Halfway Through Imagine

We are three shows into Imagine with only two left (tomorrow night 4:30 & 6:30). And let me say...if you have not seen it yet, you need to see it. Cancel plans if you need to. It is just absolutely amazing. I am completely astounded at how God brought all the pieces together.

It certainly had its stressful moments (more than a few), but to see it and enjoy it surrounded by a packed house (5 times in a row)...its just awesome. And its more than just an entertaining show...we are creating moments. Moments to meet and hear from God. The story pulls you in so tightly that when Jan and Douglas get up to wrap things up, they are able to speak right to people's depths.

It makes it all worth it!

Grady's Christmas Performance

Another masterful performance by another masterful performer.

He really knows how to "pick" his roles...

Imagine

Imagine Christmas is by far the biggest production I’ve ever been a part of. Not only do we have a large cast (built of dancers, acrobats, musicians, actors…), we’ve sold out of just about every show. It’s big! And up until last night, I have to admit, I was more than a little nervous about it coming together. Last night not only did we make it all the way through without any disasters, I got lost in the program. I was captivated by what was happening. It was so beautiful and so powerful that I missed a couple of my marks. I’m just glad that it happened in practice.

Even in practice, by the end of the very first scene, the room was full of momentum. Everything was working together to create a moment. I’m excited to see us put the final touches on and to see what God does with it.

(we still have a few tickets left on the last show on Christmas Eve)

Austin's Christmas Concert

The Camera work was a little shaky, but the talent was awesome.

A Big Annoucement

The rumors are true. Jan and I have added an addition to the family. Everything went very smoothly.

Me and the t5 have been working hard together this week as we try to find her true voice. So many options, but we are on the hunt to find her fullest potential.

The biggest challenge ahead of us as new parents: to find an appropriate name for her. We obviously had to get to know each other before that process could start, but now its on. I'm taking suggestions.

Thanks for all your prayers as we celebrate this new addition to our now family of 6...wow!

The coolest thing coming...

For the coolest thing I've seen in a while, check out http://www.youversion.com. It is an online Bible on steroids. It is in an Alpha release right now and is expected to release the Beta later this fall. You can sign up for their blog to stay current.

Very cool!

Have You Ever Wanted To See A Pastor...Naked

Yeah - Thats what I said. And thinking back on my experience with Pastor's, my initial answer would be a big 'NO'. But if that has ever been a deep desire of your's, you just might get your chance.

I just read an article about a church in Miami called Flamingo Road Church who is launching a new website call www.mynakedpastor.com.

But don't get your hopes up to high - its not the gross naked kind. This pastor is exposing his life, 24 hours a day, on a live webcam via four different web cams. There will be a camera in his office, house, car, and hotel. The church also has a series planned around the five week event.

You can check out more at the website.

So what do you think?

Day 8 Flight to Mt McKinley and the Train

Years from now, when I think back about my trip to Alaska, this day will be the first day I think about. It was a great day. The day started at the Talkeetna lodge. We didn’t have to be anywhere until 12:00, so the day started right. We took our time getting ready, had breakfast at the lodge restaurant (great meal by the way), and got checked out. A shuttled picked us up in front of the lodge and took us to a small (very small) airport in the middle of Talkeetna. There, the eight of us boarded a small twin engine private plane. The plane only sat ten people, so with the pilot we pretty well filled up the plane.

We had to wear headphones and mics to communicate with each other during the flight. We were headed 70 miles out to the Denali State park. The flight was more breathtakingly beautiful than I could ever describe. We flue completely around Mt McKinley and through the rest of the Denali Mountain Range. These mountains were so much bigger than anything I’ve ever seen. The glaciers on some of these mountains seemed bigger than small cities. Glaciers miles and miles long, sharp peaks stretching way into the sky, boulders larger than my house, it was more awesome than I even know. The flight soared through gigantic glacier valleys, and around the huge mountain peaks. It was breathtaking. The flight only lasted an hour and a half; it seemed like ten minutes.

The flight was also a great opportunity for Austin and Grady to catch up on some much needed sleep.

We landed and walked around the town of Talkeetna for a couple of hours. Talkeetna is a small town primarily made up of either artists or serious climbers and hikers. It made for some great shops and pubs. We spent some money in a few art shops and wasted some time in a couple pubs.

