Fighting stuff

My first fight is one week away.

Tickets are $25, let me know if you want me to reserve one for you.

I got my stitches taken out of my ear on Wed.

Thursday night I forgot to put my headgear on a couple of times and it has already filled back up.

This week I trained Mon, Tues, Thurs, Fri, and Sat.  I am ready to fight!

Today my ear was just too huge so I drained it myself.

This is what the aftermath looked like.

KYC

Personally, I thought last night was one of the best nights ever at KYC.

It started with Austin and New Wine remixing the Beetle's song Imagine.  It was so fresh and the words were absolutely right on with our focus last night.

We had another record breaking crowd, it was the first time we have been over 200.

Then I preached on "Recapturing the Wonder."  I talked about "getting your Peter Pan on!"  So many of us struggle with our faith because we have lost our imaginations.  Our imagination is where faith is birthed.  If I can't imagine God doing something amazing then I probably will never see Him do something that big.

During my entire message, Kris K, a student and artist from KYC, was painting the word "Wonderwall" on one of the side walls in the main room.

Then I challenged everyone present to dream big, "what could God do through them and KYC now?"

Austin came up again and played the song "wonderwall" by Oasis and the students took sharpie's and wrote their "wonder's or dreams" that they were believing God for.  It was so supernatural!  The things they wrote were amazing.  I stand in front of the wall and I am completely full of wonder.

If God wants to rock this world, all he has to do is answer those 200+ prayers on the wonderwall.  I dare Him to do it!

Lets see if you can figure it out.

I have had a lot of people ask me what is going on this Wed at kyc since we have finished up the text series.  There are plenty of juicy rumors spinning around but let me give you some hints.

1.   I am more pumped about this night than any so far this year. (I don't know if that's a hint, but whatever)

2.  A song by the band oasis.

3.  Permanent markers

4.  The movie Finding Neverland

5.  The book titled "Epic" by John Eldridge

If these things all sinned and rolled around in the sack together, nine months later tomorrow's KYC would be delivered.  Those are your hint's, Feel free to dream.

The wounds of a warrior

So like Edward Norton in Fight Club, I got punched in the ear.

My right ear is hard as a rock from all of the wrestling I have done in my life but my left ear has been left, mostly unharmed, until now.

This is what my ear looked like this morning.

Notice the huge bubble inside my ear.  My headphones couldn't even fit in my ear.

So I went to my family and team Doctor, Dr. Tom Lyons, this afternoon and he shot it full of pain killer, and it looked like this.

Then he sliced my ear, squeezed and sucked all the blood out, and stitched a piece of cotton in the front to a piece of cotton in the back.  It hurt like a mother scratcher!  And now it looks like this.

To all my wrestlers out there!  Cauliflower ear is not fun, is hurts like a Bees-natch!

But yeah, I know, it still kind of looks tough.  It's like a trophy among wrestlers and fighters. 

The problem is, I've got a hot wife and she don't really dig ears that look like a dog's chew toy.

What do you think?  Is Cauliflower ear cool, nasty, tough, or just gross?  What are you thoughts?

And now a week later, it looks like this.

Not 100% back to normal but it looks a whole lot better.

Church and Culture

So I recently was labeled "Seeker Friendly" for the first time in my life.

If you don't know, that is a "religious" way to point the finger at another ministry and tell them that they "water down" G0d's word, they will do or say anything to get a crowd, they have no depth, and they don't preach the whole counsel of God.

These people say these things not because of what I say, but because of who is listening.

I really don't know of another person/pastor who preaches what or how I preach.  I am very straightforward, to say it mildly, and I never back away from tough issues.

That said, I will say this again, These people say these things not because of what I say, but because of who is listening.

The culture is listening.  Teenagers are listening.  Leaders are listening.  "Sinners" are listening.  Believers are listening.  Outsiders and Insiders are listening.  People are listening and lives are being changed and that makes religious people jealous and angry.  

Religious people assume that just because outsiders and teenagers want to come and listen to a dude speak, in a church, we must be selling out.  

I got news for you!  The message of the Gospel is more attractive to the outsider than the insider!  It was the outsiders who ran to Jesus, the insiders kept him at a distance and just "kept their eyes on him to see if he would make a mistake." 

In the history of this ministry I have never asked this question, "How can we get more people to come to our church?"

People just come.  They invite their friends and keep coming back.  

I have never said, "Let's be cool, or relevant."  We just are.

This is who we are.  This is not a gimmick or a program.  Programs are dead!

With all of that said, watch this video its real short but so true.

