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A Little Pay-back

2011-12-17T13:39:00.012-05:00

A while back.... John Bunn posted an incriminating photo of yours truly on his blog. It was a press photo... from the 80s... when I actually had hair... and a cheesy mustache. He then proceeded to Photoshop the image to create a "gameshow host" version of me... and a "Dick Clark" version of me.

So... with the help of a family "insider" (who will remain unnamed), I have a similar photo of Johnny B. Yup... it looks like it was maybe from the early 90s. He had the wings... and the cheesy mustache. Well... here... instead of describing it... let me show it to you.

Well... most of you know that John is a multi-talented guy. He has always been very athletic. As a matter of fact... he was a star football player in high school. His mom and dad were a little late getting him signed up for the varsity team... but he seemed to fit right in on the gal's team.

After graduating from college... John pursued another one of his creative passions... MUSIC. As a matter of fact: Most people do not realize this... but John was actually the "construction worker" in the popular recording group, The Village People.

Soon after the highly unsuccessful YMCA reunion tour in '97... John found himself looking for something more... something new to do with his life. So he turned to what came natural to him. With his athletic build and boyish good looks... he turned to modelling. He freelanced a little... until he landed contracts with PetSmart, Jenny Craig and Preparation H.

John eventually settled down... married his high school sweetheart... and they began a family of their own.

He now focuses his attention on his job at NewPointe Community Church and his family. Today one of his favorite things to do is coach his kid's softball teams.

Well... there ya go. Who knew? Everything you ever wanted to know about the man... the myth... the legend... John Bunn.

Move Us Into Action... UPDATE

2011-11-15T09:53:00.008-05:00

As a part of our new ACTION service initiative... several of our NewPointe musicians and vocalists spent the better part of this past Saturday morning helping out a single mom in Dover with some home repair and yard clean-up. The team worked hard together... installing and painting trellis, raking leaves and taking care of other various projects around this lady's house. These were projects that she could not complete on her own.

I could not be there for our first project (because I am home recovering from surgery)... but I was told that the team expressed that they cannot wait until our next project in February. The next time... we will get even more of our team out there serving in the community. Thanks, guys! Way to be the hands and feet of Christ!

If you want to read more about this initiative... check out this older post: Move Us Into Action

Very Cool New Technology: Lytro

2011-11-15T09:35:00.005-05:00

You just gotta check out the website for this new little piece of tech gear. It is called the Lytro. It is a small light field camera that captures many layers of depth in one snapshot. The Lytro allows both the picture taker and the viewer to focus pictures AFTER they're snapped, shift their perspective of the scene, and even switch seamlessly between 2D and 3D views. This is amazing stuff! Go to the Lytro website and mess around with the sample photos in the picture gallery. It is very cool. The image will actually focus on whatever you click on. If you select an object in the foreground... the photo will blur everything else at appropriate levels. Technology that once required a room lined with cameras tethered to a supercomputer... can now be achieved with one camera with multiple micro-lenses. Absolutely amazing new technology.

Move Us Into Action...

2011-11-09T14:52:00.005-05:00

There is a song on Tim Hughes , Holding Nothing Back project called "God of Justice". It is a very powerful song! I've been talking about this song for while now. We closed a series of messages back in the summer with it. I have to admit… it was a very convicting song to sing. You know... sometimes it is just way too easy to stand on stage and sing songs like this without letting it change US. We move on to the next song…. little disturbed and uncomfortable... but not ready to "make a change".

Well... THIS TIME a song has inspired our NewPointe musicians and singers to do something about it. The phrase from this song that has really grabbed our hearts is this: "Keep us from just singing... move us into ACTION." It is so easy for us, as worship leaders, musicians and singers to come together and do what comes "natural" to us... make music. We love it. We were created to do it. We print our charts, mark up our music, restring our guitars, rehearse to get everything “just right”. Then on Sunday mornings we come together, sound check, run-through and SING. It's just what we do... right? We are so good at serving within our comfort zone.

James 1:27 says that "Religion that God our Father accepts as pure and faultless is this: to look after orphans and widows in their distress and to keep oneself from being polluted by the world." WOW! How good are we at doing THAT? There's nothing in there about Marshall amps... well-crafted worship songs... or even ProPresenter. God is pleased when we are meeting the needs of his kids… those folks who cannot provide for themselves.

That's why this Saturday morning... the music teams from all 3 of our NewPointe Church campuses will be meeting at the Dover campus... and then going out to serve at the home of a widow in our community who is in need of house repair, cleaning, yard work, maybe a meal and some conversation and prayer. We are going to step out of our comfort zone and into a worship experience that we believe will please God. This will be an on-going initiative for our teams. We will be going out into the community on a quarterly basis. I am so excited to see what God wants to do in and through us as a team… as we practice being the hands and feet of Christ. How can we just sing about it? “We must go…”.

NewPointe Transit Advertising

2011-08-31T16:54:00.002-04:00

Check it out! NewPointe is advertising on the side of buses in Canton/Akron. Get ready NewPointe Canton peeps. It's 'bout to get crazy up there!

< me.

Defending The Status Quo

2011-08-30T09:56:00.005-04:00

The longer you do something well... the more likely you are to fall into the trap of defending the status quo. We tend to camp on our successes instead of forge ahead into the unknown and find it exciting. It's new... it's different... it's work... it's RISKY.

One of my team members shared this post with our staff this morning. I just had to pass it on. It was taken from Seth Godin's Blog. It contains great insight into how to avoid being that guy who is reluctant to embrace the new and different.

Are YOU that guy (or gal)? Ask yourself these 12 questions.

When confronted with a new idea, do you:

1. Consider the cost of switching before you consider the benefits?
2. Highlight the pain to a few... instead of the benefits for the many?
3. Exaggerate how good things are now in order to reduce your fear of change?
4. Undercut the credibility, authority or experience of people behind the change?
5. Grab onto the rare thing that could go wrong instead of amplifying the likely thing that will go right?
6. Focus on short-term costs instead of long-term benefits, because the short-term is more vivid for you?
7. Fight to retain benefits and status earned only through tenure and longevity?
8. Embrace an instinct to accept consistent ongoing costs instead of swallowing a one-time expense?
9. Slow implementation and decision making down instead of speeding it up?
11. Embrace sunk costs?
10. Imagine that your competition is going to be as afraid of change as you are? Even the competition that hasn't entered the market yet and has nothing to lose.
11. Emphasize emergency preparation and the expense of a chronic and degenerative condition?
12. Compare the best of what you have now with the possible worst of what a change might bring?

So... how did you do? How many of these questions describe your reaction to change? If you are leading a team. Be aware of these tendencies and call them out when they show up. Challenge your team to press on. Don't look back. Don't squelch a great new idea. There is always a better... more relevant way to express creativity. NEVER let the status quo... be good enough. There's WAY too much at stake.

Great Quote

2011-07-21T16:54:00.002-04:00

"Higher than our ritual (singing songs)... is the simple acknowledgement that, in truth, HE is what we need. Even the simplicity of calling out to Him in times of trouble is considered a truer sacrifice." - David Crowder

NewPointe set-list: 7-10-18

2011-07-20T15:41:00.005-04:00

"Game On" Week 2

We played "Don't Forget The Lyrics" during our family pre-show this week. It was hilarious! We had folks singing everything from Kool and The Gang... to Justin Bieber. Then we rocked an "old school" worship set:

"I Am Free" - Desperation Band
"Everlasting God" - Chris Tomlin
"How Great Is Our God" - Chris Tomlin

We had a great worship experiences at all 3 campuses... a powerful message from John Bunn... and then we closed the service with Natalie Grant's "I Will Not Be Moved".

3D Copier

2011-07-20T15:33:00.003-04:00

I came across this video on Facebook the other day and was just BLOWN AWAY by the technology. I had no idea that anything like this existed (except on Star Trek).

So... what's next?

NewPointe set-list: 7-10-11

2011-07-12T09:31:00.005-04:00

"Game On" Week 1

This was the second week of our new family series called "Game On". Before the service started... we played "Are You Smarter Than A 5th Grader" with the crowd. Bubba Joe showed up to "help out" with the game. It got pretty CRAZY! Everybody (kids and parents) had a BLAST!

Then in the service we played MAD GABS with the band. All of the MAD GABS were titles of songs that had to do with COURAGE (the virtue of the morning). The idea was to have contestants "sound out" the MAD GAB on the screens... and then the band played a short sample of the tune. Here are the songs... and the MAD GABS that we created for the service.

Abba Levi Canful Eye - "I Believe I Can Fly" (R Kelly)
Nut Dings Gone Esta Pus Na How - "Nothing's Gonna Stop Us Now" (Starship)
Aya Duh Tie Grrrrrrrr - "Eye Of The Tiger" (Survivor)

Here are the songs from our worship set at all 3 NewPointe campuses this past weekend:

"All Because of Jesus" - Fee
"Love The Lord" - Lincoln Brewster
"Glory To God" - Fee

True Worship

2011-06-29T09:36:00.000-04:00

I was at our Canton Campus last Thursday night for rehearsal. As we were setting up... I realized that had left a piece of gear out in my car. As I went out to get it... one of our team members was just pulling into the parking lot. Coolant was pouring out of his radiator onto the ground. We took a look at it and realized that he was going to need a mechanic... and it was after hours for most shops in the area. Before we could even get back into the building... 3 or four other team mates (who had heard what was happening) were on their way out to help. They immediately found the problem (a leak in the lower radiator hose)... ran to an auto parts store... each pitched in to buy the part for him... and then repaired the leaky radiator in about 15 minutes. All before rehearsal even got started. Now THAT is what "family" is all about.... and (according to James 1:27) THAT is the kind of worship that makes God happy. Thanks, guys... for being the hands and feet of Christ.

After almost a year...

2011-06-29T09:16:00.009-04:00

... I am going to TRY to get back into blogging on a regular basis. I just had to let some things go for a while... and blogging was one of those. So much has happened in the past 10 months of my life. It has been a very busy and challenging season of my life. So much is changing at NewPointe... and in my personal life. So... I don't know that I will necessarily try to catch everybody up on everything... as much as start with TODAY.

I WILL say that probably the most important thing that has happened to me in the past few months is.... I 'M A GRANDDAD! . And it's the most amazing experience that I have had since my own kids came into this world. Her name is Parker Nevaeh... and she has already brought so much joy to our family. God has blessed us with a cute, healthy little busy-body of a granddaughter. I am sure that there will be many posts in the future... about HER.

So... all that being said... I BLOG.

NewPointe STEPS Video

2010-08-28T11:08:00.003-04:00

This video explains what NewPointe Community Church is all about. It's about leading people into a growing relationship with Jesus Christ through... STEPS. (One of our drummers, Jay Bair did all of the illustrations.) Enjoy.

(The concept for this video came from North Point Church in Atlanta.)

Great Quote

2010-08-24T14:22:00.002-04:00

"When 99% of people doubt your idea, you're either gravely wrong or about to make history." - Scott Belsky (Making Ideas Happen)

GO '10 update video

2010-08-24T13:45:00.001-04:00

Here is a little highlight video of our project for GO '10. Enjoy:

GO '10 @ NewPointe

2010-07-29T10:32:00.004-04:00

This Sunday morning... my family... along with our small group will be mulching, trimming bushes, picking up trash and pulling weeds at East Elementary School in New Philly. You might be saying... "It's Sunday morning... shouldn't you be IN church?" Well, I'm glad you asked. This Sunday... NewPointe Community Church will be leaving the building... to BE the church in our community. We will be leaving our buildings, classrooms, microphones, kids’ areas and more to go and serve. It’s called Community Impact Day... or GO ‘10. We’ll be helping people and organizations in our surrounding communities tackle things like carpentry, painting, weeding, mulching, cleaning, etc. Some will bake and deliver cookies to those who serve us - like the police, hospital, and other emergency services. Others are needed to visit the residents of nursing homes and retirement centers. We do this every summer... and I can't wait to serve along side my small group family. This Sunday... we will worship and celebrate in a very tangible way... by serving others.

My New Hymn Project

2010-04-17T14:30:00.000-04:00

For the past 20 years... my mom has been asking me to make a recording of some of her favorite hymns... songs like "Great Is Thy Faithfulness (her all-time favorite), "It Is Well", and "Blessed Assurance". So I decided to surprise my folks with a CD collection of hymns as a Christmas present.

