blah blah blog

Waiting on the World to Change

2009-01-20T12:13:00.000-08:00

This is our opening song from the last 333. It was killer. You cant really see the lighting effects Chuck added and hear all the cool sound effects that Jim put in but it was so fun and you can at least get an idea of that from this video. Check out the amazing (ipod) video blake made for the song too... The band KILLED it!

this weekend

2009-01-14T11:06:00.000-08:00

I'm so excited about the 333 service comin up this weekend. After our planning meetings and much communication, I think our staff is ready to make this thing come to life. I want so bad to give you all some hints about whats gonna happen but our staff would absolutely kill me. Trust me tho... God will smile. Blake just finished up the videos for this weekend's service and I must say... I am very impressed. This service is gonna be so amazing. There are so many little creative elements added. Right up my alley man. Moral of the story... you'll wanna be there this weekend and you'll wanna bring a friend.

Another Great Band

2009-01-13T13:12:00.000-08:00

Daniel Doss Band
Cool band. They have a really good sound from their vocals to their instrumentation. Its a pretty "guitarish" sound but its worth at least checking it out even if you're not into guitars (whoever that one person in America may be). Love love love, "I Need You". All you 333'ers... expect to hear it soon.

We got our CHURCH on

2009-01-12T08:19:00.000-08:00

Yesterday's service was amazing. Not even gonna try to explain it but the Spirit was so good. It was amazing to see the amount of hurting people that rushed to the front for prayer as we were singing "Rescue".

Our church is in the middle of a 40 day fast and it just seemed like people were so much more sensitive to the voice of God. I know it sounds crazy if you're not a church person but trust me... There was something happening that was evident and you could feel it much better than you could see it. I love those kinds of services.
Our worship set:
Again I Say Rejoice
God Almighty
All That I Want
Rescue

We also sang these additional songs during the prayer service:
Amazign Grace (My Chains Are Gone)
To Worship You I Live
Healer
You Are Holy
For Who You Are

New Artist

2009-01-09T13:02:00.000-08:00

You may have heard of this guy, but if you haven't... do yourself a favor and check out his music. Real smoothe, interesting vocals and a guitar driven sound that doesn't make me mad at all. My favorite may be "Savior, Please". "3 Minute Song" is a really cool beat also with some quirky but nice lyrics. Good stuff.

Josh Wilson

Images of 333

2009-01-08T06:59:00.001-08:00

333

2009-01-07T09:15:00.000-08:00

Whats up y'all. Ok so finally we got the 333 off and running and we did it in a dynamic way. For those of you that attend the Torch but didnt get to make it... you would never believe the transformation our staff made to the whole church for this service. And we turned everything around in ONE HOUR. That is truly a testament to the amazing people we have on our staff.
Blake Adams: Production Team Captain
Abbie Carter: Director of Photography
Wes Simms: Web Design
Brandon Lizama: Band
Fawn Lizama: Greeters Captain
Zach Ivie and Brian Ivie: Stage Design and Creative Elements
David Masters, Robin Haynes and Ricky Tanner: Construction
Plus each one of these people developed an amazing team of personnel that made the service a huge success. Wow... Thanks to all of you guys we have opened a whole new avenue for reaching our community for Jesus. This is amazing!
If you haven't been, you definitely wanna be there for our next service. Its gonna be bigger and better than the last... I know those of you that came are wondering how in the world that could happen but trust me. The service is already in the works and coming together and I'm so pumped about it I cant even tell you right now.
January 18th... You already know the time. You may wanna show up!

Merry Christmas

2008-12-09T12:44:00.000-08:00

Ok.. this is what had happened. I didnt blog for a couple weeks then got to feeling bad about it but then it had been so long that I thought I was already too embarrassed to come back and blog now. But after many weeks of feeling sorry for myself I decided... NOW IS THE TIME. I get a free pass back into the blogging world from everyone because it's Christmas right?! Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year. btw... there's some really exciting stuff coming up here at the torch at the first of the year. If you haven't heard about 333... get ready. It's gonna be amazing. More to come. (I mean it this time)

Cribs

2008-10-14T11:39:00.000-07:00

... we couldn't pass up the chance to show you the amazing place we stayed in Destin. This is our CRIB!

REhab video

2008-10-14T11:34:00.001-07:00

Blake Adams made this video of our Origin beach retreat and it turned out amazing. He's got a little bit o' skill but i'm still working with him on how to make it really good. Check out the video and if you weren't able to go it will at least give you a great idea of what took place. Good job Blake!

