Childlike Faith

Soon after my 3 year old daughter told me that she changed the name of our 11 month old son Gavin from “Lil Ducky” to “Lil Zebra” to “Lil Penguin” to Lil Piggy”…

Daddy, my head hurts.

Uh-oh baby what happened?

I don’t know, Daddy it just hurts.

Well come here, I’ll kiss it for you.

No.

-a deflated sigh pushes through my lips as my heart breaks-

Pray for my head Daddy.

OH. Uh…yeah baby. Sure. Dear Jesus, please be with Chloe. Her head hurts and would you help it feel better to…

Psssss…Daddy, pray for Mommy and Lil Piggie.

and yes Jesus. Would you help Mommy breathe easier and Gavin to feel better today so he can sleep tonight. Thank you so much. Amen.

Thank you Daddy! I think Mommy feels better now.

I bet she does. Now come here, let me kiss your head for you.

No thanks Daddy, it’s going to feel better.

It’s been a while since after simply praying for something I believed and knew that change had happened. It took my 3 year old a simple prayer for her to believe her head would feel better, for Rae’s head crud to get better, and for Gavin to feel better and sleep easier. She makes it seem so simple and easy. Thank you Jesus for my daughter!

Getting LOST with The Life and Death of Jeremy Bentham

Welcome to a Spoiler filled discussion of one of the best shows on TV: Lost. Join with me Thursdays to laugh, discuss, go HUH?, about all things puzzling and hilarious from the night before!

Season 5, Episode 7 – The Life and Death of Jeremy Bentham

This week didn’t have any fun nicknames or witty banter just a ton of HOLY CRAP DID THAT JUST HAPPEN moments!! We do however have:

The Numbers: 4 8 15 16 23 43

• Charles Widmore tells John that if he needs anything he can be reached on speed dial by hitting: 23
• Helen’s death was on April 8th = 4 – 8 (also coincidentally the birth day of my son Gavin!)

Otherwise, I thought this was one of my favorite episodes of the season! Such fine acting takes place on this show! Ben Linus is one of my favorites because I never know if I should trust him or not (I think I know what to do after this episode though!) but he does such an incredible job going between dastardly creepy and amazingly sincere! Abaddon was back and I love that guy! Again, someone who I don’t know what to do with! And this episode the Oscar goes to John Locke! My goodness! What an episode! And he gets beaten just BEATEN emotionally! Bravo!

I don’t know a better way of discussion that giving you my internal monologue during the show:

Locke…alive…on the island? I now ask “When are they” instead of “where”

John Locke sure is looking alot like Christian Shepherd!

I have got to figure out the relationship between the Island and Tunisian desert!

Am I watching Fringe or Lost?

Holy crappers! Charles Widmore! AND he remembers Locke!

3 years!…oh yeah I knew they’d been off for 3 years but having Locke just pop up like that really makes my head hurt.

War coming?!?!?!

23!!!

ABBADON! I thought that was Reddick the agent of Homeland Security head of the Fringe division!

Sayid looks so happy and chill building houses doing good! I like this Sayid.

HOLY CRAPPERS!! WHAT!!! WALT!

Ben is the best actor on TV.

Watchmen! Midnight premiere! No doubt about it!

Hey, excuse me am I talking to a dude in the wheelchair right now? HA. I love Hurley.

This has got to be the best show on TV! My goodness, it’s dusty in here watching this scene with Locke and Kate!

Locke is the best actor on TV.

Helen Norwood died of brain anuerism – 6-30-57 to 4-8-06. I’ve got to go back and watch that episode.

HOLY CRAP!

Ben doesn’t know everything! Didn’t know Jin was alive!

DON’T TRUST HIM JOHN!!!

Maybe he should trust him?

HOLY CRAP!!! HE JUST KILLED HIIM!!!

HOLY CRAP! That’s the man who killed me!

HOLY CRAP COUNT = 5 this episode

What an impressive episode! The thing is that it makes me want to pull out my older seasons on DVD and rewatch everything before next week! We find out so much here about Ben and Widmore and Locke and what a tangled web they’ve weaved!