Now... I didn't want to just set a microphone by the piano and record a poor quality "one take" recording of these songs. So I decided to spend a little extra time on it. It has taken me a few years to get to the place where I could pull this project off in a way that will do these songs justice. I wanted to give my parents a quality sounding CD with new arrangements of these songs.

so... I have been working on this project in my basement studio since mid-October... and I have to admit... I have had a blast working on it. Revisiting these powerful old songs has reminded me of the spiritual foundation that they helped to form in my life over the years. Even though we don't sing these old songs as often these days... my prayer is that the great songs of THIS generation... like "Everlasting God", "Glorious One", "How Great Is Our God" (and hundreds of others) will be the songs that MY kids return to throughout their lives to find strength and hope. Maybe some day those great songs will be included in a collection of "old songs" that our kids decide to record.

I wanted the project to have a more spontaneous feel to it... so I didn't chart any of the songs before recording them. Most of the tracks were recorded in one take... just as I was "feeling" them in the moment. It made the whole recording and programming process a little more difficult... but the end result was a lot more realistic and full of emotion and creative interpretation. I DID have a little help along the way. Brandon played electric and bass guitars on the project... and April sang with me on a couple of the songs too.

Well... after going to all of the effort to create the perfect Christmas gift for my folks... I decided to go ahead and add a few more tracks... "tweak" some of the originals... and create an EP that I could make available to a broader audience. My new album is simply called "Hymns" and also features great old songs like "Amazing Grace", "What A Friend We Have In Jesus", "My Jesus, I Love Thee", "More Love To Thee" and "How Big Is God?".

The EP is now available for download on iTUNES, Amazon.com, CD Baby and about 30 other digital outlets. I am also hoping to make actual CDs available very soon.

American Idol Update: Top 9

2010-04-06T20:05:00.007-04:00

Tonight the top 9 contestants will be singing songs from the Lennon / McCartney catalog. There are a lot of great songs to choose from. It will be interesting to see what these guys to

First up...

Aaron: He is singing "Long And Winding Road". He should be able to handle this one. It doesn't require a huge voice. WOW... he is starting out very pitchy on this... just all over the place. It's weird. It almost looks like he is lip syncing this tune too. The vocal is very isolated (doesn't sound live)... and his body language isn't matching up with the vocal for some reason.

Katie: She is singing "Let It Be". This is a pretty good song for Katie. Her ad-libs are a little on the mechanical side... but over all... one of her better performances of the season. I agree with Simon. That song had more of a country feel... and was the reason it worked for Katie tonight.

Andrew: He will be singing "Can't Buy Me Love". I'm not sure that this was the tune to pull the guitar out for. He could have at least turned it around and played left handed. The performance was OK. He just does the same thing every week now.

Michael: I have always said that Michael could sing anything... but The Beatles could be a real challenge... unless he gets super creative with the arrangement. He is singing "Eleanor Rigby". I like it already. Oh yeah... this is a unique arrangement! I like it! Michael is absolutely the guy to beat in this competition. Best performance of the night... and maybe my favorite Michael moment all season. Great stuff!

Crystal: She is singing "Come Together". She will ROCK this tune! Great pick! The didgeridoo is an interesting touch. It is a bit of a distraction. It just sounds like feedback. Crystal sounds great on this song though. WOW! Even through a head cold... she sounds awesome!

Tim: He is singing "All My Lovin'". At this point... I really don't care what he sings. He needs to get out of the way... and let the vocal competition go on.

Casey: He is singing "Jealous Guy". WOW... this is amazing. This is the first "true to the Beatles" performance. He is the real deal with that guitar strapped on. Great vibe. I love it! Simple... emotional... soulful... and excellent. Best of the night.

Siobhan: She is singing "Across The Universe". She sounds OK on this. It's just too slow and boring (At least that is what Simon is going to say). She's going to have to bring her "A" game from here on out to compete with Crystal at this point in the competition. I still like Siobhan... but she is jut going to have to do something to stand out now.

Lee: He is singing "Hey Jude". Great tune. Here he goes. After Casey's guitar/vocal... this is not even close. He is a little pitchy here at the beginning. I think it is mostly because there's not a lot of instrumentation to carry him. This was not his best performance. Auuuugh.. the BGV girls just butchered the lead in to the chorus. OK... the didgeridoo was interesting... the guy grooving with the bagpipes... just weird.

Going home: Tim... please????

Favorites:

Casey

Michael

Crystal

Ultimate Ears

2010-04-01T15:42:00.014-04:00

I have been looking into getting custom in-ear monitors for some time now. Most that I have found are just WAY out of the acceptable price range. So... when we went searching on-line for a DEAL... and I think we came up with a pretty amazing solution.

We found a company in Florida that will take ANY in-ear phones that you provide and turn them into custom ears. You just provide them with a mold of your ears... and your own pair of ear-buds. They take care of the rest. Ultimate Ears was one of the companies that we considered. Their custom in-ears were super expensive... but I found a pair of Ultimate Ears Triple Fi 10 professional ear-buds (not molded of course) for a very good price on e-Bay. I made an appointment to visit my audiologist to have molds of my ears made. And next... I will send them both off to this company in Florida where they will create a custom shell around my existing Ultimate Ears.

Well... I just got back from the audiologist where I had those custom molds made. It was a pretty interesting process. Here are a few close-up pics:

In the waiting room with my Ultimate Ears Triple Fi 10s

In the audiologist's office.

He is inserting a plug on a string to retrieve the mold after the material has hardened.

Now he is filling my ear canal with the mixture.

This is what the substance looked like as it was hardening in my ear. It only took about 10 minutes for it to "set". It was the quietest 10 minutes of my day.

The finished mold. Pretty weird looking... huh?

Hopefully in a couple of weeks... I'll have new custom in-ear monitors. Woohoo! Can't wait!

American Idol Update: Top 10

2010-03-30T20:21:00.007-04:00

It's Soul and R&B night on Idol... and the mentor is Usher. Tonight's the night that Crystal promised something a little different. That should be interesting... eh? The contestants with the edge tonight: Lee (soulful - this is HIS night) Michael (smooth R&B), Casey (soulful) and Crystal (raw and soulful). Here we go.

First up....

Siobhan: She is singing Chaka Khan's "Through The Fire". Didn't get off to a very good start. She's a lot better than that. It was just an off night. I still like Siobhan a lot.

Casey: He is singing "Hold On, I'm Coming". WOW! That horn section is HOT! He sounds great... but again... he tends to get a little distracted by the guitar. Nice guitar solo. I still like his voice. Strong performance. Probably one of my favorite Casey performances of the season.

Michael: He will be singing India Arie "Ready For Love". This song is so laid back. He sounds REALLY good on it though. Of course... Michael could sing just about anything and sound good. Big Mike has a lot of momentum right now. He is a very confident dude. Great job, Mike!

Di Di: She is singing "What Becomes Of The Broken Hearted?". I hope she makes it through this song. After the Usher interview... I don't know. Hmmmm... I don't know. Her voice was sort of "matter of fact" on this tune. This song requires some "emotion". It was just too dry. Oh well... not the best choice for her. Even though I don't like Katie's voice... Di Di will probably be the next female to go.

Tim: This should be his week to go. Yet another guy who is sticking around a lot longer than I can believe. He is singing Anita Baker's "Sweet Love". He is going to totally bomb this tune. He just doesn't have any "soul" in his voice. Here he goes: Ouch! OK... DONE. Bye bye, Tim.

I loved Simon's response: It doesn't matter what anybody thinks about Tim's voice. He smiles... people vote... and he'll be here next week. Who cares?

Andrew: He is singing Chris Browns "Forever". Cool Cajon and string section out on stage with Andrew. It's OK... better than the past few weeks... but still nothing new from Andrew. Same sound... same lack of dynamics... same ol'... same ol'.

Katie: She will be singing "Chain of Fools". WOW! She is brave to take on Aretha... but we'll see. I can't help but think of LeAnn Rimes every time that I hear Katie sing. So I have a hard time hearing her sing all of these different styles. WOW... I just don't like her voice on this tune. She could sing country... that's it... only country. Kara is a big fan of Katie. She thinks she is an R&B/soul singer. I don't get it. Randy compared her to a young Christina Aguilera??? No way. Not even close. I agree with Simon on Katie... 100% Country... or nothing.

Lee: He is singing "Treat Her Like A Lady". Great song choice. He sounds great! There's not much of a melody to the tune though. The judges will probably pick that apart. Maybe 5 notes in the whole song? He is still in his "wheelhouse". Good stuff. Maybe even the best of the night.

Crystal: She's bringing something "different" tonight. She is singing Gladys Knight's "Midnight Train To Georgia"... on PIANO! Cool! She makes it look so easy. She sounds great on this song. Oh... and now she is leaving the piano. OK... that IS different. You can tell that she is not quite as comfortable without the instrument. Still... that was record-able.

Aaron: He is singing Bill Withers' "Ain't No Sunshine When She's Gone". Again... another song that is probably way to big and soulful for his little thin voice. We'll see what he does with it. He has such a nervous vibrato. It really takes away from his pitch and the whole listen-ability. I don't know....

My picks...

Going home: Tim or Aaron

Tonight's favorites:

Crystal

Lee

Michael (and Casey)

2010-03-30T16:34:00.006-04:00

Rumor has it... that Nashville Christian recording artist, Kim Hill is going to be hanging out at NewPointe for our Easter services this weekend.

OK... so it's not really a rumor...

It's True!!!

A couple of weeks ago... I was updating my Facebook status while sitting in our Weekend Design Team meeting (Which is what you do during Weekend Design Team meeting... right?). I had just posted the following: "...in Weekend Design Team meeting. We are working on NewPointe Easter services this afternoon." when Kim commented: "Don't you need a good chick singer from Nashville??" I said, "Sure... come on up!"

And so she is!

Kim will be singing the opening song (Which you will NOT want to miss. So get there early!)... sitting in with the band for the worship set... and then singing another song before the message.

How cool is that!?!?

So... make plans to attend one of our 4 weekend services at the Dover campus. They are Saturday night at 7:00 and Sunday morning at 7:30 - 9:00 and 11:00. Get there early... we are expecting HUGE crowds!

See you there!

'Nuff Said....

2010-03-26T10:37:00.011-04:00

Tonight's big game has me a little "torn". Growing up in Tennessee... my blood is definitely orange... but I am a Buckeye fan too. I have lived in Ohio for 14 years now! Why does it have to come to this?? Why do I have to choose?? Oh well....

GO BUCK-A-TEERS!

American Idol Update: Top 11

2010-03-23T19:47:00.007-04:00

For the record... I totally disagreed with the decision to send Lacey Brown home last week. There were 3 or 4 vocalists that needed to leave the competition before Lacey. I think (as an artist) she was misunderstood. I didn't; however, feel like she was worth a "save". Oh well... enough about that.

Tonight's show features the remaining 11 contestants singing songs from the Billboard No.1 Hit list... and they will be mentored by... Miley Cyrus? Really? Miley? Let's see... Stevie Wonder, Slash, Gwen Stefani, David Foster and... Miley Cyrus? O... k...a...y. Here we go...

First up...

Lee: He will be singing "The Letter". This is right in his "wheel house". I like the horn section out front. Very cool. I like his voice a lot. He is a little pitchy on the chorus though. He is not a big time performer... but the dude can sing. Way to go, Lee! Great start to the show.

Paige: She is STILL here??? I thought she was gone 2 or 3 weeks ago. Hmmmm.... She will be singing the Phil Collins tune, "Against All Odds". Great tune... this one should do the job. : ) The melody of this tune is way too "exposed" until the big drum fill and the band drops in. You know what I mean? Her pitch will STAND OUT on this one... big time. Yup... there she goes. Done. Nuff said.

Simon and Kara said that she just stopped competing somewhere along the way? I'm not sure that she ever should have been in the competition. I'm just sayin'.

Tim: is going to sing Queen's "Crazy Little Thing Called Love". I can hear him singing this tune. Good choice for him. Let's see what he does with it. Here he goes. You can tell that he is not comfortable with all of the choreography... (if that's what it is). Awkward. It's a distraction at this point. This the best that I have heard Tim sing though (But that only shows how bad the other performances have been). Still... possibly the next guy to go.

Aaron: will be singing "Don't Want To Miss A Thing" by Aerosmith. OK... I typed that before the commercial... just guessing what tune he would choose. Woohoo! I was right! Again... big song for a guy with a little voice. Hmmm. Well see. He sounds pretty good on this tune so far. Yeah... that's what I was afraid of... he didn't save anything for the bridge. Ouch! The high note at the end of the bridge was a little painful. He did the best that he could with THAT tune though. Especially being sick. Still... home soon.