REhab 08 > a reunion

2008-10-04T11:03:00.000-07:00

On our Origin beach retreat, "REhab", for our final service we had four stations set up on the beach. We started with a meal at this great little Italian place called Grazie then we went back up to the condo for a candlelight service where I talked about leaving room in your life for God to interrupt. We get so routine from time to time that we may walk right past the burning bush and completely miss the voice of God. God speaks to us in creative ways I think we often may miss it because we aren't expecting it or we stay so busy that we're not open to His interruptions. I pray... "God speak and do it as often and creatively as you like. I for one, would LOVE to hear a donkey speak." (Balaam) After the talk we split everyone into groups of four. I asked them to share with each other what God had spoken to them and pray with their groups for a short period of time, until their group was called.
The night was amazing and here's a short run down of the events on the beach, following the talk and the group prayer.

Station 1- REflect: We set up a mirror and at the bottom were pictures of each person taken at some point on the retreat. We asked them to reflect on what God had said to them that weekend

Station 2- REconnect: Here we set up a little hut on the beach which was kinda lie a meeting place. We wanted them to feel that they were about to have a conversation with God... and they did. We had written letters from "God" to each person. These letters were carefully prayed over and written to speak to each person on a personal and individual level. They were very specific. This was a very motional time for most.

Station 3- REpent: We placed a cross on the sand at waters edge. We had placed a container of dissolvable paper in a basket with some pencils. We asked each person to write down there sins and things they wanted to abandon or abolish from their life. After writing this they each walked to the water and threw it in the ocean as tide moved in and out. When those sins fell in the water they dissolved into an ocean that seemed to go on forever. That little piece of paper would never be seen or remembered again.

Station 4- REunion: Here we had placed a communion table on the beach with elements. We asked each person to partake in communion. What a perfect way to end the perfect service in the perfect place.

Spiritual Earthquake

2008-10-02T09:15:00.001-07:00

Last night was the fourth night of our Revival and it was absolutely earth shattering for me. There's no way I can sum up what happened in this blog and I wont even attempt it. I will tell you that I felt such an unbelievable and tangible presence of God that I was physically, emotionally and spiritually moved. Revival is for real here!

Where do I begin?

2008-09-29T12:33:00.000-07:00

WHAT a weekend! First of all, we were in Destin, FL since thursday afternoon with Origin. It was an unreal trip. How can you NOT connect with God in a place like that. The weather was absolutley perfect and we had so much fun, I don't think anyone was ready to come home. Secondly... ROLL TIDE!!!!!!!! I know the game was 41-30 but all you Georgia fans know it was not a close game at all. Alabama totally dominated and thank the Lord they did 'cause I did not wanna hear about it for the rest of the year from every single person in the church. Trust... you haven't heard the last from me on either one of these issues but I gotta prepare for revival tonight (which I hear has been unbelievable so far) so I'm gonna sign off for a bit. Freeman... OUT. (that was for Eli and Sara)

Stefan the Scientist

2008-09-23T14:52:00.000-07:00

Hey you guys go check out my boy. Stefan was a fraternity brother of mine who is now doing some stuff with GRITS and also launched his own musical career. I have never met anyone more musically talented than this guy. (and that's saying alot) He is really amazing. His sound is reggae/hip hop and its really easy listening and has a positive message. On top of all that Stefan is an amazing man of God.

Check out his music HERE

Worship Set (9.21.08)

2008-09-22T13:14:00.000-07:00

Yesterday's worship service was powerful. We added a prayer from our Pastor and a video (we did a voice over and added our own music to one that we purchased from sermonspice) in between our up-tempo songs and our mid to slower tempo songs and it was a perfect transition. A couple things we always try to look at are lyrical compatibility (with the Pastor's talk and with the other songs), key signatures (for smoothe transitions), and tempo (we dont want it all over the place). These things determine where we place songs in the order and how we create transitions.
It's important for us that we dont do four songs and sit down. I want it to be a change from week to week so we never become too "routine" ("predictably unpredictable" is our goal) and I think we're accomplishing that right now by small changes in each service.
No doubt yesterday's service would have been a big mess without our media and lighting people hitting all the cues perfectly. We had 6 videos and over 30 lighting changes yesterday which may have been pushing it on our part but it emphasizes the importance of our technical crew. Our team is awesome! Good job guys. I'll try to keep you all up to date each week with the worship set at the Torch.

Call to Worship: Sing to the King(C)/God of Ages(G)

Pastoral Prayer: Pastor Mike

Video: This is the Truth

Worship: God of This City(Db)/There is a River(Db)

Insert funny

2008-09-17T14:43:00.000-07:00

This may be the best comercial in the history of the world. So funny and I find myself doing it to people ALL the time. (sorry Kylie and Blake) Whenever you need to add some funny to your day just become someone's stain and mumble over EVERYTHING they say. They'll hate you for it but you'll laugh so hard. And prolly at random times throughout the day you'll just bust out laughing and people will look at you funny but it's so worth it. Pick your moments though. The waitor may not be a good one to "stain" cause he IS handling your food. The staff meeting may be a bad idea too but trust me there are plenty of moments where this is completely appropriate!