We walked down to the train station and officially started our long journey home. I believe most of us will be sleeping nearly the entire way home.

Day 7 Travel to Talkeetna

Today was a resting day. We have pushed so hard from one day to the next that, we use the traveling days to recoup from the rest of the vacation. We traveled by rail from Fairbanks to Talkeetna. It was a beautiful trip! We went almost all the way around Mt McKinney in our trip. It was an amazing site. It stood head and shoulders about everything else and was completely covered in snow. It was amazing!

We got to the lodge at about 4:00 in the afternoon and hung around for the rest of the night. The lodge is set back in a very remote part of Talkeetna (which is remote in and of itself). It is by far the nicest place that we’ve stayed so far. The lodge is beautiful. It’s got trails running for miles back behind it. We went for a small hike, but there are posters posted everywhere that said that there have been a lot of bear sightings lately and that hikers should beware. We walked for a while and came upon numerous bear scat piles (that’s poop), so we decided we wouldn’t go terribly far.

It was a great day of rest and recouping from a very full vacation.

Day 6 Fairbanks Riverboat and the Gold Mine

Today we spent the day in Fairbanks. The city itself is not much to see. It was the most touristee place that we had been in Alaska. There were not many mountains visible or any other beautiful scenery for that matter. The town was one of the hot spots in the Alaska gold-rush day’s and also was a town that had part of the Alaskan Pipeline. It had a lot of history to it, but kind of just reminded me of a small town in Indiana or Kentucky.

We did get to do some pretty cool tourist things. The first half of the day was spent aboard the Discovery II. While on the boat we saw a bush plane taking off, we visited the home and kennels of one of the competing Iditarod Dog Sled teams, and spent some time in an ancient Athabascan Indian camp. We took our time getting back from the riverboat and hung around the cottage for a bit before heading off on our next adventure.

Next, we boarded a bus and took off for the El Dorado Gold Mine. Once there was we rode around on an open air train through a gold mine and learned about many of the gold mining techniques that were used in the area both long ago and presently. After we were taught how it was done and ‘saw the show’ we were given a gold pan and a bag of dirt. We panned away the dirt and pulled out a few specs of gold dust (about $16 dollars worth). The boys had a good time, and it was all so well done that the grownups had a great time too.

We ended the day at The Pumphouse, a local steak and seafood place. It was definitely the best meal in Alaska! We all ordered something different and passed it all around. Great food, great drinks, beautiful surroundings.

Day 5 – Denali State Park and the train to Fairbanks

This day, according to Grady, was the best day so far. We spent the better part of the day in Denali State Park. Denali State Park is a six-million acre park that is home to many different animals as well as Mt. McKinley, the highest point in North America. We spend the day in and out of a tour bus riding through the park, watching for wild animals. We saw moose, caribou, grizzly bears, and dall sheep. Grady was glued to the window soaking in every bit of wild he could absorb. He has told us since he was able to speak, that he wanted to be an animal rescuer when he grew up, so this day was an obvious favorite of his.

After our tour of the park, a few of us did some hiking. My dad and I took the boys and their cousin up the mountain our hotel was built on. It was a gorgeous and terrifying hike. The nearly 360 views were amazing, but my heart was pounding being so out of control of my boys and their cousin as we walked along mountain paths with sharp drop-offs. Austin was pretty fearless and didn’t pay much attention most of the time. They both always wanted to take the most dangerous route and never really grasped the consequences of one missed step.

We got back to the lodge (finally) and took a shuttle over to the train station. The train took us from Denali to Fairbanks where we will spend the remainder of our time in Alaska.

Day 4 – Bus from Seward to Denali

The fourth day was mostly a travel day. We were on a bus for 8 hours with two stops. It made for a very long day, but had beautiful views. The highlight of the day was the stop in Anchorage. We were there for about three hours and most everyone went shopping. I however snuck away and spent the few hours in the Anchorage Museum of Art and History. I took my time and saw many great pieces of art. The museum was home to so many beautiful landscapes, modern pieces from local artists, and other pieces including glass, bronze, wood, and video projects. The thing that impacted me the most in the museum, however, was not a piece of art, it was actually a quote hung beside one of my favorite pieces in the museum. The quote read:

“The country itself…it’s grand. It’s so damn grand…It’s like trying to paint Niagara Falls or a brilliant sunset or the Grand Canyon or some other visual aspect of nature which can only be described by people who have lived in it, have soaked it up, have been in that environment long enough to assimilate and understand it…It is very hard to look at something with you mouth open and at the same time try to think in technical terms: how do you control this image, how do you present it? How do you compose it so that it is the most effective?”