Crystal: This girl can SANG! She will be singing (no surprise) Janice Joplin's "Bobby McGee". Crystal is a pro already. Very nice! I love the dynamics... the tone... the soul... the emotion in her voice. WOW! Best of the night! I just hope people don't stop voting for her because they think she's safe all the way to the end. That happened for Daughtry and about 5 other great vocalists during past seasons.

Michael: OK... so Ryan said that Michael is going to show his "romantic side". I am guessing that he will do a tune by... Hmmm... either Luther or Marvin... let's see... after the commercials. OK... so it's Percy (or Michael Bolton - my favorite version- and the #1). He is singing "When A Man Loves A Woman". Oh yeah... WOW! He will knock this one OUT OF THE PARK! Smooth as silk. Great vocal. Oh yeah... good stuff! Yeah, Michael!

Andrew: will be singing Marvin. Somebody just HAD TO. He's singing "I Heard It Through The Grape Vine". His voice reminds me a little of Jamiroquai. That was much better than the last 2 or 3 weeks... but still... I don't know. I think he might be safe as long as Aaron and Tim are there... but that's about it.

Katie: is singing "Big Girls Don't Cry". Now here's a young vocalist with an "old" voice... singing a current tune. Bad song choice... if you ask me. It's like listening to Lee Ann Rimes sing the tune. It just doesn't match up. I DO NOT agree with Kara. She does not belong in that genre. MAYBE country. I don't know.

Casey: is next. He will be singing "Power of Love" by Huey Lewis. I like Casey's voice... I LOVE Huey Lewis! Big fan! He sounds great on this. The only problem is... that he never really "sells a song" with the guitar around his neck. He is the best guitarist ever on AI... and he is a really good singer... but the two just don't compliment each other. I still liked his VOCAL a lot. maybe a favorite of the night?

Di Di: She is singing Linda Ronstadt's "You're No Good". She is starting out a little sharp from the very beginning. If "quirky vocal" is not getting the vote this season (ex. Lacey and Lilly already out) she may not last as long as I once thought.

You know... the judges tell them what they want to see them do next week... then when they try it... they get slammed for it. I don't get it. Sometimes it just seems like a "no win" situation.

Siobhan: She is singing Stevie's "Superstitious". WOW. Talking about taking on a BIG SONG. She is definitely one of the best female vocalists left though. If anybody could pull it off... I don't think she really needs to do the screaming high note EVERY week. She is really reminding me of Adam Lambert in that way... and it really gets old. The only difference is... Siobhan is not a "one trick pony" like Adam.

Tonight's picks:

Going home: Paige (Please? Pretty please?)

Favorites:

Crystal

Michael

Casey (or Lee... or Siobhan. They were all kinda in the same category tonight.)

Until next week.....

God's Chisel

2010-03-23T11:01:00.006-04:00

This past Sunday... our very own John Bunn and JD Lowry performed "God's Chisel" (a sketch originally performed by The Skit Guys) as a part of "The Me I Want To Be" series @ NewPointe. It was amazing! Powerful sketch... powerful performance.

Two of my favorite lines from that sketch...

God: "I made you good... be good."

John: "God, I've let you down so many times."
God: "You were never holding me up. I hold YOU up with my victorious righteous right hand. Don't you forget that."

American Idol Update: Top 12

2010-03-16T22:18:00.005-04:00

Tonight... the top 12 will perform songs by the Rolling Stones. There are a couple of bluesy voices in the group... but there aren't any true rockers... so this should be interesting. I have been outside all evening riding my bike, playing a little basketball with the girls and enjoying the nice weather... and to be honest... it was a struggle to come inside and watch tonight's show. I'm just not that into this season. Oh well...

First up...

Michael: I am walking in a little late... so Michael is already singing. I wasn't really even paying any attention to what he was singing... but he sounded really good on the ending. Simon didn't care for the performance. I must have missed something. I thought he sounded great. Oh well... Michael is definitely the front runner of the guys.

Di Di: She is performing "Play With Fire". She sounds pretty good on this tune. She pushes a little too hard on the big notes. Her voice isn't built for that kind of power. I still like the quirkiness of her voice though. I liked it.

Casey: He's singing "It's All Over Now". He's going to be rocking a little slide guitar on this tune. I like his voice on this song. Very bluesy. He seems a little distracted by the guitar though. On some of his bigger moments... he actually pulls away to play a riff on the guitar. Hmmm.... I like it when he plays and sings... but I'll bet he would sound better without it though.

Lacey: After hearing her story... I would have thought that they had the wrong vocalist's bio. She does not appear to be an introvert at all. She appears to be very comfortable on stage. Lacey will be singing "Ruby Tuesday". Seems like a good choice for her "Leigh Nash-esque" voice. Her pitchiness would normally be a negative... but it is so much a part of her sound with that quirky voice that you just accept it. I liked it... for what it was. : )

Andrew: This guy is fading for me. A lot like Danny Gokey last season... but Andrew is fading much faster and much earlier in the season. He hasn't been able to bring anything new to the show since Hollywood. Very forgettable vocalist at this point. Not the worst of the 6 guys... but getting there quickly. He is singing "Give Me Shelter". It is very pitchy. He's really not "selling" the song either. Not a good performance. Again... pretty forgettable.

Katie: I just don't see her performing a Stone's tune. This is going to be interesting. She is doing "Wild Horses". I think (at 17) she is still developing as a vocalist. She has tons of potential... but this competition is just too big for her. I can see her recording a country album in about 3 or 4 more years. I didn't care for her performance tonight.

Tim: He is singing "Under My Thumb". I thought he was gone last week... but he is actually sounding pretty good on this song. He picked a great song for his weak voice. Still not crazy about it. Not a strong ending.

Siobhan: I really like this girls voice. She is very confident in her ability too. That will play big as the competition goes on. She sounds a little nasally in the beginning. I love how she is selling the song though. This is big. Very dramatic. She is knocking it out of the park. Best and most creative performance of the night! WOW I think she may be the female vocalist to beat. Watch out Crystal!

Lee: He will be singing "Beast of Burden". Oh... come on... another mellowed out arrangement of a Rolling Stones tune. Where are the rockers this season? I like this guys voice... but he is struggling a little with pitch and confidence. Last notes were rough. I still like this guy though.

Paige: I really thought that she should have been sent home last week. Maybe this will be the week. She is singing "Honky Tonk Women". Finally an arrangement that sounds a little more like the Stones. She doesn't sound too bad on this tune. I like the raspiness to her voice. That's new. This is the best she has sounded all season. Ohhhhh... she has laryngitis. Well... when she gets well... I will have to go back to not being a fan. Sickness may have gotten her through this week.

Aaron: Is singing "Angie". He sounds pretty good on this song. He couldn't have picked a better song for his voice. Much like Tim (with a weak voice)... he chose a song that he can handle. Safe... but smart. Much better than last week.

Crystal: This girl can sing... and play. She is doing "You Can't Always Get What You Want". Maybe she will finally bring some edginess to the show tonight. Something about her voice reminds me of Jennifer Nettles (Sugarland). She has that "sassy" sound to her voice. She sounds pretty good on this song. Not incredible... but really good. She's a performer.

Here are my picks for this week...

Going Home: Paige or Tim

My favs (in this order)...

Siobhan

Crystal

Michael

Great Quote

2010-03-10T12:18:00.005-05:00

"Of all people, Christians should be addicted to quality and integrity in every area, not looking for excuses for second-best. We must resist this onslaught. We must demand higher standards. We must look for people with real creative integrity and talent, or we must not dabble in these creative fields at all. All of this does not mean that there is no room for the first halting steps, for experimentation, for mistakes and for development. But it does mean that there is no room for lazy, entrenched, year-after-year, established mediocrity, unchanging and unvaried."

Franky Schaeffer (from his book: Addicted To Mediocrity)

American Idol Update: Top 8 girls

2010-03-09T19:57:00.011-05:00

The top 8 girls are performing tonight. They all want to be in the TOP 12... but 2 of them will be going home this week. No pressure... right? Let's see how they do.

First up...

Katie Stevens: This girl CAN sing, but hasn't really wow-ed anybody since her audition. She is going to be singing Kelly Clarkson's "Break Away". Hmmm. This better be good. She has a very rich tone for a 17 year old... but her pitch is a little "if-y". She's not much of a performer either. This is not a very strong performance to kick things off. It won' t help her this week.

Siobhan: is singing "House of The Rising Sun"... strange? Nice a cappella beginning. I don't care much for the song... but she sounds great. Great voice. I think she may be the girl to beat.

Lacey: Is singing "The Story" by Belinda Carlisle. WOW... this song has one of the most difficult melodies ever. Accuracy is everything on this tune. She is doing a great job with it though. Cool vibe... nice job! I liked it.

Katelyn: Carole King's "I Feel The Earth Move". She has a softer voice. She will need a little more "soul" in her voice... more power... to pull this one off. It's just not working. Not a great performance.

Di Di: She's singing a Fleetwood Mac tune tonight. I like what she is doing with this song. She is definitely stronger with the guitar in her hands. The only other time that she has sounded good on the show was when she played the guitar Hollywood week. So far she has not been able to perform with the band though. That will probably hurt her along the way.... but I think she's safe this week. She sounded pretty good on this tune.

Paige: She's doing Charlie Chaplin's "smile". She looks nervous. She sounds nervous. Oooh... this is not good at all. This may be her last week on the show. I'm just sayin'....

Crystal: Tonight... she is singing "Give Me One Reason" by Tracy Chapman. WOW... she sounds great on this! Perfect song choice. Too bad she's not doing her own guitar work though. After that intro... I thought maybe she was going to shred. Still... really good stuff. Maybe the best of the night! Very nice.

Lilly: She is singing Patsy Cline's song, "I Fall To Pieces"? OK... before she ever gets started... this is going to be weird. Talk about bad song choice... and the mandolin is not helping anything. She does still have the uniqueness factor going for her. I just don't know.

Tonight.... I have to go with (not necessarily in this order)...

Lacey

Siobhan

and Crystal.

When Life Hands You Lemons...

2010-03-04T11:33:00.011-05:00

...Innovate

Earlier in the year... we were informed that we would not be able to use the auditoriums (this past weekend) at either of our new campuses. School sponsored events were scheduled at both locations on the same weekend. WOW! What are the chances?

So... your first thought is... "But that is where we meet every week. Where do we go? All of our equipment is optimized for THOSE spaces. What are we going to do?" Then... after that initial reaction... you just have to get creative and find a way to make it work. That is all CREATIVITY is...problem solving... right? So... after a few of our world famous NewPointe meetings... and many multisyllabic words uttered from our tech guys... a plan was devised. At our Millersburg campus (usually meets in the high school auditorium) the service was moved to the middle school auditorium... and we didn't miss a beat. At our Louisville campus... the service was moved to the CAFETERIA and had what we called "Cafe Church". It was a HUGE hit! We will definitely do it again.

Here are a couple of photos from "Cafe Church" in Louisville:

Check it out: Very cool "unplugged" worship vibe... everyone sitting around tables... unbelievable food at every table... white paper table covers that you could write on with markers (provided)... a big upstage screen for the video elements and the message. It worked! So what could be perceived as a HUGE "set-back" (early on)... turned into a fantastic experience for everybody.

Again... when life hands you lemons... INNOVATE.

Creative Music Video

2010-03-03T14:28:00.002-05:00

I used to LOVE to do stuf like this (on a MUCH, MUCH smaller scale) when I was a kid. This is amazing. Pay close attention to all of the little details and the timing of it all. You may want to watch it several times. I did. Check it out:

Thanks, Kimberly Payne for sharing this video with me. Great stuf!

NewPointe Songwriting Session

2010-03-03T09:33:00.010-05:00

Every other Tuesday afternoon... I will be meeting with our other two worship leaders to write. It is something that we have been wanting to do for a long time... but have never actually "scheduled" the time to do it. The plan is to write "something" every time we meet (even if it's not very good). The idea is to make ourselves create, shape and craft lyric and melodies as long as it takes... until a song is formed. Along the way... we believe that God is going to take that effort... and bless it... and use it to create original worship songs. Songs that we can incorporate into NewPointe's worship experience... and then (maybe even later this year) record them.

This was our first time to write together... so we did a lot of brainstorming and talking about how we might approach the writing process. Here is a little snapshot of our session yesterday.

