Most annoying commercials as we close out 08

Saw a similar survey on another blog so I thought I would also take an opportunity to vent. I have dishnetwork so we are able to record television shows which eliminates having to watch many commercials, but they can still drive you crazy.

Here is my personal worst list---

1. Beyonce rolling around half naked in an attempt to "let me upgrade" my direct tv. An example of trying to use sex to sell anything!!

2. He went to Jareds commercials. he went to Jared's is code for "he got totally ripped off" I realize "he went to ebay" doesn't have the same ring to it, but I guarantee I could find a better deal.

3. the sham-wow commercials. First of all he has that stupid head set on, and then he makes the asinine statement that you are going to end up spending 20 dollars a month on paper towel anyway, so why not buy his product. 20 dollars a month!!! Does this guy use paper towel to dry off after a shower or what? I don't spend 20 dollars a year on paper towel. I don't need your sham-gank, I'll use a washcloth.

4. Its my money and I want it now!! I think this commercial is on a 24/7 loop in hell.

5. Leave a comment with your own most annoying commercial and we'll crown a winner:)

last minute gifts part 3

Well it's Christmas eve, and time for the final installment of the last minute gift series. I thought I might try switching it up and make this post specifically for the husband or wife you are still scrambling to shop for.

Well scramble no longer scramblers (i'm not sure why i am so enthralled with that word right now, maybe I need an omelette.)

Its a fact that most men are aggressive drivers and if your like me, you hate getting behind the super slow guy on the highway that insists on being in the left lane. You try flashing your lights, honking your horn, and some even resort to a one finger salute. (not me of course). Instead of steaming up your windows with rage, you now have an alternative that is both safe and proven affective. Its a sticker put out by leftlanedrivers.org that reminds slower cars to move over without having to honk and holler. Sounds both delightfully simple and stupid, a perfect gift combo.

Finally for the woman on your list, I have one more suggestion. Summer will be quickly upon us, and you can never go wrong husbands with a gift card here to let her know you really care:)

have a great Christmas and I hope I could help.

disclaimer---I'm honestly not against wholesome clothing nor am I for skimpy swim suits (I stopped wearing a speedo years ago) however I still find this site amusing so I had to bring it up again.

last minute gifts part 2

The deadline for gift giving is now closer. Maybe you saw the couples toilet and you either already have one, or you actually want to stay married and thought better of it. Whatever your reasons, I think I have stumbled across a gift that is a can't miss.
Do you ever have those days where nothing is going your way? Do you ever feel that no one truly appreciates who you are or what you do? Do you wish you had Tony Robbins number on speed dial so that you could be motivated to be your very best?

Well move over Tony, you've been replaced. This amazing cd will have you reaching for the sky and accomplishing things you only dreamed possible through the power of positive thinking!! I don't want to give too much away before you watch the video, but I think you will agree that this is a must for both you and a loved one.

Enjoy, and hopefully they can overnight it!!

last minute christmas gifts. part 1.

I am now at a place in my life where my therapist says it is ok to open up about the ghosts of Christmas shopping past in my life. I am not proud to say that there were a few years in my twenties, where I would be in walgreens at four a.m christmas morning, trying to find a clapper or sobakawa pillow for someone in my family. I once showed up at an extended family Christmas party with five instant lottery tickets as gifts because there was only one open gas station on the way there. ( I don't think my cousin would have been complaining if he had won 20,000 dollars right?!) Sadly, none of the tickets were winners and I was forced to attempt morphing the gifts into a lovely set of bookmarks.

Anyways, just in case some of you have been procrastinating or still holding out for the perfect gift, I will be dedicating the next few blog installments to helping you make someone's Christmas the best it can be while there is still time.

Introducing first.............The "couples" toilet. yes I did mention it briefly last year, but is it possible to over mention such a timeless gift? Maybe your wife is complaining your not spending enough time with her? I ask you, what could be more romantic than sharing this level of togetherness for the holidays? Do you hear what I hear? Let yourself imagine the sound of the Febreeze can trying to cover the early morning aroma of your combined efforts.