-Karl Fortess

WPA artist who visited the Alaska Territory in 1937

I connected with it...for a couple reasons. First, I’ve spent the last few days in one of the most beautiful places on earth. I’ve tried so hard to capture these moments so I wouldn’t forget. These efforts however had only ended in frustration because, in spite of my best efforts, I am incapable of capturing even fraction of the grandiose beauty that I’m surrounded with. My camera lens is too small, my mind is too cluttered. I know I’m going to forget the profound impact being in the middle of it all has had on me…and that makes me very sad.

I also connected with the quote because in some senses, it is what I attempted to do for a living. I try to capture an incapturable God and create moments of transcendence and life-change. We Christ-followers follow a God whose ways are so very much higher than our ways, and whose thoughts are far beyond our own thinking.

Day 3 – Seward, Catamaran Cruise and Wildlife Experience

Day three began at 5:20 am when the alarm in our room went off and Jan couldn’t figure out how to get it turned off!! We caught our lodge transportation into downtown Seward at 9 am and walked from the Sea Life Center to the Small Boat Harbor. This walk was almost two miles in length and followed the cost of the city of Seward. We were surrounded by gigantic mountains, hundreds of sail and fishing boats, sunny skies, and a breezy 68 degrees. Once our boardwalk trip was completed we found ourselves at the Harbor Bakery for breakfast; gigantic cinnamon rolls, cheese danishes, and hot coffee!

We boarded a Catamaran boat at 10:30 am and left the Seward harbor on a wildlife experience at 11:00 am. What a day! The first few minutes of our 6 hour trip we saw fish jumping out of Resurrection Bay, 3 sea otters playing by our boat, and numerous glaciers! Once we were well under way our boat stopped in an inlet to watch two humpback whales play! We watched a mother and her calf for a good 15 minutes and got many great pictures. Once the humpbacks were content to move along our trip continued towards Alialik Glacier. Soon our captain was informing us that there were a school of Dall’s porpoises surrounding our boat that wanted to play in our wake! These creatures are so compelling, jumping and playing in the waves…its almost like they know how much joy they bring the people on board!

We finally made it to the glacier that was the ultimate destination of our cruise and were completely overwhelmed. The size alone is staggering! We were instructed to be silent as we sat in the shadow of this monster, the captain turned off the engine of our vessel and we watched the face. We were stunned to see large pieces, some the size of a car, fall across the front of the ice and crash into the ocean. What was amazing was the sound it made! It sounded like the largest 4^th of July display crashing and booming like fireworks!

We sat in the presence of Alialik Glacier for about 20 minutes and began our trek home. Once out in the open water again we began to see some kind of fins out the front of our boat. It turned out to be a pod of 10-15 Orca or Killer Whales. At this point we felt we had been touched by God himself! Seeing these creatures, in their natural habitat, playing and communicating with one another was almost too much!

We concluded our tour with a trip around Harbor Island, home to hoards of monster sea lions! Their growling and burping noises could be heard from miles away!

We heard from many locals that this was without doubt the best day they had had all year, and that they expected it to be the best for the rest of the year. What a gift today was! We are in the most beautiful place on Earth, truly.

Day Two – Alaska Railroad to Seward, Sea Life Center

We woke in Anchorage at 5:30 and boarded a train with all 17 members of the Cox, Gordon, and Burback families. The train ride was 4 and ½ hours long and took us from Anchorage south to the harbor town of Seward. The train took us by homes, mountains, lakes, rivers, and lots of glaciers. Most of the train ride was narrated by a 17 year old Alaskan who was just learning the ropes of her job. She was friendly and endearing but needed a few more hours of training!

The views were so beautiful but nothing compared to what we would see at our destination. One of the highlights of the train ride was hanging out in the open-air caboose watching our past slip into the distance. There were 3 separate moose sightings on the train ride. Austin and Grady didn’t see any of them. Jan saw one.