Daddy Time

I should be at the drive conference...

So it took like four months to get the approval and when I finally did, it was too late.

A day too late.

I emailed, begged, and pleaded but the answer was, "There is always next year."

At least I have Catalyst to look forward to.

I will be checking my tweets today, Im sure it will be amazing.

15 hour day in just over 5 min.

My wednesdays are a little crazy.  Here is my 15 hour day, in 5 minutes.

April's books

I want to read 4 books a month.  

I only read three this month but I am okay with that.  Eat this book, was absolutely awesome!  I studied it more than read it.  It has really renewed my passion for the scriptures and opened up my eyes to the importance of translation.

I believe that is why my teaching/preaching resonates with my listeners.  I take the language of the bible and translate it through verbal and non-verbal communication into the language of today.  I pray that God enables me to do this more and more as I mature.

I want to make the eternal, relevant.  The bible was not written for sages and philosophers.  It was written in the common language for the common man and woman.  Jesus spoke the language of carpenters and prostitutes not politicians, judges, or priests.

I can't wait to preach tonight!

I can already tell I'm gonna piss some people off.

Where is the Wisdom...4

Yes, You need to read this one!

Why do we pass by scripture without letting it pass through us?

Read this scripture, then think about it, then read it out loud to yourself again.

"Don't talk out of both sides of your mouth;

avoid careless banter, white lies, gossip.

Keep your eyes straight ahead;

ignore all sideshow distractions.

Watch your step,

and the road will stretch out smooth before you.

Look neither right nor left;

leave evil in the dust."

Are you getting sidetracked and distracted from your priorities in life?

I know you say that God is in the #1 spot, but is He really?  Could someone see that from your schedule?  Could we tell from your finances or from your relationships with others?

This life is full of distractions, are you distracted?

Read, think, Pray about this scripture and how it could affect your life.  Do it!  Slow down, you know you should.

The contemplative life is calling you.  Slow Down, Read, think, Pray, and then live what God speaks to you today.

This is Lectio Divina, spiritual reading. 

Free music is great music

Thank you Coldplay for the free new song from your upcoming album!

If you want it, go here.

They are still one of, if not my favorite, bands of all time!

FCA

I have 10 minutes.

Are you freaking kidding me?

10 minutes to tell what God has done in my life since my High School days.

Yes, 10 minutes.  Well, that looks like it works out to about one minute per year.

Oh God I need your help!  I think I average about 50 minutes per speaking engagement.

North Scott I hope your ready, Im gonna talk like an auctioneer tonight.

A good weekend...

It was a great weekend with the family!

No blogs, no emails, no church construction, no meetings.  

It was the first weekend in a long time and it was very nice.  Friday afternoon I started to get bored but ended up at Best buy where a real man is never bored, especially when the tornado warnings go off and you are shuttled into the break room.

This morning Pastor Dan nailed his message, The original Free Bird, after air guitaring the first half of the song.  "Maximum freedom is found under the authority of Scripture"- It was a great word.

Tonight is Rock Church leadership night.  I am teaching on Success, and it should be pretty solid since everybody seeks it and very few ever find it.

If you got the time, kick a prayer my way, so that I can deliver this message for maximum retention and application.

Thursday night with no band practice...

will consist of this.

And then my Sabbath will commence.

Where is the Wisdom...3

"Wisdom will save you from the immoral woman, from the flattery of the adulterous woman.  She has abandoned her husband and ignores the covenant she made before God.  Entering her house leads to death; it is the road to hell.  The man who visits her is doomed.  He will never reach the paths of life." 2:16-19

"For only the upright will live in the land, and those who have integrity will remain it it."

John Wooden said, "Talent can get you to the top, but it takes character to keep you there."

Character is developed through wisdom.

Many people reach their dream job, find their dream spouse, and live in the sweet spot of life but they don't stay there very long because they lack wisdom.

For Men especially, the "immoral woman" is one of the biggest temptations that pulls them away from wisdom.  What we don't realize is that she pulls us away from what we want most.  She pulls us away from our dream job, dream spouse, and dream life.  It feels like electricity for a moment but ends with a shock the reverberates through us for the rest of our lives.  Most people never recover from her paralyzing zap!

If I could very roughly paraphrase this thought it would look like this.

"Yeah men, her ta ta's look real good!  But they are full of deadly poison that will destroy your life, future, dreams, and soul in hell."

Hers is a Siren song.

Ready for a drive?