Trust me, your spouse won't know what to say when they unwrap this little gem. In fact, Kendra and I haven't even spoken since I surprised her with one last year. I think it's because the english language just can't supply the words to represent this kind of love, or its because she's still mad. I guess I'll never know. Talk about the gift that keeps on giving. This year should be even better!!!

Stay tuned:)

our family Christmas video

Each Christmas Kendra and I receive such beautiful cards from our friends and families. Many of them include precious photos of their children all festive in their attire and posing for the cameras. While we have been quite lax for a few years in sending out cards, (sorry about that family and friends) this year we decided to go all out! We booked a flight to Hollywood and shot our own christmas video. Janet, (Miss Jackson if your nasty) helped us with the choreography and most of the dance moves we ripped of from J.Lo.


Hope this brings you some holiday cheer,
ps. If you want to book us, we are available for parties, wedding, or barmitzpha's.
call 1888-mad-skilz for more info.

Send your own ElfYourself eCards

Finding Jesus

If only Mary and Joseph had been a little more tech savvy, the shepherds wouldn't have needed a star. Apparently theft and vandalism of nativity scenes is on the rise and some homeowners and churches have had enough! You can now outfit baby Jesus and the rest of the gang with a gps tracking devise so that christmas hating atheists can be hunted down and brought to swift justice!! I'm sure law enforcement in America is going to drop everything when the A.P.B. of missing baby Jesus hits the radio waves.

I can remember this irreverent behavior happening when I was a kid as well. A neighbor would put out her nativity scene and every year it would be down at least one wiseman or shepherd. I thought Jesus was being raised by a single mom for a while when somebody ran off with Joseph. This wave of crime is godless and despicable and I for one love this idea. There should be a minimum ten acts of random kindness as well as a 15-year mandatory jail sentence for first offenders. Community service should include knocking on neighborhood doors and singing yuletide carols in German.

Anyways, at least Ricky Bobby can sleep well tonight knowing that baby Jesus is safe and sound. Kendra and I have ours encased in plexiglass surrounded by an electric fence and barbwire. Not as pretty as I hoped, but I'm not taking any chances. What is wrong with a country of people that would steal Jesus? I'm not sure I want to know.

Bad Day

Just in case you thought your day was heading in a less than optimal direction, at least you can be thankful that this didn't happen to you.

Its not that I think we should use someone else's misery to feel better, I'm just saying that it can work.

Here's to a brighter day:)

changes coming

Somehow by trying to change my header and background, I jacked up my entire blog. typical of what happens when I attempt to do something on my computer without consulting professionals (aka my assistant ben). Please stay tuned as I have informed/begged him to help me in my time of need.

Ronald Mc Donald germ/playland

My beautiful wife Kendra was heading up a weekend of worship and prayer at our "captured" young woman's event on friday, so being the incredibly health conscience dad that I am, I found myself having to acquiesce to their demand that we go to Mickey D's. While I love the time that I have with just me and the girls, I am a much bigger fan of the drive thru where the germs and wrongness associated with mc d's is contained to the car. However, the girls were begging me to let them "play" (code for wallow in a cesspool of germs and stocking feet funk) so I broke down.

It started out with me in line ordering the happy meals only to look down and Addy is licking the steel counter which was at perfect mouth level for her. After insisting that she gargle hand sanitizer while we waited, we proceeded to enter the "playland". I immediately turned around and informed the girls there was no way we could eat in there. The stench of sweat and germs was making me want to go back to the front and lick the counter myself.

Anyways, amid the craziness of the other screaming, much larger children, I allowed my girls to spend about ten minutes climbing thru the tunnels and slides that I'm sure are disinfected on a nightly basis.........NOT!!!!

The pic of Addy crying is because she got scared at the top and I almost had to go up there to get her because Ava was refusing even after I tried to explain to her that daddy couldn't fit!!