Close

2008-09-17T13:22:00.000-07:00

I'm 'bout to stop posting so many videos(prolly not:)but I was watching this one today and it encouraged me so much I wanted to share it with everyone. The video is not great and the song isn't one that just makes you wanna jump outta your seat and run to an altar somewhere but it's "right" if you know what I mean. We all have those days where we feel a million miles away from God (even professional ministers)and just wish God would realize we're struggling without us having to tell Him. Yeah it's that "pride creep". You know what the amazing thing is though... every time I stop and give God a shout out He always finds a way to give me some love. It just happened today to be this video. I'm convinced we need to be more attentive to the way God chooses to speak to us. He does it so creatively and we are most often just waiting for something like He's always done before... something unamazing. Have you not noticed that God likes to break routines just 'cause He can. I mean He spoke through crazy stuff like a bush and a donkey. What?! We'll talk about that more next time though. Today may not be the day that you need to see this video and hear this song but when that day comes... and it will... just come on back and you'll be encouraged.

Ed Young

2008-09-17T11:40:00.000-07:00

I saw this message from Fellowship Church and for some reason just began to tear up. Thank God he didnt say... "You kissed a girl and you're going to hell", 'cause that seems to be the other option in dealing with the "un-churched". (note previous blog)

Delicious - Foodie from Fellowship Church on Vimeo.

help me understand

2008-09-16T14:27:00.000-07:00

A church in Ohio posted this message on its sign:

Seriously?! We have the greatest message of hope in the world. We have a message of repentance and salvation and we choose to tell people they are going to hell? We choose to tell them that their flaws eliminate them from God rather than telling them that "we have all sinned and come short" but God's love trumps all our mess? We have a message that says... "GOD SO LOVED THE WORLD..." and we choose to tell them that they are disqualified from His love. Jesus please don't judge Your church as harshly as we judge our neighbors.
Please help me understand why a church would feel that this was appropriate? We Christians, who have been forgiven so much, choose to make a statement that displays punishment over forgiveness? This sign is a message to anyone who may be LOST and struggling with their own sexuality that they are not welcome here and not only that... there is no hope for them... they do not pass go... they do not collect $200... they go to hell.
The truth is that Jesus came and preached a message of inclusion. He wanted everyone He came in contact with to know that they may have to make some radical changes but they most definitely could be forgiven and that there was room for them in His Kingdom. "Jesus came to the world, not to condemn the world but that the world through Him might be saved."
I'm sorry but I just don't believe I serve a God who rolls outta bed in the morning and says... "Let me see who I need to send to hell today". NO! I believe God is saying... "I love all those people so stinkin' much... I CANNOT WAIT to forgive somebody."

I welcome comments on this one. Let me know your thoughts. Don't worry I'm climbing off my soapbox as we speak.

REhab

2008-09-15T08:37:00.001-07:00

We have our annual beach trip coming up the end of the month for Origin and I cannot wait. Last year God did some amazing things and it was really just an awesome time of fun and spiritual REnewal. Our theme last year was "REfocus; REfuel" and both of those things occurred in me. There's just something about the beach that brings me back to center and allows me to get rid of the things I need to let go of and to bring my attention back to the place where's its really needed. Honestly though... how could a place this beautiful not do that for everyone? We do not slack on this trip. We stay in one of the nicest complexes in Destin, Florida. The beaches are absolutely amazing and the weather is perfect this time of year.
This year our theme is "REunion". Its a call to REunite with with God and with those that God has placed in our lives. With so much going on for all of us, it becomes so easy for us to disconnect from the ones that loves us the most and take our most cherished relationships for granted... including the one we have with our Creator. Enough of that... we're gonna have a RElationship Renewal at REhab this year.

Here's the video from last year with some people that attended. You can see for yourself what I mean about it being a special time. Contrary to popular belief... we're not JUST there for the beach, parasailing, jet-skiing, beach volleyball and great food. :) The most important thing there is the time we spend with our Maker. Lord, bless this trip as much and more than last year's. We wanna meet with you God. Speak to us and through us and change lives forever!

be afraid... be very afraid

2008-09-11T10:42:00.000-07:00

Ok... one more video for you then i'm done. This is just too good to pass up. Thank you Blake for this little precious jewel! WOW!

Gossip

2008-09-11T10:12:00.000-07:00

Considering last week's message (GOSSIP... a commmon Disease) I felt like I should share this song with all you guys which would further help to illustrate the point. Please enjoy!

