired directly from some incredible Old Testament passages.

So our conversation turned to how we constantly need to reinvent how we sing and think about the characteristics of God. Our society uses words like awesome and beautiful so often now. We have almost trivialized these words so much that they don't mean anything for the greatness of God. That's why I love new worship words like revolutionary, indescribable, radiate, phenomenal, etc.

I would encourage everyone to really put thought into how you describe God. It's hard, but it will definitely increase your view of the Almighty!

Blown away

God continues to blow me away! Our Easter services yesterday were amazing. We almost had 1,700 in attendance!!! To think that two years ago we celebrated Easter with about 50 people...

The coolest thing to me is that God is changing people in our area. He's changing lives all over the place through His love. Imagine sending a baby boy to revolutionize the way we live life! Only God could be that creative!

It is such a complete joy to serve the Risen King of all creation!!!!

Good Friday

It's Saturday night and I'm getting ready to go to bed and get some sleep for Easter Sunday at TNC. I have to say tomorrow should be an incredibly exciting day for us. We have some big stuff planned that I think will have people talking for a while.

As I was finishing up some things before bed, I checked out the Passion Blog that Louie Giglio writes on. He has had some awesome Easter thoughts. You should check it out!

Anyway, it got me to reflecting on the power of this weekend. Isn't it ironic that we call the day Jesus died "Good Friday"? But if you really think about it, it was a good Friday:

Jesus took our place on a cross that was supposed to be ours.
He became sin for us.
He became our shame.
He became our guilt.
He bore the burden of our mistakes.
He took our place as the separated from God.

Then He conquered death.
He became our forgiveness.
He became the bridge between us and God.

What a truly Good Friday it is!

A week of rest

My family and I are coming to close on a week's vacation in Maryland. And what a restful week it has been! With how crazy busy our life has been since the inception of TrueNorth, and particularly since I went full-time with TNC in January, the peace has been welcomed...and needed.

I have had a chance to think a lot about my personal relationship with God, with Laurie, and with my boys. I've come to realize a few necessary relational practices:

1) A strong relationship needs time...and lots of it. We live in such a fast paced society that time often is wasted between work, phone, computer, TV, meetings, sports, etc. Time is the one resource we cannot get more or less of.

2) A strong relationship needs focused attention. To go with the fast paced lifestyle is a short attention span that keeps getting shorter. We have to practice focus. Focus on what is being said to you...from God, your spouse, your kids, your friends, etc.

3) A strong relationship needs communication. If we give time and focused attention to someone (or some-One), we'll be able to understand their thoughts and feelings and then give our input to what they have said. Sometimes that input is just to be silent. Sometimes it's to respond with action. Regardless, good communication is healthy for all relationships.

Please note the order I've listed these. Without time, we can't give focused attention. With attention, we can't communicate.

That's the most important thing I've learned this week.

Stargazer lilies

My wife (Laurie) and I have been busy trying to pick out stuff for the nursery. After three boys, picking stuff for a girl is a world rocking activity!

Anyway...so we found this pattern of crib bedding that we really like called Stargazer. It's a beautiful pattern. As we looked at it and came back to it and then looked longer, the thought occured to me...what is a stargazer lily? I like the name. So I googled for pictures, and this is what i came up with ------>

Look at the patterns on each petal. It's like a bunch of little constellations ... or the reflections of really BIG constellations. A beautiful sight!

At this same time, I was reading through a chapter in A.W. Tozer's book "The Pursuit of God" titled "The Gaze of the Soul". The whole chapter explores the fact that we, as Christ-followers, should fix our gaze upon Christ, "the author and perfecter of our faith" (Hebrews 12:2). And when we do, our lives will be changed. The constant communion we will have with God by locking our inward sight on Him is the most incredible prize. There is remarkable power and life in this act.

The flowers almost seem to mirror the stars...therefore the name 'stargazer'. If we would gaze at Christ more often, we too will mirror the object of our sight...the glorious Son of the most high God. So let us become Christ-gazers...at all times!

What a week...

This week has been a roller coaster for me. We started the week on a high. We had our baptism on Sunday (which we call dunk'd) and we also had our highest attendance. Over 1300 people witnessed 34 individuals proclaim Christ as their Lord and Savior. That's good stuff!

Then on Tuesday night, the coaster took a diving plunge. Laurie, Austin (our oldest son) and I all got the stomach virus full blown! I don't think I've ever had anything so bad. So today is Friday and I'm still trying to get my strength back.

Isn't that how the Christian life? We have highs and we have lows. The mountain top is an exciting place to be, but unfortunately the only place from there is down. Then the valley draws us in and sometimes sucks the life out of us. But the only place from there is up!