I don't usually lie to my children, but when they asked if we could come back and I said yes, I knew deep down that this was a mission that perhaps their mother would take them on again someday, but i am way to much of a germaphobe to go thru that again:)

Thanksgiving

My wonderful niece has informed me that I need to post some thanksgiving pictures STAT!!!! Since she is the ultimate babysitter, I figured I better keep her happy:) (love you Ashley:)

Anyways, I will keep the dialogue to a minimum, and simply say thanksgiving was great. My mom hosted us which meant a number of things,
1. only had to drive 3 miles and the girls could take normal naps
2. didn't have to cook or clean anything,
3. eating 3 pieces of pie to ensure that 4,000 calorie mark was broken
4. wearing layers because mom is half cold blooded reptilian and keeps the heat at 98.6 ( I love you mom:)

Ended the thanksgiving weekend by taking my beautiful wife to GR with a group of friends from high school to reconnect and have dinner. Saw some peeps I hadn't seen in years and got Kendra out of the house without the girls which is always a good thing every now and then:)

Sorry about the Bush turkey photo, I thought since he would be out of office soon, i should help preserve a memory of him and I couldn't help myself:)

Crazy

I'm not an economist, and I'm probably grossly under qualified to even give an opinion on the state of the big three automakers and whether we (taxpayers) should lend them money, but lack of knowledge never stopped my opinions before:)

My first inclination was to say yes, because living in michigan, this affects us more so than other Americans. Now however, I have changed my mind. I believe lending them money will only offset temporarily the inevitable because nothing will change "inside" the corporation. They seem to want to continue doing what they have always done. As we all know, the big three ceo's testified before congress and asked for bailout money and here is my issue.(s)

1. they arrive in their private jets while trying to show the imminent need for a handout? That sounds a little like a man standing on a highway exit wearing an Armani suit begging.

2. Congress turns down the request, and gives them two weeks to come back with a specific plan for what they will do with the 25 billion dollars! Is that crazy to anyone else? Wouldn't you think they would have had that information handy for the meeting? Would it not make a little sense to come to a meeting where you are asking for 25 billion dollars with some idea of how you would invest it so that you won't be sitting there again in 6 months needing more?

I think the same thing happens in peoples lives. They come to church, experience God, realize that there are things in their lives that are detrimental to them, but ultimately they are unwilling to change!! They may understand the concept of God as a forgiver, but still look at him as a giant "bailouter". They treat Him like CEO's before congress and state their needs, but they do nothing to perpetuate the new life God offers.

The bible calls us to "repentance" To change the way that we think, thus moving away from sin, and towards God. Sin and God are not in the same place!!! To truly find God is to change direction, not just ask for forgiveness. I've seen a lot of people come to church and experience God's grace, but ignore the voice of the Holy Spirit leading them to "repent" (change direction). They may love the music, enjoy the teaching, and many other components, but they miss the one thing that experiencing Jesus is designed to bring.......A NEW WAY TO LIVE! I heard it said that the definition of insanity could be "continuing to do the same thing, while expecting a different result." God doesn't just want to repair you, He want to recreate you!!! (2 cor. 5:17)

I pray that the truth of life in Christ will come alive in this generation and a supernatural boldness to LIVE LOUD for Jesus will rise up in us all!!!

He who covers his sins will not prosper, But whoever confesses AND FORSAKES them will have mercy.--prov. 28:13

monday morning laugh

Who says that the generation gap can't be bridged? I think this is a great example of the older folks trying to reach out across the generations to show that we're really not that different after all.

You NEED to take the 5 minutes to watch this, it is hysterical!!!!!!

DO NOT FEAR

Let's be honest. The outlook for our country isn't very good in the natural. Government bailouts, housing and auto markets struggling, and lots of Americans unable to find work. In times of uncertainty, it is easy to become fearful and discouraged when thinking about your future.

I want to share some thoughts that can help us to trust God and put him first in every area of our lives, especially our finances. It is the story of Elijah and the widow of Zarephath in 1 kings chaper 17.

There is a drought in the land, and God tells Elijah to leave the safety of the brook cherith where he had plenty of water and ravens that brought him big macs. ( the bible says bread and meat, but I'm pretty sure they weren't whoppers.) God informs him that He has commanded a widow there to provide for him.