"O... Its already been broughten"

2008-09-02T14:23:00.000-07:00

I couldn't let this day get by without sharing my excitemnet with the world. The boys in Crimson played an amazing game this week and you don't have to be an Alabama fan to recognize that. Totally dominated was the number 9 team in the country by a group of boys who were "too young" and "lacking experience". I had a friend of mine laugh at me when I told him Bama's freshmen would dominate the game. He said... "I think it's hilarious that you Bama fans are putting so much faith in FRESHMEN LOL". Well I wouldn't call you out (Hollis)

but you know who you are and what a mistake you made so repent and lets move on together. Another friend of mine (Wes)
who is not EVEN a clemson fan, talked trash to me all day about how the ACC was so good and then got eerily silent once the game began. And btw... ACC? Pffff!!!

Russ Live

2008-08-30T10:19:00.000-07:00

This is Russ leading worship at the Torch... what an awesome service!

rapha

2008-08-29T10:34:00.000-07:00

This is a testimony service from one of our services when we sang healer and asked 3 of our people to give their personal testimony of how God healed them...
Jerry Neal - Heart Disease
Felton Turner - Liver Disease
Brandi Wood - Degenerative Disk Disease
WOW... Ain't God crazy good!!! Like Felton says... "Don't give up hope"

I'm DYIN!

2008-08-28T13:07:00.000-07:00

Tonight it begins... College football is back and I dont care for a second who's playing. You can bet one thing... if you call or text me i'm gonna be paying little attention to our conversation due to the sensory overload of watching college students fight for an inflated oblong object that life in the south revolves around during the months of September through January. It has been way too long since the 2007 season ended and most of us college football junkies are just about to lose control so... THANK YOU LORD FOR THURSDAY NIGHT FOOTBALL! The months have become weeks... days... and now hours. Of course the real showdown is this Saturday night at 8 when Bama takes on clemson. You have no idea how excited I am right now. (I almost cancelled origin)

Make us One/Youtube/Russ Lee

2008-08-27T11:21:00.001-07:00

"Make Us One" continues this week with "a common people".

check it out

Btw... our youtube site is being updateed almost daily now so go check it out and watch our church in action. Thank you Keith for doing an incredible job on that.

Russ Lee was here a couple weeks ago and let me just say... He is such an awesome man of God. He and his wife were a breath of fresh air for our worship team. His new song... "God is Here" is amazing so look for it in stores soon. Thank you Russ and Mary!

ONE MORE WEEK

2008-08-22T13:57:00.001-07:00

fyi...

2008-08-22T13:28:00.001-07:00

The song I told you guys about that Monica and I recorded just cracked the top ten on reverbnation.com so thanks for listening and great job Monica!

A Common Thread

2008-08-22T13:19:00.000-07:00

This weekend at the Torch Pastor will be starting a series called "Make Us One". This week the message is entitled "A Common Thread". Here's the graphic I put together for it and since by now you are all wondering what the common thread is... make sure you're here sunday morning to find out. I think the illustration we came up with is gonna be powerful as well so don't miss it.

Rebel Man

2008-08-21T11:37:00.000-07:00

This past week at our church Pastor spoke about Rebellion and as he was describing it to the staff we had this great idea about how to illustrate his concept. It seemed that the more he described what a rebellious person was the more I had this image of someone who believed they were a superhero. In the service, when he intro'd the Rebellious person the lights went black (Blake did a great job on lights this week) and "RebelMan" came in on a zipline from the balcony.
Later Pastor was describing the results of living life as a rebel and a slightly older and less "in shape" superhero apppeared from backstage with a walking stick. Needless to say... it was hillarious and made the point something evryone will never forget.

The Greatest American Duo

2008-08-21T11:09:00.000-07:00

I recently did a collaboration on an album with Monica Spears. You all need to go see her in concert and buy the cd (gimme my royalties Monica). Here's a link to the website so you can check out the new cd. "What You Wont Do" is the one yours truly is singing on. http://www.reverbnation.com/monicaspears

Dont miss it!

2008-08-19T17:08:00.000-07:00

Back to school bash tomorrow night at 7. Here's the logo I just made for it. Don't be jealous Gordy.

Ok Ok...

2008-08-19T17:01:00.000-07:00

I'm sorry. Its been 2 weeks and I have been a slacker. But I'm BACK now and taking ready to blog like a mad man. Yes my feet are still hurting btw... We've got so much to catch up on (from San Antonio to Rebel Man to Russ Lee) and we're gonna get started tomorrow. I just wanted you all to know that my sabatical is over and it's on. Thank you Blake for restoring unto me the joy of my blog!

My feet HATE me!