Once in Seward, the Seward Windsong Lodge van took us downtown to eat. Out of the 10 or so ma and pa restaurants to choose from we landed at Yoly’s, a quaint little artsy seafood place. It was delicious! After lunch we found ourselves on our way to the Seward Sea Life Center. The boys were very excited about this excursion. We were told we would see sea lions and harbor seals face to face. Well, we didn’t quite get face to face with the seals but we did see them through glass. They were very friendly and playful and loved swimming on their backs.

The Seward Sea Life Center was fun but I’m not quite sure it matched our expectations.

After the Sea Life Center we spent some time resting at our lodge, the Seward Windsong Lodge. This place was heaven! Set back in the thick Alaskan evergreens the lodge is made up of huge pine trunks and flower beds overflowing with every color in the rainbow! The boys (and mommy) were exhausted after 36 hours of travel, travel, travel, that we crashed in the lodge for a couple of hours. After our rest at the loge was over we drove up to Exit Glacier and hiked 2 miles. This hike was so beautiful. The trails were fairly flat and lined with beautiful wildflowers like daisies and fireweeds. The boys held moose poop (yes – I said moose poop, which is really just saw dust) and saw many trees that had been used as an antler rub!

The Exit Glacier was breathtaking! Looking at it up close made us feel as though we were looking at something prehistoric. The thought that it moves constantly and will probably be gone in 40-50 years was overwhelmingly interesting and overwhelmingly sad at the same time!

Hiking home from Exit Glacier was the conclusion of a long and glorious day in Alaska! We were so tired! Back at the lodge we fell into bed with the doors and windows open…60 degrees is perfect sleeping weather!

Day One – Tampa to Anchorage, Comfort Inn

The day of travel was a long day. We spent the entire day on a plane or in an airport. Conner was with us for the first leg of the trip. After we dropped him off in Chicago to Jan’s parents, we were able to take our time getting around. It made for some great conversations and time together.

We didn’t end up getting into our hotel in Anchorage until about 10:00, which was really 2:00 am our time. It took me a while to convince my body that I was tired not only because of the drastic time change, but also because it didn’t get dark until well into the morning. Not only that, when we checked in at the hotel we got a note that said we needed to be in the lobby by 5:15 am for breakfast!!

Needless to say, we fell asleep as fast as we could.

Just Like I Thought It Would

It happened…just like I thought it would. I have been feeling for a while now that God is preparing me and Jan for something; something different, something big. I also had a feeling that God would use the time at the Leadership Summit and our week away afterwards to communicate and build something into us.

I told God in preparation for these weeks that I was ready. I was ready for whatever He would ask. So much so that I gave a blanket ‘yes’ to whatever it would be. I told God I was ready to take a risk and stretch to do big things.

The second day of the Summit concluded in a similar way as the year previous. It was a prerecorded session dealing with the crisis of Aids in Africa. And similar to the previous year, it stirred so many emotions in both Jan and I. We walked out completely exhausted and emotionally raw. We were wrecked by the disgusting, heart-ravaging images and videos we were confronted with. We were both moved to a desire to want to get involved and ashamed at our lack of involvement so far.

This morning we boarded our plane on our way to Anchorage Alaska. We were spending the week there with our family for a week of vacation. After dropping our one year old off to Jan’s parents in Chicago on our way out we were sitting in airport Chili’s having a couple drinks and casually talking about the week ahead. Our conversation very abruptly shifted to the previous two days and what had happened in us as a result of the Summit and in particular the Aids crisis. Jan’s exact words were, “how are we going to get in the game?” For the next thirty minutes we had one of those conversations that just kept building and building until somehow we had arrived at this God-sized idea to get involved. It was one of those ideas that it was so exciting and so big, but also so hugely terrifying that you kind of wish you would have never had it.

Immediately terror set in. It was, without question, the biggest idea I’ve ever had (at least that I’d seriously consider). I was already making excuses as to why it wouldn’t work, why it was a bad idea. Then I remembered my conversation with God just days earlier. I had to at least consider it long enough to know if it truly was from God.

On the secondly leg of our flights to Alaska I read the verse in Acts 5 (38 & 39) where

I was both comforted and disturbed by this. If this truly was a God-inspired idea, I did not have to worry about it’s success. However, if this was something that Jan or I dreamed up, we would be left to our own devices, our own competency and be responsible for something that is so obviously bigger than us.