Best show on TV right now!

What’d you think?

Giving Up

Today is Ash Wednesday. Most people in Louisiana are rigorously hung over from Mardi Gras festivities that they’ve over indulged in for the past few days so they won’t be reading this post. You probably are if you don’t live anywhere near South Louisiana, or if your one of the students in private school who has the entire week off of school this week. 

It’s customary to give something up for Lent. A vice of yours to surrender for the 40 days leading up to Easter is something commonly given up. I’m not Catholic but have participated in Lent before and am thinking I’ll do it again.

I think I might give up Coke again.

What about you?

Sunday Setlist Feb. 22nd – 3 Churches in 1!

Not only do I bring you what they did at River today but I went to Ecclesia in Houston and Rae went to Trinity in Lafayette so I bring you the Sunday Setlists times 3!!! 

I’ll spend most of the time discussing Ecclesia since I was physically there and because it’s the one that resounds with me the most! But keep reading for the others as well. I’ll try to keep this strictly to the music so I won’t ramble too much  

1. @Ecclesia
The band make up was acoustic, electric, keys, bass and drums with a lead vocal. More than enough to get dangerous and just enough to be excellent! 

• Prelude – Band played and sung song (I don’t know the name and we missed 1/2 of it)
• Welcome and greeting – I LOVE the greeting at the beginning!!!
• Here is Our King – Crowder – A
• Come Ye Sinners – 6/8 time signature swingy feel
• How He Loves – John Mark McMillan
• Offering and Announcements
• Special song – I See You (Amazing song that I’m trying to find!) 
• Sermon
• Band played and sung during communion
• I think Tasting Forgiveness was slated to be played but b/c of time they must have scrapped it

When they struck up with Here is Our King out of the greeting, I immediately got giddy. It’s one of those songs that our church either loves or finds tricky to sing and therefore is discouraged to play so I only get to do it with the youth or out somewhere else. I was surprised to find that they kept it in the recording’s key. It was a bit high but man we belted it out They followed pretty close to the live recordings version but added a double dose of Majesty at the end that was sweet!

What’s truly hilarious is that when I went back and found what they played last August when I was there, these next 2 songs were there! I remember it was the 1st time I’d heard How He Loves live and I remember thinking what a cool version of Come Ye Sinners! I was really surprised because I love Robbie Seay’s version and this being his church is completely different! 

Well Come Ye Sinners was again, refreshingly great and How He Loves has become the theme of our Youth Group lately! I played it last weekend at church, they played it at the retreat this weekend, and then we get it here at Ecclesia! For some reason though, this morning singing it out something special really happened. I’m not sure if it was all the exposure to it or what, they pulled it off better than the recording and really settled in it and we all just went for it! It sounded like everyone was singing out! 

I See You is a magnificent song so more on that when I can find it! 

What was really exciting was hearing the students’ reaction: they LOVED it! I purposefully wanted to go somewhere that would have been different from the retreat and they loved the worship, the sound, the songs, the whole thing. That was awesome! 

2. @River: 

• Bless the Lord – Laura Story
• Come Ye Sinners
• Tender Mercy 
• Amazing Grace/My Chains are Gone
• Prayer and Greeting and Announcements and Offering
• Sermon
• Communion
• Closing – Clean Hands

I don’t know if in fact this week we had electric or not. I’m sure we had mandolin and a couple back up vocals. This was the second week in a row doing Bless the Lord which is the latest new song introduced to the congregation. 

3. @Trinity: 

• Forever - Tomlin
• Hosanna – Baloche
• In Christ Alone – Matt Papa
• From the Inside Out – Hillsong United
• Everlasting God – Brenton Brown

When Rae first gave me the song set, I was really giddy! What a selection of songs! 
Tomlin’s live version of Forever is nuts! Matt Papa’s In Christ Alone is the perfect contemporary/hymn song! From the Inside Out is easily one of my most favorite United tunes! Everlasting God is such a solid familiar song!