Paul said, "I press on toward the goal to win the prize for which God has called me heavenward in Christ Jesus (Philippians 3:14)." Sometimes we have to press on through the nastiness of life to reach those mountaintop times.

What it's all about...(Part 2)

I wanted to revisit my post from the other day. (If you haven't read it yet, scroll down and read "What's it's all about..." before you read this one!)

Tyler, the guy that I blogged about, prayed to receive Christ that day. Steve and Walt were also able to connect him to a local church that provided him a couple of boxes of food. How awesome is that!

Again, I reiterate that this is what it's all about. Let's take the Jesus to the people!

What it's all about...

Right now I'm sitting at Atlanta Bread Co in Greenville, SC on a staff retreat. We're planning things for the future. Exciting stuff.

But here's what's even more exciting. A young guy, maybe 20 years old, came over and asked if he could listen in on our conversation because we're talking about Jesus and he needs that. So, right now Steve and Walt are talking with him as he listens through tears. His life has been ruined through drugs and bad decisions. He needs Jesus.

As the rest of us sit here, I'm thinking to myself, "this is what it's all about". It doesn't matter how creative our series planning is. It doesn't matter what the event is that we're planning. It's about seeing people encounter a loving God who can change their life. THAT is what it is all about!

I hope that we as a church (and I'm not just talking about TrueNorth here) can remember this simple lesson. We need to talk about Jesus more in public. Because people are listening.

God is so good!

What a night!!!

WOW!!!! What an amazing night we shared at the Imperial Theatre Wednesday! The Spirit of God consumed that place as we joined our voices together in unison, singing the praises of Jesus Christ the Lord of all.

<------Check out this pictures. How awesome it was to look out from that stage and see all of you just pumped up for the glory of God!!!

I'd like to say thanks to everyone that helped put Facedown together. It would not have happened if it weren't for each of you!!! Thanks!!!

I'd like to open this up to any comments you have. Just click below to add one and share with us your impression of Facedown at the Imperial.

Until next time...

Facedown at the Imperial is here!

Today is the day!!! After much prayer, planning and preparation, we are just hours away from Facedown. I want to challenge you today to invite as many people as you can. Let's pack the Imperial out!!!

Thank you so much for joining me on this journey over the past week. I hope it has helped prepare you to encounter the living God tonight.

To close out this journey out, I'd like to talk about Facedown. We had our very first communion service at Hammond Hills two years ago. It was a very special, intimate time for our early church. But Facedown didn't come on the scene until around Christmas 2004. That night was a very special night and we saw the beginnings of a very exciting movement of God. This movement being the call of God's people to gather, not just to observe communion, but to celebrate communion. To celebrate the works of God in TrueNorth and in our lives. Each addition has had it's own flavor. We've had very solemn, meditative moments. We've had incredible moments of celebration. Either way, we (the body of TNC) have been able to connect with God intimately and passionately.

When you come tonight, leave your pride at home and enter into the presence of God humbly. Come with an expectation to meet with Him and to catch a glimpse of His glory. That's what we're after. It's not an emotional high, but a time to lift up our God, great and mighty.

I encourage you to check out Engage, our new prayer room. We'll have guides available to answer any questions you may have.

Holy God- we want to meet with You. You have built in us a longing for Your presence and Your Spirit inside us groans because of the intense desire to be with You. May You be blessed tonight through our worship. In Jesus holy name. Amen.

Preparation (1 Day left!!!)

Today's post will be short. Lots to do to get ready for tomorrow night!

I am asking you to pray today and tomorrow for our gathering tomorrow night. When God's people pray, amazing things happen! So here are some things for you to think on and pray on:

First, pray in faith. Here's something I read from the prayer journey, Kneel, at Passion 06: It is not the length of our praying that moves the heart of God, but our faith (see Hebrews 11:1,6). Then pray with confidence in the grace of God (Hebrews 4:16). Lastly, ask the Holy Spirit to guide you (Romans 8:26).

Prayer requests for Facedown:
-Pray for the preparation of Facedown. Ask God to help those involved to stay focused and calm as all the elements of the service come together.
-Pray for the scripture readers, Engage (prayer room) guides, and anyone else involved in the service.
-Pray for the band and production team that they will stay focused on the cross and allow God to sing and play through them.
-Pray for the out-pouring of the Holy Spirit. We want to see His glory. Let us ask Him for a revealing of His glory and splendor.
-Pray for our church that this will be a catalyst into the great plans God has for us as we move towards 3 services.

It is a blessing to be a part of this church and to serve you everyday! May God be all over your day today!!!

I Bless Your Name (2 Days left!)