2008-08-04T22:37:00.000-07:00

My feet are so mad at me right now! We just got home from the day's activities and this is the first time I've been in the room all day. I'm looking forwad to a night of rest since Scott said we didnt have to be downstairs until 11:30 tomorrow. Anna and Logan tore it up today. If you guys wanna watch any of the competitions go to www.mywinterfest.com. A'ight my boys just made it in from their flights so we're gonna knock out. We'll talk tomorrow!

Desert Song

2008-08-03T22:09:00.001-07:00

Before I go to sleep I just have to pass this song along. This is unbelieveable... Listen to the story and then listen to this anointed song. Hillsong... y'all are killin it folks. Great stuff!

John Hagee

2008-08-03T21:28:00.000-07:00

I visited Cornerstone church today, with Pastor John Hagee. As great as that was, It made me even so much more thankful for my church. I left there thinking... "I could never go back to 'traditional' church." Dont get me wrong, I do appreciate and respect tradition but I LOVE the way we have church at The Torch.

Pastor Hagee spoke about worry and the uselessness of it. He made alot of sense and it was a timely message. We really are a paranoid country and worry about everything. We are kinda trained to be that way though since the media is always feeding us this news that things are worse now than they've ever been and they're never gonna get any better. Oh and by the way, a tsunami will eventually wipe out the eastern seaboard and an earthquake will cause the whole state of California to fall into the ocean by the year 2010. Have a good night!

Change the tone of the conversations around you. Instead of indulging in those conversations of worry-filled chatter, change the subject to something positive. Lets choose, not to stop worrying, but to stop creating environment where worry breeds. We are still Gods kids and we still trust Him right? Rejoice by choice.

San Antonio

2008-08-03T07:55:00.000-07:00

We flew in to San Antonio yesterday afternoon and IT IS HOT! We're here for the international competitions which our youth group qualified for in several categories. They've been practicing feverishly and trying to get all ready. Right now I'm sitting in the meeting room of the hotel, watching the Bible quiz team practice. (they're crazy good) I just gave a short talk for our devotion (Heaven Rules [daniel 4:17]) and now we've got practices scheduled all day. The part I'm looking forward to the most though, is lunch. Great restaurants here!

Gotta run but I'll fill ya in more later. Bout to head to Cornerstone Church!

Movement or Monument

2008-07-31T07:15:00.000-07:00

Ok so I promised my thoughts over the last few days and here they come... ready or not. Recently there has been alot of change going on here at the church and its been a good thing. On Monday we moved our stage around and I love it now but definitely was not excited about unhooking wires and moving staging around all day. On Tuesday, when Mike walked in and told us it was time to move the offices I was immediately in a bad mood. This was gonna be lots of work and I felt like my cup was already runnething (not a word) over. I thought to myself... "(Self) I would rather just stay here in these crummy offices and paper thin walls with no windows,than pack all this up and move to those amazing new offices with the great views and bigger spaces which just happens to be on the church campus." Sound familiar?

I think we often settle for alot less than is afforded to us just because we simply dont HAVE TO change. We can go on with things just as they are and make it. What had happened to me was that I had become so comfortable that I was unmotivated and had slipped into a routine (bad word). Without change and or progress, I begin to lose interest (even in myself) and eventually lose my drive and passion. And guess what... It's like a virus. If you become routine in one area, IT WILL SPREAD! I had not only lacked interest in work, I lacked interest in myself which translated into me not working out, even shaving less (I still showered some). I worked the 5'0clock shadow thing not because I thought it looked good but because I just didnt care that much. (sad huh?)

When we finally got everything moved in and I had my office set up, I was more motivated and inspired than I had been in a long time. I realized how imperative change is in my life. Some times its nothing more than rearranging the furniture in my house that ultimately makes me feel more accomplished or just better. I think, deep down we all long for change and for something different. Most of us however, have this interior mechanism that says "Change = bad", especially in the church, but what we sometimes miss is that change is essential for growth. Not change for the sake of change, but change for the sake of a fresh breath and a new perspective.

If we're not careful, we'll live way beneath our privilege simply because we reject change. Especially if you're a creative person, never underestimate the NEED for change in your life. You HAVE to get a change of scenery every once in a while and you HAVE to get a change in routine every so often or else the creativity (and ultimately your happiness) will stop.

I know that God is the same yesterday, today and forever, but don't be fooled into believing He and His will for your life is stationary. God, since the beginning of time, has been building a movement, not a monument.

when it rains

2008-07-29T12:07:00.000-07:00

...it pours! We moved our stage around on Monday and we're moving the offices today. Thank you God! I'll fill all you guys in later. Lots of thoughts about (the need for) change, (the problem with) comfort and (how they all connect with) creativity hitting me in this whole process that I wanna share. I just wanted everybody to know why I hadn't blogged in a few days. You'll hear from me soon... TO THE BATCAVE!

