stephen cope

my brett weaver story

2010-08-29T21:30:00.004-04:00

this post is nearly 6 months in the making. its simply a story from my perspective of how Jesus can radically change a life, and the life of a family.

and the great thing is, i'm writing this at the end of the greatest day i've ever had as a worship leader. at our campus alone we had over 865 people and 47 salvations in one day. mind you that just a month ago we were in the mid-500's. our church as a whole saw over 14,000 people and 516 salvations. THIS IS PROOF that Jesus changes lives through salvation and the hearing of the gospel... but as in my short story here, what i love about the gospel and the power of Jesus is that he continues to radically change our lives in so many ways even after meeting him.

so.... back in march cindy emailed anna, another photographer in florida, about some great shots she had gotten, basically just to tell her how much she enjoyed her photography (which randomly emailing someone is something that cindy doesn't normally do). shortly after, they struck up a casual ichat friendship, where they quickly realized how much they actually had in common. one evening while chatting online, anna and cindy started talking about the fact that their husbands were both in ministry, and so cindy told her where i worked and anna told cindy about her husband brett's job as a children's minister in starke, florida. (actually a town i used to pass through nearly every other week traveling to anthem church). after talking, anna gave brett my contact info, and we connected shortly after. after sharing stories and talking through the ups and downs of being in ministry, we got to know each other through face to face ichat for a few weeks, to which i loved being able to encourage him in his ministry in florida (at the time he was juggling children's ministry, youth ministry, and leading the student worship band...geez).

in april we were invited to go to charleston w/ the weavers, which really gave a great chance for cindy and anna to hang out and talk about stuff that both moms and photographers talk about, and i had more of a chance to hear about brett's ministry and where he felt God was leading him...

well, about a week later, he resigned from his position in florida, feeling that God had done some amazing things in their time there, but that it was time to move on. the big thing that i saw first hand was that i saw God move brett from feeling like he HAD to be in a vocational ministry position, to a desire to simply serve voluntarily in a church that was doing radical and life changing things for the Kingdom. and as you probably guessed, they knew newspring was that place....

fast forward to july... the weavers packed up their stuff, with no jobs on the horizon, and moved to columbia to serve in whatever capacity they could. what happened from there was nothing short of watching Jesus work out his plan in the life of a family. the thing i joke about with brett, is that as great as our friendship is, i NEVER fought or pushed his name that much around newspring, i simply wanted to let God work in his own way and in his own timing, which is the exact thing that brett has said from the beginning, that no matter where they ended up, he just wanted to be able to step back and see what God has done.

all at the same time this was going on, john shelton, our awesome children's minister at the time, was in the process of transitioning to discipleship pastor, which is TOTALLY his niche. he'll be equipping small groups and getting to do what he loves most, ministering to our people on such a personal level and helping them grow in their walk with Jesus.

so.... after MANY lunches, interviews, and days of shadowing, a little more than a week ago brett was hired as our children's minister in columbia.

i think brett would tell you that his life has been changed.

all this to say... i love a God that doesn't stop changing our lives at the cross. He gives us more than we could ever ask or imagine. He is the picture of good and perfect, and i love that even within the staff, and new staff members, there are stories of life change, all because a family was willing to follow jesus over 500 miles away from home and serve.

Jesus is so good.

welcome to newspring brett...

strong fathers: revisited. plus a few other things

2010-08-15T22:50:00.003-04:00

yep. no need to acknowledge that its been about 4 months since i blogged last. no biggie. life, fatherhood, and the summer has a way of doing that to me these days.

but today cindy reminded me so kindly that i committed to blogging about my strong fathers, strong daughters readings. all to which i've failed miserably. so, that being said, i'll sum up the entire thing in a nutshell...

dudes, man up. if you are a dad of a girl, or ever plan on being one, we must fight for her from the beginning. so many things i've read in this book are already true for me. natalie already wants my attention. she wants my approval. she puts a tutu (yes i said that) or a skirt on, or new shoes, and the first thing she wants to do is come and show me how pretty she is. i'm thinking that this will never change.

so... not that i didn't before, but i definitely make sure that i kiss her about a thousand times every day, and tell her how beautiful she is and how much i love her. and as i've said before, i thank jesus every day that she gets to grow up knowing this as the norm.

and i won't lie, every time she follows me to the door on my way to work saying "daddy, love you" over and over... it rips a little bit of my heart out of my chest. good gracious i love being a dad.

so... with all that said, its nice to at least be temporarily back writing my blog at 11 pm at night after an amazing sunday at newspring. hopefully in the midst of everything going on in our family, and with the incredible growth and activity of our church, i'll find time to post some more, especially to keep up with family and friends who we've probably fell a little bit out of touch with.

and if you've never read this blog, (providing i keep it up)... know that you'll probably get all parts of me on here... stuff jesus is nailing me with, family, music... and whatever else falls in between.

so... for some immediate "in-between" stuff.... my current soundtrack is the new david gray 2 disc "foundling" album that releases tuesday. do yourself a favor and get that as soon as you can. easily one of the most beautiful and perfect records i've ever heard. bold words. but true.

strong fathers, strong daughters

2010-04-05T09:49:00.003-04:00

if you know me, then you know that i've got this theory... that if i work and work on being a better worship leader, but fail as a husband or as a father, then i'm a failure as a person... which in turn, affects everything else around me. so i've really felt convicted to continually develop this part of my life as of late...

so, in attempt to keep myself accountable... i'm gonna try something.

whether anyone reads this or not, cindy challenged me to blog about each chapter as i read through strong fathers, strong daughters.

this way natalie will be able to have a record one day that hopefully she can look back on and see that i've held up my end of this deal: that i will love her in a way that Christ loves her. seeing her as His beautiful daughter first, and that i unashamedly need to be the most important man in her life.

for the first chapter, you can check out cindy's awesome post from a few months back, which basically sums up chapter one.

i'm halfway through chapter 2 now... this book is already wrecking me.

take the edge off

2010-03-11T22:33:00.003-05:00

ok, i know i never blog anymore, but this was too valuable to try to fit into 140 characters or less on twitter...

last night cindy came into the living room after feeding natalie. she looked at me and said "i think natalie just eats to take the edge off of her hunger. she never eats to get really full."

as soon as she said that it rocked both of us, and made us both think the same thing....

how many times do i do that to God?

when i chose to follow Jesus i received the fullness of Him. i have the chance to ask for his power and the full measure of his greatness every single day... but i rarely do it.

we all do the same thing.

we pray to get by.

we read scripture and walk away, never realizing that God wrote what we just read. God. the creator of Jupiter. the creator of the Pacific ocean. the creator of every star we've ever and never seen and every galaxy we could never wrap our minds around. God.

i don't want to just take the edge off. i want the full measure of Jesus every single second of every single day.

the kingdom of God is characterized by the power that it holds, not by weakness.

for the kingdom of God is not a matter of talk but of power. 1 Corinthians 4:20

one year

2010-02-26T08:43:00.000-05:00

its crazy how much i love this little girl...

natalie's first year from stephen cope on Vimeo.

tattoos

2010-01-30T13:34:00.003-05:00

so... yesterday cindy and i went to anderson to get the most unique birthday present i've ever recieved :) and what's even cooler, is that she got one with me. let me first say that we never would have gotten these just "because they're cool" or that they look good... we both committed to each other that before we ever got a tattoo... we'd have an amazing story to go behind it.

she got "thrive.139" on her foot... which is basically a response to natalie's "failure to thrive" diagnosis when she was just a few months old (you can read about that here). through that diagnosis, the word "thrive" has constantly been on repeat in our minds. thrive means to prosper, to flourish, and to increase in stature. cindy and i have been so blessed to see that natalie is thriving and she has accomplished so much in her first year of life. the second part of her tattoo comes from her favorite psalm. within psalm 139, david talks about how God knew our shape and our frame before we were even formed in our mother's womb. this verse was huge for us because through all of the ups and downs we knew that God had made natalie exactly how He wanted her to be.

my tattoo is the hebrew translation of the phrase "greater things." this phrase has been HUGE for me, and honestly it probably sums up my past year better than any other. the translation of "greater" that i chose is one that means to be given more/to have an increase and overflow of abundance so great that it can only be given by someone with majesty. the translation of "things" that i chose is one that means gifts, presents, or things that we never asked or imagined.

this past year i experienced huge life change in every area. the first is the birth of my little girl last february. secondly, i was able to get worship leading opportunities that ultimately led to accepting the position of what i would call my dream job. and to add to that... i packed up my family and moved to a brand new city to start our new campus. to say the least, i am constantly amazed by what God can and is doing in our new city and our church..... i feel like i've been given more than i ever asked or imagined.

greater things are yet to come.

NewSpring 10th Anniversary (another perspective)

2010-01-25T20:44:00.006-05:00

here are a few videos that cindy took from her seat yesterday at our 10 year anniversary at the Bilo Center in greenville... amazing is an understatement

this first one is of me and sam leading "not to us"

this one is of lee and the whole group doing "rise and sing"

this one is of justin land doing "where the streets have no name" epic

something worth posting

2009-11-10T11:42:00.002-05:00

yea... i know its been 2 months since i've posted. i'm really gonna try and do better with that. i've basically been just trying to catch up and catch a rhythm in columbia. but i knew i needed to post this, especially for all of our newspring people, and in particular our columbia campus.

if you've ever known me or read this blog before, you can usually catch that i truly believe that the gospel is so much more than coming to church and singing songs... that to truly follow Christ means that we are giving to the "least of these" and actually making a real difference in the world.

that being said, all newspring campuses are having a turkey drive this week. our columbia campus is partnering with the oliver gospel mission in downtown, and helping to feed literally hundreds of families who normally wouldn't be able to have a thanksgiving meal otherwise...so here's where you come in and what you can bring that would help greatly... some can bring one thing, some can do the whole box...either way, its a small but hugely significant way that we can truly be Jesus to people...

* 10-12 lb Frozen Turkey
* Frozen Pumpkin Pie
* Canned Whole Kernel Corn (15.25 oz)
* Canned Yams (29oz)
* Canned Jellied Cranberry Sauce (16oz)
* Stovetop Style Stuffing (6-8oz)
* Kraft Style Boxed Macaroni & Cheese (7.25oz)
* Canned Peas (15oz)
* Canned Green Beans (14.5oz)
* Turkey Gravy Packets (.87oz)

the end of the world & the beginning of a campus

2009-09-09T07:24:00.002-04:00

september 27th is almost here. that's the day that the newspring columbia campus launches, and holy cow i couldn't be more excited. all the work days, long hours, and extensive praying are going to pay off, and we know that. our biggest prayer is that people far from Jesus would come and see Him in a whole new light, and that some would see Him for the first time.

and, what could make september 27th even more awesome? i think a series on the end of the world should do that. check out this promo video for the series...its already scared me this morning... trust me, don't miss the opener on the 27th either. epic would be the word

get over yourself

2009-09-01T15:01:00.002-04:00

i spent much of my morning this past friday reading in 1st Samuel. it told the story of when the israelites tried to take the ark of God into battle with them, thinking it would protect them....but what transpired was that they were defeated and the ark was stolen. not the best day imaginable.

my friend brandon wrote a great post on another story from the old testament in 2nd chronicles. i talks about how in this story, Jehoshaphat sent in the worshippers first before the battle began. they were the preliminary ammunition. they completely won the battle because of their willingness not to honor themselves or any physical thing, but to worship the God who was over it all.

two very different strategies.

i want to be the 2nd story. i hope and pray that i never think just because (in my own case) we are taking newspring church to columbia, sc, that the city will turn upside down in love with Christ. (much like the first story) it takes so much more than one church. it takes a serious move in the lives of Christ followers to die to anything contrary to Jesus. we are only part of the movement He is already creating.