I'm sure as Elijah was on his way, he was picturing a very rich widow with a house right out of MTV cribs sucker free edition. What he gets is an old women in front of a shack gathering sticks. He asks her for a cup of water, and as she is going to get it, also asks for a morsel of bread. It is at this point that she informs him of her unique situation. All she has is a dash of flour, a drop of oil, and she is planning to make one pancake for her and her son to split before they die. Even if you have michigan maple syrup to put on it, that's still a bad morning.

two things to notice so far,

1. The widow had no problem getting Elijah a cup of water, but when bread became involved, she put on the brakes and told him she didn't have it. Many of us as christians have no problem coming to church, singing songs, we may even serve in the nursery. that's our cup of water. But when it comes to tithing, or supporting the church financially, we tell God we have no bread.

2. Elijah didn't move on when she said she didn't have it. He could have said, "hey I understand, the widow I need probably lives up the road a little, have fun dying." Instead he challenges her with these three words......"DO NOT FEAR". Then he tells her to "DO AS SHE PLANNED" but make him a small cake first. Notice he didn't tell her to forget about her original plan, he told her to do exactly as she said, but make him a small cake FIRST.

God is looking for those, who in the realm of their finances, will put him first. Fear tells you that you won't have enough for your family, God says to put Him first and He will provide.

vs. 15--she did according to his word, and by putting God first, the bin of flour was not used up, nor did the jar of oil run dry. Notice when she was obedient, she didn't win the powerball and have millions of dollars and no cares in the world. She still had to believe every day that the bin and jar would continue to sustain her. God did a miracle in her life so that she and her son were provided for (give us this DAY, our daily bread) during the entire famine.

I'm not posting this on behalf of radiant Church because we need you to tithe or were in trouble. Kendra and I were tithing long before I became a pastor and our church has never missed a bill. We continue to believe God will bring people alongside of us to fulfill His vision for our community. I am writing this because I believe the bible when it says that "God opens the window of heaven in order to pour out blessing on those who put His house first"--malachi 3:10. So many people say they can't afford to tithe, I say that we can't afford not to. These are the times when you need to put some legs to your faith. It's one thing to say you believe God will provide, it's another to act on it. If you are not tithing to your local church, you need to be. If you don't trust how your church is allocating its funds, then find a church you do trust and tithe there. The miracle your looking for in your life is triggered by obedience. I'm praying for the world to see the supernatural favor of God upon tithers, so we have a platform to brag about the greatness and faithfulness of our God.

DO NOT FEAR, IF GOD IS FOR YOU, WHO CAN BE AGAINST YOU?

There may be future posts along these lines, but for some reason I'm hungry for pancakes.

HAPPY BIRTHDAY DAD

Today my dad would have celebrated his 70th birthday if cancer had not cut his life short. I still look back at so many good times and memories I have of my dad growing up. He was a constant source of encouragement to me and so many others, and his love for God family are what defined him as a man.
Everyone of his grandchildren had to have felt like they were the most important and loved child in the world. He passed away just just three months before Ava was born and I still remember telling him on the phone that we were expecting. His booming voice (wonder where I got mine from:) exclaiming that he was sure it would be a boy:) I know he would have wrapped my girls in the same love he had for all his children and grandchildren, but it comforts me to know someday they will meet the grandpa their daddy loves and misses so much.

My dad wasn't perfect, but I thank God for the years I had with him, the life lessons he taught me as a child, and the friendship we developed as adults. He was one of the most generous men I ever knew who would go the extra mile for anyone in need.

I love you dad and I still think of you often,

Happy Birthday,

couch on wheels

in an effort to do our part to eradicate some of the debt in our lives, i made the decision to sell our suv. Upon searching high and low for a dependable vehicle at a no car payment price, a good friend of mine (at least for now:) directed me to a 1995 chevy Caprice classic. It is the one owner vehicle of an old retired baptist pastor (if you can't trust a baptist pastor, what's the world coming to?) who bought the car brand new in 1995 and babied it ever since. It is admittedly not the most attractive car ever to roll of an assembly line, but it is in great shape, perfect interior, no rust, and even a remote starter for kendra to take advantage of this winter!!

I was hoping for Kendra's sake that it would at least have a ram bar in the front or the super stylish side spot light, but sadly I don't think this was ever used in hot pursuit of criminals.