Jimmy Needham

2008-07-25T10:21:00.000-07:00

Go check out this artist. I think this is his second album and its really good. It's kind of a Gavin Degraw and Jason Mraz sound with a message. If you're into those artists I think you're gonna like Jimmy Needham. Hurricane is one of my personal favorites. Check it out!

www.myspace.com/jimmyneedham

Breathe...

2008-07-24T07:46:00.000-07:00

Whew... our youth pastor (Scott),and one of my closest friends for eleven years, announced last night that he would be leaving our church to accept a position in Birmingham, AL at Metro Church of God. Talk about mixed emotions. One side of me is so happy for him and so sure of his ability to hear from God that I would never question his decision. But... the other side... the selfish side of me says "Why?".
Let me just say this... what he has done here at this church is absolutely amazing. He's built a ministry and a team that has set the trends and encouraged progression for our whole church body. There is no doubt that God has used him to change mindsets, nurture growth and encourge and uplift this whole community. So instead of seeing this as a loss I will say "Thank you God for lending us Scott Smith for as long as You did." He will be greatly missed but the "eternal impact" that he preached about for so long has definitely been made here.
Scott... keep ya head up bro! I wish you could see yourself as amazing as the rest of the world does. I know this is a painful and exciting time all at once but you're gonna prosper. You will change this nation for God! You're God's megaphone, so scream what He speaks to you as loudly as possible and people will hear His voice. We will miss you but we are also more proud than you can believe to have served with you. PASSION!

Australia does it RIGHT!

2008-07-23T09:27:00.000-07:00

The more and more I look at the way the churches in Australia are communicating the gospel to the world, the more I start to realize how "boxed" in we, in the States are about the way we approach church and the things of God. We tend to have this idea about the way things should be done or can be done because we all grew up in this "Christian" nation where church is a dominant thing in alot of peoples lives. In Australia... the people tend to give God much more freedom and credit for being creative (imagine that... God being creative)and new because they didnt grow up with these pre-conceived ideas of "this is how church must be and God must act". I have been amazed when I attend conferences around the country that they all seem to be watching and listening to what the churches are doing over there. Churches like Hillsong and Planetshakers are not only being innovative in the music of the church but are also changing the way we think about how church can be done. Do yourself a favor and take a look.

www.planetshakers.com

Celebrate

2008-07-21T07:15:00.000-07:00

Yesterday's service was unbelievable. The presence of God was almost "tangible". I found myself making that ugly face. (you know the one you make when you're really weeping but you can't MAKE IT STOP) We sang "Healer" and had three people give their personal testimony of healing and it was so uplifting and encouraging. Almost everyone I know has a family member or loved one who needs healing. Whether it be relationship, physical, emotional etc... we all need God's attention.
We do a poor job of celebrating victories. We are so consumed with the next issue and so conditioned to look for problems that we miss what God is doing NOW. Every once in a while we just need to be reminded that GOD IS AWESOME and has not retreated. I think if He can heal liver disease (Felton Turner), degenerative bone disease (Brandi Wood) and fix a heart (Jerry Neal) He can handle my little problems.
Thank you Holy Spirit for making Yourself known in Your church yesterday. Help us keep our focus on you and never miss an opportunity to celebrate Your love and the things you are doing in our lives and the lives of those around us.

College Football PLEASE!

2008-07-19T10:09:00.000-07:00

I know there are many of you out there that feel just like me and you're dying for some college football. Let me just encourage you to hold out for another 40 days. (now can someone please encourage me cause I'm strugglin') And for all you Clemson fans... you're about to get a wake-up call when the TIDE rolls in! This is gonna be an awesome game considering these are two teams that of recent have started off playing very well but have not finished so strong. Admittedly I see Clemson as a tough first game and am a teeeeny bit concerned but... this is Alabama we're talking about. Tradition... Pride... National Championships... and all you Tide haters (especially you ten-uh-c fans cause we all know how jealous you are of Bama)just surrender. There's no use trying to argue with 12 national championships.
ROLL TIDE!!!