Step 1: We prayed. Our prayer was that there were no selfish motives for writing and that what came up with would be for God's glory not our own.
Step 2: We talked about the "concept" for the song that were going to be working on. For yesterday... it was worship song to go along with a message about Jesus - The Shepherd that will be included a series that starts on Easter Sunday.
Step 3: We began to write words and phrases (anything that came to mind) on a huge mirror in the room that we were working in. They were words that describe Jesus (our shepherd)... words that reflect how we feel knowing that He is our shepherd... words that represent the opposite (or why we NEED a shepherd). These words may... or may not ever be a part of the lyric. It was just an exercise to get the creativity flowing. I also poll-ed my FaceBook friends for some thoughts before we met.
Step 4: We read scripture. We wanted to make sure that our inspiration was coming from the right source. : ) We read mostly from The Message translation of the Bible. Great stuff! It became the foundation for everything else that took place in that meeting.
Step 5: Then we began to share ideas. For this particular song... it became sort of a "lyric first" composition. It doesn't always happen that way. We could have started out with a really great melody or a single musical riff... but it just naturally flowed this way. We talked about the flow of the lyric... and the story that it would tell... and about how we are going to "set up" the chorus. It wasn't long before a melody and chord progressions were forming... and we we began to see something that resembled a song.

I am excited about what will come out of these sessions. Please pray for us as we continue to write songs that will reflect the hearts of our NewPointe family... and songs that will invite people into God's presence. Someday... we hope to have a whole community of NewPointe songwriters. Wouldn't that be AMAZING?!?

American Idol Update: Top 20

2010-03-02T22:15:00.002-05:00

The guys are singing tonight instead of the girls. Evidently Crystal Bowersox was rushed to the hospital... and they changed the girls performance to tomorrow night. Hey... I figured American Idol would just say, "Tough... we've got a schedule to follow". They are actually human! Well... tonight the guys continue singing from the Billboard charts. As always... I am blogging in "real time" AND... these are just my opinions. You don't have to agree. Here we go:

Michael: This guy is HUGE! He benches 505!!! Are you kidding me? Did you see him curling Aaron Kelly? Impressive. He is singing "This Is A Man's World". WOW! He sounds fantastic on this tune. I love it! This could be a professional recording. Perfect song choice. Michael has definitely set the bar for tonight's show. NOW... I'm a fan.

John: He's doing a John Mayer tune, "Gravity" tonight. Here he goes: He has a nice tone. Pitch is a little unfocused. The song was pretty boring too. Hmmm. Not very strong.

Casey: He chose Gavin Degraw's "I Don't Want To Be". Great! He's playing his guitar on this one. Casey can shred. He is the first legit guitarist I have ever heard on American Idol. Here he goes: OK... I think I had rather hear him play... than sing tonight. He's good... but not anywhere near a Chris Daughtry rock vocal. AND... it IS a vocal competition. Simon is right on. Not enough grit to be a true rocker.

Alex: He's singing "Everybody Knows" (John Legend). I like his voice. Cool tone. The performance is a little boring... but he sounds really good. Great advice from Simon.

Todrick: He's doing a Tina Turner tune. Hmmm.... interesting. This guy is really into doing female artist tunes. Let's see what he does with this one. He is a little lose on this. I'm not a fan of this guy. I don't think he'll last much longer.

Jermaine: Sure hope this song picks up. Another sleeper. This sounds like an Al Jarreau arrangement of a Marvin Gaye tune. Oooh... the ad lib section is PAINFUL. He was doing OK... until then. Simon said that he will go to church with Jermaine. Woohoo!

Andrew: He is guitar-less tonight. He's doing a James Morrison tune. What is up with all of the slow tunes? His voice reminds me a little of Danny Gokey. He is not nailing this tune tonight. His pitch is everywhere. WOW. Surprising. I think Michael Lynche has got this night hands down. I am a fan of Andrew... but this performance just didn't do it for me. I wonder if he could hear himself. Weird.

Aaron: He's doing "My Girl". This has always been mine and Abby's tune. Interesting vibrato. I like the quality of his voice. His tone is very pure. The runs that he is doing are too much of the same thing over and over. Great vibrato??? Did Kara just say... GREAT vibrato??? WOW! I thought it sounded "nervous" and uncontrolled. Oh well.....

Tim: He is just not a very strong vocalist. The performance was very forgettable. Can you say... gone. OK... Simon just shocked me. He liked him?

Lee: WOW... I like this guys voice. The higher notes are a little bit of a struggle for him tonight. Ouch! The longer this song goes on... he is just not reaching those notes. You can tell that Lee can "bring it". It's just not happening with this song tonight.

Well.. again... (surprizingly) Michael Lynche was the only strongest performance of the night. He led off... and nobody could improve on his performance. I DO home that these guys pick it up a little from here on out. So far... it's been a pretty boring season. The girls are tomorrow night. Let's see if they can raise the bar a little higher.

Until then....

A Little Reminder of Just How Small We Are...

2010-02-27T17:54:00.008-05:00

This is a photo taken from the ISS Expedition earlier today by astronaut, Soichi Noguchi. What an incredible shot of the earth at sunset with the planet Venus in the background. It is a great reminder of how small we really are... and how BIG our God is. The words of an obscure old song come to mind. It is actually a song that I am including on a "hymns" project that I am in the process of recording (and hoping to release sometime soon). The song is called "How Big Is God". Here is the first verse and chorus of that song:

Verse 1:
Though men may strife to go beyond the reach of space
To go beyond the distant shimmering stars
This world's a room so small within my Master's house
The open sky... but a portion of his yard

Chorus:
How big is God... How big and wide his vast domain
To try to tell... these lips can only start
He's big enough to rule this mighty universe
Yet small enough to live within my heart

"We are worshiping an unrivaled, uncontested God of all kind of might and power and glory and awe! There is none like Him, anywhere in all of creation!” - Louie Giglio

The Me I Want To Be

2010-02-26T12:14:00.007-05:00

We just started a new series @ NewPointe called "The Me I Want To Be"... and I can tell (already) that it is going to be a powerful series. You will always be you – a growing, healthy you or a languishing you – but God did not create you to be anybody else. When you flourish... you become more you. You become more that person God had in mind when he thought you up. You don’t just become holier. You become you-ier.

Our Video team put together this amazing bumper video to go along with the series. Wes and Keith: Great job! What I love about this video is that... in less than 2 minutes... it completely sums up the "big idea" of the series. We all have "stuff" in our lives that tends to "define" us. We are lazy, greedy, stressed out... you name it... and that is the "me" that we have settled for. BUT what is the "me" that God wants me to be? What would it look like if I could move closer to THAT "me". I want to be more generous. I want to be more compassionate. I want to talk about Jesus more. I want to be a better husband and dad. Whatever it is... you don't have to stay where you are.

Be sure to check out the BLOG that we created to go along with this series (www.thechangeinside.me) and then also join us for a 40 day fast. The BLOG is updated daily with new devotionals and scriptures to guide us through the adventure. So check back every day to see what's new. It is going to be a series that absolutely stretches us all. Don't miss a single week. If you can't join us at one of our 3 campuses... join us LIVE on line each week at 9:00 and 11:00 at www.newpointe.org.

American Idol Update: Top 24

2010-02-25T23:24:00.000-05:00

I am so bummed that I didn't get to see the guys sing last night. I heard that I didn't miss much though. They will narrow the field a little tonight by eliminating 2 girls and 2 guys. If I had to chose the 4 based on what I have heard of them so far... I would have to go with Haley, Janell (or Lacey) and ANY of the guys except for Andrew or Casey.

Here we go: I always hate those choral sounding group songs that they make them do to open the show. They all look so uncomfortable... and it's pre-recorded... so what's the point. AND... this song is a poor choice anyway. Please make it go away!

OK... the first round of girls:

Siobhan - safe (I thought she played it too safe Tuesday night. She can really belt it out... but she chose to go soft. I also didn't think that it was fair that the mix was so bad for her song. It sounded like the band was muted... and all we were hearing was the "bleed" in her mic. She sounded great though. She is probably my favorite female vocalist at this point in the competition.)
Haeley - safe (Really??? I thought she was outta here.)
Michelle - safe (The best performance for Tuesday night. Good voice. She carries herself like a seasoned performer too. Don't know how versatile she is... but she is could be a contender.)
Katelyn - safe (I thought she was true to the tune that she picked. Another contender.
Katie - safe (She can sing... I'm not a fan... but she can sing. That song was WAY too big for her)
Janell - gone (She sounded so much better with her guitar Hollywood week. WOW... what happened??? I guess she just couldn't pull it off with the LIVE band. I knew that she would be going home tonight though. It was pretty bad Tuesday night.)

Allison Iraheta is singing tonight. Cool! She was my pick for last season. I still think that she would have been a better choice (long-term) than Kris Allen. I love her voice. I love the raspy-ness. She sound a little more raspy than normal tonight. I wonder if she is sick? I hated the tune... but I am still a fan of that voice.

Paige - safe (She was a little "screamy" on Tuesday night... but she can sing.)
Lacey - safe (She had a bad night Tuesday... her pitch was all over he place. I thought she might get eliminated tonight.)
Lilly - safe (She still has the quirky/unique vote from America... but that will get old after another couple of weeks.)
Crystal - safe (Again... I'm not a fan... but she CAN sing. What was up with the harmonica? That was horrible. I have heard a two-year-old spit in a harmonica and it sounded better.)
Didi - safe (Another quirky voice. That is popular so far this season. Again... I think it will get old. Especially when she has to stretch to do a genre that is out of her range.)
Ashley - gone (I think she got voted off because she was just trying to hard. She was over-singing and her pitch was all over the place on Tuesday night. She also picked a ridiculous tune to sing. ONLY Leona can sing that one.)

The guys: (Didn't get to hear any of them sing last night.)

Michael - safe
John - safe
Aaron - safe
Todrick - safe
Tim - safe
Joe - gone (I don't remember much about him.)

Kris Allen sings next. I have to admit... I am not a big Kris Allen fan. I like him as a person... but not feeling him as an artist. He's just OK.

Casey - safe (Great!)
Jermaine - safe
Lee - safe
Andrew - safe (YES!... all the way, baby!)
Tyler - gone (Good)
Alex - safe

Well... there you have it. You know... I have heard people say "This is the best season ever!"... or "Best talent ever on American Idol."... but I have to strongly disagree. I sure hope they bring their "A" games pretty soon. So far... Andrew is the only one with "the goods" to go the distance. I am afraid I'm losing interest in the show already. AND Ellen... is a total waste. She brings absolutely nothing to the judging of American Idol. I don't even think she is all that funny yet. Maybe at some point she will bring HER "A" game. Come on, Ellen... at least be funny!

Oh well... until next week....

Married Life LIVE

2010-02-23T19:50:00.023-05:00

Our big Married Life LIVE event was this past Saturday night @ NewPointe... and we had an AMAZING NIGHT. The marriage essential this time around was Cultivating Communication. We went with a western theme: "The Good, the Bad and The Ugly". It was so much fun! My wife, April, did the decorations for the event this time around... and she knocked it out of the park. Here are a couple of pics of some of the decorations:

We always have a great time putting this event together. It takes a lot of hard work, creativity and hundreds of volunteer hours to pull it off... but the "pay-off" for us is seeing hundreds of married couples having a great time... making new friends... and letting down their "guard" to hear God's truths about how to work at a healthy God-centered marriage. It just doesn't get any better than that.

Speaking of all of those hours of preparation... the part of the event that I get to lead is working with the MLL Band. I think we have the best team in the world to work with. The guys that we had lined up for this MLL band came out on a Tuesday night to practice the music... in the middle of our biggest blizzard yet. Roads were closed... ALL other activities at the church had been canceled... and these guys braved the weather (One team member drove all the way from Canton [45 minutes away] in the stuff) to show up for rehearsal. In spite of what was happening outside with the weather... we had one of the most FUN rehearsals ever! Here are a few pics from rehearsal:

Rodney messin' with Q's tuning

Jeff sharing some of his musical wisdom

Dennielle and Wes going over the vocals to "I Gotta Feeling"

We always have a lot of fun music at MLL... and this one was no exception. We opened the event with The Black Eyed Peas' "I Gotta Feeling"... The throughout the night we played tunes like "Shout", "Listen To The Music", "Jive Talkin'", "Smoke On The Water" and "Kiss Me Through The Phone". We closed with a great tune called "Let My Words". Dennielle did a fantastic job with that song. Then... as the crowd was leaving... we sang a very "Roy Rogers-esque" version of "Happy Trails" complete with clip-clops. The whole night was amazing. There were 3 NewPointe original videos based on the Too Light/Too Heavy commercials. We played a couple of games with a green screen. We ate a lot of great food. Our drama team had a hilarious sketch to set up the message... and then... Kevin West shared an incredible message on ALWAYS speaking words of value into our spouse's life. POWERFUL! Our next Married Life LIVE is Saturday, October the 16th. Make plans to be there! Until then... here are a few more pics of Saturday night's event:

Cool Creative Video

2010-02-11T11:19:00.004-05:00

This is one of the coolest, and most creative videos that I have seen in a long time. It is an advertisement for Rethink Communications. The content is extremely inspirational for creative thinkers. Check it out:

American Idol Update: Hollywood Week - Day 2

2010-02-10T19:50:00.004-05:00

It's very unusual that I am home on a Wednesday night to see the show... but I am leading worship at our Louisville campus this weekend and our band rehearsals are on Thursday nights. So... I will actually get to see one of my very first Wednesday night shows ever.

