my crazy weekend ...

I've been running for 100 hours straight ... welcome to my crazy weekend ...

Thursday night ... dress rehearsal for Matt and Lindsay's wedding ... later on that night, church planting meeting at Paul's house ... we packed 38 people into one living room ... we're planting our Sunday morning church in 10 weeks ... amazing ...

Friday night ... Matt and Lindsay's wedding ... came home to hang with family ...

Saturday ... Hackfest Golf Marathon 2008 ... I teamed up with Pete Metz, Jason Jones and my brother Benji ... we had a great time hacking at balls and digging balls out of creeks ... I think I could really get into this golf thing ... aren't pastors supposed to be golfers ... like Rick Pitcher ... over all, we raised over $18,000 for our new church plant ... thanks guys ...

Sunday Night ... spoke at the Stirring ... Jenna led worship ... Alyssa's water broke ... Sean wore a Diego backpack ... we had an awesome time of worship and prayer ...

I prayed for a guy who came to the Stirring with his friend for the first time ... this is the first time he's ever experienced God ... another guy came running up to me ... he said, "I have no idea what's happening to me, for the past four weeks, when I come to church, all I can do is cry" ... God's changing him into a new person ... I've known this guy for a year, and for the first time, I can see joy in his eyes ... I prayed with a girl who grew up in church, but she's never really met God ... she wants to know God ... God is so outrageously good ...

now it's sabbath ... I'm going to sit around all day and do nothing ... and then mow my lawn ...

face to face ...

tomorrow night, we begin a new series at the Stirring ... face to face ... we were created to live face to face with God ... so why don't we?

The Lord would speak to Moses face to face, as a man speaks with his friend. Exodus 33:11

I believe that God is looking for one person ... anyone can burn in a crowd ... God is looking for someone who will burn for Him when no one's looking ... who will worship Him when there's no church service ... who will cry out to Him in the middle of the night when there's no crisis ...

God is looking for one person who will know Him face to face ... and when God finds that person, He will use them to shape history ...

I've been praying for our church for weeks, and especially as we move into this next journey ... that we would know God's voice ... that we would see God's face ... that we would feel God's breath ... that we would become friends of God ... God's face to face people on earth, calling the world back into a life with God ...

thoughts on Todd Bentley ...

so, what about Todd Bentley and those Lakeland Revivals? ... please do not comment until you've watched this 4 minute video ... I believe this is God's heart ...

I will never forget ...

I will never forget ...

1) My first date with Erica ... we took a walk across the train bridge over Caldwell Park ... I wanted to kiss her ... we held hands and smelled fresh Redding air ... romantic, until the train came ... I panicked ... we almost died ...

2) Wolfman ... I'm not sure how it all came about ... it was someone's bachelor party ... we drove out to a lonely, dark road ... we parked our cars and took off all our clothes ... all ten of us ... naked and white ... we huddled in a circle in the middle of the road ... we waited ... 10 minutes later, a car came slowly down that road ... it's headlights shining brightly upon us ... crouching in a tight circle on that dark road, we pretended to be eating a dead animal carcass ... then we ran quickly into the forest ...

3) of course, 9/11 ... my father called me early in the morning ... he was freaking out and breathing heavily ... "America is under attack" ... I thought it was joke ... so, I hung up the phone and I went back to bed ... 10 minutes later, he called again ... this time, I believed him ... I ran upstairs and turned on the television ... my wife, dave reichle, john klein and aaron morkert watched the airplane crash into the second tower ... awful feeling ...

4) Genesis Weekend ... the year God became more important than Night Life ... Sean Bagley crawling in sand ... Jeff Yoder dancing with flags ... Sarah pours blue paint over a canvas ... Richie Masadas screams, "I'm thirsty" ... it freaked me out ... seriously, I was not expecting that ... and then people start screaming and running toward a huge bucket near the front stage ... wow ... no wonder they went back to Night Life ...

5) Exit San Francisco ... my first band ... peter, joel, jathen, courtney and ben ... and somehow, I ended up the lead singer ... jumping and kicking all over the stage ... like an idiot ... with my freakin' weird long hair ... what was I thinking? ... one question ... where the heck is Peter Marshall? ...

things that grow on you ...

yep, things that grow on you ...

1) Chest hair ... I found this out 2 years ago ... it came quickly, like weeds in fertile soil ...

2) the film Anchor Man ... I hated it the first time I watched it ... months later, I rented it ... changed my life ... one of the greatest films of all time ... perhaps the Godfather of the 21st century ... stay classy ...

3) Text Messaging ... two years ago, I actually had conversations with real people on my cell phone ... now, I just text message ... it's quicker and you don't actually have to talk to anyone ... I just type in a few words and 'send' ...

4) John Klein ... it's true ... we've had our moments, but John Klein has become one of my most loyal and encouraging friends ...

5) the new Coldpay album ... amazing ... I've listened to it at least 46 times ... that hammer dulcimer takes me to another world ... a world where there is no war, no racism and little people running around with cotton candy ...

project Kid's Kingdom day 1 ...

almost finished ... with a little help from my friends ... we built the two towers, a couple ladders, a bridge, and bolted down the double wave slides ... all in 12 hours straight ...

we're taking a couple days off, but when we get back to it, there's only a few things left ... the swingset, the tire swing, the climbing wall (Bobby and I are going to design and build it), the fort tent and of course, the rope ladder ...

the kids are already going crazy ... we're playing adventure games like Pirates and Jungle and Indiana Jones ... Asher's crazy ... he's already climbing to the top of the fort and pretending to jump off ... and then he laughs ...

one day, perhaps our children will realize the great sacrifices we have made for them ... and when we're old and wise, maybe they will build our forts for us ... and change our diapers ...

baptism tonight ...

for those who read this blog, don't miss the Stirring baptism tonight at 5:30 pm ...

new followers of Jesus, a 5 gallon cooler of Costco lemonade and a BBQ ... amazing ... and I hear Patrick is bringing Cornhole ... you can't have a true baptism without a decent Cornhole competition ... I'm still the undefeated Cornhole champion ...

here are the directions to 2036 Princeton Way ...

take Simpson Blvd off of Shasta View (across from Simpson University entrance)
Right on Princeton Way (2036 Princeton Way)

bring your own meat, a sidedish to share, towel, and swim wear (preferably speedos and sexy bikinis) ... no white shirts ... it's a baptism ...