I got …eh…from Rae. Something was missing. Nothing popped, lack of energy, they all kind of ran together and sounded the same. were some of the things I got from her. This frustrates me because I know as a worship leader it’s frustrating to do songs that are so familiar and perhaps really familiar to the band and keep them fresh and creative. I think for Rae (because it’s true for me too) knowing those songs and loving them so much and hearing them not pulled off like you’re familiar to is distracting. 

Unfortunately, it sounds like she and I had opposite experiences this morning: I heard the intro riff to HIOK and got giddy excited and then lost in the music! She heard Forever and got interested and then deflated by the music. 

How was your Sunday? All a part of Fred’s carnival of Sunday Setlists! I LOVE the banner this week so I stole it Unfortunately, Fred doesn’t know who we’re stealing it from so if it’s yours: THANK YOU! and speak up so I can give you some link love!

Smile!

Our group’s profile picture! 

Francis

Kristian

How do you see God?

Francis Chan’s messages on prayer have been wrecking my life! 

STOP PRAYING. 

Take a moment and think about who you are praying too. All too often we get wrapped up in our circumstances and our troubles and our celebrations and we forget who it is we’re praying too. John’s vision has been impacting me as of late. Taking 30 seconds before prayer time and getting this image helps me think about how small I am and how unfathomable God is and that perspective makes me feel…safe.

John’s obviously struggling with how to describe the stunning sight before him however, it’s impressive and mystery is something to think about the next time you pray:

²At once I was in the Spirit, and behold, a throne stood in heaven, with one seated on the throne. ³And he who sat there had the appearance of jasper and carnelian, and around the throne was a rainbow that had the appearance of an emerald. ⁴Around the throne were twenty-four thrones, and seated on the thrones were twenty-four elders, clothed in white garments, with golden crowns on their heads. ⁵From the throne came flashes of lightning, and rumblings and peals of thunder, and before the throne were burning seven torches of fire, which are the seven spirits of God, ⁶and before the throne there was as it were a sea of glass, like crystal.

And around the throne, on each side of the throne, are four living creatures, full of eyes in front and behind: ⁷ the first living creature like a lion, the second living creature like an ox, the third living creature with the face of a man, and the fourth living creature like an eagle in flight. ⁸And the four living creatures, each of them with six wings, are full of eyes all around and within, and day and night they never cease to say,

   “Holy, holy, holy, is the Lord God Almighty,
   who was and is and is to come!”

 ⁹And whenever the living creatures give glory and honor and thanks to him who is seated on the throne, who lives forever and ever, ¹⁰the twenty-four elders fall down before him who is seated on the throne and worship him who lives forever and ever. They cast their crowns before the throne, saying,
 ¹¹ ”Worthy are you, our Lord and God,
   to receive glory and honor and power,
for you created all things,and by your will they existed and were created.” 

I easily ‘pray without ceasing’ and easily and casually the ‘friend I have in Jesus’ however, I all too often forget the powerful, almighty God that is the creator of the Universe who is truly terrificly awesome!

Houston Here I Come!

We roll out at 3:30 today to head to Houston for the Student Life conference with Francis Chan and Kristian Stanfill! I am jacked up about this! They are probably 2 of my favorite people right now (other than my wife for helping my find my wallet this morning!) 

So, I’ll apologize in advance for the barrage of updates, posts, pics, tweets, of Houston this weekend. AS IF that wasn’t great enough, going to church at Ecclessia has me giddy like a school girl! WOOHOO! 

Please pray for me and the students. It’ll be a great little group that I think can have a tremendous time together these next few days!
Any Houston locals hit me up!

2009 BRIT Awards

While at Cirque de Soleil last night all I was getting were updates from Anchorman regarding the 2009 Brit Awards show and the activities of U2, Coldplay, The Killers, etc. Enjoy: 

Dang, I wish I lived in the UK.

Sunday Setlist Feb. 15th – YOUTH WORSHIP

I really can’t believe I did Sunday Setlists and didn’t talk about our youth worship Sunday night! I was so giddy since I haven’t let worship in quite some time that I completely forgot to blog about it until I noticed Fred’s latest question! 