It's group night... and who will survive to go on to the next round?

It is always interesting to see what the contestants come up with when they are forced to collaborate. When they are expected to agree on a song... learn harmonies (which most have never done)... choreography... AND actually blend with 3 or 4 other vocalists. Now THAT'S when the real drama begins. I just hope the judges are able to see through all of that junk... and still send the best on to the next round. So far... my favorites are: Andrew Garcia, Casey James, Katie Stevens, Janell Wheeler and Mark Labriola.

Once again... I am going to blog as I watch the show. Now... these are just my opinions. You don't have to agree with me. So here we go:

Yep... the drama has begun. Auugh! Enough with the fighting already... get on with the music. It is amazing to me... how many really good singers cannot harmonize. WOW! It sure doesn't HELP them on group night. So the first 20 minutes was dedicated to nothing but... DRAMA.

Well... it's all happening so fast that it's hard to really post any details of what I'm hearing. It seems that for many of these groups... all of them are making it through.

Mary Powers is really getting on my nerves. The whole "taking charge" thing is way over the top. Nobody wants to listen to her... including the AI staff. AND... that team is absolutely falling apart. No surprises there.

No Way! Mark dropped his words! He's done! Ladies and Gentlemen: Mark Labriola is officially OUT of the competition. That dude could "bring it"! What a bummer. I guess Simon's no tolerance rule is in effect. He said,"If you forget the words... you're going home". I just can't believe that it is happening to Mark... .and yet so many average vocalists are moving on to next round.

Janell sounded great! She's through!

Andrew rocked it! Great! He's through!

Casey nailed his part too! (OK... the 3 Men and A Baby group was "stacked"! They all went through.)

OK... here is Mary's group The Dreamers. WOW! They are pretty bad! They put Mary through to the next round? No way! I didn't think ANY of them would go on.

Well... 71 made it through to next week... but only 24 will continue from there. It should be a good show next week. I am just bummed that Mark won't be there. Oh well... see you then!

American Idol Update: Hollywood Week - Day 1

2010-02-09T20:53:00.007-05:00

It's Hollywood Week... and I am going to begin giving my "take" on the show starting with tonight's competition. I will be blogging in real time. I have a couple of favorites that I am really hoping to hear tonight. We'll see.

OK... so here we go:

Katie Stevens - Great voice... smooth vocal... a lot of style. A little strange to watch. Don't know why... but she makes me "uncomfortable".

Andrew Garcia - This guy is my favorite so far. He already has a very unique and creative approach. Here he goes: WOW! I LOVE this guy. What a great interpretation of Paula's tune! Andrew will go all the way to the end, baby! All the way! Great singer... great performer! Definitely my early pick.

Janell Wheeler - I like the raspy quality to her voice. She's pretty strong.

Lilly Scott - She sounds like an old jazz singer? I don't know? There is something that I like about her. It's kind of like listening to Zooey Deschanel as she sang "Baby, It's Cold Outside" on Elf.

Michael Lynch - I'm diggin' his version of the John Mayer tune. Nice voice. His tone is a little to thin. His voice reminds me of season 2 winner, Ruben Studdard. I think his voice could get old on a whole song though. I don't know. We'll see how he does.

Casey James - WOW! The first "legit" guitarist on American Idol... EVER. Great voice too! I like him a lot. Casey will make things interesting.

Didi Benami - Yet another very unique vocalist. She reminds me a little of a Colbie Caillat... or Sara Bareilles.

Crystal Bowersox - How does such a huge voice to come out that small frame? She can "bring it" though. The crowd really enjoyed her performance.

Until tomorrow night.....

Weekends @ NewPointe: Set-list

2010-01-26T22:21:00.005-05:00

As we continue our "Monopolized" series @ NewPointe... here are the songs that we used this past Sunday and for the coming weekend:

Last week...

"Livin' On A Prayer" - Bon Jovi

"Rise and Sing" - Fee

"Amazing Grace / My Chains Are Gone" - Chris Tomlin

"Surrender" Lincoln Brewster

This next weekend...

"If I Had A Million Dollars" - BNL : )

"I Am Free" - Desperation Band

"Marvelous Light" - Charlie Hall

"Came To The Rescue" - Hillsong United

"Freedom Is Here" - Hillsong United

Be sure to join us for each week of this powerful series @ NewPointe. If you can't make it to one of our 3 campuses... you can always catch the services LIVE online every Sunday morning at www.newpointe.org. Hope to see you there!

Behind The Scenes: A Morning @ Our Millersburg Campus

2010-01-26T21:56:00.004-05:00

I had the privilege of leading worship at our Millersburg campus this past weekend. April and I had an awesome time out there. NewPointe: Millersburg meets in the auditorium at West Holmes High School every Sunday morning. It is a great experience all the way around. While I was there... I learned a couple of things about Millersburg:

#1 They have really got their act together. What a great experience and a great group of volunteers to serve along side of.

#2 They LOVE Bon Jovi! Ha ha!

You'll have to check out this behind scenes glimpse of my morning @ M'burg... to see what I mean.

Weekends @ NewPointe: Set-list

2010-01-18T15:49:00.005-05:00

Yesterday... as we continued our "Monopolized" series... these are the songs that we used:

"Happy Day" (with Black Eyed Peas, "I Gotta Feeling" bridge) - Tim Hughes

"All Because of Jesus" - Steve Fee

"All We Need" - Charlie Hall

"Center" - Charlie Hall

"Dear, Money" - Josh Wilson

Be sure to join us for each week of this powerful series @ NewPointe. If you can't make it to one of our 3 campuses... you can always catch the services LIVE online every Sunday morning at www.newpointe.org. Hope to see you there!

More Random Photos

2010-01-17T20:11:00.018-05:00

Here are a few random photos that were just hangin' out inside my phone... waiting to be shared. Enjoy!

My gurlz.

My baby gurl.

How many NewPointe worship leaders does it take to figure out the newest version of ProTools?

"So you're sayin' we wouldn't even have to move the mic stand... right?"

The temperature last Sunday morning... according to the dash of my car. 1 degree (not including wind chill factor). OUCH!

Eating at El Chico (one of my favorite Mexican restaurants) with my mom and dad while we were in Nashville on Christmas vacation.

The chicken, mushroom and bacon burrito that I ordered at El Chico. Mmmmmmm.

How many NewPointe staff guys can you fit in a Dodge Caravan? Well... at least 7.

Here is a shot of Dwight "bringin' it" in one of our Monday AM all staff meetings.

Our place during the most recent Ohio snow storm.

April layin' down some BGVs in the studio

My sister's dog, Lilly, loves to look at herself in anything that reflects. Here is a pic of Donna doing her make-up. Lilly is enjoying the view on the back side of her mirror. TOO CUTE.

Watching a little TV with my buddy, Mocha.

April's Second Chance Creations

2010-01-09T16:15:00.005-05:00

My wife is one of the most creative people that I know. She has a real knack for taking something that appears to be old, used and worn out... and turning it into something very unique, creative and cool. When she walks through the woods... she doesn't just see limbs, acorns, leaves and rocks... she sees beautiful natural arrangements and centerpieces.

Well... April has wanted to open her own store for quite a while now. She has really needed a place to display and sell her unique creations. So I am excited to announce that she has opened her own online store with Auctiva and E-bay. The store is called (appropriately) April's Second Chance Creations. You can check out her new store right here. She only has some of her refurbished jewelry listed at this time, but very soon she will have her arrangements and re-purposed creations listed there. She will also be selling her stuff out of a store in Walnut Creek, Ohio starting in March of this year. More details about that adventure to come. Be sure to check out April's Second Chance Creations.

Unbelievable creativity on a limited budget

2010-01-09T15:38:00.003-05:00

If you haven't seen this viral music video yet... prepare to have your mind absolutely BLOWN. Evidentally... it was created by Fede Alvarez, an amateur producer from Uruguay. He spent a total of $300 (three hundred dollars) to make the video. AMAZING! Now... he has been contracted to work on a movie for the company that produced the "Spiderman" movies. He stands to make a whopping 30 Million dollars on the deal. Not bad... huh? You can read the whole story here. I love to see creativity at this level... with such limited resources. We really have no excuses... right?

Check it out:

This Weekend @ NewPointe: Set-list

2009-12-05T12:54:00.007-05:00

This weekend we kick off a new series @ NewPointe called Monopolized. Here is a list of the songs that you will hear for the first week:

"Rise & Sing" - Fee

"O Praise Him" - David Crowder

"How Great Is Our God" - Chris Tomlin

"Take My Life" - Chris Tomlin

Be sure to join us for each week of this powerful series @ NewPointe. If you can't make it to one of our 3 campuses... you can always catch the services LIVE online every Sunday morning at www.newpointe.org. Hope to see you there!

This Weekend @ NewPointe: Set-list

2009-11-14T18:26:00.004-05:00

As we continue the "Can You See Him" series this weekend @ NewPointe... here are the songs that you can expect to hear:

"I Can See Clearly Now" - Johnny Nash (Geoff Moore & The Distance arrangement)

"Sing Sing Sing" - Chris Tomlin

"Salvation Is Here" - Hillsong United

"Turn Your Eyes Upon Jesus" - Hillsong United

If you can't make it to one of our 3 campuses (Dover, Louisville or Millersburg)... you can always catch videos of our services LIVE every Sunday morning... right here. Hope to see you there!

Evaluation

2009-11-07T14:46:00.002-05:00

I love this ESPN commercial! These guys crack me up! You know... it's always good to get other folks' perspectives on how we are doing.. eh? Evaluation is not always so easy to hear... but it's soooo important to our growth and progress in anything we do. Especially in the ministry.

Weekends @ NewPointe: Set-list

2009-11-06T23:43:00.005-05:00

OK... I have got to get back to posting the set-list for our weekend services on a regular basis. Every week... we get asked about where to find the songs that were played. So... keep checking back here... and I'll keep posting the tunes.

Here are the songs that we will be using for services at NewPointe this weekend:

"Everywhere" - Michelle Branch

"All We Need" - Charlie Hall

"Beautiful Jesus" - Kristian Stanfill

"Mighty To Save" - Hillsong United

"I See You" - Rich Mullins

Just in case you were curious.... here are the tunes from last weekend:

"Apologize" - OneRepublic

"Awesome Is The Lord Most High" - Chris Tomlin

"Not To Us/Here Is Our King" - Chris Tomlin/David Crowder

"Majesty" - Delirious

"Let It Go" - NewsBoys

It is going to be another powerful weekend @ NewPointe. If you can't make it to one of our 3 campuses... you can always catch the services LIVE online every Sunday morning at www.newpointe.org. Hope to see you there!

My Knee Surgery Adventure

2009-11-06T16:09:00.003-05:00

For about the past 16 months... I have been struggling with limited mobility and pain in my left knee.The pain has absolutely shut me down as far everything that I enjoy doing for recreation... from basketball... to softball... to volleyball... to tennis... (you get the idea). I have been totally inactive for all of this time (It has even effected my blogging capabilities - Bwahahahahha! Just kidding. I have just neglected my BLOG for a while.). I could not even climb stairs or hills without severe pain.

Well... after a cortisone shot and a little arthroscopic surgery this past summer... it was determined that the only course of action was to get a full knee replacement. So last week... I was admitted to Aultman hospital for the surgery. The procedure was supposed to take an hour and a half... but it turned into more like three. The hours following the surgery were long... and unbelievably BORING. I had to stay for 3 days. Well... while I was there, I decided to create this humorous little documentary video to pass the time. Enjoy:

The good news is: Once they got in there... they only had to replace half of my knee. The lateral side of my knee was completely healthy... so they only had to replace the medial. From what I am told... the recovery and over all mobility after therapy is supposed to be quite a bit better with a partial replacement. So for the next 6 weeks, my schedule is filled with physical therapy sessions and doctor's appointments. Hopefully... I will have a little more time to stay on top of my blog though. We'll see about that...