I know dave Ramsey may not approve of this, but I am saving up for some 24 inch spinners and hydraulics to go with the 5,000 watt stereo Kendra put on her Christmas list.

here's what I'm shooting for by January:)

Miracle match

Every week my good friend mike and I face off on the tennis court in an epic battle of skill and wills. although there have been a few incidents where testosterone driven competitiveness takes us over the brink, in most cases we have great matches and remain civil:)

last tuesday we took our wives to a tennis match at the van andel in GR between Pete Sampras and Jim Courier. It was sponsored by an organization working on a cure for Leukemia and all proceeds went to that. The match wasn't the greatest, Sampras pretty much killed him, but hanging out with mike and Liz while watching some of my child hood heroes was pretty cool.

Sorry about the terrible pics, I forgot my camera at work and had to use a disposable one that is designed to be used between six and eight feet away. Unfortunately, our seats weren't that close.

I'm sorry, could you repeat that?

lately, my two year old daughter Adalyn has decided that when she doesn't want to do what I've asked/told her to do, she covers her ears with both hands and says "talk daddy". Of course once I've repeated myself, I know she still heard me perfectly clear, (or could at least recall what I had said before she covered her ears), but she continues doing what I've asked her not to as if now there was no way I could hold her responsible. After all, her ears were covered:)

As so often happens to me, when I think about the challenges of being a dad to my girls, I put it into the context of God as my daddy. As ridiculous as it seems to me to have Addy cover her ears when I'm speaking to her, I can't help but feel convicted at the times I know God has spoken to me and I pretend I didn't hear so good.

Sometimes we can think pretty highly of our "christian" performance. I haven't killed anybody, I don't steal, I'm not cheating on my spouse, but we miss the still small voice of God that wants to prune every branch of our lives for the purpose of bearing more fruit! (john 15:2)

Whether its the apology I know I need to make, the person I am supposed to reach out to, the "prayer request" that is nothing more than gossip, or the prideful lie that I can accomplish what God has for my life on my own, I want ears to hear what the spirit is saying, so I can obey and grow.

As for Addy covering her ears, thankfully big sis is there to be here second mom and relay the message again ever so graciously:)

Pony Rides!

Our friends Bob and Michelle from church have a beautiful property equipped with horses, ponies, dogs, cats, and large dung piles!! They were nice enough to let the girls come over yesterday and experience all of it. Ava was quick to don her pink cowgirl boots and kendra wore her 8 inch heel fashion boots making them both very equestrian-y.

I think Ava would still be there feeding them grass by hand right now if we hadn't forced her (crying of course) to leave. Addy did it once, and that was enough for her. To her credit though, she was the first to ride the pony, while Ava sat back wanting to make sure Addy didn't die or something before she tried.

gotta love the priceless shot of them by the big pile of poop:) Addy was talking about that one for a while!

Big Thanks to Bob, Michelle and especially the twins for sharing your beautiful animals with us!!!!!!!!

bad day for michigan?

Wow, I've got to check ebay more often!! I'm sure some of you ran across this story already, but how pitiful that Michigan makes the news for selling a house for 1.75!!!!!!! For the mathmatically challenged, that is less than the cost of eight chicken mc nuggets at mickey D's!!


This is how crazy our world is, at the same time a house is selling for under two bucks, burger king launches a campaign in the u.k to promote a 200 dollar hamburger!!!!!


They could have potentially owned 114.2 homes in the saginaw area for that lunch!!!!!

Crazy times:)

Nothing happens overnight

In the middle of this financial crisis facing America and the world, an important principle can be learned. Nothing happens overnight. Banks and companies do not fail overnight. We may be just hearing about it, but irresponsible lending practices, wall street greed, and lack of competent oversight have been going on for some time now.

Thats the same way things work in our lives. Your marriage issues didn't just start last weekend. Your kids don't wake up one morning and decide to rebel. Are your financial issues a result of stretching yourself too thin?

We may seem so surprised when it all comes to a "sudden" head, but like a volcano, the rumblings have been going on underneath the surface for a while first.

That is why it is of utmost importance that we put God first in every area of your life. The government, no matter who gets elected, is not going to solve your problems for you. Our allegiance must be to a lamb, not a donkey or elephant.