So here’s what we did: 

• How He Loves – John Mark McMillan – C
• Mighty to Save – Hillsong – D
• Marvelous Light – Charlie Hall – A

I started the night off with a video by Francis Chan called Stop and Think. You can find out more about it at it’s official site as well as the Crazy/Love site. It’s an incredible presentation of the Gospel and I just thought, “Man! What a great way to set up worship!”
So, we did. I couldn’t think of a better way to start off worship than singing about God’s love and God’s salvation. The first 2 songs were all about HIM and little to do with us. Marvelous Light was more of a celebrative response to that fact. I do love the phrase: 

Sin has lost it’s power, death has lost it’s sting. 
From the grave You’ve risen victoriously!

But Marvelous Light is much more focused on us.

I thought it worked wonderfully. I got so excited that I butchered Mighty to Save. I had to start it 3 times! I couldn’t find the melody! I wasn’t really paying attention to the intro and playing by myself, I initially trying just to vamp out on the D, which doesn’t work by the way! So I started way too low. Then way too high. Finally, I started off in the chorus and went back to the verse! It was hilarious. Completely screwed it up but God’s gracious and I apologized for getting too excited! They laughed but the giggles subsided by the time we got into the 1st Chorus!

I love Marvelous Light because I love that the students actually spin around with me! I hate not doing what the song’s intention is! I mean if we sing:

Lift my hands and spin around!

I think we should do that! And we do when we sing that song and I love it!  

I can’t believe it’s been so long since I last led worship. It felt weirder than I thought all alone up there by myself but it was also incredibly freeing! I hope to do more soon!!! 

All a part of Fred’s Carnival.

Sunday Setlist Feb. 15th – dBs & Bless the Lord Reviewed

I think the answer to the appropriate dB level that should be played in church is kept under lock and key with the secrets to Area 51, the truth about Bigfoot, the identity of and if there was a third gunman, and why if Lifetime is the channel for women there’s always a woman getting beaten on that network! 

After several years of advising and begging we’ve gone ahead with hiring a sound tech. While I could hear the intricacies of the music and while it sounded good! I didn’t find it loud enough He did some tweaks to the low end and it was a good mix with some actual bass this Sunday but it felt like I was distant from the vocals. I asked what we were running and it was just above 90 dBs, which makes sense because I used to ask the techs to average 95. Funny what 5 dBs do for you  

They sang:

•  I Sing the Mighty Power of God – E
• ‘Tis so Sweet to Trust in Jesus - D
• Bless the Lord – Laura Story – E
• We Will Dance – David Ruis – D
• Offering - I Surrender All – Traditional – A
• Closer – Blessed Be Your Name – Matt Redman – G

The 1st 2 songs were done identically which made for what seemed like 1 long song. It was nice to do a new song that is a new song. Laura Story wrote the song Indescribable that Chris Tomlin put on Sunday mornings at churches nearly everywhere. I’m a bit put off by Ms. Story. I’m a big hater of the churning going on in Christian music and we find Mighty to Save here on Story’s breakout CD. So I was already a little hesitant. 

Bless the Lord however isn’t too bad. On the surface lyrically it sounds very Blessed Be Your Name-ish however it’s more of a calling to praise God as He refines the worshipper and a remembering who God is. Melody wise it’s very rolling from part to part but the phrasing is interesting and has some peculiar pauses. Musically it’s pretty constant. Once it gets rolling it pushes all the way through pausing slightly after the bridge for a few bars to pick back up where it left off. It’d be good to have some more dynamics with the song and it’d be easy for the worship leader to do so given the song’s elements. 

The plus side is knowing what you’re working with. Bless the Lord seems to fit well with our new worship leader and style and could compliment the talent of the band. Doing songs like this that are recent releases could be good additions to the church’s repertoire.

It’s good to be a part of Fred’s Sunday Setlists Blog Carnival as it turns the big 30! I will too in June