"September" @ NewPointe: Part 2

2009-10-12T13:32:00.004-04:00

A couple of Sundays ago... we opened the service with Earth Wind & Fire's "September". It was just a fun way to open a September Sunday morning. Then we had our campus Pastor, Kevin West, come out to interrupt the song. Well... you'll see what that was all about. Sorry about the video quality. We do not have iMag at our campuses yet.

NewPointe: Louisville Campus (Launch Day)

2009-09-21T14:03:00.000-04:00

This is a little glimpse into what my morning was like on the day that we launched our brand new NewPointe campus in Louisville, OH. I have about a 50 minute drive to L'ville every Sunday... so I try to make the best of it.

BTW: That's my girl, Abby singing the Ayiesha Woods tune. Dad was so proud.

EW&F's "September" this weekend @ NewPointe

2009-09-16T21:06:00.004-04:00

We will be opening with Earth Wind & Fire's "September" this weekend at all 3 campuses. So... as I was sequencing a track for the band to play along with on ProTools... I decided to pull out an "old friend" and track the horns LIVE (It just didn't sound right with REASON horns). It didn't take long for me to realize just how long it has been since I have played my old Bach Stradivarius. It also didn't take long to remember how high the horn lines were on that tune! WOW! Can you say... bruised lips? Oh well... it's done... and the opener this weekend is gonna... ROCK! Don't miss it!

NewPointe: One church... 3 locations.

2009-09-15T13:51:00.004-04:00

I am so sorry that I have neglected my BLOG for so long. Life seems to be coming at me a million miles an hour lately. This past Sunday morning was the launch of... not ONE... but TWO new NewPointe campuses. I have been leading worship at our Louisville campus to help build the music teams up there. We had an amazing day at all 3 locations. There were around 275 people who attended our service in Louisville... and over 400 who attended in Millersburg. We are so excited about what God is doing at all 3 locations. Here is a little highlights video that we put together to celebrate our launch day. After you take a look at this video... I think you will understand why I have not had a lot of time to blog. Enjoy!

Behind The Scenes @ NewPointe (Episode 3)

2009-08-24T23:36:00.004-04:00

We loaded up the new trailer this past weekend... and headed to Louisville, Ohio for the first of 3 "practice services" at our new campus. All of the equipment had been purchased... videos were shot and loaded... all systems were in place... the volunteers were ready... and it was GO TIME. This little behind the scenes video is just a glimpse into what happened on our maiden voyage. Enjoy!

BTW: We had 91 folks in Louisville... and 140 in Millersburg for our first weekend. AND THAT WAS JUST FOR A PRACTICE! Pretty exciting stuff!!! I can't wait to see what God wants to do through NewPointe Community Church in Louisville and the whole Canton area. It's gonna be amazing!

Behind The Scenes @ NewPointe (Episode 2)

2009-08-24T23:30:00.003-04:00

At NewPointe... we have a lot of fun in our band rehearsals. This past Wednesday night (because I was not going to be leading at the Dover campus) I had the opportunity to just "be there" for band rehearsal. Since i didn't have anything to do... I decided to give you guys a little behind the scenes look at what it is like when the band is running a song for the weekend worship set. This particular night... Wes Feldner and the guys were flat rockin' it out. Check it out:

Sneakin' up on Brandon

2009-08-17T00:43:00.002-04:00

I am on vacation this weekend (at home)... so that meant that I would not be leading worship at NewPointe this morning. So... we thought that we would just make a "surprise" trip up to Canton to visit Brandon at his new church. He is playing in the band with Benjamin Payne at First Friends. This is just a "cheesy" little video that I put together to share that experience with family and friends:

Hall of Fame Game

2009-08-10T19:11:00.005-04:00

I had the opportunity to go to the Hall of Fame Game last night. After 2 services at NewPointe, Dover and a service last night at NewPointe, Louisville... I went to Fawcett Stadium in Canton to watch my favorite pro football team play. WOW!

Here's the deal: My Tennessee Titans were playing the Buffalo Bills... and I just HAD to be there. I mean... how many chances will have to see my favorite team play LIVE... right? So (at the last minute) a friend of mine had an extra ticket... and I got to go to the game. I had an absolute BLAST! Best part of all... THE TITANS WON!!!! 21-18

My favorite play of the game came on the 4th down of the TITANS first series of the game. It was a beautiful play by their punter, A.J. Tarasso. Check it out:

Then... this is what LeDale White did on the TITANS next possession (This time... from where I was sitting):

What a game! What a night! The Tennessee Titans looked AWESOME! Can't wait until the regular season begins.

This Weekend @ NewPointe: Set list

2009-08-04T16:33:00.007-04:00

We are starting a new series this weekend called "Click"... as in the little light bulb that comes on over your head when you "get it". It’s a beautiful moment. Click! The light bulb turns on, and finally it all makes sense. So what makes these moments possible? What is it that pulls the string to finally illuminate your life? And when can we experience the “click” at church? This weekend... Dwight will be talking about how lost people really matter to God. It's going to be a great series. So don't miss a single week!

Here are the songs that you can expect to hear this weekend @ NewPointe:

"I Saw The Light" - Todd Fields

"Solution" - Hillsong United

"Our Love Is Loud" - David Crowder* Band

"From The Inside Out" - Hillsong United

We will also be baptizing several people at the end of the services. It is always exciting to hear their stories and celebrate with them as they make a public declaration of their trust in God. You can catch videos of all our services LIVE every Sunday morning... right here. Hope to see you there!

GO '09

2009-08-04T13:16:00.003-04:00

At NewPointe Community Church this past weekend... we canceled our services and 1600 of our folks went out into the surrounding communities to do service projects. This is the second year to do this. The project is called Go "09. This year... our small group joined with some folks from another group to mulch, trim and basically "spruce up" the landscaping and playground at East Elementary School in New Philly. It rained on us early this morning... but that didn't dampen the spirits of our team. We had a BLAST working together out there! What a great day!

There will be a full-blown GO '090 highlight video shown this next weekend @ NewPointe featuring all of our projects... but until then... I thought that I would put together a little video of just our crew working at East Elementary. (Disclaimer: I really wanted to attach The Newsboys "Hands & Feet" audio to this video... but because of copyright infringements.... well, you know...) So here it goes:

Behind The Scenes (Episode 1)

2009-07-28T09:32:00.005-04:00

I was messing with my digital camera the other day and realized that it really doesn't do too bad in video mode (It's not HD... but hey...). So I got the idea to start shooting some "behind the scenes" footage of what goes on throughout the week in the Service Programming Department @ NewPointe Community Church. This way... you can catch a glimpse of the world that we live in all week long.

So... for the first video I thought that I would "put to rest" the rumors that our creative team just goofs off all week... and never really get any work done. Well... here's the proof... Episode one:

The Technology Behind the Commercial

2009-07-25T11:39:00.002-04:00

I am sure that you have probably seen the Evian Water "roller babies" commercial by now... right? I LOVE that commercial! Well... I found a short clip that talks about the technology behind the Evian commercial. This stuf just fascinates me. Amazing! So... here is the "making of" video:

Now... just in case you haven't seen the completed commercial yet. Here it is:

Weekends @ NewPointe: Set-list

2009-07-25T11:30:00.003-04:00

Here are the songs that we will be using for services at NewPointe tomorrow morning:

"All Over The World" - Tree63

"The Noise We Make" - David Crowder* Band

"Filled With Your Glory" - Starfield

"How Great is Our God/How Great Thou Art" - Chris Tomlin

We are also baptizing about 8 folks... and hearing some amazing reports about Newpointe's ministries in the Middle East and around the world. You will not want to miss this incredible morning @ NewPointe! See you there!

Smile-Scan

2009-07-25T11:08:00.005-04:00

I was watching a news report about train stations in Japan that are starting to use technology to monitor and measure the quality of the SMILES of their employees. Is that cool or what?!? They actually have to pass a smile test before they are allowed to come in contact with passengers. If they don't pass the test... they have to work somewhere behind the scenes instead. WOW! What a cool concept! This is not the actual report that I saw... but here is a video that explains it all.

Wouldn't it be cool... if every church volunteer (worship leaders, band, tech crew, pastors, nursery... EVERYBODY) had to have their smile tested before actually coming in contact with people on a Sunday morning?

Think about it: When you are making a first impression... just a simple smile can go a long way.

Weekends @ NewPointe: Getting caught up... again

2009-07-15T11:47:00.005-04:00

This month... we have been in a series called "God Cannot Be Trusted" (and 3 other lies of satan). It has been a great message series... as we have taken a look at how God CAN be trusted... how God CAN change us... that sin DOES carry consequences... and now this week... how God CAN use us.

Since (once again) I am behind in posting these... here are the songs that we have used throughout the entire series:

Week ONE: God CAN be trusted

"Your Grace Is Enough" - Chris Tomlin

"All We Need" - Charlie Hall

"Glory To God/Hallelujah, Our God Reigns" - Passion Band

"I Can Trust You" - Rebecca St. James

Week TWO: God CAN change us

"Circus Maximus" (Instrumental Opener) - Unknown

"O Praise Him" - David Crowder* Band

"Holy Is The Lord" - Chris Tomlin

"How He Loves Us" - John Mark McMillan

"Starting Over" (Closer) - Audio Adrenaline

Week THREE: Sin DOES have consequences

"What I've Done" - Linkin Park

"He Is Our King" - David Crowder* Band

"Famous One" - Building 429

"Majesty" - Delirious?

"Freedom Is Here" - Hillsong United

Week FOUR: God CAN use us.

"Circus Maximus" (Instrumental Opener) - Unknown

"We Shine" - Steve Fee

"Your Grace Is Enough" - Chris Tomlin

"Shine" - Matt Redman

"Mighty To Save" - Hillsong United

"You Are The Light" - Steve Fee

Clear The Mechanism (Confession of a Worship Leader)

2009-07-06T08:45:00.008-04:00

I just got back from breakfast with my men's small group. I love these guys because they challenge me to be a better dad, husband, co-worker, friend... a better man. I am so much more "aware" of the decisions that I am making throughout the week because of my time with these guys.

Well... this morning... I shared with them how I am feeling sort of "distracted"at this time in my life. Distracted by details... expectations... and evaluations. Now don't get me wrong... I realize the importance of all of these things. Details are super important. People have expectations of us that we need to be aware of... and work towards meeting every day (The realistic ones... that is.). And evaluation is an important part of our process at NewPointe. It is crucial to growth and improvement with anything that we do.

It's just that... sometimes I find myself so focused on "How I should do it" that I can't seem to just relax... and DO IT.

Do you remember a TV commercial (I can't even remember the product) where the guy is talking himself through all of the "mechanics" of swinging his golf club? As he stands on the tee box... and goes through the long list of things that he has been taught... computer generated reminders pop up all around him. By the time he's ready to swing... he can hardly see the fairway for these visual reminders.

Well... that's what I feel like right now. It is so hard to focus on the "main thing" because of all of the details going through my mind. Here's what it's like:

Sunday mornings... before we go on stage:

"OK... so on the first song... it's 4 clicks and 4 sticks to start".
"Let's see... was it CAPO 3... or 4 on that third tune?"
"Song #1 is on Protools (drummer starts it)... song #4 is an Igniter video (control room starts it)"
"What is that tempo on the closer again?"
"Hey guys... don't forget to repeat that one phrase on the prechorus."

While I'm out there:

"Augh! I forgot to tell the control room to correct that one word in the second verse."
"Is it just me... or is my guitar out of tune?"
"Are people really connecting with this song?"
"I sure hope we hit that "stop-down" together."
"Oh. man... here comes that really high note!"
"I wonder where April's taking me for lunch today?" (Oh come on... don't you judge me! You've been there!)

There are so many things that go through my mind as I am preparing to lead worship.... and all of this "stuff" can be a distraction when it comes to actually leading.

A friend of mine (Who is also a worship leader) was just telling me how he has to pull away from his team and be alone with God just before he steps out on the stage to lead. He talked about how it "centers" him and helps him to focus on God... and not all of the details. It makes total sense.... but how often do we actually have that opportunity? Our Service Programming team "circles up" and prays before every service. It is one of my favorite moments of the morning. We talk about the importance of our ministry and the effect that it will have on a lot of folks who are searching for Christ at NewPointe this morning. We ask God to come and anoint what we are about to do... and there is always this "WOW! We get to do this!" moment before we step out on the stage. But there is rarely enough time to get alone and "focus" before going out.