So that’s where I am. I am praying serious prayers and listening very closely. I still mean it – I am ready to take the risks that I’m asked to take. I’m ready to follow with reckless abandonment. I just want to make sure the right person is in front of me.

Alaska or Bust

Do you ever have the feeling that something big is right around the corner. That you're being prepared for something. That God is orchestrating something good. I believe that it is not by just chance that I am leaving the Leadership Summit to go to one of the most beautiful places on earth for a week of rest and reflection.

I've come to a place in my walk with Christ that I really want to follow where God wants me and my family to go. I'm willing to take whatever risk that might be asked of me. Jan and I both feel like God is wanting us to take the next step, calling us to take a risk and follow him closely.

The thing I worry about is not that I will not be willing or not know how to do it, but just that I won't hear it, that I will completely miss it.

One of the sessions today at the summit that really impacted me was led by John Ortburg. He talked about living your true mission and how most people never get to because they are naturally led by their "shadow mission". The shadow mission, as he referred to it, is that person we would be apart from God. It is who we are by our very nature. It made me wonder who I would be left to my own desires. I didn't like who I saw. I saw an insecure person who was given over to lust with no drive or purpose, apathetic to the needs and the pain of the people around me. I know this is who I would be because I spend much of my time fighting against these things.

It made me realize two things: one, I am so grateful for the purpose, depth, self-control, and confidence I find only in God. I find strength in Christ to become more than I am capable of becoming on my own. And two, though I fight against those natural inclinations, I am always only a step or two away from living out my shadow mission. And that is a sobering thought. I could at any minute, let myself become once again, what I am naturally inclined to be.

Understanding my shadow mission, I believe, was the easy part. The difficult part that I will need to wrestle with is what my true mission is. After the session on playing out of your true strengths (not knowing what mine are) and then this session on living your true mission, I was convinced that I need to identify what it is that God really has for me.

I want God to use this week to speak (loudly) to Jan and I about the steps He is asking us to take in following him. I want to ask the right questions and listen closely to the answers. Give me the grace to hear and the resolution to follow.

Michael E. Porter

I was profoundly impacted by the first session of the second day of the Leadership Summit. Michael Porter is a Harvard Business School professor. He talked about trying to do good in our community. He made the point that it is easy to good, it is remarkably hard to do well at doing good. I was forced to ask of me and my church - how well am I (we) doing at doing good? Are we serving our community effectively?

Michael Porter suggested that most organizations tend to get involved in a lot of different things that don’t receive the necessary focus to get the good results. We go too wide and never go deep.

The community activities in church often are more about the church than the recipients. If that is our only objective, at best we are ineffective – at worst, we do harm.

Charity is not enough, intention is not enough. We must create value.

Where can we do the most good with the resources we have. We must ask ourselves a series of questions.
-What are the most pressing social needs of our congregation
-What are the most pressing problems in other communities that we care about
-What other organizations are available to meet those needs (a good question when asking about value – we don’t need to reinvent the wheel, sometimes we should just support organizations that are already working - outsourcing)
-What kind of resources do we have
-Where can we do more than just unskilled labor
-Where are we passionate

Charity is hard – it is hard to do well at doing good. Its easy to give and feel like your doing good, but if our goal is to have an impact than it involves rigorous thought and strategy.

Leadership Summit

We're one day in and it has been a great Summit. Bill Hybels opened the conference with a very passionate cry to become a more invested leader. He spoke on the process of forming, refining, and selling a vision. About how vision leaks and how great leaders spend far more time trying to obtain more ownership of the vision than taking credit for it. He closed by discussing the difference of ownership versus being a hireling. It made me wonder what path I am headed down.

Carly Fiorina, New York Times Bestselling Author, told her story of her climb to the top as President and CEO of Hewlett-Packard. She spoke of the tough choices that leaders are often faced with. It was made clear from her story that leaders are often set apart by their ability to make the tough calls and handle them with integrity.

Rev Floyd Flake filled the always difficult "post lunch" slot and was a bit to intellectual for me at that time of the day.

Marcus Buckingham closed the first day with a great session. He was one of the most engaging and entertaining people I have ever heard speak on leadership. His session was on playing to your strengths and managing your weaknesses. We explored ways to spend more and more of our time and energy building on our strengths. I'm walking away with some clear actions steps of ways to discover and excel at my strengths.