Become a tither if you aren't already and put God first in your finances. Establish church as a priority for your children, it has to be more important than band, sports, or their job. Get accountability!!! Who is in your life that you can go to when your marriage is bumpy, when you feel like life is spiraling out of control? That is what the church body is for!!

As christians, we need to recognize that during this hard economic time, especially with the holidays coming, more and more people are going to be in financial and spiritual need. I am asking for eyes to see, so that I can be a blessing to those around me as we contend with Jesus for the hearts of this generation.

It starts early

I've never been able to wrap my head around the enigma that is female gotothebathroomaloneaphobia.
Lest you were deceived into thinking only adult women succumb to this peculiar trait......... I give you my daughters, who also refuse to go alone:) Addy usually just sits on hers to show her moral support for Ava without actually going herself. I wonder if that's also true when my wife and sister go together at the restaurant? Maybe some of you gals could comment on this and let me in on what really goes on behind bathroom doors while your husbands are alone at the table.
Is everyone peeing, or are some of you strictly in a support role? I guess maybe I should just be happy none of my guy friends ask me to go with them...........In the words of Dr. evil, "thats not something one dude should say to another dude.....creepy."

unbelievable

If your anything like me, you probably are still wondering if what you just witnessed is for real..........It is. These are real people and this is really happening. As I sat in somewhat disbelief watching this, two thoughts came to my mind. (well three really, but you already can see they are somewhat crazy so I won't list that one.)

1. people cannot live in the absence of purpose. Why did Rick Warrens book sell ninety gajillion copies? Because every one of us was designed by God to live out a mission bigger than ourselves. This video is an example of what happens when human beings do not pursue the mission God designed and gifted them for and accept a substitute.

Jesus, as He was about to be executed, (John 18:37) told Pilot, "for this "cause" was I born, and for this "cause" I have come into the world. That I should bear witness to the truth."

Just like our savior, we need to realize we are living for a cause. Our mission in life is to represent Jesus. We live as a new kind of human being, used by God in the redeeming of His creation back to Him, one lost person at a time. It's the only thing that is eternal. Being a good steward of the environment is important, but its not why we are here. Lets not drift thru life thinking our only calling is our job or family (both important things) and miss the "cause" God has for us on earth. 2 corinthians 5 tells us we are his ambassadors sent to represent Him to our world! Ask yourself, what does that look like for me?

2. the second issue I have is that these people mourning the loss of forest in America, tend to be ultra liberals who will fight to the bitter end for the rights of women to abort a fetus at any time, for any reason. I can;t speak for these specific people, but generally they feel any restrictions on abortion is a trampling of the "rights" or privacy of women. This is one of the most tragic ironies on earth and another example of a misguided mission. I admire their passion, but when did trees become more important than children. I will never get it. Where is the wailing for human lives snuffed out?

Enough ranting, remember what we do on earth, echoes in eternity. People, far from God and hurting, are what really matter.

Teachers aid

Yesterday was my big debut as the parent helper in Ava's preschool class. I was in charge of bringing the snack and juice, as well as making sure it began with the letter "c". Lot's of pressure I know, but I finally went with care bear fruit snacks, (I was going to go all healthy with carrots or cauliflower, but I didn't want the kids to hate me)

My tasks included getting the snack ready, putting all the papers in the kids backpacks, as well as going thru all of them first to check for playdough that good preschool parents make at home (not us) or money for field trips. I felt like airport security as I'm in the back rifling thru everyone's bags. I only found a few weapons and some suspicious looking powder that I was pretty sure was just arsenic, but I took it to the principle anyway. A few kids might be a little short on field trip money, but that's what their parents get for sending cash.

I then took each child one at a time into the hallway to test their knowledge of colors and shapes. I assured them that if they couldn't identify a rectangle, it was only 20 lashes and not to worry. In all seriousness, I was quite surprised how many knew almost all of them. Grey was a tough color for some and oval was the toughest shape. Most guessed either circle or egg:) It was interesting to see how different children responded to not knowing them. Some would just guess, some would shrug their shoulders, but most would just kind of look at you blankly with sort of a shy smile while repeating um, um, um, um. It was very sweet.