Well... I MADE TIME yesterday morning... and it worked!

There was a scene in the movie, "For Love Of The Game" where Billy Chapel (played by Kevin Costner) plays his last game as a professional baseball pitcher... and as he steps to the mound... he takes in all of what surrounds him (the fans, the players, the field, the smells, the lights, everything) and soaks it all in. From there... he focuses in on his catcher and the distance between him and the plate. At that time... he tells himself to “clear the mechanism”, and one by one, each disturbance around him clears out so the only thing left is a “tunnel” from his glove to the catcher.

That is what I experienced yesterday morning. Stepping away from everything for just a little while... and asking God to "clear the mechanism"... and centering on Him before I went out on the stage... changed everything for me. I wasn't as concerned about "what people were thinking"... about the road maps, click tracks, lights, or being evaluated... I was ready to worship. As much as I love being with my team (I've got an amazing team!)... and the camaraderie that we experience backstage before a service... I think that "time alone with God" (for all of us) is going to have to be a priority... to stay focused on "the main thing".

Weekends @ NewPointe: Catching up (again)

2009-06-26T09:41:00.000-04:00

Well... here I am again... BEHIND on posting the set-lists for a few weeks. It really has been one of the craziest months of my life. About 3 weeks ago... I had surgery on my left knee. Then... before I could fully recover from that surgery... I end up in the hospital (Where I am... even as I blog) with diverticulitis! This my 5th day in this hospital bed... Auuuugh! But I AM going home TODAY! Woohoo! So... as I wait for April to pick me up... I thought that I would take advantage of this "down time" to do a little catching up on my blog. So enough about WHY I haven't blogged... let's get caaught up...

We just finished up a two part series called DARE YOU TO MOVE. During the series we talked about our plans to launch two NewPointe campuses this fall. Why are we doing this? To reach more people and to help them grow in their relaionship with Jesus Christ. Our people were challenged to move from wherever we are to serving right now and step it up to a whole new level.

From being a follower to being a LEADER.
From being self-focused to being OTHERS focused
From having an earthly view to having an ETERNAL view

Here are the songs that we used during that series:

Week ONE:

"I Am Free" - Desperation Band

"Sweetly Broken" - Jeremy Riddle

"From The Inside Out" - Hillsong United

"Tell The World" - Hillsong United

"Dare You To Move" - Switchfoot

For week TWO... NewPointe welcomed the Christian rock band, WORTH DYING FOR. The did a fantastic job of leading us in worship and rockin' the Pointe. Here are some of the songs that they led us in worship with... and a couple of pics.

"Salvation Is Here" - Hillsong United

"God of This City" - Chris Tomlin

"Hallelujah" - Unknown

"At Your Cross" - Worth Dying For

"Revolution" - Worth Dying For

"Let It Out" - Worth Dying For

Goodbye, Michael

2009-06-25T01:21:00.004-04:00

As I sit here in my hospital bed... a prisoner to "what's good on TV tonight" (yeah right!)... I am absolutely stunned and saddened by the news that another one of the greatest musicians of all time has died. What? Michael Jackson? The "KING OF POP"? Gone? No way!!

While I am taking in all of the tributes on CNN, FOX News, MTV... I try to understand why I am so emotional about his death. Is it selfishness? I mean... is it because I grew up with his music and his groundbreaking videos... and all of that is now OVER? Could it be because (as a musician) I learned more about R&B rhythm, syncopation and tightness from Michael's music than any other artist I have ever studied? Or could it be that I am just feeling sorry for him? Feeling sorry for the strange turns that his life took in recent years. The scandals... the facial changes... and the bizarre behavior.

He had it all... and yet he seemed to live a sort of misunderstood and tormented life. It's just so sad.

I think that maybe the real reason that I am so emotional about Michael's death has more to do with the fact that I connected with Michael (Whether I realized it or not) on many different levels. Michael Jackson and his music had a profound impact on my musical development over the years, my appreciation for quality and excellence, my fascination with creativity and innovation and... well... my LIFE.

Many of his songs were just great songs "musically". They were fun to listen to, to sing, to play and to dance to. But songs like "Heal the World", "Man In The Mirror"and "We Are The World" challenged us to change the way we looked at the world... and ourselves. Who doesn't remember the first time they heard "We Are the World"??? That was HUGE!

Well... whatever you thought of the bizarre things that he did in his later years... you cannot deny the fact that Michael Jackson was one of the most innovative, ground-breaking musical artists of our lifetime. As unusual as he was... Michael Jackson was a musical genius. And for that reason... I have always had a great respect for the artist.

Whether it was the structure and lyric of the songs that he wrote... the creativity and production value of his music videos (Yes... I have the Thriller video on my iPOD)... or his amazing choreography (which every dancer, since, has just emulated)... you cannot ignore the fact that Michael Jackson single-handedly changed the face of the music industry.

Only God knows what went on in the heart of Michael Jackson. If you ask one person... they might say that he was a "freak". If you asked another... they would say that he was a kind, gentle man who wanted nothing more than to make the world a better place with his music.

I (for one) am thankful for the music that he shared while he was with us. As far as I'm concerned... he will always be remembered as one of the greatest musicians of our lifetime.

Goodbye, Michael... you will be greatly missed.

The Great Knee Surgery Adventure

2009-06-09T18:06:00.030-04:00

I have been "inactive" for almost a year now... due to a knee injury. That means no softball, basketball, tennis, golf, volleyball for a year! Auuugh! About the only thing that I COULD do without unbearable pain... was ride my bike. It has been a very frustrating year... to say the least. The first doctor that I went to see told me that there was arthritis under my knee cap. Other than a couple of exercises that he gave me to do at home... he never really gave me any hope for getting back to any sort of athletic activity. That WAS NOT the answer that I was looking for. After several X-rays, an MRI and 4 (3 minute) visits over a period of 5 months last fall... I decided to get a second opinion (best decision ever). At my first visit with the new doctor... he gave me a cortisone shot (which worked great for about a week and a half) and then ordered the arthroscopic surgery... immediately. THAT was what I was looking for... answers. I thought that it would be fun to document the experience with photos. So this is what my day at the hospital was like:

On our way to Aultman Hospital in Canton. I think I was trying to keep April awake as she was driving.

Ah yes... that wonderful hospital robe. We were told to arrive at the hospital at 9:15. That's all we knew. I was told that the procedure wasn't supposed to take very long. You know... maybe on my way home by noon??? Yeah... right.

10:00 and still waiting.

It's all good...

Finally... the nurse came in to hook up my iv. Looking for a vein in my wrist... so far...no luck.

Still looking for a vein...

She had to go a little higher up on my arm to find a vein.

I hate ivs... but you can't let it show... right?

We just found out that my surgery isn't happening until noon now... which means that April has to cancel HER afternoon doctors appointment. Bummer.

11:15... and still waiting.

They didn't take me back until 12:30... and I still didn't go into surgery until around 2:00. I was BORED OUT OF MY MIND!

Back in my room... waiting for the anesthesia to wear off. Going home soon?

4:20 and still waiting to go home...

Yes! Finally! I'm outta here! And I am HUNGRY!

I was STARVING... so we stopped by Chick-fil-A on the way home... and guess who was in the drive-thru line? Lee Ann and Matt! What are the chances of running into those guys in Canton?

Oh yeah... and Chick-fil-A ROCKS!

Working from home today. As always... the girls are taking great care of me. They are WAY too good to me.

I

LOVE my MacBook Pro. It's the ONLY way to work from home.

Well... the surgery was a success... but (once they got in there) they ended up doing a lot more than they had originally planned on doing. The plan was just to clean the arthritis out from under my kneecap. They ended up removing quite a bit of cartilage. Doc told April that I was a perfect candidate for a knee replacement. Even though that is not great news... it's so much better than going on with no answers... or the wrong answers.

April and the girls are taking great care of dad. I start therapy on my knee later this week... and if all goes well... I will be able to get back to normal activity before the end of the month. A huge thanks to everyone for their prayers and phone calls.

NewPointe West (Millersburg)

2009-06-06T10:31:00.007-04:00

NewPointe will be launching yet another campus this fall in Millersburg, Ohio. The possible site of this new campus is West Holmes High School.

So this past Thursday... a crack team of investigative staffers from NewPointe Community Church met at the school to check out the facilities.

What we found was a pretty amazing building with almost everything that we would need to launch a great church in Millersburg, Ohio. The building is only about 9 years old. It is beautiful! The auditorium is amazing... with comfortable theater seats, great acoustics, a large stage (that was definitely designed with "the arts" in mind). The building includes large classrooms for younger kids space, A food court area that could easily be adapted into older Kid spaces, plenty of parking space and everything else that we would need for a successful launch this fall. It's exciting to be a part of a church that is constantly looking for creative ways to reach more & more people in our community for Christ. And this is just the beginning...

Her are a few pics from the school visit:

The Power of a Video

2009-06-06T10:30:00.002-04:00

This past Sunday morning for the last message in the "Living In he Hood" series... Dwight talked about how important it is for our kids to have another adult in their life to speak the truth and help direct their path. Someone to say the same things that we say to them... (because of course... what do parents know? Right?) They need another adult to reinforce the "right things" to do. God's Word says that "He who walks with the wise will grow wise, but a companion of fools suffers harm." Proverbs 13:20. And we all know that those who are closest to us... influence us the most.

Well... our video team put together this great video of one of our Student Ministries small groups. The group is led by Nancy Bell. Nancy is a "model leader" for these girls. In the video... the girls in her group share what it means to have someone other than their parents to talk to when they need encouragement... or help making decisions. Check it out:

Someone Like Nancy from NewPointe Community Church on Vimeo.

BTW: Great job... Jeff Conn, Cindy Colucy, Dan Knight and Brad Yoder for shooting and editing this video!

Weekends @ NewPointe: Getting caught up

2009-06-04T13:17:00.000-04:00

I am so far behind on my blog... and we have had some pretty amazing music during the Living In The Hood (Parenthood) series.

So... to do a little catching up... here are the songs that we used on May the 10th:

"Ah Ah Ah Yeah" (with our KidStuf singers - opener) - KidStuf

"Here Is Our King" - David Crowder* Band

"Now I Sing" - Benjamin Payne

"Glorious One" - Steve Fee

On May the 17th:

"Carry On Wayward Son" (Instrumental Opener) - Kansas

"No One Like You" - David Crowder* Band

"In The Mystery" - Hillsong United

"Unfailing Love" - Chris Tomlin

The next week (May the 24th):

"All Because Of Jesus" - Fee

"Not To Us / Here Is Our King" - Chris Tomlin / David Crowder

"Awesome is The Lord Most High" - Christ Tomlin

"Everlasting God" - Tomlin

"Parents Just Don't Understand" - D.J. Jazzy Jeff and the Fresh Prince

And then... this past weekend (for the the final message in the "Living In The Hood" series):

"We Are Family" (Re-mix) - Loosely based on a Jump 5 arrangement

"King of Majesty" - Lincoln Brewster

"Filled With Your Glory" - Starfield

"From The Inside Out" - Hillsong United

This weekend @ NewPointe:

"Satisfy Me" - Decemberadio (get there early... you will not want to miss this!)

"Let God Arise" - Chris Tomlin

"Now I Sing" - Benjamin Payne

"Hungry" - Kathryn Scott

"The River" - Meredith Andrews

So there you go. If you want to check out any of these services... you can always watch them on Vimeo.com (search NewPointe) or go there directly from our web-site once they are uploaded (Usually by the following Wednesday.)

American Idol Update: Grand Finale

2009-05-19T20:04:00.004-04:00

Well... it's down to Adam & Kris. At this point it could go either way... but EVERYBODY is saying that all of Danny's votes will go to Kris now. If that is the case... he could win it all tomorrow night. I think (of the two) Kris has the most "marketable" voice. Kris could release a Jason Mraz/One Republic style project and do pretty well with it. Adam will probably make it big on Broadway or in Vegas... but he doesn't have that "recording" voice.

First up...

Adam: He is singing a song that he has already sung earlier in the season... "Mad World". He is going with the "vampire look" for this one. It's a little creepy for me... with the fog and the long coat. He is just a little flat on every note (especially on the last note of the song. He tuned it up before the very end.) This is exactly what I'm talking about... THAT was a Broadway performance.