Our leadership team was challenged to commit to six action steps to take to become a better leader as a result of something we learned at the summit. One (maybe two) of my action step will be on discovering and spending more of my time in my strengths.

I desperately want to become a better leader. I'm willing to make the investment.

The Meltdown

What melt down you ask? Let me answer that by telling you that my oldest son is starting Kindergarten in a week. It is the end of an era. We have spent his lifetime waking up together. I usually fix the breakfast of his and his brother's choice. And we do whatever we want for the first couple hours of our days.

As he starts Kindergarten I have had to mourn the end of having a little boy.
The only consolation to this whole thing is that so far, every phase has been my favorite. I know the end of one era means the beginning of another one.

Leadership Summit

The first day of the summit is on... Got started with the notes a bit late but this is what I've got for the third session...

The Heat of Responsibility

Rev Floyd H. Flake

Session three

When you take about moving people you talk about leadership

It doesn’t matter what field its in – there is always a need for a transition for it to fulfill its greatest potential. (Find your best self).

It is important once you receive the vision try to find new ways for people to think about things in a new way.

It is very difficult to sell new ideas because you are about to move them out of a comfort zone where they may be effective, but not most effective. It means moving them beyond their self serving motives.

In a transitional process, we may not be there through the end (John the Baptist). We might only be there at the beginning. We will not be our position forever.

Too many things fail because to many people start the process without knowing where they are going. Focus on the goal. We try to get people on understand what we sometimes don’t understand ourselves.

Transitional Leadership

We focus on identified need(s)

We have a responsibility to look and see what the need is…

In his context – he saw that property value was declining – not the necessary institutional systems to support their community. Education was declining.

As they identified the needs they invited the congregation to fulfill those needs (building a school).

Look at the community – look at its failure. The school system was failing the community.

Transition can take place but it means standing up to those who believe if cannot be done.

Deal with reality

Avoiding pitfalls – values can be compromised.

Develop new leaders so you are not doing the who job – goals

Transactional Leadership

Working with people to sell the vision.

We need group buy in, but we need to be able to stand up and say it is time to make a decision.

Transparency in Leadership

We have to understand that if we are going to be great leaders we have to be moral leaders.

The day for Sinai leadership is over. Information needs to flow back and forth. When communication lines are open, problems can be solved. We must function with integrity.

Watch financial integrity carefully.

The love of money is the root of all evil.

Leaders must understand we stand with integrity. When we stand with integrity man does not have a case with us.

The reality of where we need to get – transcendent Leadership

Transformational Leadership

We understand the problem – we figure out the solution.

The people you lead are constantly asking – what are we going to do next? It means that they are ready to make and investment – time money and resources.

If you give people the agenda and the agenda is well understood you will see fruit.

Always focused on the goal
Identifies the problem
Identifies the Solution
Begins the process
What is your transcendency plan? What are you passing on?
Jesus-12 disciples – apostles – church leaders – beyond
Our job is to create leaders behind us that become more than we could be.

How Many Hours Can I Fit Into My Week?

I want add hours to my life. I want to be a full time dad, a full time husband, a full time musician, and a full time leader. I've realized this week how little time I actually have. I struggle sometimes being all the people I need to be to the people I care most about.

I don't want to get 15 years down the road with any of my family and have any regrets about my priorities. There are too many songs written about it already. It is a common story, so I know its easy to do. I just don't want it to happen to me.

Our lives are what we choose for them to be. Those kinds of choices are not made only once in our lives, but in a series of much smaller choices. Its choosing to play transformers over working on a music chart. Its spending time playing Tak2 on Playstation rather than designing something for church. Its investing myself in the things I care about.

I pray for the grace to make the right choices. Choices that would communicate my real priorities in life.

Becoming A Cirque-aholic

I feel sorry for anyone who has not had the opportunity to see a Cirque Du Soleil show. Jan and I went last week to La Nouba and I could not begin to describe to you what kind of experience that was for me. My emotions have never been that wrapped up in any performance like that one. When it ended Jan and I were both so sad and so relieved at the same time. We got to the end and both realized we had been so tense for so long that we were just completely worn out.
If you have not ever seen a Cirque show go - go tomorrow. Or better yet, go tonight. It was unbelievable!