All In all it was alot of fun and I just love interacting with and observing kids at that age. God bless Mrs. Thomas and all other teachers called to pour into our generation and we'll see how Kendra fares when its her turn!!!

The Stand

Here is a short video that show the vow ceremony last wednesday at youth. Thanks to Austin and Ben for their filming/editing prowess:)




The Vow 08 from BW Roberts on Vimeo.

Taking the "VOW"

Last Wednesday was the final night of our "live out LOUD" series at youth. We have been discovering what it means to be a fully devoted follower of Jesus and our key verse was psalm 116:18 "I will fulfill my vows in the presence of your people"

We talked about the difference between saying your a christian, and Living that way in the plain view of others. We are entrenched in a culture where if you aren't living loud, you won't be heard.

The live out loud vow consisted of this,

L=longing for God
O= overcomer
U=uncompromising life
D=diligent prayer

These are the components of a follower of Jesus that is serious. Jesus told his disciples in Luke 5, to "launch out into the deep", and they would experience a "catch" of fish. I believe the reason so many christians are frustrated in their walks, is because they stay in the shallow waters of their relationship with Him. In order to "catch" what Jesus has for your life, you can't treat Him like an add on accessory that will hopefully make your life better. You have to be willing to go deeper. Jesus did not come to be an appendage attached to your life, he came to be the source of it.

We will not see this generation fulfilling its God given destiny until young people experience the real presence and power of God. No one can argue you out of your "faith" once you have tasted the presence of God. I believe that wednesday night was a glimpse into that. My prayer is that instead of a one time event, living LOUD becomes a journey towards the heart of a loving God that each of us will choose to take. There is no substitute.

We ended the night by handing out blue bracelets that simply say "live loud" on them. I tied this in with a chapter in exodus that speaks of the priests of that time, tying a blue ribbon onto their ephods in order for everyone to know they had been set apart as holy unto the Lord. We are now new testament priests (1peter 2:9) and we will also wear blue to signify our separation unto the lord. I pray that each time students look at their wrists, they will remember that night.

Many thanks to Ben and my incredible volunteers for making it go so smoothly and for their prayers leading up to it. Thanks to my friend Bradi for hooking us up with the awesome letters on the wall, and most importantly I thank the Holy Spirit, for showing up in a powerful way. If you want to take the vow, or just learn more about it, please check us out at
www.lolfyi.tv and click on the "vow" tab. (be sure to check the rest of the site out too, its sweet:)

Lastly, here is the song Kurt and the band did, I love it and chose it especially for this series. i want you to imagine all of the student holding their vows high and singing this to their king. I'm getting goosebumps again thinking about it:)

Dancing with the other stars

I don't know why I keep posting these things. I think its kind of like a car accident, you don't want to look, but feel yourself somehow being drawn to it. The last video I posted (Jesus is a friend of mine) was certainly out of touch for today, but it least it was a good 25 years old. This video was produced by "the way" international and was copyrighted in 2007!

the fact that this dance routine and performance was performed live less than a year ago is astounding and you will not want to miss these moves. If you can't bear to watch the whole thing, at least make it to 1:50 so not to miss the amazing dance solo!!

Enjoy if you dare and I promise not to make fun of "christian" videos for a while:)

8 is never enough:)

Today marks the 8th year that I have had the honor of being married to my beautiful wife Kendra. Almost ten years ago we gave our lives to Jesus and vowed to live for His glory any way we could. God has been so good to us. Two beautiful daughters and the opportunity to invest our lives into seeing people experience the same liberating and loving God we encountered together. I could not imagine a more godly wife, mother, encourager and soul mate.

Included are some pics of our weekend excursion which included shopping (of course:), dinner at the bistro in GR, (thanks to my friend brad the manager who had flowers and candles at the table and always takes good care of us:), followed by a surprise ride in a horse drawn carriage downtown. Kendra could not believe it was for us when we walked outside so it felt good to know that after eight years I still have a few tricks up my sleeve:) (better start planning the ten year huh)

It was a beautiful day made even more special by being with my best friend.

I love you Kendra

Here is a link to the song we played at our wedding that made the moment last forever. ( I love 1:44, It's classic)