God will do with me and with this church and with this movement what He wants. the sooner we realize that He is bigger than any dream we could ever dream, the better.

i hope that none of us in any facet of society think that anything we could do on our own will ever advance the kingdom of God. and if we do, i pray we all get over ourselves.

i hate snakes...

2009-08-23T18:45:00.002-04:00

this is the first video from our new series titled five lies of the devil.... take 3 and a half minutes and check this out... awesome. our production guys are genius.

5 Lies of the devil message video, the snake from NewSpring Production on Vimeo.

laugh.

2009-08-20T13:28:00.003-04:00

for those of you who are dads... you know that this is about the most awesome sound you could ever hear...

our new cola addition

2009-08-06T11:37:00.005-04:00

as many of you know, a major part of any church and any church start is a children's minister. and to find that person that God has designed to send you is often a tough task. but as alden always says, he thought that he would find a children's minister before finding a worship leader...

i guess God had bigger plans :)

so, with that, i want to personally welcome john shelton to our newspring columbia team.

john has been in ministry for most of his adult life, working as a missionary, music minister, and children's minister. he and his wife have three kids, all of whom are awesome. we've met them all and honestly, they're the definition of "cool kids." his heart for seeing kids come to know Christ and develop their walk with Him amazes me. and for the dad of a little girl, this means a ton to me.

3 huge reasons i'm excited about john and his family joining us...

1) as a dad, i love knowing that natalie will grow up in a children's ministry with a children's minister that reminds her every single week that no matter how she dresses or what her personality is like, Jesus died for her and loves her unconditionally. i also love that she will be in a ministry that helps her walk with Christ grow in a way that speaks to her understandably. that's incredible to say as a dad.

2) as a worship leader i'm so excited that the people that i'll be leading in worship can rest in the fact that their child is in an environment where they are safe, and one that is relevant to their lives. and one that will tell them the gospel every single week in a way that they will understand.

3) simply, cindy and i already love this family. we've talked numerous times about how excited we are that we'll be cooking out with them and just hanging out in general. (and which if you know me, you know that if it involves hanging out with us, it usually involves cooking or at least food in some way :) )

so there you go, that's my take on what's going on with our new campus. exciting stuff. so john, welcome to the team!

a little perspective

2009-08-06T09:41:00.004-04:00

in fact, everyone who wants to live a godly life in Christ Jesus will be persecuted... 2 timothy 3:12

all too often when i think that i'm being persecuted, its because of money issues, or when i don't feel so great, or when ignorant people criticize me or what is going on in our church, or even other churches....etc. but then i read this article...

to sum it up... a few days ago, half way across the world, 8 christians, including children, were burned to death for their faith. burned to death for proclaiming Christ in a place where Jesus isn't accepted. the incredible thing about this is that we know that they were welcomed with open arms into the presence of Christ. the tough thing about it all is asking ourselves if we would have done the same thing that they did...

so the next time we think we're being persecuted in america, maybe we just need a little perspective...

on the day when i see all that You have for me

when i see You face to face

their surrounded by Your grace

all my fears swept away, in the light of Your embrace

where Your love is all i need, and forever i am free...

no weeping, no hurt or pain, no suffering

You hold me now,

You hold me now

no darkness, no sick or lame, no crying

You hold me now,

You hold me now

-hillsong united

i'll never apologize

2009-07-30T20:43:00.008-04:00

"here is a trustworthy saying. if anyone sets his heart on being an overseer, he desires a noble task. now the overseer must be above reproach, the husband of but one wife, temperate, self-controlled, respectable, able to teach, not given to drunkenness, not violent but gentle, not quarrelsome, not a lover of money. he must manage his own family well and see that his children obey him with proper respect. if anyone does not know how to manage his own family, how can he take care of God's church?" 1 timothy 3:1-5

i'll never apologize.

i'll never apologize for cutting my phone off on random evenings.

i'll never apologize for choosing to take my wife on a date rather than working on chord charts.

i'll never apologize to talking to my wife and little girl on the phone during my busy day.

i'll never apologize for my weekly twitter/email/blog/facebook breaks.

i'll never apologize for leaving work a little early on a thursday to take my wife to a matinee movie.

i'll never apologize for getting excited every single time my wife sends me texts at work.

i'll never apologize that most of my links and twitpics are either links to cindy's blog or pictures of natalie.

i'll never apologize for leaving my guitar and computer at work most days.

i'll never apologize for choosing to lay in the floor and play with my little girl over hanging out with "the guys."

i'll never apologize for putting my family first.

because after Christ, they are the single most important thing in the universe to me. more than a great job. more than an awesome church. more than my love of leading worship.

i pray that we all, especially men, never apologize for that.

why are you excited about NewSpring Columbia? part 6 of 6

2009-07-14T12:36:00.005-04:00

why are you excited about NewSpring Columbia? part 5 of 6

2009-07-14T12:36:00.004-04:00

why are you excited about NewSpring Columbia? part 4 of 6

2009-07-14T12:34:00.004-04:00

why are you excited about NewSpring Columbia? part 3 of 6

2009-07-14T12:34:00.003-04:00

why are you excited about NewSpring Columbia? part 2 of 6

2009-07-14T12:31:00.000-04:00

why are you excited about NewSpring Columbia? part 1 of 6

2009-07-13T11:10:00.000-04:00

rollover

2009-06-18T20:55:00.003-04:00

this is what happens @ home when i'm gone to work... my lovely wife made this video today and i love it... check her blog out here. i think she's pretty awesome :)

my 2nd day

2009-06-17T07:49:00.004-04:00

so, i've already noticed that my new job is going to be very unique. some days i'll be working hard all day at my desk. other days i'll be in meetings all day. and others i'll be working on strictly the music part of my job or practicing. yesterday just happened to be one of those days with a little bit of all of those in it....

saturday mornings

2009-06-13T09:41:00.000-04:00

hype

2009-06-11T15:45:00.004-04:00

i twittered this statement yesterday :

"worship leaders / pastors : don't believe the hype about you, whether good or bad. it will only lead to your downfall..."

its fun to be flattered. i'll be the first to admit. compliments are nice, a whole lot better than critique. but as soon as i start to believe them i've already lost the battle.

on the flip side, as soon as i believe statements and tactics of negativity and ungodly criticism, i've lost another battle.

i believe that satan uses both tactics to attack just before a great victory is won.

God in my living

there in my breathing

God in my walking

God in my sleeping

God in my resting

there in my working

God in my thinking

God in my speaking

Be my everything

God in my hoping

there in my dreaming

God in my watching

God in my waiting

God in my laughing

God in my weeping

God in my hurting

God in my healing

BE EVERYTHING

-tim hughes

as soon as i lose sight of that, and as soon as Jesus is not Lord over every single detail of my life. i've lost.

worship guys, leaders, whomever... don't believe the hype. don't believe in vain, obsessive social networking. don't believe in making it big. don't believe in finding worth and approval through other people. don't believe in stupdity and ungodly criticism. Christ is nowhere to be found in that.

find your value, your worth, your glory in Christ and in Christ alone

my new job

2009-06-04T21:34:00.006-04:00

yes, i have a new job. and for me, the phrase "dream job" would be an understatement. i guess i'll just go ahead and say it...

i'm going to be the new worship leader for newspring church at their columbia campus...

its still surreal for me to say, so i'll probably be posting more in the coming weeks to months as we get going, but for now, i'm just soaking in the fact that i get the privilege to work in such and unbelievable organization.

i know that most people, especially within the church world, know about newspring. you've probably watched them online or attended unleash. basically, there are a few churches in america that set a standard for relevant modern environments and strategies, and i think a lot of people would agree that they are at the top of that list. i've followed them for a few years now, and when i'm home we would occasionally worship there on sunday evenings.

but let me first say that working at newspring was never the "goal" for me as a worship leader. i know that a million worship leaders would love to have a job there, i'm not blind...but it honestly was never my goal. my goal has always been to be placed where i could be used to give God the most glory. whether that was in a room of 10 kids or 3,000 adults, i have always just wanted to be used. well, over the past couple of months, i've seen unbelievable things happen during our time attending and getting involved with newspring. their commitment to reaching people for Christ is unparalleled and unapologetic. i love that. i love this church. my family loves this church.

and to add to it, if you know me, you know that i love a challenge. i love the idea that we get the chance to go to the largest city in south carolina and help launch a brand new, one of a kind, dynamic church that has already proven themselves over and over in their already thriving campuses. i'm so excited that we get to bring newspring church to columbia.

so, if you get a chance, please be praying for me as well as my family as we begin this new step in our lives...

much, much more to come...

three years

2009-05-27T12:59:00.005-04:00

nine years ago, about this time of year, i was a 17 year old junior in high school. it was fourth period and i was waiting to go to baseball practice after school. my last class of the day was jazz band. we had the doors open that day (because it was an awesome spring day) and i was sitting near the door playing the piano. naturally other students were hanging out outside near the end of the day. some of the girls from the softball team had come up, when i saw this certain girl. she instantly struck me. the cool thing was that she had her hair thrown up, tennis shoes, and a t-shirt and athletic shorts on. this wasn't normally the kind of girls that really took me back. but this girl did....i thought she was beautiful. and HONESTLY, i remember thinking to myself, "man, that girl has all the looks, and at the same time, she looks so down to earth and cool. (remember, high school has never had many of those kind of girls)... that's the kind of girl i want to marry..."

three years ago today...i married that exact girl.

those nine years have given us a crazy rollercoaster of a story. and i love that about us.

i feel like i fought for her. i know her. i know her moods. i know her favorite movies. i know her favorite foods. i know her "looks." and i love her so much it hurts sometimes.

but i probably don't have to write a huge long post to tell you that. if you know me, or if you've read my blog or twitter page at all, then you know. she's my favorite person ever created.

cindy.... i love you infinitely.

i'm so proud to call myself your husband.

happy anniversary.

desperate and hungry

2009-05-24T04:42:00.002-04:00

we've also realized something else about natalie :: she won't eat unless she's hungry. that's just all there is to it. you can try, but unless she's hungry, its just not happening.

this got me thinking this morning...

i'm in a season of hunger. i'm in a season of desperateness. i wish i could stay there.

