when God dreams conference ...

in a few months, we're hosting our first Stirring conference ...

When God dreams is a conference that inspires people to become God dreamers ... God is a dreamer, but when God dreams, He dreams through His children ... and we believe that God is looking for men and women who will lock onto His dreams and run with them ...

for three days in May, we're inviting emerging leaders, church planters and creative minds to come together for provoking dialogue, worship and teaching ... more than just an event, our prayer is that this conference will be an experience that will leave people encouraged, inspired and ready to chase after the dreams God has placed in them ...

Banning Liebscher and I will be speaking in the main sessions ... my brother Jeremy Edwardson and our worship leader Jenna Barney will be leading worship with the Stirring team ... we'll have breakout sessions and creative church forums to dream together for the future ...

if you want to be involved or have any creative ideas, please let me know ... until then, rock on ...

the Settlers of Catan ...

I'm hooked on a new board game ... I love board games ... risk and monopoly and candy land ... anything strategic and challenging ... I'm extremely competitive, especially when it comes to board games ... ask my wife ...

anyways, my friends introduced me to this new game a couple of weeks ago ... the Settlers of Catan ... it's a bit like Risk, except more strategic and it doesn't take 9 hours to play one game ... I've already played 4 times ... sheep and wheat and brick ... bring it on ...

this blog is dedicated to all the game board geeks in the world (including Patrick and Micah and Mark and Jenna) ... wherever you are, you are not alone ... and for all of you who look down on us game board geeks ... you're not invited to our next Settlers tournament ... true story ...

Stirring Downtown ...

yes, the rumors are true ... in a few weeks, we're moving the Stirring office downtown ...

we found this sweet suite in one of those old school buildings downtown ... right above Nathan's Anthems, that tattoo parlor on the corner ... and my brother Jeremy is designing and building a recording studio downstairs ... hipsters unite ...

not to mention,my friend Paul just helped to open a new restaurant downtown called the Eatery ... I eat at the eatery almost every week ... burgers and tacos and calamari ... and South American coffee drinks that keep you up for 3 days ... (don't tell fleck) ...

downtown is where it's at ... the studio, the eatery, tattoos and the Stirring ... oh yeah, and the police department ... just in case some crazy guy tries to fight me or tries to choke me on the sidewalk ... downtown gets crazy ...

40 days ...

40 days and counting ... we're having a baby ... 40 seems like an important number ...

40 days God floods the earth ...
40 days God's children wander in the wilderness ...
40 days Moses was on the mountain with God ...
40 days the spies are in the land ...
40 days of Jonah and Ninevah ...
40 days Ezekial lays on his right side ...
40 days Jesus was tempted by the Devil ...
40 days Jesus was seen by His disciples after resurrection ...

in 40 days, my life changes ...

life group ...

our Life Group is out of control ...
26 of us sitting in a living room, reading Scripture and eating grapes ...

this week, we talked about honor, prophecy and women in ministry ... great thoughts and conversation ... we're reading 1st Timothy this week ... Paul writes this letter to his spiritual son Timothy ... calling him out as a young leader in Ephesus ... teaching him how to love ... teaching him how to honor ... teaching him how to lead ...

Paul writes ... "Do not let anyone look down on you because you are young, but be an example for other believers in your speech, behavior, love, faithfulness, and purity" ... 1st Timothy 4:12 ...

that's a good word right there ...

Erase the Dark ...

we're still looking for songwriters, artists and filmmakers to get involved with Erase the Dark, our music, art and film festival ... friday night, March 6th ... save the date ... last year was amazing, and this year will blow your mind ...

and all proceeds go directly to provide shoes for the hundreds of kids at Cypress Elementary, one of the lower income schools in our city ... this is the calling of the church ... to put the love of God on display ... we can sing worship songs at church all day long, but the world is longing to see the love of God on display ...

if you want to get involved, let us know ...

Kris Vallotton at the Stirring ...

hey everyone, we've invited Kris Vallotton to speak at the Stirring this coming Sunday night, January 18th @ 5 pm and 7 pm ...

if you've never heard Kris speak, you've got to be there ... Kris has such a burning passion for calling out and raising up a generation of sons and daughters ... over the past few years, he has had such a deep impact on my life and our church ... I just read his new book called "purity" ... great for anyone single or dating ... or those with a passion to mentor and walk alongside young couples ... we'll have copies of this book at the Stirring ... bring your checkbook ...

anyways, I'm stoked about this weekend and this honor series ... Derrick Fleck will be speaking in the morning gathering and Kris Vallotton will be speaking in the evening ... I can't wait to worship with our Stirring family and hear God's speak to us as a generation ... may we become men and women of honor ... may we learn how to humble ourselves as a generation ...

see you Sunday night ...

