"Drummer Boy" Opener at NewPointe Christmas Eve

The video below is of the creative opener that we used on Christmas Eve. There are a few dark shots... but you can get the basic idea. You really had to be there! A huge thanks to Lifechurch.tv and Heritage Wesleyan Church (especially Kevin... their TECH guy) for the great (combined) ideas... and to Audio Adrenaline for a great rockin' arrangement of an old Christmas classic.

Enjoy!

Christmas Eve Reflections

Here are some cool screenshots from the Christmas Eve services at NewPointe. Sorry about the quality... they are the best close-ups that I could find. It was a pretty amazing night!

Merry Christmas...

















... from our family to yours!

This Christmas Eve at NewPointe

All I can say is... YOU WILL NOT WANT TO MISS IT!

Here's a sneak peak:

The Opener will be sort of like...






and then the worship will be like...







after that... the message will be like...







then to wrap it all up...








See you there!!!!

A Great Quote

A friend sent this quote in an e-mail this morning:

"If you limit your choice only to what seems possible or reasonable... you disconnect yourself from what you truly want... and all that is left is compromise." - Robert Fritz

WOW! How many times do we just settle for second best because we have never even explored the untried... or unreasonable idea?

The best stuf has yet to be created. Go find it!

The Late Great James Brown

This will make you smile.

A Little Stupid Christmas Humor

A Better Photo From Chicago with Kim Hill

A photographer who attended the Kim Hill concert in Chicago last month, sent me a couple of his photos today. The quality is much better than the one that I posted the other day. Kim will be at NewPointe next Christmas for a ladies conference with Lisa Harper. I am pretty sure that I will be playing for her again then.

Christmas... is almost here!

It seems like the closer we get to Christmas... the less time I have to blog. Why is that? Am I just that busy? The answer is YES! Stop this train and let me off! You know... I love everything that I am doing... but it has all been at "break neck" speed lately. Now that most of the events are behind me... I would like to take the time to pause and think of some of my favorite things about Christmas.

Favorite Christmas Song Ever?: "Christmas Time Is Here" (from A Charlie Brown Christmas) by the Vince Guaraldi Trio. Nothing gets me in the Christmas mood like that one. Unlike my friend John Bunn... who dislikes Christmas music (read his December 8th post:"Just Call Me Scrooge...")... I love it! There are just some songs that I have to hear every year. Sure... there are many that have just been recorded and re-recorded way too many times... but overall... I am a big fan.

Favorite Christmas Character Ever?: Bumble from Rudolph The Red Nose Reindeer. Sure... he was a little grumpy. But in the end... he got to put the star on the Christmas tree.








Favorite Christmas Movie Ever?: It would have to be A Christmas Story. It's my favorite because... well it's because...

"I think everyone should have a Red Rider BB gun. It's very good for Christmas." - Ralphie






Favorite Christmas Food Ever?: Just about anything... Chocolate!







Favorite Christmas Gift Ever?: The silver Bach Stradivarius trumpet that my mom and dad got me when I was 16 years old.






Favorite Christmas Memory Ever?: When Jesus came into our world as a human baby... born in a smelly manger so that he could get the whole "earth experience". So that He could feel what we feel... so that He could relate to us. That will always be amazing to me. He should have had the best of everything. He should have gotten a Bach Stradivarius... and chocolates... and... well you get the point. Instead... He left His throne... to enter our world as a poor peasant couple's child. There was no fanfare... no party in His honor. God became human... Emmanuel... God with us. And now... there is HOPE.

Now THAT... is my favorite thing about Christmas!

Pass It On

I caught one of our camera guys modeling the whole mentoring thing last Sunday morning during our sound check. It was a "Kodak moment" that I just couldn't pass up. So... I stopped... right in the middle of one of our songs... to run out with my camera and capture it. Pretty cool... eh? Brad was just passing on what he knows to a young future camera operator. You don't have to be the "guru" of what you do. You don't have to know it all... just pass along what you do know to somebody else... right?

Dwight Mason on TV

Several of us gathered in the control room this afternoon to watch Dwight's interview on the Channel 5 News. He had the opportunity to talk about NewPointe and about our new Christmas series, "All I Want For Christmas". Other than the fact that they did not show our web address once... or any of the high definition "B" roll that we sent to them ahead of time.... it was a great interview! Dwight did an awesome job! Here are some photos that I took of the monitor we were watching. (Yes... I took photos of the TV screen)
































Right after Dwight's interview... our very own LeAnn Miller did a cooking segment on the same show. What a pro! She was making cookies with Lee Jordan. It was looking pretty good too. I am thinking that she will probably need to bring a batch of those cookies to Weekend Design Team meeting... for a little taste testing.

All I Want For Christmas

This past weekend we kicked off a brand new series at NewPointe called "All I Want For Christmas". It is going to be an awesome series... one that you will definitely want to invite your friends to. Don't miss a single week of it!

Just check out the new stage set!













Our Visual Arts team just knocked it out of the park this time! They were working on this stage until almost 2:00 Friday morning. Now... that's dedication! We have the most incredible volunteers anywhere! Thanks guys... for your amazing commitment to excellence... and for creating yet another irresistible environment at NewPointe!

BTW: Be sure to check out the channel 5 news (out of Cleveland) this Thursday between 12:00 noon and 1:00 PM. Our very own Pastor, Dwight Mason will be interviewed about the new Christmas series and all of the exciting things that are happening at NewPointe! They will be showing footage from this past weekend's services too! Is that cool... or what??? Whatever you do... don't miss it!