in my own spiritual life i won't come to God unless i'm hungry for what He has. but the thing is, that i should always be that way. i should always be hungry, always be thirsty. i never want to be satisfied. but i'll confess that sometimes i use other things to satisfy me. i'll take a little, but need so much more.

maybe its just me feeling this way, but i'm thankful for this season of hunger. i pray that i'm never fully filled. i pray that none of us are.

failure to thrive

2009-05-20T11:07:00.012-04:00

natalie is a small baby. she was born 5 lbs 3 oz. chances are, she's gonna just be a petite little girl. i have to confess that i love that about her.

she's also gaining weight. in two and a half months on earth, she's now up to about 7 lbs 10 oz. but apparently that's not as quick as some doctors think she should gain.

so, a couple of weeks ago, after seeing her weight, they immediately coined her a failure to thrive baby. (and you can guess - we HATE that terminology) the next step was one that we never wanted to take...the hospital.

let me first clarify that NOTHING is wrong with natalie. they've done test after test on her, and she is incredibly healthy, and actually a little ahead of the curve when it comes to her development. so this naturally alarmed us when they automatically admitted us into the hospital.

but all in all, it helped her to gain some weight and "catch up" a little, i guess.

so, now that the update is out of the way, here's the real reason i'm writing this post... did i mention that i HATE the term failure to thrive? i mean, honestly, they should have a national convention and get every doctor to at least come up with another name or terminology.

this weighed on us. although our sweet baby kicks, smiles, laughs, holds her head up, interacts, etc... that one phrase was all we were hearing. until some friends came to see us while we were in the hospital...

some of our best friends in the world, david and lauren walker, came to see us last tuesday. i'm not afraid to tell you that at the time, i was an emotional wreck. i just wanted my normal little baby back. (and if any of you have kids, you know that when they do tests, and take blood, and God forbid put a feeding tube in their nose, they're not exactly going to act like they normally do). so i was just broken. but what david said to me will probably always stick...

as i was holding natalie he came over and put his hand on her and prayed... "God, i pray that every single time stephen and cindy hear the words 'failure to thrive,' that they would simply remember what YOU say about her. she's not a failure in ANY way. you've already promised that she will thrive. you have a plan for her, you promised that. and it's already obvious...." - he of course went on, but that sentence hit me like a ton of bricks.

we'd been listening so intently to 8 different opinions on our daughter that we never really gave it all up to the one who created her little body.

she's healthy. she's perfect. she's not a failure to thrive. no matter what anyone ever says. God knew her and had a plan for her long before he ever breathed any life into existence. she is fearfully and wonderfully made...

..."for you created my inmost being; you knit me together in my mother's womb. i praise you because i am fearfully and wonderfully made; your works are wonderful, i know them full well. my frame was not hidden from you when i was made in the secret place. when i was woven together in the depths of the earth, your eyes saw my unformed body. all the days ordained for me were written in your book before one of them came to be..." psalm 139:13-16

a beautiful mom

2009-05-09T10:52:00.003-04:00

"a wife of noble character, who can find? she is worth far more than rubies. Her husband has full confidence in her and lacks nothing in value." - Proverbs 31:10-11

this weekend i celebrate a holiday in a whole new way. mother's day has always been an incredible holiday to celebrate not only my mom, but my awesome grandmothers as well. but this weekend is different...

i've been excited about this weekend for a while now, obviously since our baby girl (now over 10 weeks old) was born. i've watched my beautiful wife change and mold into the wife and mother that God created her to be. to watch her is nothing short of amazing, and the things that she does for natalie and i constantly baffle me.

she's got these little things that she does, these simple things, that are my favorite. she makes up little songs to sing to natalie, these little "games" and exercises that she plays with her, and so many other little things that she does even when she thinks i may not be listening. those times between her and natalie are already so special to me. and if you know me, i'll tell you in an instant that being at home with my "girls" is my favorite place in the universe to be.

so, on this great weekend, i say happy first mothers day to the love of my life. and as i say to her personally, i'm not afraid to say it here... as infinitely much as i LOVE my baby girl, cindy is the first person i look to when i get home. the first one i want to kiss. the first one i want to hug. she's still my favorite. she always has been. she always will be. i committed that to her when we were married nearly three years ago. and i'm so excited that God has opened up this new part of our lives. a new holiday that we get to celebrate in a whole new way.

and on the practical side of things, i have an amazing day planned for her...(a day at the spa and dinner tonight at her absolute favorite restaurant )

she is an absolutely beautiful mom

"give her the reward she has earned, and let her works bring her praise..." ...31:31

anthem 4/19 pics

2009-04-21T10:59:00.004-04:00

if you've read my blog you know that i LOVE making the occasional road trip down to gainesville, fl to play at anthem church. here are some pics from this past week...

setlist:

you lifted me out (tomlin)

everlasting God (brenton brown)

faithful (fee)

how he loves (david walker version)

fuse*

2009-04-16T09:35:00.004-04:00

i think i may have played at one of my favorite things i've ever played for last night. i co-led with lee mcderment in anderson last night at newspring church. i'm sure many of you are no stranger to what's going on at newspring and their student ministry. they have a weekly gathering called fuse that is absolutely blowing up. they have anywhere between 750 and 900 students regularly every week. but far more importantly, they're seeing countless numbers of teenagers accept Christ every week. last night was no different.

my good friend brad cooper is the student minister, and i have to say that this dude has an amazing gift for communicating to these students. last night he did one of the coolest things i've ever been a part of, when he asked any 6th grade boy in the room to boldly stand up and confess, loudly, that "Jesus is the Christ, and he's changed my life." he then asked a senior girl, middle school students, and so on and on. it was overwhelming to see and hear these students scream the name of Jesus in this huge place in front of all their friends. and i'll confess, i had to wipe some tears away before doing the next song.

it was definitely a night that i won't soon forget...

hello

2009-04-10T11:31:00.003-04:00

hi. my name is stephen. i don't blog very much anymore, but i promise i will soon. there are some huge things unfolding in my life as a worship leader and in our life as a family. i may share some soon enough. but for now, here are some pictures that we took a couple of days ago of our six week old little girl. i'll get back on the blogging wagon soon enough.

multi-tasking

2009-03-31T21:13:00.006-04:00

this is the current picture on my laptop. its a sum of what my world is like right now. after a day of pediatrician visits, lowe's trips, feed and seed store visits, lawnmowing, landscaping, and cooking dinner, i'm currently in the middle of planning about 5 setlists, practice schedules, etc. and while doing this right now, i've got my little girl FINALLY asleep on my chest, which is easily the most important job i have. i think i'm truly learning to multi-task, and i actually think its helping me.

i know a lot of you do this every day. so, thanks to fatherhood, i guess you can now welcome me to your club...

the shadow proves the sunshine

2009-03-26T10:39:00.004-04:00

i know its been about a month since i've blogged, but i think i have a pretty good excuse. (read previous posts if you don't know why i've been absent) i'll admit, this is pretty tough to get back in the routine of, since i think that twittering is slowly taking over many aspects of blogging.

anyways, something hit me very hard the other day that i knew i had to talk about. it of course hit me while i was running, which is the way most of my blogs come about.

i was listening to the switchfoot song "the shadow proves the sunshine," which is probably my favorite song off of my favorite album they've ever done. i realized that over the past few months we've lived this song out in so many ways.

november and december of last year was a really weird time for me as a worship leader. i know that things slow down around the holidays, but when its your job and you depend on being a contract worship leader, that can make things pretty tough. plus knowing that a baby was coming in a few months didn't help my discouragement. a couple of times a month of playing wasn't cutting it.

i actually got to the point where i questioned why i do what i do.

but the entire time i was encouraged in so many ways by so many people, saying "there's a light at the end of the tunnel," and "don't worry, you'll come out of this...." etc. that all helped, but i wanted to see it.

fast forward 3 months ahead. this is an amazing time in our lives as a family, and for me as a worship leader. we have a one month old little girl, who is growing every day, starting to smile, and interacting with us. its incredible. the music side of my life has never been better (you can see the dates on the left). i'm in the middle of recording the ep, and really focusing in on finishing it in may. there are also some unbelievable opportunities that are unfolding for our future, i of course may talk about those later.

all that to say, that in the middle of all that weirdness and darkness of november-january, i never would have dreamed that God would emerge so faithful to us. it shouldn't surprise me though.

oh Lord, why did you forsake me?

oh Lord, don't be far away

storm clouds are gathering beside me

please Lord, don't look the other way

we are crooked souls trying to stay up straight

dry eyes in the pouring rain

where the shadow proves the sunshine

the shadow proves the sunshine

two scared little runaways

hold fast to the break of daylight

where the shadow proves the sunshine

the shadow proves the sunshine

shine on me, shine on me

let my shadows prove the sunshine

my new life (in pictures)

2009-03-06T14:15:00.006-05:00

my week has been completely and solely devoted to cindy and natalie, in case you haven't noticed. here are some new pics from the past few days...

baby blog

2009-03-05T09:53:00.003-05:00

so, if you're my friend on facebook, you may have already seen the pics we put up (and will keep putting up) of natalie jane. but if you're not, or if you want to keep up with that huge part of my world, check out our baby blog. i'll be posting of course from time to time about my transition into being a new dad, but cindy's doing a great job at keeping the baby blog updated.

natalie jane

2009-03-01T20:08:00.004-05:00

of course most of you know where i've been over the past few days. thursday afternoon, february 26th at 3:43 pm my life changed forever. i'm loving every second of it, and as i have time in the next couple of days i'll post pictures and thoughts. i have literally watched and felt the love i have for this little girl as well as cindy grow so much during these past few days.

instant perspective changing. instant priority changing. instant life changing.

john mayer, hillsong, and worship leaders

2009-02-18T09:42:00.005-05:00

if you know me at all, you probably know that john mayer is my favorite musician in the world. i have a lot of "favorites," but he ranks at the top. last week i found another reason to like him even more.

i saw him interviewed about his 6 grammy's that he's won, among countless other awards, and how he handles it all. to which he said (paraphrased): "man, i'm just happy to be in the room with so many of these people. there are people that sometimes go unnoticed who are some of the most phenomenal guitarists, singers, and artists in the world....a couple of years ago when i won for 'daughters,' i really felt like alicia keys should have won for her song too, so i, with all the strength i could muster, ripped the top half of my grammy off and gave it to her. she deserved it."

he also twittered the other night that he "really wanted mraz to win best vocal, because that was a really special moment this year for him." these aren't the only times he's done this, but i had to cut it short for a blog...

the other day while we were at crossroads, i realized that for the first time in nearly 2 years, i got to be the one in the audience worshipping and singing along with a particular song, "from the inside out" by hillsong united. i wasn't leading it or thinking about the band, i was just there soaking it in. the chorus hit me hard...

everlasting, your light will shine when all else fades,

never ending, your glory goes beyond all fame

and the cry of my heart is to bring you praise

from the inside out

the funny thing is that this made me think about all that john mayer had said, and also made me think about what we do as worship leaders and leaders. he (mayer) has all the fame in the world, but still pushes it off to give other people credit. very cool. but it seems like i've met so many people in church work that are more arrogant and self-centered. we've got something so much better to reflect. but i fear that we don't.

i think we love the idea of fame. we love popularity. we always wanted to be the cool kid in school. and now i think we've all been guilty in some right of using a stage or a platform to gain any man-centered praise that we can. and when that didn't do enough, we use blogs, facebook, twitter, etc to make up for it. its fun when people like you. its instant gratification. i'm sometimes as guilty as anyone.

but as i always say, i don't want to be "that guy."