Brooke Fraser

2008-07-17T08:20:00.000-07:00

This is not a new name to some of you because she has been with Hillsong for a while where she wrote and sang many of their tracks but you may not have heard her solo stuff so here it is. She's an incredible lyricist and vocalist. Go check out her music... enjoy!

www.myspace.com/brookefraser

I'm ba-ack

2008-07-17T07:39:00.000-07:00

Ok I've been MIA for a few days. We had our staff retreat and it was absolutely amazing. We were able to hear the pastor's heart about the vision and direction for the church and also had the chance to just have some fun together which was much needed. (Mike IS the mafia)
Just as a side note... flying out of a boat at 45 mph and landing on your neck... NOT A GOOD IDEA.
On a different note... while I was there I got the news that one of my college roommates' mom had passed away. This lady was someone that was so dear to all of our hearts and seemed to always make me smile and laugh every time I saw her. When I heard of her passing I was just flooded with all these great memories of an awesome, beautiful and incredible woman of God. Mrs. M... we will all miss you so much but I am so happy that you have been made whole and will never battle cancer again. Thank you for showing us all what a true woman of God looks and lives like.

Ultimately... God has the final say in our lives. He allows us to make our own decisions and choose our own path but the last word belongs to Him. We all miss our loved ones that have passed but ultimately its a question of trust. Do we truly believe that our God knows what He's doing, that He has our best interest in mind and that He orders this whole universe? I know some people scoff at the idea of God healing us by taking us out of this world but this is EXACTLY what I believe He did for Brenda McGarrity. She is now perfect... literally!

Lord, I definitley don't always understand whats happeneing but I TRUST IN YOU... YOU'RE MY HEALER.

Church

2008-07-13T07:33:00.000-07:00

Service today was awesome. Brandi did an awesome job on the edit for our worship video which opened our service. It set a great tone for worship and I think allowed some of our worship leaders to share their hearts to the congregation.

On the other side of things; I made a couple of arrangement errors but the band, of course, followed me right through it and most people were none the wiser. I love how I can rehearse things a hundred times and still mess it up... :-) God however is awesome and flawless. The spirit moved despite my mistakes and His presence was awesome. It was one of those services where I just kinda got lost and all of a sudden remembered there were hundreds of people lookin at me. (uh... do something) Thank you Lord for moments when I'm overwhelmed and overtaken.

Anthony Evans

2008-07-12T08:50:00.000-07:00

Hey guys.... I'm gonna start trying to give you some new artists that are fresh and inspiring to me and hopefully will be to you as well. Check out Anthony Evans @ www.myspace.com/anthonyevansmusic . His lyrics are great and his voice has this nice soul/R&B feel. One of my personal favorites is "The Way You Love Me". Enjoy!

Chicken and Waffles

2008-07-11T13:02:00.000-07:00

Last night at Origin we had chicken and waffles and it was amazing! Who knew that this combination would cause an EXPLOSION OF TASTE in your mouth. We had waffles makers out for everyone to make their own and "fix it up" with chocolate, syrup, fresh fruit, etc... chicken from big dog's and our own famous coffee "the brand".

So... to all the doubters out there (Scott, Brandi, Bob, Pastor, Paula). You just got served!

Uncle Elvis

2008-07-11T11:46:00.000-07:00

Ok I'm gonna release some highly toxic and sensitive information right here on my blog. Prepare yourself... ELVIS IS MY UNCLE.... well at least thats what I believed until I was like 10.
When I was a kid my mom used to always listen to these Elvis records (yes I said records) and I thought Elvis was the best thing in the world cause my mom said it. Well somehow I developed the habit of calling him Uncle Elvis and my mom, thinking it was harmless, allowed me to say it without correction. I would refer to the "king of rock and roll" as my uncle every time I would see him on tv or hear my mother play his music.
Naturally I wanted my friends to know that this man was family so I would tell them. If they brought him up... I would simply volunteer the information that he was in fact my uncle. As you can imagine, this brought alot of laughs and weird looks but I knew they were just jealous. One day I had enough and when a few friends were over at the house I went and got my mom to come outside. Standing beside her proudly... I said "Mama will you tell them that Elvis really IS my uncle." I remember a brief pause before my mom laughed and said... "Eric, don't be silly. He's not your uncle." Devastation!
Everything from there was a blur... I have no idea what happened next but there seems to be a clouded memory of kids laughing and the taste of betrayal in my mouth... I'm gonna get you back for that one MOM!!!!

Thumbs Up

2008-06-24T10:41:00.000-07:00

Thumbs are really important and I think I always took mine for granted until I nearly lost one. For the last week, I have had my right hand wrapped up because I tried my best to cut my thumb off (which I do not recommend) while carrying in a prop for last Sunday morning. I rushed to the hospital that morning and made it back in time for the last 2 songs of the first service. Big props to the habersham ER who got me in and out in a little over an hour.
Anyways... this week has taught me a valuable lesson. Never underestimate the value of a good thumb. Texting is a much harder task now as well as taking a shower... typing this blog... using the remote... carrying anything... working out... and the most important thing I do in a day... holding a microphone is even a chore. (I guess I'll have to hire someone to walk around with me on sunday mornings and hold the microphone up to my mouth.)
So in closing... everyone love your thumbs. Remind them today how important they are and how much you appreciate all they do. Who knows... tomorrow you may cut one off trying to bring a recliner in the back door of the church.
Seacrest out.