If you can't see what book he is reading, it is "How good is good enough?" by Andy Stanley

Just another reason I can't wait to go to the Drive Conference, in two weeks.  Andy Stanley's influence and insight's are huge!

My wife and I are so excited!  

We are expecting to be blown away and have our faces rocked off!

Is there a book in my future?

If you read this blog, you know that I am a huge reader.  I love knowledge, and gaining that knowledge from the written word.  What you probably don't know is that I have wanted to write a book for about 5 or 6 years.

I have started many, but finished none.

This sunday, after service, I received a Text from a published author that I know.  I have never told him about my aspirations of writing a book.

Here is the text, 

"Hey God told me that I'm needing to write a book with you about bringing youth to him.  Let's talk this week."

That is kind vague, I know.  I am meeting him in a few hours to talk details and I am pretty excited to see what will come of this.

Please Pray for me and this endeavor.

The last week...

I wish I could describe how busy I have been the last few weeks.

I enjoy blogging, but it is not a high priority in my life.  So inevitably, it has been placed to the side and I have not blogged much lately.

We have opened our Non-Profit, Fair Trade coffee shop and the first few weeks of business are always full of mistakes with a pretty steep learning curve.  Things are going great but it makes undistracted study and contemplation very difficult.  

Friday, on my day off, I performed my first Wedding.  That was a crazy 18 min. experience.  Yeah it was probably the fastest wedding ever!  On top of that, saturday, we built our stage and really busted out some serious work on our sanctuary.  Our new stage is 43" high 50 ' long and 24' deep, it is pretty massive.  God is doing some amazing things at The Rock!

1:30 am sunday morning I received a phone call from the Rock Island Police Dept. (that will get your attention even at that hour) our alarm at Areopagus was going off, and the door was unlocked.  It was just a mistake by an employee, but it messed me up even more.  

So what I am saying is, 

Growing Youth Ministry + Coffee Shop + Church Construction + MMA Training + Pastoral Responsibilities + Family Life = One thinly spread individual who feels like hiding in his room and not coming out for a few days.

In the words of the great Hobbit, Bilbo Baggins "I feel like butter spread over too much bread."

I am not complaining.  I know that I need help, and help is coming.  I know that my leaders are taking more and more responsibility every single day.  I thank God for my leaders.

I also know that this is what churches do.  They kill people.  If left unchecked, churches will kill their leaders.  They will run them into the ground like a great workhorse with no rest.

They don't destroy on purpose.  They do it with "good" intentions and the greatest purpose on the face of the planet, the great commission.

So, as a leader, I will sabbath this week.  I will spend my friday with my wife and family.  I will have a date night with my wife, listen to Justin Manhardt preach his first message, and spend saturday relaxing with my family and helping my wife prepare for her art show debut.  No church construction, no emails, no studying, no answers, no employees, just life lived well.

I love you all!

Catalyst 08

The new website is up.  Check this out.  I am so stoked to take my leadership team here this year.

I got em'

So I have been coveting these headphones for about 4-5 months and I finally got them.

V-Moda Duo-They are noise canceling, have great sound, have a mic for my iphone, and most of all they just look nasty.  They come with white and black earpieces so you can choose your look, I went with black because black and chrome looks sick!

It is so tight, you will be listening to the ipod on the iphone and the music fades out and the ringer gently fades in, you push the button on the mic, answer the call and talk, then hang up and your music automatically fades back in right where you left off.  It is so fluid!

Where is the Wisdom...2

Proverbs 1:4 "These proverbs will make the simpleminded clever.  They will give knowledge and purpose to young people."

We miss the importance of this book when we fly through it.  We lose the value in the principles that are found on it's pages when we just "read" them and move on to the next verse.  

Proverbs is better read thought by thought with much contemplation.   Don't be taunted by the chapters, you don't need to read a whole chapter a day.  Yes, it's real easy to speed through this book but thats like taking prime rib, putting ketchup on it and eating it as fast as you can.  Don't you want to savor the flavor?  Don't you want to really get the most out of that meal?

Look at this thought. 1:10-19

The new living translations say's it this way, "If sinner's entice you, turn your back on them!"  If you don't, "It will rob you of life."

How hard to understand is that?

Don't try to make it more difficult than it is.  

I know but, but , but! I know the excuses I've heard them a thousand times "But I've been friends with her since high school!"  "We've grown really close", "I don't want him to think I'm "Holier than thou"", "I love her" etc. etc.

Solomon had his excuses too.  He disregarded his own proverb and married hundreds of Pagan women to increase his empire and that was the very thing that ruined his reign and ultimately his legacy.