God, i pray that i would constantly be reminded that your glory goes beyond all fame. you've said that the proud have no place in your kingdom, and, no matter what position we are in, i desperately pray that you would break our hearts for what we've done.

pre-production day

2009-02-06T10:30:00.005-05:00

yesterday david and i got together to start recording the rough mixes and click tracks for the ep...here's a quick video with some of what went on in our all-day adventure...

never say never

2009-02-05T09:11:00.004-05:00

if you haven't gotten the new fray cd, you should go get it now. its incredible from the first song to the last. this is a song that instantly became a favorite of mine. it has that "last song at the end of a 'grey's anatomy' or 'house' episode" sound... and for those of you who watch either one, you know what i mean. great stuff... enjoy

anthem church road trip

2009-02-02T15:01:00.005-05:00

i just got back last night from anthem church in florida. i have to say that i probably had one of the best times i've had in a while traveling this weekend. great great time of worship yesterday morning too...setlist:

the remedy (i won't worry) - jason mraz

forever - tomlin

mighty to save - hillsong

how he loves - john mark mcmillan

here are a couple of videos from the weekend. one is my road trip, and the other is the early morning rehearsal for "how he loves"... there are a couple more from sunday morning here... enjoy

intense and intentional

2009-01-28T07:24:00.002-05:00

i was reading this morning in matthew 15:21-28, where jesus heals the woman's daughter from demon possession. i've read this before, but never thought about it in the way i did today...

the disciples were already complaining that this woman wouldn't go away. she kept begging and pleading that jesus would perform a miracle in her life.

and when she begged him to heal her daughter, he had in interesting response to her:

"it is not right to take the children's bread and toss it to their dogs..."

- to which she said,

"yes, Lord, but even the dogs eat the crumbs that fall from their master's table."

this woman had intense faith. and because of her intentional faith in Christ, he immediately healed her daughter. she was purposeful. she didn't casually request that he do something miraculously in her life. she didn't claim that it was her right to have him do something. she expected nothing.

she begged him. she showed him that she could do none of this on her own. she marveled in the thought that she could have even some crumbs off of the table of jesus.

sometimes what i want and what i need is completely out of my hands. sometimes i can't maintain it or gain it on my own. but Christ promises us that he is sufficient. he is enough.

- God, i pray that i trust you. i pray that i may not use you like a drive-thru window. you are greater and deserve greater than that. you promise to be more than enough, and i pray, like this woman, that i seek you intensely and intentionally.

how he loves

2009-01-23T09:21:00.004-05:00

i know that john mark mcmillan's song "how he loves" has been making its way around for a little while now. and the song is really starting to hit the hearts of many of our churches, not even to mention the world. i'm very excited about possibly doing this next week in florida. many of you have probably seen this, but i just saw this video this morning, and its the story of the song...incredible. its a little long, but i promise its worth it to hear the story...

why do i worry

2009-01-22T07:19:00.004-05:00

yesterday morning i got up and started watching a message from andy stanley. i don't normally do this on a random wednesday morning, but i did it to better plan a setlist for anthem in 2 weeks. they're in the middle of a series called "why worry." well, my normal outlook on watching archived messages to do this is: "ok, find a few great points/words that he says, and really try to pull out the overall message by the end of the sermon." - then i plan the setlist around that. but what happened was far different.

i felt like he was speaking directly to me.

i wake up worrying sometimes. i go to bed worrying about things that i can't control. (very open moment here) i want cindy and our baby to be secure. i want to save money. i want to know that we're going to be ok, and that we're providing a great home for our little girl to grow up. i want to grow and get more and more opportunities to serve alongside churches that believe in reaching people. i want to become a better worship leader. i want. i want. i want. i want. i want.

i can't control any of these things.

i can work harder to grow closer to Christ, and do everything in my power with the gifts and resources i've been given, but there comes a time when i have to give it up. this is the point when what i want shifts to His will in my life.

this is very freeing for me. i mean, after all, didn't Jesus talk about how He clothes the plants and feeds the birds? i don't want to waste any more time worrying about things that He has promised to take from me.

we've been given so much. so much to be thankful already. trust is a huge concept to grasp.

todd fields wrote this song after he went outside to take the trash out one morning. he was thinking about this very concept when he saw first hand how God took care of the birds that were singing outside his house...

let me sing for the breath you have given
every day for the life You sustain
the beat of my heart You formed when i was made

let me worship Your glory and splendor
though the heavens Your glory proclaim
they don't know the price You paid for my life
or the sacrifice you made

let me sing louder than creation to You
for the pain You bore in Your body
to bring my soul to You
let me shine brighter than the stars in the sky
an offering of praise all my life
to You, my holy king....let me sing

weekend recap

2009-01-20T09:04:00.004-05:00

i'm very happy to be home right now. maybe its the comfort of my own couch and fireplace talking, but its a nice feeling. its been a very eventful, but great 4 days...

friday cindy and i went to atlanta to hang out with ryan and courtney fitzgerald. i must say that they probably have the coolest place i've ever seen in my life. cindy and i are still talking about the sweetness of that loft. we went to a really cool thai place called spoon in downtown atlanta, and just basically hung out. we had a blast just talking about life, church, worship, and anything in between...good stuff.

friday night into saturday we stayed with our friends, the alvirs. saturday morning was started by me making some french toast, and playing a lot of wii tennis, before we headed to florida.

saturday night we had dinner in gainesville, fl with derrak and melanie ostovic. derrak is the service programmer at anthem church, and has been my main contact down there for the past couple of months. it was great to hang out with a couple who can speak from the experience of young parents. they've got 2 little boys, so i know that they've got to remain on top of things all the time. :)

sunday morning i played at anthem, and as always, the service was great. this was a different sunday because all of a sudden there were a few major tech difficulties, but i think that's where you find out about your team. well, these guys are on their A game. despite no center projector working and suddenly no in-ear monitors after the 2nd song, the service remained smooth. i still say that you are who you are when you're tested like this. which is why i love those guys down there.

well, that afternoon after lunch, cindy and i wondered in and got the unexpected chance to hang out on the florida gator football field. yea, i literally felt like a 10 year old again. unbelievable. cindy posted some more pics on the baby blog, and if you're my friend on facebook, you can see more there too...

after a stop in atlanta for the night on sunday...we headed home. here we are. it was obviously a very eventful few days. but, it was definitely cool to hang out with some new friends this weekend...

i guess its best do go all out...cause this was the last weekend cindy will be traveling with me until well after the baby is here...soon...7 weeks is not long at all...

new music

2009-01-15T14:14:00.003-05:00

there are a few cd's that i got right after christmas that are really on the repeat button on the ipod...check these out. all three are VERY different from one another, which is probably a good thing...i'd get bored with the same style all the time.

AND... if you haven't seen the scroll bar on the side of this page, there's a list of about 50 things between music and books that i think are all must-haves...

the killers :: day and age

john legend :: evolver

all american rejects :: when the world comes down

redefining normal

2009-01-13T08:04:00.002-05:00

yesterday i got a call about 3 oclock from david, telling me he was sick. well, any other day of the week i'd not think anything about it, but i knew that this was not an ordinary monday.

normally david leads for engage at the handlebar on monday nights, but this past sunday, monday, and tuesday (tonight) the guys from engage are doing a 3 night series at crossroads called "redefining normal." so, i got the chance to fill in.

the guys that are over it all are from wayfarer ministries, and speak all over the country at student life camps, college events, churches, and they now do their own camp every summer. so it was definitely a privilege to get to do something with these guys.

we had an unbelievable time of worship. it was really good to just get to be a little spontaneous as to where we went from song to song...great, great night.

setlist:

salvation is here (hillsong united)

marvelous light (charlie hall)

jesus paid it all (kristian stanfill)

revelation song

the stand (hillsong united)

halleluiah, our God reigns (hillsong united)

glory to God (fee)

sunday 1/11

2009-01-12T12:15:00.002-05:00

so, over the weekend i took a trip to atlanta to stay with our great friends allen and melissa, and to play at tapestry church on sunday morning. it was definitely a unique but good morning. we had communion, then afterwards, instead of the normal andy stanley message, richard, the pastor gave a vision-casting message about the future of tapestry church.

the cool thing that i loved was a statement that i didn't think about until later. he said that tapestry will be a church, especially after this transition, made up of small groups, not a church with small groups. this is the heart and the life of any church that understands true life change. i'm anxious to get back down there and see the new environments that they'll create in a more stable place... so guys, if you read this, please know we're praying for you through this transition.

setlist:

faithful (fee)

from the inside out (hillsong united)

amazing grace/my chains are gone (tomlin)

beautiful the blood (fee)

jesus paid it all (only did about half of it, tagged to beautiful the blood)(kristian stanfill version)

walk the world (charlie hall)

chasing the wind

2009-01-09T14:23:00.006-05:00

lately i've been listening to francis chan's podcast while i run. i have to say that his stuff is among some of the most challenging words i've ever heard.

this past podcast hit me really hard, and in a way that i didn't see coming. he didn't have a 5 point sermon. he didn't explain the text. he didn't use hermeneutics. he, as well as a few other people in the church, read through the book of ecclesiastes. thats it. he just let the word of God speak for itself.

and what happened after that was amazing.

what really hit me was when he got an older man to read chapters 3-4. just to hear the years of wisdom and care from his voice hit me as hard as anything did. and then to hear him say that all of our work, all of our time spent creating this thing called "stature," all of our time spent saving and putting away....its all going to go. its all going to be gone one day. and that all we're doing is chasing the wind.

generations come and generations go, but the earth remains forever. the sun rises and the sun sets, and huries back to where it rises... there is nothing new under the sun (ecclesiastes 1:4-5; 9)

- i want to commit to God that i won't seek things for my own good, because its all going to be gone one day.

- i want to commit that i won't blog so others will see me.

- i want to commit that i won't twitter so that i can name drop and try to make a better stature for myself.

- i want to commit that i won't check facebook, emails, my phone, and my myspace every hour just to see if someone has commented or cared about what i'm doing.

- i want to commit that i will invest in the things that matter : my wife, my soon to be little girl, my family, and being a source of light for people who are far from God - whether i encounter them from a stage or in the grocery store.

none of these things are bad in their own right, but i'm beginning to believe that they can quickly hinder the awesome power of investing in the things that will last...

i pray none of us spend our days chasing the wind.

back to reality / some random thoughts...

