the latest

Hello all. Just wanted to drop a quick post to let you all know that I'm still alive. Life has been a little crazy between Fischer last week and Christina's wedding on Independence Day.

Last night we had dinner as a family at my Mom's house (yes, all ten of us. I can't believe there are ten of us!?) ROB cooked Lasagne for everyone. (Boy am I glad that I didn't have to cook dinner for my future in-laws the week before the wedding!) We dusted off our old Lego's for Sam...and Damien and I played with them. Crystal and Renee ceremoniously presented Rob with the coveted "green stocking." (that story deserves it's own post if I have time later this week.) It was great fun.

The first of Christina and Rob's friends and family arrived today. They should be trickling in throughout the rest of the week. Keep them in your prayers as they travel.

So, anyway, that is all for now. I'm prepping for youth group tonight. I do have some things that have been swimming through my mind that I want to post about. We'll see if I have time in the next couple of days...

YOUTH: Video Scavenger Hunt

The video scavenger hunt is this Sunday night (June 26) from 6-9pm. We are cooking up some exciting stuff. Let's just say that if all works out, it will be a little bit different that your traditional video scavenger hunt. Email me or call me if you are coming.

Fischer 5-day club

Please keep our church in your prayers this week. Every summer we minister to the Fischer housing project by putting on a 5-day club for kids. Every night this week we will be at Fischer Elementary School from 6-8pm. I am the Bible Teacher for the 10-year old class.

I absolutely love our Fischer ministry. I wish we were involved in more ministry like this that is so focused on the community around us. I'll try to post pics and updates as the week rolls along.

In case you were wondering, this does mean that we do not have youth group this week.

YOUTH: Progressive Lock-in

Just a reminder that the progressive lock-in is tomorrow night (Friday). The plan is to meet at the church at 8pm. Parents, you can plan on picking up your teen at 8am on Sat morning. If you would like, we can provide you a schedule of our night when you drop off your teen.

The cost is $10. Invite you friends. Bring a pillow and a blanket if you would like. Hope to see you all there!

the big easy

According to a recent study, New Orleans is the unhealthiest city in America. Oh well.

I bet we're ranked pretty high when it comes to "cities with the best food." So there.

Coldplay on VH1's Storytellers

Last night after I got home from youth group, I happened to catch about the last half of Coldplay on VH1's Storytellers. I really enjoyed it.

If you aren't familar with Storytellers (I wasn't), it looks like what they do is get a band to perform some of their songs and talk about what inspired them in front of a fairly small and intimate audience. They also give the audience a chance to do a question and answer session with the band. They edit it all together and package it into an hour long show.

Anyway, I found myself inspired by the band's passion. This is a band that truly sees themselves as artists and they care deeply about their craft. It was refreshing.

For whatever reason, I haven't felt very inspired lately. All of the craziness going on in my life and ministry has worn me down. Seeing a great artist at work was good for me. It reminded me that my job is to help create encounters with God. If that is what I truly believe...then I've got to do it to be best of my ability. How can I not be passionate about it?

Anyway, according to VH1's website, the show will reair on Saturday night at 10:30 central time. Check it out. I'm gonna set my VCR to tape it.

Switchfoot's Latest

Surf over to Switchfoot's official website if you wanna preview a clip of Stars, a song (the first single?) from their new CD. Nothing is Sound will be released in August.

NBA Finals

I'm an NBA fan. I love the NBA playoffs. I love watching a good seven-game series. I'm sad that my Mavs couldn't make it out of the second round. I am very happy that the Heat lost last night.

I think that the NBA is in an interesting spot right now. If there is any professional sport that hypes it's superstars, it's definitely the NBA. I've never liked that fact for a number of reasons. First of all, basketball is definitely a team sport. You cannot succeed on one good player. Secondly, certain players get so overhyped! I got tired of hearing about Kobe and Shaq. I'm already tired of hearing about LeBron and Dwayne Wade...and they are both in their second year!? Thirdly, it goes against everything that sport is supposed to mean. Isn't athletics supposed to be about teamwork and sacrifice? It seems so wrongheaded.

Needless to say, I was very pleased when the Detroit Pistons won the NBA Finals last year. I hoped that this would be a significant moment for the NBA. The team built around star power lost to the team built around chemistry. It seemed to me that the Pistons has rewritten the blueprint to success in the NBA.

It's kinda funny how things work. On the one hand, if you look at the decisions that teams have made over the past year, I think that coaches and GMs are getting tired of the overhyped star. Guys like Baron Davis and Chris Webber were traded for next to nothing. A selfish player is like a cancer. Teams are starting to realize this. The marketing machine keeps focusing on the "superstar," but teams aren't.

So I was enjoying last night immensely. It was great to see the media squirm as they watched Shaq and Dwayne Wade lose.

Do you realize that we are about to have an NBA Finals with no "superstars?" Now, don't get me wrong, there are obviously some talented players on both teams. Tim Duncan is as good as anybody in the NBA...but none of these guys are the ones plastered all over the commercials and sneaker ads. These aren't the guys who normally would get the "primetime" timeslot. These are teams...and darn good ones at that.

Here's hoping that the NBA marketing machine takes the hint that it is teams, not individuals that are having real success in the league.

By the way, one team that is doing it right is our hometown boys. You can argue that they have no choice because they are just that lacking in talent, but I LOVE the "I believe" campaign that is being run by the Hornets right now. They are attempting to get fans excited about the team not the star.

I think it just might work.

MEXICO TRIP: Book Report

Thanks to all you swell people that came to the meeting yesterday. We are gonna have a great time in Mexico! A couple of you asked me about the book report. I sat down this morning and wrote out the guidelines for the report.

Here they are:
Your book report should be about a page long. (It could be longer, of course.) Please submit it on a separate sheet of paper (preferably typed). Below are three things that your report should include. I would suggest that you have at least one paragraph on each of these things.

Let me give you a piece of advice, DON'T THINK OF THIS AS HOMEWORK. Think of it more like a letter that you are writing to someone telling them about a good story you read. Think of it like a personal journal entry you are writing about something that meant something to you. We aren't looking for the right answer. There isn't really a right or wrong way to write this report. Don't do it just to get it done. Do it to reflect on what you read.

Okay, now read the last paragraph again. It's important that you understand what it says.

Here are the three things your report should include:
· Give us a summary of the book. Who was it about? What happened to them?
· Give us your “book review.” What was your overall impression of the book? What did you like/dislike about it? Why?
· Tell us how it impacted YOU personally. How are you different having read it? Is there anything you want to change about the way you live your life? How did it change the way you view world missions?

I'll have a paper copy of all of this on Wednesday night. Happy reading!

YOUTH: Six Flags

Okay, here is the deal on Six Flags. Jereme plays at 4pm at the Jocco's stage (an indoor stage that is to your right as you walk in). The Jeremy Camp concert starts at 7pm.

I plan on leaving church at about 3pm to go. (Ben and Cally's wedding is at 2pm.) I don't think I'll stay for the whole Jeremy Camp concert, I'll probably leave about 7:30pm. If you wanna come with me, give me a call on my cell ASAP.

As for tickets, I do have a coupon that will let me get up to six people in for $21.99. It's first come/first serve. So, if you want one of those, you better contact me soon.

Coldplay on MTV's the Leak

Coldplay's new CD comes out next week. If you want a chance to listen to the CD now, MTV.com has a full preview of the whole album. Here is the link.