We all have our excuses for doing the easy thing instead of the right thing.  Question is, will you do the wise thing?

Turning your back on someone does not mean you stop praying for them, thinking about them, or speaking to them.  It means you refuse to put yourself in a position to be influenced by them.  They are no longer an influencer in your life.

Share the wisdom, pass this on to someone today.

Where is the Wisdom...

"Where is the wisdom we have lost in knowledge?" British poet T.S. Elliot once said. 

How can we have so much knowledge and information at our fingertips and still make stupid decisions on a day to day basis?

I know so many people who have great depths of information and knowledge but seem impotent when it comes to applying that knowledge to their life.  They can trick out a car, build computers, run all kinds of advanced technological equipments, perform surgery, and ace advanced tests but then they spend more money than they make, have an affair, or drink and drive.

What the heck is missing?  How can a person be so smart, sharp, and successful but then struggle with day to day decisions?

Wisdom is the lost art of applying information and knowledge to make a good decision.

When making decisions, we ask, "is it wrong?, is it moral?, is it legal?, is it okay?, is it beneficial?"  

What we should be asking is, "is it wise?"  This is not just semantics, there is a fundamental difference in these questions.

So, I am going to take a wisdom walk.  No this isn't some new "Youth group" game similar to prayer walks or whatever.

This is going to be a walk through the wisdom of the book of Proverbs.  

Proverbs is a book full of wisdom, listen to this from Chapter 2.

10  For wisdom will enter your heart,

and knowledge will fill you with joy.

11  Wise choices will watch over you.

Understanding will keep you safe.

We need to learn how to make wise decisions.  

What is a good life but a string of good decisions put together.

Wisdom keeps us safe, watches over us, and inevitably fills us with joy.

There is more to making good decisions than being smart.  Have you noticed this in your life or the lives of the people close to you?

The morning spot

So the Coffee Shop opens up at 6 am.  I have been showing up about 6:30 to spend some time with God in the mornings.  I wanted to mix up my morning routine a little.  So an early morning coffee and $.50 doughnut does the trick for me.  

Areopagus is pretty quiet that early so I really enjoy it for my studies and the atmosphere is killer!

I was sitting here watching people come and go, and a huge sense of gratitude starting flooding my soul.  We are starting to develop a clientele and that is really cool, actually it is more than cool.  I was talking to my wife last night, and we were thanking God because there were so many times in the last few months that we just wanted to give up on the coffee shop.  The money wasn't coming in when we wanted it to.  I couldn't find the right people to staff it.  I was already so busy with all of my other endeavors that I just couldn't put enough time into it, and it was a headache.

And now, we have our funding, we have a great staff, we have great coffee, and this place is awesome!  Praise God!

Yesterday I ran into a guy down here who has just started coming to the church.  He was just checking out the place but came over and sat down at my table and started sharing his heart.  I was able to spend about a half hour with him and it was one of those "God encounters" or "divine appointments."  That never would have happened if we didn't have this place.

We are changing lives, one cup of coffee at a time!

Fight Night

A friend of mine, that I train with, fought here this weekend.

He's a stand up fighter, but got taken down and submitted in 2:48 of the first round.

I got pretty excited though, my day under the lights and inside the cage is coming up fast.

My hands get sweaty just thinking about it.

KYC update

We have just started a video podcast of our Wed. night service, minus the music, and you can find it here.   It is our first attempt, so the quality is good for the ipod video, but a little lacking for a larger screen.

Kingdom Youth Church is on fire thanks to Jesus Christ!

-4 out of the last 5 weeks we have had continuous record breaking attendance.

-We have over 110 students involved in weekly small groups.

-Our first Fair Trade Coffee Shop is now open in Rock Island.  All of the profits go to defeat poverty and hunger throughout the world!

-New people are coming to Christ every single week and the Quad Cities are buzzing with stories of KYC's passion, excitement, and love for Jesus Christ and other people.

Things we need to keep at the front of our mind.

-Success reveals what is in your heart.  If we get proud and think that we are responsible for what God is doing, we will fall, and it will be ugly!  If we give Him all the glory, and stay humble, then this is just the first step in a long flight of stairs.  God is going to do something in this ministry that this area has never seen or thought possible.

-Our 30 minutes of prayer before the service is the best part of the whole service!  This is the furnace of our Youth Ministry, it makes the worship hot, and the preaching smokin'.

-If you are not in leadership, you need to join up!  Watching God do cool stuff is awesome, but being a part of it is even better.  Students and Adults, find a leadership packet on Wed. at the stuff table.