2009-01-08T16:23:00.003-05:00

so, since i haven't really blogged very much lately, i guess its a sign that i don't really have a ton of things to say. either that or i just haven't had the time. i think the latter is true...

cindy and i were just talking last night at how we just jumped back into the real world all too quickly after last week. we're already ready for another break and its only 4 days into the week.

but the cool thing is that in the middle of craziness like we're going through right now, God seems to give us glimpses of refreshment and encouragement. both happened today...

last night about 10 oclock i got a call from my former boss and associate pastor, mark, who told me that he was speaking at fruitland college this morning. he then asked me if i wanted to lead worship...to which i immediately said yes. i mean, anytime you can lead on a random thursday morning, you take it. what i experienced though was unbelievable. that group of students blew my mind this morning as we worshipped together. it was definitely a needed thing for me to be reminded of why i love doing what i get to do. and, at his request at lunch today, i'll probably start posting more setlists of wherever i'm playing. i used to do that a lot more, but i fell off that wagon.

and the other thing that i'm sure will be a refreshment is that i'm cooking cindy and i an incredible dinner tonight, probably watching a movie, and then i'm sure after she goes to sleep, i'll be watching the florida gators (hopefully) win another national championship. its crazy how we already feel like we need a night in just relaxing...

i think i'm going to rekindle my love of guitar center tomorrow morning before another trip to atlanta this weekend...more on that later...so i think the week is shaping up in a nice way. yea

baby blog

2009-01-07T06:33:00.003-05:00

so, for my equivalent of a blog today, go check out my lovely wife cindy's post on our baby cope site...she gave a great top ten list of 08 for us as a family... she's an awesome writer, and there's no way i could have listed them better myself...

if you check it out and have time, give her your (at least) top 3 things that really stood out to you in your own life in '08.

i'm still alive

2009-01-03T16:24:00.003-05:00

so, i know its been about 2 weeks since i've posted, i guess you could say i took the holidays off. but, i'm not really posting to say anything important or profound, just to say that i'm still alive. we're on our way back from a 5 day vacation to virginia beach with my family, and i'm finally the passenger on this 6.5 hour road trip, where we just now crossed the nc line. we've taken our time today though, stopping by and seeing jake and kristi miller in their new town of yorktown, va. its still weird thinking that some of our best friends won't be around in greenville all the time, but they're moving into a great city and a great church.

but now, we're just ready to see our house...

so, all that to say that i'll be trying to get back on the blogging scene this week, as life gets back to normal...

my top ten : music

2008-12-22T08:00:00.006-05:00

ok, i figured i could post my top ten cd's of the year. some have been long time staples with us, some are new artists, and the number one criteria is that all are amazing albums from start to finish. we've been listening to a ton of new music this year, but these are the ones that have really stood out.

the list goes top to bottom, 1-10.

1. charlie hall - the bright sadness :: when i got this cd in august, i immediately loved it. it is another level of worship cd. its like nothing i've ever heard, because of the challenging and heart-provoking lyrics that charlie writes. its better because he has lived through an incredibly tough couple of years, and then comes in with this cd as sort of a response to God and all his greatness in the midst of life. plus he has the best band and sound in worship music. my favorite album of the year.

2. the midway state - holes :: you've heard me talk about these guys on the blog before. they're from canada, and this is their first full length album. awesome piano driven rock. very, very unique sound.

3. matt nathanson - some mad hope :: great acoustic rock, singer songwriter.

4. coldplay - viva la vida :: what more can be said about the biggest band in the world? they do things musically that i can't even comprehend. incredible, classic cd.

5. jason mraz - we sing, we dance, we steal things :: this cd came out in early spring and is still on the billboard charts doing very well. i think its his best cd by far to date. a very summer sounding cd. definitely our summer sountrack.

6. augustana - can't love, can't hurt :: great americana, straight up rock cd. you can definitely tell they've been listening to tom petty on this cd, which is fine by me.

7. once soundtrack :: first off, if you haven't seen this movie, you really should. especially if you love music. its a very acoustic damien rice/david gray/sufjan stevens type album. its as raw as anything i've ever heard. its pretty much what the fall season sounded like around our house.

8. matt costa - unfamiliar faces :: we just started liking this guy in late summer, and ended up buying his other stuff as well. this is like a cross between jack johnson and brit- pop/rock stuff. very cool and unique sound. i think its best listened to in spring/summer.

9. snow patrol - a hundred million suns :: it took a little bit for this one to grow on me, but now i love it. cindy loves it too, and she's more picky than me. so, that says a lot. i already knew that they were a great musical band, but his lyrics are borderline genius.

10. chris tomlin - hello love / passion - God of this city :: yea its a tie. these are both great worship cd's, and have provided quite a few setlists throughout this year. both are staples for anyone who plays or just loves great worship music.

new music

2008-12-09T09:43:00.003-05:00

so, if you've followed my blog recently, you may have noticed me talking about my friend and fellow worship leader, david walker. well, you should really go check out and get his new cd that just came out, called closer than angels.

he recorded it in california back in early fall, and honestly, even if i didn't have ties to him, i'd still be excited about this record. its incredible. i think i love it because while its a great worship cd, its also got such a fresh, new sound to it that really needs to get out.

i'm not the only one endorsing it either, mark lee from third day twittered the other day: "listening to david walker. one of the best indie records i've heard in a very long time..."

so, yea, go check it out...

anthem church

2008-12-08T09:26:00.003-05:00

so, yesterday i played at anthem church in gainesville, florida. as stated earlier, they are a strategic partner of north point, and represent them VERY well. i have to say, that of ANYWHERE i've ever been, these guys (and girls) strive so much for quality and excellence more than anything i've ever seen. and the thing is, they don't do it for their own benefit, but do it because they feel like God expects us to give our all. i mean, i think i did the song "say" by john mayer about 9 times before the actual service, just to make sure the lighting program they had made would fit perfectly with the intro, verses, choruses, and bridge. all in all, we did about 2 1/2 hrs of pre-production before the morning...amazing. but by the time the actual service came, everyone knew what to do.

they are impacting a college town in an incredible way, and hitting their target demographic week in and week out, with the majority of attendees being college students and twenty-somethings. its just nice to see an unapologetic group of believers strive so much for incredible environments that point people to God, which produces so much life change.

setlist:

say (mayer)

oh come, oh come emmanuel (unknown)

happy day (tim hughes)

from the inside out (united)

concert and weekend...

2008-12-05T11:13:00.004-05:00

so, last night david and i went to asheville to follow up on some really sweet hookups. david has a friend who managed a lot of the third day /brandon heath show, and promised to get us some backstage passes to meet the guys.

well, it was pretty incredible, and way more than i can ever type in a blog. but some incredible connections were made through friends of friends with the band, especially with their keyboard player/producer scotty wilbanks early in the night. and to top it all off, their favorite new cd is david's new one that just came out the other day. (i'll be posting next week about it) so that was definitely a cool thing.

the coolest thing that we both noticed was that with both third day and brandon heath, there wasn't an ounce of arrogance or lack of humility. these guys were probably the most down to earth guys i've met so far, and they all deserve the success they've gotten.

so yea, that was a definite great start to a great weekend. tonight i'm staying in and cooking cindy dinner and watching a couple of movies. not sure what to do for dinner though, maybe some deep dish pizza. we'll see.

and tomorrow i leave for gainesville, fl to play anthem church, the newest north point strategic partner. its going to be an unplugged set, which will be cool and different for me. i'm sure i'll be posting some pics and blogging later about it. i heard this place is incredible.

so, there you go. a little update on what's going on.

feeling God

2008-12-02T13:30:00.002-05:00

something really cool happened two nights ago. cindy just told me about it last night though.

lately we've been praying more than ever that God would give us clear direction in our lives, and would provide for us where we desperately need him. i keep referring to a phrase i heard jay use a while back, "God, help me to trust you."

so, anyways, cindy had went on to bed, and i stayed up to watch tv upstairs. we both told each other that we would pray for one another before we went to sleep that night. normally we get to feel the baby kicking a little bit just before cindy goes to sleep, but she wasn't being very active that night. well, here's what cindy told me last night...

so, after i prayed for you (stephen), i just felt like i couldn't really say anymore to God, and that i needed so much more. so all i said was 'God, i want to feel you. let me feel you." and honestly, at that very exact same moment after i said that, the baby kicked in the dead center of my stomach, and kicked really hard. then she kept kicking like she'd just woken up. i broke down right there. i thanked God for reminding me once again that even though i may not always see the blessings he's given us, he uses subtle and obvious ways sometimes to remind us that he loves us both so much.

just another reason why i love my wife. who would have ever thought that by our little baby kicking, it would remind us both to stop looking around and worrying. God sustains. he's never left us. that's incredible.

good husband day

2008-11-27T22:07:00.002-05:00

for about 6 months cindy's been saying that all she wants is a really cool, really good camera, especially before the baby is born. well, in light of her birthday just around the corner, and christmas looming in the distance...i went to best buy on tuesday.

yea, its a nikon D60 and its pretty incredible. we've been taking pics all day and i know it's just the beginning of many more to come...

christmas extravaganza

2008-11-27T08:48:00.002-05:00

so, in light of the holiday season beginning today, i thought i'd give you this new part 3 video of dave barnes' "christmas extravaganza." it definitely made my morning...

it takes a lot

2008-11-24T08:50:00.002-05:00

i've noticed some new things over the past couple of months about "the church" and worship that i'm going to try and condense into a short blog. and this is not a negative thing, its actually a pretty positive, objective look from an outsider.

in leading worship at different places, i've started to notice that it seems like no church is the same when it comes to handling pre-service stuff, tech issues, and generally taking care of the people who either volunteer or lead their service.

one of the reasons i love playing at crossroads in greenville is that its a relatively easy thing to do from a musician side of things. the band is incredible, the sound guy knows what needs to be done, and all the pro-presenter stuff is already done when you show up. it makes it easier to focus on what you need to focus on, and to be able to lead.

well, yesterday i played at tapestry church in cartersville, ga, right outside of atlanta. (picture, and yes, that was a johnny cash opener we did) they are a north point affiliated church, and this was the first time i've played for one of these churches. from the minute i walked through the doors at 6:30 AM (yea, thats right), the environment and people seemed to bleed a desire for excellence and quality. it was a really cool thing to see. the tech guys had gotten there at 5 AM to start setting up, and had everything ready for me. they even set up my amp, cables, in-ears, mic, pro-presenter, and everything else. not to mention that the band and leaders they bring in every week are north point staples. now i know that this may be normal to a lot of people, but go back to the first paragraph, different places are different. and to add to all of that, they had great environments set up for kids and preschool age kids as well, which is always impressive in a portable church atmosphere.

but here's the thing, its not about any of these things individually. its about the overall feeling that a church like this gives you. when you see these churches, you know that they believe in what they do. they believe that life is too short to keep catering to the same "church goers" that have always went to church, and who are completely happy with the way their parents did church. they want something different, and they go all out to make sure that everything is taken care of, and that the leaders can lead freely.