50 days ...

I'm not sure what to write, but I have to draw attention to the creepy floating baby on my blog page .... 50 days and counting ...

we've been changing diapers and filling sippy cups for almost 6 years straight ... I can't remember a time when kids weren't hanging on my pant legs ... I can't walk down the hallway without stepping on a barbie or a plastic chainsaw ... they always forget to flush the toilet ... I've watched Finding Nemo 468 times ... and I wouldn't trade any of it for the world ... (except the nasty diapers) ...

this week, we begin our Spring Life Groups at the Stirring ... I'm teaming up with Bill and Jill Randall to lead a leadership group for the next 13 weeks ... over the years, both Bill and Jill have had such a deep and profound impact on my life ... they have encouraged me and challenged me and shaped me to become the man, the father, the husband and the leader that I am today ... I am so grateful for their voice in my life ... and now we get to spend the rest of our lives shaping young leaders who will shape the world ... there's nothing on earth I would rather be doing ...

in our life group, we'll be focusing on leadership, calling and character ... we're reading through portions of the New Testament as well as the book 'Next Generation Leader" ... I'm stoked about the young men and women who are apart of this group ...

anyways, watch out for dirty diapers and plastic chainsaws ... it's my life ...

honor: the lost virtue ...

tonight at the Stirring, we began a new series called "Honor: the lost virtue" ...

over the past few years, I have been on a personal journey when it comes to honor ... learning how to honor my parents, how to honor the spiritual fathers and mothers in my life, how to honor leaders and how to honor other churches ...

you cannot read the Scriptures without being exposed to God's heart for honor ... Jesus teaches, "the proud will be humbled, but the humble will be honored" ... James writes, "humble yourself before God and He will honor you ... more than anything, honor is humility in action ... honor is how we humble ourselves before God ...

in America, we live in such an honorless culture ... we've thrown honor out the window ... instead of honor, we live gossip and betrayal and slander and jealousy and envy and division ... honor is the lost virtue ...

as a generation, can we recapture God's heart for honor? ... over the next few weeks, I'm praying that God would show us His heart for Honor ... that we would become a people of Honor who shape a culture of Honor ...

Erase the Dark ...

in two months, the Stirring is hosting Erase the Dark, our music art and film festival ...

last year was amazing ... films and music videos ... original songwriting and music ... delicious food ... and over 100 pieces of art ...

this year, Erase the Dark will be on Friday evening, March 6th ... we'll feature 6 live performing artists, a couple short films, an art gallery and an interactive piece ... we've already spoken with a couple local filmmakers and songwriters ... if you want to be involved, please let us know ...

and the best part, all the proceeds goes directly to help the children at Cypress Elementary school in our city ... it's one of the lowest income schools in our area ... last year, we were able to purchase backpacks for almost 300 students on campus ... we bought gifts to thank every teacher ... we painted hallways and sanded bleachers ... we even designed a school shirt (thank you Juan) and gave every student a Cougar shirt ...

this year, it's all about shoes ... our goal is to raise enough money to buy shoes for every kid on that campus ... and partner with Cypress Elementary to help out in the most creative ways possible ... any ideas?

anyways, get involved ... church is more than just a chair ...

60 days ...

what the heck? ... we're having a baby girl in 60 days ...

so, my wife and I just bought a Toyota Sienna mini-van ... 33,000 miles ... amazing condition ... steering wheel ... four beautiful tires ... CD player ... seats 8 adults and 14 children ... yep, we're mini-van people ... and we're stoked ... I drove it all the way home from Sacramento with a huge smile on my face (listening to Coldplay and Radiohead) ... I'm a proud mini-van dad ...

it's the first car we've bought in over 10 years ... crazy ... we're thinking about throwing a party in the mini-van for all our friends with children ... dancing and music and twister in the mini-van ... everyone's invited ...

anyways, I'm still freaking out about the 60 days thing ... that's just a few weeks ... hospitals make me sick and dizzy ... props to doctors and nurses and janitors and anyone who spends their lives in hospitals ... I couldn't do it ... my stomach gets weak ... I throw up in mouth and pass out ... I get dizzy and punch myself in the neck ... I go crazy and use those rubber gloves for balloons ... then someone tackles me on the ground and they drag me out on the street ... this has never happened, but you can imagine ... yep ...

anyways, I love my kids and I can't wait to meet Alicia ... happy new year ... it's past midnight and I'm a bit delirious ... blog on ...