-Don't forget about your personal relationship with Jesus Christ.  Spend time with him daily.  Today, go on a walk, and talk to him.  Go to areopagus, and read your bible.  Hit up starbucks, with a christian friend and get real with each other about your faith.  Connect with your creator today!

I love all you Kingdom peeps!  Let's keep following God like a fat kid, on a hot summer day, running after the Ice Cream Man!

6 Things everyone should know

Here are some notes from our leadership mtg this last week. 

1. Dress nice

-It doesn’t matter what style you have; your clothes better be clean, ironed, and decent.
-We are a visual society; people will judge you by the way you look
-look in a mirror before you leave the house

2. Find a mentor

-We all need someone who is where we want to be or is headed into that direction and is farther along than we are.
-Be clear with them and ask them to mentor you.
-You can have more than one.

3. Be early and always carry a book with you

-Always be early for meetings, appointments, or interviews.
-If you have to wait it is a great chance to get caught up on some reading.

When meeting with a Mentor- From Perry Noble
                -Always adjust to their schedule
                -Have a list of at least 5 questions to ask
                -Don’t talk about yourself unless they ask
                -Say thanks-with a note, a gift-card, pick up the check, etc.

4. No matter how much you money you make; spend less than you make

-Look rich or be rich
-Talk to my boy kevin and start a Roth IRA, now!  You will thank me when your 30!
-Don’t compare yourself- Comparison is a joy killer!
-Most people spend money they don’t have, on things they don’t need, to impress people they don’t like.
-Tithing is your starting point

5. Over deliver!

-I can’t stand people who do the minimum!
-If you want to be successful you need to make it up in your mind that you will over deliver on every commitment you make, not just the one that pays at the moment!
-this world is full of people and products that over promise and under deliver!
-You can set your self apart by going above and beyond what you say and what is required of you.
-I use to take 15 min. lunch breaks so that I could get more done at work.

6. Meet with Jesus and then look at your calendar every day!

-Your time with Christ is the most important time in all of your day.  Don’t waste it, and don’t blow through it.  Remember, He has your future in His hands.  He knows your purpose, your future spouse, and how to get there.
-After your time with Christ you need to look at your schedule for the day
                 -Remember meetings and prepare for them
                 -Schedule your life, or your life will never be on schedule!

It feels good for a minute...

I just received Final Cut Studio 2 HD in the mail today, $1000.00 later.

I enjoyed it for about 6 minutes before I realized that it takes about 60 gigs to really run this baby and all its goodness.

It only comes with 2 licenses, 1 for a desktop and 1 for a laptop.

It looks like Justin #2's Big Daddy will get a copy, and Nicky T our new video guy will get the other.

A thousand bucks and I don't even get to play with it, just another example of growing pains from a moving ministry.

As the church gets bigger and bigger, my hands will be touching less and less.

Well, at least the box was cool.

Big Announcement

Do you have some things in life that might be a little bit crazy, but you really just want to be able to say that you did it?

Run a marathon, climb a mountain, etc. etc.

Well, I have one of those dreams coming up in less than two months.

I am fighting, mixed martial arts style, inside a cage.

May 24th, 2008 It will be man against man with no where to run.  I feel sorry for the dude who will be standing across from me on that day!  I have no desire to go pro, I am a pastor and wrestling coach, not a full time fighter.  This is just one of those things I need to do, to check off my list of things I want to achieve in life.

Tonight, I went in and trained with a few guys at a friends house.  He has a mat in his basement.  I was shocked when I got there and Jason Black was there.  Jason is Huge!  His card says he fights 155 but he weighs like 180-190 and is a freaking monster!  He has only lost 1 pro fight at 170 and that was because he broke his elbow in a freak accident.  He is a stud!

So I was out of my league tonight.  I weight 142 lbs, and the other guys were all over 180, that really sucks!  It was cool to roll around with Jason though, he is great fighter!

So, I need help with my training and I need some of you guys to help me out.  I need to lift weights, run a bunch, spar, and wrestle.  If you could help me do any of those things please let me know, I need some motivational help and a good kick in the butt every now and then.

March's Books

I have a goal this year to read 4 books per month.  I am doing pretty well so far but it is getting a lot more difficult with my schedule spinning out of control.

I wish I had someone who could help me with my scheduling.

Anyway, here are the books I read this month.

One Prayer...

I am pushing hard to be a part of this revolutionary movement of the church in America.  This is going to be really exciting.  I can't wait.  

God make us one!