its more than an idea. its more than a vision. it takes a whole change of direction and outlook for unchurched people. it takes a lot.

so, thanks to ryan and tapestry for giving me a really cool sunday.

weekend and setlists

2008-11-21T09:00:00.004-05:00

so, this coming weekend is unfolding to be a pretty cool one...i haven't done updates on what's going on with us very much lately, so here goes.

i'm currently sitting in the waiting room at the vw dealership, getting a recall fixed on cindy's car. no other way i'd rather spend my friday morning. but, i am having my first chai latte of the season, since its 34 degrees outside. so that's getting me through it.

we're going to asheville tonight, which i hear is covered with snow, to play at a singles/college event called outcry that i've played at before. its usually a really cool time of worship. i love leading for that age group. i'm playing an all acoustic set, which should be cool. setlist: (tentative)

you lifted me out (tomlin)

all because of Jesus (fee)

happy day (hughes)

son of God (starfield)

enough (tomlin)

from the inside out (united)

you alone (original)

marvelous light (charlie hall)

yea, its a long set, i know, but they asked for that much, so i'm cool with it. so i'll be drinking plenty of russian tea from my mom today to keep my voice up.

tomorrow we head for atlanta to stay with our great friends, the alvirs. we really miss seeing them as much as we used to when they lived up here. he's involved and working with some really incredible things at north point now. but, we're going down there because i'm playing at tapestry church on sunday morning, which is definitely going to be fun. between the setlist for that morning, the guys i'm playing with, and seeing andy stanley on the screen after i lead, its gonna be a really cool morning. setlist: (yea, i stole some from this one and am using them tonight)

personal Jesus (johnny cash)

you lifted me out (tomlin)

enough (tomlin)

son of God (starfield)

so, there you go. should be a whirlwind weekend, but we've got thanksgiving break coming soon...

identity

2008-11-20T11:20:00.003-05:00

i had lunch yesterday with my really good friend and great worship leader, david walker. and i can't remember what got us on this subject, but it is one that totally hit me.

he started talking about how he has been working through finding his identity in Christ, more than what he does. well, the reason i'm talking about this is because this is something i've been working through for a long time as well.

i think everyone, no matter what they do, can easily find their identity in whatever their job is, whether it be a ceo, bank teller, a teacher, or whatever it is. but, specifically, david and i were of course talking about our specific role as worship leaders.

we weren't called to do that. none of us were. if you follow Christ, i believe that you were called, first and foremost, to find your identity in him. and no matter what we do, or how good we get at our jobs or our craft, even if it is for a "ministry," i believe that he is where we find our identity.

this is so freeing to think about. but it makes me question myself in so many areas.

am i working to bet better at leading so that i can impress people?
is my primary concern maintaining a pure heart and genuine love for Christ, or is it to make a bigger name for myself?
is glorifying God my number one concern. really?

it seems like every time i hang out with david, i get pushed a little more to become a better and deeper follower of Christ. and the more i do that, the more he gives me a heart for unchurched people who may have never known the refreshment, genuine love, and unique identity that this God gives us.

what i learned from dave grohl

2008-11-12T09:38:00.003-05:00

i'm a HUGE foo fighters fan. i mean, i love all their stuff, the rocking stuff and the mellow stuff. i'm sitting here right now actually listening to their acoustic cd (the 2nd disc of "in your honor").

anyways, i was watching a thing earlier on yahoo music that was an entire concert with these guys, and then they did a Q & A session with them, mainly with dave grohl, the lead singer. this is the kind of stuff that i always love to see. and you might know, the first question is the exact one, that in this stage in my life, i would want to ask. the guy asked dave :

"so, now that all you guys are new dads, how has it changed you as a band and as individuals?"

here's the funny thing. i used to have this fear that once i became a dad, i would stop liking the music i do. i wouldn't be able to pursue music anymore. i thought that i all of a sudden would have to start listening to light rock stations and drive a minivan. i wouldn't be the same, ever again. i honestly had this fear. but after seeing a lot of the worship leaders and bands that i love have kids, and watching them be dads, it calmed my fear.

so, what did dave say in response to the question? it was really cool... (paraphrased)

"well, it hasn't really changed us a lot as far as being busy and writing and being creative. i mean, we've been traveling and stayed up all night many nights throughout our history as a band, so that definitely won't change. i mean, now we have a play area backstage and teletubbies all over our bus, which is a definite change. but the thing that really has changed is this: i (dave) and the band as well, used to walk around all the time and say 'well, the band this, the band that, we need to do this for the band...etc.' then i woke up one day and realized, 'wow, its not about the band at all. in fact, i'm not even worried about the band anymore. its all about my little girl now.' "

enough said. its really cool when even a huge rock star looks at things like this now. so, if dave grohl can still rock out night after night, then i guess that i can still write songs and lead worship just as much as i ever have.

so, conclusion: i'm happy to see that i really won't have to listen to hall and oates and drive a minivan if i don't want to.

i don't want to be "that guy"

2008-11-11T14:31:00.002-05:00

i got bored the other day, and decided to look at some of my posts from a year ago at this time. and i have to say, that if you read my blogs a year ago...i apologize for a lot of the things i said. i noticed that i sounded very arrogant. i sounded very comfortable at where i was. i sounded like i had all the answers and i was an expert at what i did. its very laughable now.

i don't want to be like i was about a year ago. i want to have the humility and understanding that i am nothing, and that i am always growing. i think the cause of a lot of my posts was that i was very comfortable at where my life was, and because of that, i thought that i had it all figured out.

i don't want to be that guy. but i've also have noticed someone else lately that i definitely don't want to be.

i don't want to be that guy that lives my life through other people. i don't want to be the guy that gets a crazy hairstyle and skinny jeans just to look like another successful worship leader. i don't want to be a part of something that i forget why i'm a part of it. i don't want anyone else but God to give me vision and direction for the way he's created me. the thing is, this applies in all areas of the Christian life and worship styles. whether you go to a community church, a home church, or a baptist church, we're all subject to fitting into a man-made mold.

one of my recent favorite quotes comes from francis chan, and paraphrased he says simply:

"God is a creator, not a duplicator..."

God, i pray that i'm never "that guy" again...

why in the world would i run

2008-11-10T15:07:00.002-05:00

yea, i've heard that before, especially lately. i'm sure if you follow me on twitter or facebook, then you can tell that i've been doing a lot of running during the past few weeks. well, my reason is simple, i did an 11K (7 mile)trail run this past saturday morning. and honestly, i can't think of a better way to spend a fall morning.

but i think it goes back farther than that. when cindy and i got married we thought that it would be fun to frequently eat cinnamon rolls, cookies, or popcorn at 9 oclock at night, at least a few nights a week. well, that translated into a bit of pounds packing on. nothing major, but enough that we both got really convicted about how we were taking care of ourselves. so, about a year and a half ago, we tried to cut back a little at the table and try running more. i didn't like either one when we started. so, i started by cutting back on the bacon cheeseburgers (my weakness) and trying to run at least every other day. we never got obsessive about any of it, but it got easier and easier after that.

but here's my point. i think we should take care of ourselves. we should be concerned about how we manage our time and our bodies. the thing i always told cindy was that "i never want to be on stage and see inside of my guitar through the hole." and yes, we've laughed at that quite often, but to an extent its true. the thing is, right now at this moment, i feel better than i've ever felt. but i will say, i never completely cut out anything. i mean, i went running today, only after giving in and having a five guys burger...which was of course, amazing.

but i'm not here to give a fitness speech. i'm just saying that it challenged me drastically to change a few habits, and i think its good for all of us. its just a whole lot more believable for me to trust someone on a stage trying to lead me in any capacity when i know that they're not going every week to golden corral or a chinese buffet and stuffing their faces, and not blinking an eye about it. and the thing is, this is a subject that you never hear in most churches, probably because it would step on so many toes.

i'm just saying, that maybe it would all do us a little good to :

1) first and foremost, look at how blessed we are to even have the option of being overweight, compared with many parts of the world

2) but, realize that we have one body, and it has been given to us to do our best for God, and i don't want to waste it away by not caring about it.

so, there you go, this post is for all those people who have been asking me lately why in the world would i run...

hasta la vista, baby

2008-11-04T09:19:00.003-05:00

in college, one of my best friends and roommate brandon and i used to go lift weights and mountain bike all the time. i must say that i miss those days quite often. the funny part is that of all the times we did that, we all seem to only recall the times i screamed at them like arnold swarzeneager in order to motivate them in the weightroom. usually it only caused everyone to drop the weights they were holding out of laughter.

so, as i usually do, i check brandon's blog every day to see what he's posted, and well, today, in the middle of this huge election, brandon has found a great way to tribute those days back at ngu.

check the link out here...great stuff.

much needed...

2008-11-03T07:26:00.002-05:00

this weekend has been a long time coming. probably for the fact that i can't think of the last time i had a whole day off. things have been entirely busy in our world, and i couldn't wait for that to come to an end.

so saturday night i played an all acoustic show in north carolina, which was automatically relaxing for me. i had a friend of mine, greg cooper, come and play harmonica for the night, and it definitely gave my songs a new feel and very cool sound.

as much as things like that are a lot of fun, we couldn't wait for sunday. yes, we had planned in advance to sleep in on a sunday morning and skip church. so we stayed with cindy's parents and did just that. slept in, made breakfast, and just chilled out. we then on the way home we stopped at the cider house in travelers rest to get some boiled peanuts, fried peanuts, and happy cow chocolate milk, which is more like chocolate cream. good stuff.

so after a nap and a walk around the lake at furman, we both determined that this day was definitely very needed.

and here's my conclusion... especially after driving a little slower and walking a little slower to look at the leaves, leaving my phone off all day, enjoying hanging out with my wife like i did, and just slowing down in general, i definitely think it is possible to feel just as much like you can worship and honor God on a day like that, as we could by going to church yesterday.

boo

2008-10-30T22:54:00.002-04:00

i finally did it. i carved a pumpkin that doesn't look completely ridiculous. last year we had a clemson tiger paw on our pumpkin, but well, i didn't think that after the year they've had that we needed to go that route...the year before it just looked a little "off." we'll just leave it at that.

so, in honor of this sugar crazed, horror-movie-on-every-station driven holiday, i thought i'd show you all our wonderful jack o lantern that's sitting on our front porch right now. its about as "all out" as we get around here. unlike some of our neighbors with giant spiders climbing their houses and makeshift fake graveyards with lit skeletons in the front yard...yea, maybe a little much.

my comfortable world

2008-10-30T09:48:00.003-04:00

lately i've been reading through matthew. i tend to do this because i fell in love with the book back in college, when i took a whole semester devoted to it. there's just so much in there if you just read it slowly and take it in.

so yesterday i was reading through chapter 8, and came across something i'd never really noticed. the whole chapter talks about jesus' miracles and healings all over their region. about healing the centurion's servant, calming the storm, and the man with leprosy. then the part came where he healed the demon possessed, and this is what intrigued me.

it says that he sent the demons into the pigs after they left the men, and that the pigs drowned themselves in the lake. but that's not what got me. verse 34 is what got me.