Yesterday we had the special treat of having Nicol Sponberg (formerly of Selah) sing with us. She was incredible to work with!

To go off a theme from the service (as well as in our church community), the hardest worship is when you don't feel like it. I'm not talking about when you're tired and just don't want to do it. I'm talking about when life has thrown you a curve and you're reeling in the pain it left. We're all aware of the tragedies our community has suffered since the beginning of this school year. But what about those who are suffering the sting of a broken marriage, the loss of an unborn child, or the uncertainty of a loss of employment. These are the times that it is so hard to worship God. But I have watched so many people the past few months stare life in the face and proclaim that they are going to cling to God no matter what. They know that the key to surviving is to let Him carry them through the storm.

The bible talks about a sacrifice of praise (Hebrews 13:15). This at it's simplest form is worship with a price. John Piper, author and pastor, says this: God is most glorified in us when we are most satisfied in Him. That is the essence of worship with a price. It's saying, "God, I want more of You no matter what it costs me." Your sacrifice may be emotional or material. It may be following His leading to start a ministry or go on a mission trip...or talk to your neighbor about Christ. Sacrifices of praise in a corporate worship setting may be how you posture your body. When you are led to raise your hands or bow facedown no matter who is around you, you are telling God that He is more important than anything else in this world.

God- I pray for all who are going through tough times. Help them to offer up a sacrifice of praise. Let it be true in our lives that You are most glorified in us when we are most satisfied in You. Amen.

Wonder & Mystery (4 days til Facedown)

With Facedown right around the corner, I have to say a few words about all the exciting things happening at TNC. I spoke with Jenny Lou Jones (aka Mama Chick) this evening and she said the CHICKS Retreat was a smashing success! I think they had around 110 ladies there. And then we are having Nicol Sponberg sing with us in the morning. That is always a treat! That girl can SANG! Then next week we will start our third morning service. It is very exciting to see the seams busting out because God is changing lives in the CSRA!

So today's passage is from Nahum 1:2-7. If you don't know where Nahum is, go to Matthew and hang a left for about 5 or 6 books. It's right after Micah and right before Habakkuk. I'm not going to quote the whole passage, but it is definitely worth a read!

Nahum 1:3c | ...the clouds are the dust on His (God's) feet.

Worship can sometimes become a meaningless practice. We go through the routine of singing and listening to the message on Sunday, but any type of worship doesn't exist beyond that. One of the big reasons for this is because we lose our sense of wonder and mystery for God. He's just another compartment of our lives that we open up for a few hours and then put back on the shelf.

What we need is to put ourselves in views of God that make our brains hurt. We need to see Him for how big and powerful He is. I love the first part of verse 3: "The LORD is slow to anger and great in power." Imagine if God wasn't slow to anger. That "great in power" would be poured out on us unbearingly! But, alas, He is a merciful God, full of compassion and grace. His kindness endures forever.

So meditate a little while on these verses in Nahum. Picture the images described in these verses. The clouds are dust on God's feet. Look up in the sky sometime and see how numerous and how large the clouds are. What's dust on OUR feet? Dirt. Verse 5 says the mountains quake before Him and the hills melt. Are you feeling small yet?

This is where worship gets serious...when we realize we bow to a God that is amazingly huge. His power is phenomenal. But yet He knows each of us intimately and He loves us just the way we are. This is where facedown worship begins...

Host of Heaven- I stand in awe of You. Amen.

**For additional reading, check out Job 38-41.

Being still (Only 5 days left!)

I just finished meeting with some folks about Facedown details and it just makes me even more excited! I think it would be awesome if we packed the place out that night. A lofty goal, but a fun one!!!

Psalm 46:10 | Be still, and know that I am God. I will be exalted among the nations, I will be exalted in the earth! (ESV)

Yesterday I talked about Engage, the new prayer room we’ve added to Facedown. And as I said, engaging with God is vital in our relationship with Him. But something else is equally important…but takes a lot more practice. That’s being still in His presence. It’s very unnatural for us as humans in today’s society to be quiet and still for more than half a second. We are busy creatures with busy schedules.

Practicing stillness is learning how to listen to God. So many times we go to God and talk His ear off, telling Him how we see life. How often do we ask Him how HE sees life? Believe me, I’m the worst on this! I’m ashamed at the number of times I go through the “drive-thru” with God. I place my order and then go on with my day. How I wish I would take the time to listen to Him.

The awesome thing is that when we start listening to Him, He does an extraordinary thing…He reveals Himself to us. The scripture says “Be still and know that I am God.” We begin to encounter the Creator of the universe as He gives us a peak at how great and phenomenal He is. And that is where worship starts…it starts with revelation from God. Then we can’t help but respond with all out praise and adoration.