Restoring Worship

2008-06-09T11:11:00.000-07:00

Having trouble getting past the ceiling with your worship?

I have to be honest and say that there have been times when I felt like my prayers and worship were going nowhere but to the wall. Worship is my lifeline... its my release... its my strength and if I dont have that, I feel completely... incomplete. Some of you probably know what I mean. Teachers teach, preachers preach, singers sing, artists.. well they art (who knows what they do), builders build, worshippers worship. This is who these people are. Worship has always been my passion since I discovered what it was and the power and accessibility that is given to us through it. This is why when I find myself struggling to get God's attention its time for immediate action. I dont think I can live without worship and guess what, God doesn't want me to.

Worship is not only something that moves me. Worship moves God. It is not a request, it is mandated by God. An no it is not a selfish move to demand worship when you are the biggest and most amazing thing in the universe. I like what Tommy Tenney said... "God has this crazy idea that church is supposed to be all about Him."

Picture this... God's people have been in exile and captivity in Babylon. For years they have been out of their comfort zone and have been in a place where they could not receive a word from God. (man that'll preach huh?) They have lost their ability to worship because they have no idea what true worship is. Surely the old timers remember what it was like to see the tangible presence of God. They knew what it was like to receive assurance that they were in the presence of YHWH. They must have been miserable to have lost that.

Well now the exile is over and slowly the people are being released to go back to their home, to the land of their promise. The first thing God does is send Zerrubabel to rebuild the foundations. The foundation of their physical lives, the structure that would hold their homes, the temple, the shops. The foundation of the city had to be built before anything else could be. Guess what was second... you got it WORSHIP. God sent this man named Ezra to restore worship. Worship is the foundation of our spiritual lives. If God was gonna have a people, they were gonna be worshippers. They had been away from the teaching of God's word for so long, they had no idea how to worship. But Ezra uncovered this major problem that would hinder these people from being able to worship God properly. They were married to something that God had told them to stay away from.

God had instructed them not to marry outside of the holy race but they did anyway. They were living in direct disobedience to God, so even if Ezra instructed them how to worship, their worship would only get ceiling high. Long story short... Ezra demanded that they DIVORCE their wives. They had to divorce the thing that had taken precedence over God. Not just a seperation... a divorce. Can you imagine how hard this must have been? These people loved their wives and had built families and lives with these women. How could they just divorce the people they had fallen in love with?

Here's the hard part. Our disobedience has consequences. Maybe if you are experiencing a worship drought its because you're married to something that God can't live with. We all know how it happens... we develop strong relationships with things in our lives and then we are virtually married to them. There's no way we can ever see ourselves living without them. Problem is... while we nurture that relatonship, we neglect our "first love". Whats the first thing to go when we find new "stuff"? Our face time with God. If you're a singer then can you ever remember singing to Jesus, all by yourself, just because...? Musicians... remember going to the basement all by yourself and playing just because you wanted God to hear? Wanna restore worship? Get a divorce from your habits... from your mentalities... from your thoughts... from your sin. A seperation won't cut it. God expects extreme measures when dealing with sin.

Ezra 9:6

"O my God I am too ashamed and disgraced to lift my face to you, my God, because our sins are higher than our heads."

you're in my world now

2008-06-06T11:03:00.000-07:00

Well hello world! This is obviously a big day for me. Everyone tell all your friends and make this the most popular blog site in Cornelia GA history. I have no doubt that my fans (Brandon and Wes) will rally behind me and before long I'll be a blogging superstar. Fur reel do... hopefully through this you guys get to laugh and make fun of me a little bit and I get to blow off some steam about how hard it is working with Brandi Wood (she has yelled at me daily to start this).
1st order of business...
Man let me tell you how impressed I am with the new staging and lighting in our church. I have to be honest and admit that I was really nervous to begin with because it was such a big step for us to incorporate more staging and lighting (we're still a small community church trying to expand our borders). I know I made the guys that were installing it nervous because I stressed to them on multiple occasions that we have to remain modest in our approach that first Sunday morning. Well they were even more modest than we normally are but that was a good thing because it gave people a chance to get used to the changes.
The stage changes have really revolutionized our whole sunday morning service and our video broadcast. It brought more life to the platform and more color and quality to the screens. I know I'm A.D.D. anyway but I found myself so much more attentive during the message even because of the fact that I was visually intreagued. Like any change made.. I fully expect some negative comments but for the most part I am so pleased with the transformation and cant wait to do it all over again in a few months... wait a second!