"then the whole town went out to meet jesus. and when they saw him, they pleaded with him to leave their region."

why would they do this after he had just proven who he was? he had healed their families. he had calmed a storm. it doesn't make sense.

it seems like even though there was sin and death in their region, the people were very comfortable living their day to day lives in the midst of it. they pushed their only source of healing away.

i do this. you probably do too. i get so busy with looking ahead and what is going on in my world that i totally forget and sometimes push away my only source of comfort and healing. i have been offered hope, forgiveness, and rest, but sometimes i try to handle my problems on my own. actually, i frequently try to handle my problems on my own.

i pray that this begins to change in me...

hilarious

2008-10-28T14:55:00.002-04:00

ok...you've got to check this out. it wouldn't let me embed it, but trust me, its worth following the link and taking 4 minutes out of your day for this...

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3ql-

a great friend of mine and former college roommate, philip turner posted this. he is the student pastor at first baptist church columbia. in short, this video is the senior adult choir singing their own rendition of rap songs for a student retreat...

this totally needs to be on best week ever...

my favorite quote from the video: "its gettin' hot in here, so take off all your robes..."

great job philip, its nice to see some guys still reaching kids with relevancy and a sense of humor...

another step

2008-10-28T09:41:00.003-04:00

well, as i stated a couple of weeks ago, my life took a drastic turn when we found out that we're having a little girl. well last night was another step for me.

cindy's been saying for a couple of weeks that she's been feeling her move and kicking, and that it usually comes in the evening when she settles down. well, last night i was on the couch and cindy was laying in the floor in front of our fireplace watching unwrapped (yes, i love that show). she then told me to sit in the floor and try to see if i could feel her kick. after a couple of minutes it happened, then it happened about 3 more times. i thought i was going to pass out, it totally freaked me out. i mean, for the first time, i actually felt our baby move. craziness.

this was definitely another step for me in moving from a guy primarily concerned with his own life with his wife and our world, to a guy responsible for bringing another life into the world. its changing me as we speak. i'm beginning to be concerned with so many other things, and maybe is the ben harper slow songs playing in my background right now and bringing this out as i type this, but i just seem to care a little more about the world around me, namely my wife and our little girl.

its a cool feeling. its like a whole other dynamic to my world is being revealed that i never knew existed...

rainy friday

2008-10-24T12:50:00.003-04:00

so, like many of you i'm sure, i have "rules" about when i listen to certain music. well, a constant rainy/fall/cold day artist for me has always been howie day, at least for the past 5-6 years. my sister and i went to see him about 4 years ago play a show at furman, outside and acoustic, about his time of year, and well, it was unbelievable.

check out this clip of him singing one of my favorites, "sorry so sorry." its all about the delays and loops with this guy. i mean, he's the #1 reason i got a line 6 DL4 pedal. (its the green one) he's got 2 of them, one for his vocal, and another for his acoustic...sick stuff...

a little friday morning goodness

2008-10-17T09:16:00.000-04:00

Wicked Mustaches from kevin ely on Vimeo.

why i couldn't sleep

2008-10-16T09:34:00.003-04:00

i couldn't sleep last night. and if you follow me on twitter or facebook then you know why. i'm going to have a little girl! and i've made a rule on my blog, no exclamation marks, but i had to use one there, it just seemed appropriate.

cindy had gotten me two cards in preparation for yesterday, and i must say that the one she gave me was the best card i've ever received. she said that she flew through it, and it was easy to write one for a girl, but it was so tough to write one for a boy. here's part of what she wrote in it, which is always better than what the actual card says...

"...a beautiful baby girl to steal your kisses and hugs. she is already so blessed to have you as her daddy...how you will serenade her as she settles down to sleep each night. you will be an unbelievable father to her, and i'm so proud that she will greet this world as your little girl..."

there was of course more to it, but it was only icing on the cake for me yesterday.

the thing is, i knew we were going to have a boy. i knew it. for sure. but i wanted a girl so bad for cindy, and just never said anything.

so we watched her flip and kick and show a lot of personality on the ultrasound yesterday, which was either because she has a ton of personality already, or the fact that cindy had just downed a big mcalister's sweet tea. probably a little of both.

so, there you go. i kept saying it all day and night last night. we're going to have a little girl. its still not real to me yet.

thank you God, for being so infinitely good to us...

big day

2008-10-15T07:55:00.002-04:00

so, there's not much else i can think about today, so i'm glad i don't have a very busy one. that is because today at about 3:00 cindy and i are going to find out whether our baby is a boy or a girl. i mean, this is something that will change the whole course of everything. now i'll have to start thinking about paint colors and stuff like that. i love it.

if you haven't been over to the baby blog we created, then check it out. cindy wrote a really funny post the other night on there.

i'll update later about the verdict...

the official start to fall

2008-10-10T06:29:00.003-04:00

so, its been almost a week since i posted, and i'm here to say...its gonna be another few days. well, i guess you count this one as a post, right?

i'm trying to take a little break this weekend from most internet stuff i normally do and really relax. i may twitter a couple of times, but other than that, a break will be good. cindy and i are going this afternoon to stay with my family in the westin downtown for fall for greenville. and let me say, if you've never been to this event, you owe it to yourself to go at least one time. its 3 days of all the food and free concerts you can handle. for the past few years it just doesn't feel like fall to us yet until this event rolls around.

so, until a few days from now, there will once again be no posts, but hopefully i can get back into the swing of things next week.

the birth of "baby cope"

2008-10-04T13:16:00.003-04:00

no, not yet. not until march. but we figured we'd go ahead and create a blog devoted to what's going on in our world as far as the baby goes...

so, here's the site. enjoy

obsessed?

2008-10-04T08:57:00.002-04:00

there are a lot of people who are obsessed with all kinds of stuff. i'll admit, i occasionally become obsessed with the wrong stuff, namely music, finishing writing a song, running, etc...

as i do on most saturday mornings, i'm on my porch right now, slowly chipping away at crazy love. the chapter from this morning was "the profile of the obsessed." i've been slowly reading this chapter over the past few times, just to really take in all the concepts.

i particularly love how the chapter ends. chan simply gives one last point and uses scripture from Psalm 50 that says "give a thanks offering to God, and fulfill your vows to the Most High." from that he talks about how so many people are obsessed with pleasing God, and while they confuse this with loving Him, what they are actually doing is putting all of their energy into the wrong thing. deep, i know. but hear me out.

we should be focused on thanking God for all He's done and is doing. we should be obsessed with falling more in love with Jesus than the actions we do to try and please Him. God doesn't need anything else. He has it all. He created it all. i think this is where legalism has its root. the intention might be there, but it fails in the long run.

i think its so much simpler than we sometimes make it.

pics from the weekend

2008-09-29T22:16:00.003-04:00

i usually don't do this, but these pictures were just sent to me, and i thought they were pretty cool. they're from wired last night.

sunday set lists

2008-09-28T22:58:00.003-04:00

so, today was a very eventful day of playing. first i went to faith community church in waynesville, nc and played this morning, then to mud creek church and played wired, which is an incredible student event they do up there. but, i got refueled in between by eating turkey, dressing, and baked mac and cheese at my parent's house. yea...good stuff.

sunday am:

solution (united)

your grace is enough (tomlin)

jesus paid it all (kristian stanfill arrangement)

how great is our God (tomlin)

wired:

let God arise (tomlin)

we shine (fee)

solution (united)

forever (tomlin)

jesus paid it all (stanfill)

hallelujah (united)

big day with big songs. so as you could guess, my voice is shot tonight. it was a great day.

what i learned from aaron rodgers: part 3 of 3

2008-09-27T14:30:00.003-04:00

so, now onto the last thing that i learned... and before i do, i have to thank the guy that commented on my first post who was from aaron's church in california. just another example of how cool blogs can be, and how many connections you can make.

lesson # 3: be yourself, not anyone else

the talks started as soon as favre began talking about retirement. "well, rodgers will never be farve." "there'll never be another one like #4." "he just doesn't have the experience that brett does..." ...etc. i mean, some people are still wearing green and yellow #4 jerseys in green bay i'm sure. people wanted another favre, all the while knowing deep down that this is not who aaron was created to be. but what i thought was cool was the fact that he took all of the criticism and negativity and used it for motivation to work harder.

how many times have you seen this in the world of ministry? i mean, i hinted at it briefly on the last post, but its so true. so many guys never find their own identity in who they are. they just want to be like __ or __ , or they want to be just like a certain church or pastor. this is rampant in the area where i live, and i'm sure its rampant all over the country. it seems that we've forgotten about the unique identity and gifts that Christ has given us...

i really don't want to be one of those guys...

needless to say, i've got a new favorite quarterback...

what i learned from aaron rodgers: part 2 of 3

2008-09-25T20:26:00.003-04:00

alright...a few days later, and onto the number 2 thing that i have learned from aaron rodgers...

patience.

so, the guy is drafted a few years back, and immediately knows that it wasn't his time. he went to green bay knowing that he would have to endure and sit under a guy who will no doubt go down as one of the best ever to play the game. and to top it all, rodgers dealt with a few years of ups and downs, retirement talk and unretirement talk...etc. but, he stuck it out.

its so easy to miss the concept of patience. so many leaders and worship leaders want now to be their time, they want all the glory right away. they look around and see so many other guys who are successful, and want the same thing immediately. its easy to envy the spotlight and glory of being a leader on a larger scale, without even acknowledging the fact that it might not be your time.

i think we need to be reminded that we weren't all called to be andy stanley, david crowder, or _____ (fill in the blank).

i think its for cases like this that we are reminded to seek first the kingdom...