God- teach us how to be still before You so that we can see You in all Your glory. Teach us how to listen to Your voice. Reveal Your glory to us so that we can respond with highest praise and honor! Amen.

Engaging with God (6 days til Facedown!)

As our countdown continues, I credit my buddy Jay for today's verse...

Jeremiah 29:12-13 | Then you will call upon me and come and pray to me, and I will hear you. You will seek me and find me when you seek me with all your heart. (ESV)

I think many of you know verse 11, so that's why I didn't quote. If you're not familiar with it, check it out. It is an incredible promise from God to each of us.

As Jay and I were talking last night, he brought up these two verses. We talked about how this is what it is all about. Our relationship with God should be more than rubbing the genie's lamp and asking for three wishes. It's about the relationship. Think about anyone you are close to. How did you get close to them? Was it through occasionally saying hi and letting them know what you want from them? Or has it been through constant sharing of life together? That's what God desires in each of our lives. He wants us to do life with Him. He wants us to spend time in prayer and reading His Word. He wants us to engage with Him...to intentionally draw near to Him!

I encourage you to seek God this week. You'll be amazed at how you find Him in everyday life. And as we gather together next Wednesday evening, we will be seeking Him corporately...as a community of Christ-followers focused on one thing: lifting up the name of God, giving Him all glory and honor and praise!

I also would like to mention a new addition to Facedown this time. It is called Engage. Engage is a time to connect with God through prayer and scripture reading before the FD service starts. The Bible is clear that we should never approach the presence of God nonchalantly. We must prepare our hearts so we can be sensitive to His Spirit. We must prepare our minds so we can stay focused on the cross of Jesus Christ. And we must prepare our souls so we can join in the chorus of God's glory.

Father God- please place in us a desire to seek You. Let us engage our lives with You this week. Prepare us to meet with You on Wednesday. We are gathering for You...to lift You up...to sing Your praise. It is not about us. It is ALL ABOUT YOU!!! Amen.

7 Days til Facedown!!!

I am so pumped about our communion service next week. As with so many other things, we have redefined the observation of the Lord's Supper. We've given it the name Facedown and have included other elements that make it a celebration you won't want to miss! We have some new things to throw at you this time that promise to be incredible additions! If you have never been to a Facedown service, you're in for a treat. God has anointed this quarterly service as a time for the family of TrueNorth to meet with the Almighty God in new fresh ways!

So in a way to countdown to next Wednesday night, I've decided to post a scripture every day and expound some thoughts on it. I hope you will join me in reading through these verses and meditating on them, all with the mindset that we are going to meet with God on that special evening. So here is today's:

Colossians 1:27 | To them God chose to make known how great among the Gentiles are the riches of the glory of this mystery, which is Christ in you, the hope of glory. (ESV)

There are two things that are absolutely mind blowing to me. First, if Christ had not come to this earth and been crucified on the cross, the Gentiles (that's me and you, unless you're Jewish!) would not be able to share in the rich inheritance and blessing of God upon His people. We would be cursed to a life and eternity of hopelessness. But, He did come and He did sacrifice His life for ours!

The second thing that jumps out to me is that Christ is in us. CHRIST IS IN US!!!!! That's exciting stuff. We have the Son of God, the Savior the world inside of us helping you and I live life to the full. But we must live in that...we must tap into that awesome power source.

So as you go this week, fix your eyes upon Christ, the Author and Perfecter of our faith.

Jesus Christ, thank You for showing us how to live life. Thank You for the freedom we have through your death on the cross and conquering of death. Help us to live in the knowledge that You are in us and You want to live THROUGH us. Blessed be Your name in all the earth! Amen.

Wow!

Today marked the 2-year anniversary of TrueNorth's very first Sunday service. On March 7, 2004, about 50 of us gathered together in the cafeteria of Hammond Hills Elementary School to start dreaming and formulating the vision of TrueNorth Church. Today we had 1,175 in attendance! All I can say is WOW!!!!

But you know, it is not about numbers. It's about lives being changed through Jesus Christ. The numbers do help us gauge how we're doing though. As a matter of fact, one of those 1,175 people is a friend that is dear to my heart. Robby prayed to receive Christ a year ago this month and his life has not been the same since. And his passion for life is unbelieveable! And I could name dozens more.

I'm so extremely thankful that God has allowed me the opportunity to be a part of this movement since the beginning. It's the lives that are changed that help keep me grounded in Christ. They make me realize that it's not about me and it's not anything I'm doing. It's all God...and He wants to partner with me and so many others to change our community and even the world.

Wow!