God, i pray that i am content in who you created me to be, and in that alone.

what i learned from aaron rodgers: part 1 of 3

2008-09-22T19:27:00.003-04:00

if you've known me for very long at all, you know that i'm a HUGE green bay packers fan. well, needless to say, this has been quite a pivotal year for them.

i'll admit, i had to really ask myself if i was a brett favre fan or a packer fan. the answer? both. but, my first loyalty is to the packers...so, on we go to the season. and even though the outcome of last night's game wasn't that pretty...i'm still really encouraged with what aaron rodgers and the packers are looking like.

so, i of course started thinking about all this guy's been through in the last few months and naturally thought: wow, there's so much to learn from this guy.

lesson #1 : always surround yourself with people you can learn from.

this guy had the best teacher any future starter could ask for: a seasoned veteran. someone who had been around the game for years and could still play. and say what you want about favre...but the guy can play.

as a worship leader and a musician, i want to constantly surround myself with guys who have been around it longer than i have. guys who have different points of view than i do. guys who have different approaches and techniques. guys who have more experience than i do. i want to constantly try to meet and hang out with those guys. whether its over coffee, email, or just reading or listening to something new and fresh, it all helps to make you better.

there's always someone out there with more experience than me. than you. i think there's always someone we can learn from.

incomprehensible

2008-09-20T08:53:00.002-04:00

so, this morning, as you can see, i've been sitting on my front porch, enjoying way too much coffee and 60 degree weather. but more importantly is what i've been reading...

i'm still reading crazy love, by francis chan. i'm really trying to take my time with it, which is one of the huge points he states early in the book. not to rush through it, but to really ingest every part of it. i'm also reading through the book of Matthew for the first time since i took a whole semester devoted to it during college. so here's what i'm wrestling with...

blessed are you when people insult you, persecute you and falsely say all kinds of evil against you because of me... - matthew 5:11

the thing is, i read this about 15 minutes after seeing that there is going to be a christian version of "guitar hero," called guitar praise...just another example of christian culture failing miserably to be creative. but that's not what i'm here to discuss...

what i'm saying is that when christians get backlash on issues like this, along with all the boycotts and stupid things being said in the media, we hear the statement..."well, its what Jesus said would happen. that we would be persecuted for being Christians...etc"

no. that's persecution for once again, copying something that the world has already put its stamp on, twisting it around a little bit, and calling it ours... or persecution for speaking things into the media that have been taken completely our of the context of scripture...

a real example of persecution for being like Christ: two years ago when all of those Amish kids were killed in pennsylvania, their families went almost immediately to the family of the killer and told them that they forgave him. FORGIVEN. DONE. well, as you can expect, media people and others all over the country called them crazy, ignorant, and told them that they were dealing with this the wrong way.

that kind of stuff is incomprehensible to the world, because it is just like Jesus.

he never said you are blessed if you are persecuted for being ignorant, irrelevant, or out of touch. he said that you were blessed if you were persecuted for being like Him.

Jesus polarized.

new song

2008-09-15T08:18:00.002-04:00

i'm constantly looking for some new material to play...i think i just found a great one...

absent minded

2008-09-15T07:57:00.003-04:00

yea i know its been a week...but..

i know a lot of you guys that may read this have had the conversations lately about blogging, twittering, facebook....etc, and how crazy and redundant it can all feel after a while. well, at least that's where i've been.

so in the past week i've picked up twittering, and am still trying to decide if i like it or not. it has definitely replaced blogging for me for a week or so.

but i guess what i have to remember is that with all the redundancy and bombardment of all this "stuff," so much good can really come out of it. i mean, in a year of blogging now, i can't even begin to name all of the people i have met, come in contact with, and have been encouraged by, through this blog. i've gotten numerous bookings to lead through this site, and hopefully in turn, have written some encouraging things for others.

but like a lot of you guys...sometimes i need a week away from having to write something meaningful... i needed to see why i do this, and why so many other people do it. i just needed a break...

i think i/we actually need to take more breaks from all of this stuff. we need to stop measuring ourselves against what other christian celebrities are doing, and find our worth and value in Christ...

...i say this as i point my finger at myself...

let's hope...

2008-09-06T08:50:00.005-04:00

well, after an embarrassing loss last week in atlanta, hopefully clemson can bounce back today. shouldn't be too hard, since its against the citadel...but hey...i seem to recall a certain app state/michigan game last year, so you never know.

so, we're about to head over and tailgate all day with some friends, and then hopefully not get scorched at the game today. the first home game always has a good feel, especially the first time they run down the hill...

3:30 kickoff, should be about 100 degrees in death valley...nice.

the amp

2008-09-04T15:37:00.002-04:00

so, as a worship leader, i try to check out as many resources as i possibly can on worship. and i have to say that when i was younger, i wish i had more people pouring into my life and "teaching" me how to be a better worship leader. well lately i know a lot of you guys have been hearing about the event in two weeks called the amp, but this is for all you guys who read my blog and may have not heard about it yet...

this is a one day event in atlanta that will be happening numerous times, with the first one being on september 20th. it is geared towards teaching and growing young high school and college worship leaders. once again, how i wish i had something like this when i was in college, but instead i had john mayer dvd's for the guitar side and chris tomlin tabs for worship leading...but hey, it all worked out in the end...

so if any of you guys, especially high school and college guys, have any interest in leading worship, go check this out, and hurry because the last day to register is september 8th. and of course, its led by some of the best worship leaders around...so you definitely don't want to miss this thing...

hello love

2008-09-03T18:00:00.003-04:00

so, as a lot of you guys know, tomlin's new cd, "hello love" came out yesterday. i was one of those nerds who preordered it, along with crowder's new dvd and charlie hall's new cd.

i have to say, as i've already heard some other worship leaders say, that this may be tomlin's best yet. it seems like its more thought out and deeper. there are also some great anthem worship songs that i'm sure we'll be using next summer at camps.

so, go check it out...great great cd.

my case for excellence

2008-09-02T09:30:00.004-04:00

so, there's a lot of talk and debate over excellence within the church and worship. should we really strive for excellence in every area of our worship, or should we just let whoever has the right heart just get up there and play? i know this sounds simple, but the arguments are everywhere.

well, i'm about halfway through francis chan's new book crazy love, and i have to say that it is really pushing me. its making me think not about the church, or what Christians have done with our responsibility. no, its making me think about my own relationship with Christ, and so many ways that i can fall more and more in love with him.

one of the chapters is called "serving leftovers to a holy God..." and here's a quote...

"God is holy. in heaven there exists a Being that decides whether or not i take another breath. this holy God deserves excellence, the very best i have..." - chan

Malachi 1:8 says -

when you bring blind animals for sacrifice, is that not wrong? when you sacrifice crippled or diseased animals, is that not wrong? try offering them to your governor! would he be pleased with you? would he accept you?

so why should i just give God whatever i have left? why should i give God anything less than everything i have? this is why, as a worship leader, i feel like i must practice. i need to write songs. i need to spend time with God every day. i need to have a band that has practiced and knows the songs on stage with me. i need to get better both musically and as a leader.

we need excellence.

mercy

2008-09-01T23:00:00.004-04:00

i don't know if i mentioned it...but this past friday night i saw, hands down, the best concert i've ever seen. and its gonna take a lot to top it. john mayer was insane, and being back at home for him in atlanta, he didn't pull any punches. he went 3o minutes longer than he usually does, and so here is a little guitar solo he did that night while covering duffy's "mercy." yes, he actually layed down on the stage and started beating on the guitar while playing a solo....and as my friend jake said a couple of weeks ago...if there's a better guitarist right now on the planet, i'd love to see it. i'm really glad someone taped this...it doesn't compare to actually being there, but hopefully you can get an idea...

northpoint in espanol

2008-08-30T10:15:00.005-04:00

hola...

so, while we're in atlanta for the weekend, we're staying with some great friends of ours, the alvirs. here's the cool thing about this family...they are originally from guatemala, but lived in hendersonville when we did and went to church with us...then a month ago, after learning that north point was starting a new spanish service, they made the decision to move here.

this is what is incredible and cool about the way God works: He gives people a heart for a group of people who are constantly "left out" of our conversations and plans for growth in our cities. but once again, these guys down here "get it."

so, in october, north point is starting north point in espanol. and from a worship side, my good college friend seth condrey will be helping lead this service, which will be passion/hillsong stuff in spanish...incredible.

but in preparation for this weekly service, they are doing a two day spanish leadership conference next friday and saturday here at north point for any spanish speakers/leaders around the country. and as in any conference down here, i'm sure it will be great.

so, the reason i say this is to help our friends get the word out. so, if anyone who reads this knows anyone who has a heart to reach the hispanic community in which you live, please please please let them know about this two day conference next week. you can go to this link and learn more about it...and if you guys need more information, you can call my cool friend merari @ 770-559-1956 ...

my incredible weekend

2008-08-28T21:24:00.004-04:00

so, tomorrow night cindy and i are making the trip to atlanta to see my, hands down, favorite artist in the world, john mayer. plus, as an added bonus, one of my favorite new bands, one republic.

clemson is also in atlanta on saturday, so we'll wear our orange in support and probably go somewhere to watch it amongst the chaos.

then its off to northpoint on sunday morning.

great, great weekend...

the midway state

2008-08-26T15:46:00.007-04:00

so, this is an incredible band that i've mentioned a few times before on the blog. i just ordered their new cd off of amazon, a couple of months before it comes out in the U.S. cindy and i saw them and got to meet them twice within a month last year, once opening for lifehouse, and the other for daughtry.

these guys are quickly climbing my "favorite bands" list.

ps. hopefully i'm not the only one that thinks that the guitarist looks a little like my good friend david walker...

my ipod #3

2008-08-25T09:31:00.002-04:00

alright, so here you go, its time for some new music, at least for me...these are the cd's leading me into the fall, but there is one i am patiently waiting for, the midway state...unbelievable band. i have their ep and love it, but their full length is about to come out soon...

matt costa : songs we sing

matt costa : unfamiliar faces

charlie hall : the bright sadness

david crowder band : remedy club tour live dvd/cd

phil wickham : singalong

john mayer : where the light is (live)

david gray : greatest hits

so, go check 'em out...you won't be disappointed...

the story of my night

2008-08-22T15:43:00.005-04:00

its been a long week...this is the sum of my evening and i couldn't be happier...and yes, this is my first time seeing footloose...

very sad

2008-08-20T21:16:00.004-04:00

if you've known me for very long, you know that one of my favorite bands is the dave matthews band, and like many of you, this comes as a complete shocker.

leroi moore, the sax player and founding member, died yesterday, from complications with an atv accident back in june. he was responsible for really giving them that dave matthews band "sound" with the sax.

go to their website for a better explanation...

so sad...

my life's about to change

2008-08-19T20:23:00.004-04:00

so, tonight cindy and i are staying at jake and kristi's house, keeping their 1 1/2 year old, logan. (i stole this picture off of their computer to put on here, thanks jake and kristi) i have to say that this is my first time being around a toddler for an extended period of time, especially where i have responsibility over them. i never thought i'd be spending two solid hours after work watching elmo, nemo, and playing in a sand box...i also never thought i could worry so much about so many things in such a short amount of time....

oh gosh, is he ok? does he want to go outside? does he need to eat? what does he need to drink? oh gosh, that ketchup is going on the floor. no logan, don't pour your water out. no logan, its not funny when you pour your water out. no logan, don't hit me. no logan, its not funny when you hit me....

but i love it. and i think we're spoiled. because i've never been around an easier kid to keep in my life. he knows what he wants, and he's content by entertaining himself. he takes a bath easily, he brushes his teeth easily. he also goes to bed really easily after you read him a story. and yes, i let him sit in my lap while i read him a story. it was quite a wake up call for me. i just hope our kid's as cool as this one...

so, i know that my life's about to change, but all for the better....what an exciting wake up call...

the bright sadness

2008-08-18T19:32:00.002-04:00

i got mine in the mail today. one day early. this has got to be one of my favorite worship albums in a very long time. unbelievable...go get it tomorrow...