Kris: He has chosen "Ain't No Sunshine" to sing for his first song tonight. Man... I am really liking this. This performance is so full of emotion. I like what he did with the "I know... I know... I know"... section of the song (That part usually annoys me a little). He changed the melody up some. WOW! That was awesome!

First round definitely goes to... Kris!

ROUND TWO: ding ding. (OK... so that's what Ryan said)

Adam: He's going to have to "bring it" at this point. Kris definitely took the first round. Adam is singing "Change Is Gonna Come" for his second song tonight. The boy can sing... there's no doubt about that. He has pipes that won't quit... and a range with no lid. I like this a ton better than his first song. Cue: The "tongue hanging out of his mouth" scream. There it is. We have seen it each and every week this season. The judges are gushing over that performance. It was strong... but I wouldn't say that it was the "best that he has sounded all season".

Kris: He is singing Marvin Gaye's "What's Going' On" for his second song. From piano to guitar all in one show. Impressive. The unplugged vibe is pretty cool. I think I liked the first song better though. He is a little "pitchy" on this one. This is definitely his genre though. Kara is really getting on my nerves with her overly dramatic critique. She's got this "attitude" thing going on.

Second round goes to... Adam

ROUND THREE:

Adam: For his third song he will be singing a song written by Kara for the show called "No Boundaries". He can certainly "sell" a song. He is all over the place pitch-wise on this one though. I wonder if the judges are going to rave about this performance too??? Good! Randy caught it! It wasn't all that great. His pitch was all over the place. Oh Kara... come on... we KNOW it was your song... but how did Adam do?

Kris: He will be singing the same song. If Kris nails this one... I think he could win the competition. Ouch... his pitch is off too! What is going on? For one thing... it's just too high for him. WOW... did he just drop a word? The song is a little too BIG for him. Not a strong performance.

FWIW: I would love to have heard Allison sing this song. It's not a great song... but Allison would have rocked it anyways! Neither of these guys could nail it down like Allison could have. Sorry... THAT IS JUST A FACT.

My pick for the next American Idol...

Well... I didn't like either one of them all that much. It could go either way tomorrow night. I really... really... don't care.

American Idol Update: FINAL 3

2009-05-12T19:57:00.012-04:00

I have to tell you... it is so difficult to continue following the show... with Allison gone. Last week was a HUGE mistake. I still can't believe it happened... but then again... look at Daughtry. Allison will be HUGE with or without the win on AI. I can't wait to see what she does next.

There are only the three guys left. They will each sing two songs on tonight's show. The first song will be "judges choice" and the second is "their choice" As always... I will be blogging in real-time as I watch the show.

First up...

Danny: He is singing "Dance Little Sister" by Terence Trent D'Arby. This style is definitely his "thang". This song doesn't have much of a melody line. Paula picked it... so they can't really complain about it though! He sounds so soulful on this. Oh yeah... he's pulling a Philip Bailey vocal banter with the sax player. Oooh... the sax sounds so "thin". Auuugh! These guys have the best audio team that money can buy... and that's the way they decided to EQ the alto sax? OK... I thought Danny sounded pretty amazing on this. Lots of energy... lots of fun. What a start! Great job, Danny!

Kris: My Opinion: I really thought that Kris should have gone home last week. It should have been Adam, Allison and Danny tonight. Anyhoo: Randy & Kara have chosen "Apologize" by One Republic for Kris to sing tonight. I LOVE this song... one of my favorites. Well... we'll see what Kris does with this song. He's a little pitchy right out of the blocks. There is a very annoying instrument being played on the chorus. What is that??? Could it be that anemic alto sax again? Ha ha! He sounds really good on this song. A few rough spots... but I still liked it. It was a great song choice for Kris. Another great choice would have been something by Jason Mraz.

Adam: Simon to chose "One" by U2 for Adam to sing. WOW! Simon had to get clearance from Bono for Adam to do this tune. Unbelievable! Here he goes: He's a little flat on the first chorus. The guy sings with so much emotion. It's in his eyes... it's in his voice. WOW! I know that they want them to make the song their own... but I'm not sure if I liked what Adam did with it. It didn't just knock me over... but it was good. It was better than Kris' performance.

OK... first round picks for tonight:

So now... they get to choose the song that they will sing. First up...

Danny: He chose "You Are So Beautiful" by Joe Cocker. Hmmmm.... not sure about this one. The arrngement is just too exposed for his powerful voice. He will sound so much better if he "let's it fly" at some point. I hope he does. I don't know about this. I'm just not feeling it. The judges are gushing... I don't get it. Vocal master class??? I don't think so. Oh well... it was nice... but not a final week performance.

Kris: He picked "Heartless" by Kanye West. Let's see what he does with this song. I'm liking the fact that he is pulling this off with his acoustic guitar... and NO BAND!!! Impressive! WOW! I loved it! Great job, Kris! That was amazing! That's the best Kris has sounded all season. He may have some sort of a strategy here. Better late... then never... huh?

Adam: He is singing "Crying" by Aerosmith. This is definitely in his "wheelhouse". Here he goes. First of all... turn the BGV vocal down. She's overpowering Adam. There is something about his vibrato that is just not doing it for me on this song. What a voice! What a range! There's that "tongue hanging out" scream again! He can definitely "bring it"... but I think that I'm just tired of hearing it.

Second round picks...

If I WAS to pick someone to go home tomorrow night... which I will not... but if I were to pick one... it might be... even though he did a great job with his second song tonight... Kris

American Idol Update: FINAL 4

2009-05-05T19:17:00.015-04:00

Sorry about the gray text. I know that it's hard to read... but Blogger.com would not let me write in white text for some reason tonight.

This week's mentor is Slash... and the music style is ... what else... classic rock! Obviously... Adam and Allison have an advantage tonight. It will be interesting though to see what Kris and Danny can do with this genre.

First up...

Adam: He is singing "Whole Lot of Love" by Led Zeppelin. The band is absolutely HOT tonight! WOW! What pipes! Unbelievable! The dude can "sky"! Adam is definitely in his element tonight. Un-be-stinkin-lievable! How is anyone gonna top that???

Side note: OK... so Kara is freaking me out a little tonight? Does she think it's Halloween or something? Weird.

Allison: She is singing Janis Joplin's "Cry Baby". She should sound great on this song. Very nice. The vocal riffs after the first chorus were SCHWEEEET! I really wish she hadn't followed Adam. If kris had been next... maybe the sound pallette would have been reset. Man... that's gonna hurt her. Yup... there they go. They are not thrilled with her performance. She still sounded great! Simon said that it was too close to the original. WOW! Now THAT'S a compliment!

First DUET of the night...

Kris & Danny: They are singing "Renegade" by Styxx. Great song! Here they go. Ohhh... Danny definitely doesn't have the rock vibe going. His voice is not quiet "edgy and focused" enough for this rock tune. I think he will have a tough time with his individual song tonight as well. Kris actually sounds better than Danny on this tune... exept for the fact that he is so "pitchy". Can he hear himself??? It was just OK. The band was amazing!

Kris: He is singing "Come Together" by the Beatles. He got to play with Slash! How cool is that?? I'm actually liking this... a lot! He sounds pretty good. He needs to "get into it" with the guitar a little more. He just didn't seem comfortable. It was good... but I don't know if it's enough to get him through this week.

Danny: He is singing "Dream On" by Aerosmith. Man... I sure hope he knows what he is doing here. NOT a good choice. This could really hurt him. Michael Johns did this song last year and absolutely NAILED IT! I just don't see Danny going for those octaves at the end. Does he have the vocals to pull this off? We'll see. Did they just turn him down on the pre-chorus??? What happened? It's not working for me. Yikes! Here he goes (holding my breath). Well... they were definitely high (multi-pitched) notes. Not quite the "sound" that the notes were supposed to have... but he went for it. Impressive! This is just not his genre. He is probably safe though... with Kris still in there.

Another duet...

Adam & Allison: They will be singing "Slow Ride" by Foghat. They should have some fun with this now that the competition is over for the night and they can relax. There goes the tongue! They look so much more comfortable out there together than Danny and Kris did. Definitely rock stars! They sound great together too.

OK... my picks for tonight...

Going home tomorrow night...

Stories

2009-05-05T16:31:00.004-04:00

The single most effective ministry tool that we use at NewPointe is the LIFE CHANGE STORY. We can sit in our creative meetings all week long... and brainstorm all kinds of cool, innovative and impressive creative elements to help support the messages... but a STORY about a person's personal journey to Christ... will always have the biggest impact.

For Easter Sunday... we created a video made up of several stories to set up the song, "How He Loves". We got the concept for the video from Lifechurch.tv... and then created our own. The process was a lot of fun... but also very time consuming. We filmed about 9 different people telling their personal stories of how Jesus Christ radically changed their lives. Then Jane Miller actually watched all of the video footage... and transcribed all of those stories (17 pages in all) so that we could easily select the highlights. John Bunn went through all 17 pages and selected 100 potential phrases and color coded each one. Those 100 story pieces were attached to 3X5 Index cards. The Weekend Design team then got together to read through the cards and assemble a "story board" for the video. Here are a couple of photos of our team during that process:

After we put all of the pieces together... my son, Brandon got busy editing the video (not any easy job). WOW! If you didn't get to see it on Easter Sunday... you can check it out here:

Easter Chairs from NewPointe Community Church on Vimeo.

The Innovator's Brain

2009-05-05T14:57:00.000-04:00

I was reading an article by Phil Cooke on his BLOG, The Change Revolution that I thought was pretty interesting. Check out what he has to say about the innovator's brain:

Research indicates that true innovator's brains are actually different from other people's brains. The big difference is that original thinkers - iconoclasts - innovators - whatever you want to call them, see the world differently than everyone else. Too many of us think "automatically" - in other words, we assume the way things should be, take a lot for granted, and don't challenge our perceptions. But innovators don't make those assumptions, and generally see the world the way it is. The secret of being an innovator? Bombard the brain with new experiences. Force yourself to see the world in different ways. Travel. Meet new people. Think from different experiences. Live a life of novelty. It's no surprise many of our most innovative writers, artists, actors, filmmakers and more were a bit eccentric. They didn't live their lives the way everyone else thought they should. Jesus was a great example of someone who lived outside other people's expectations. As a result, these unusual people produce far more creative work because they refused to see "normal" as normal. What's your experience? Is there a routine you can break out of? What behavior can you shatter that would give you a new perspective on living? - Phil Cooke

WOW! "Bombard the brain with new experiences". What have I done lately... that is not a part of my regular routine? Now that really challenges me to "make time" in my schedule for spontaneity and non-routine activities. That's great... planned spontaneity!

OK ... so here's the deal: I am going to starting doing one "little something" (Hey, it's a start.) that is so totally out of my normal "routine" every week. I don't know exactly what that looks like yet... but something to stimulate creativity and... INNOVATION. I do a lot of creative stuff all week long (It's a part of my job)... but I wouldn't consider very much of it to be truly "innovative". I think we all spend way too much time being "copycat" artists. We are just re-creating other artist's stuff. It takes whole other level of creativity and free-thinking to be "UNIQUE".

So... what can YOU do this week to break out of the expected... the routine? What can you do to wake up your "innovative brain"? Have fun!

The New Music Store in Strasburg

2009-05-03T13:36:00.011-04:00

April and I were asked to do the interior design for the new music store that our son, Brandon will be opening soon in Strasburg, Ohio. The owner of the store said that he would like for us to give it a "Jimmy Buffet" feel. He wanted it to be not only a relaxing place to shop for musical instruments and accessories... but also a fun place to learn about music. So... we took a look around the place... came up with a couple of good ideas... and went to work.

There was already an old "kiosk" in the middle of the showroom that was sort of the centerpiece of the store. So... we decided to turn into a "tiki hut". We ordered real thatch, bamboo panels, colorful party lights and tropical accents... and voila... a tiki hut. We also applied palm tree silhouette decals (from wallwords.com) to the walls around the store. All we have left to do is add a couple of 7 ' artificial palm trees... Paint the inside of the hut... and add some bamboo posts to frame it all in. Here are a few photos to show what the store looks like... so far.

This Morning @ NewPointe: Set List

2009-05-03T13:26:00.002-04:00

We had an interesting morning at NewPointe. About half way through the closing song... the power went out. It was pretty wild. No "boom" or "crack"... just OFF. So... we had to cancel services for the rest of the morning... as well as the Training Day event for our Service Programming Team. Here are the songs that we used this morning @ NewPointe:

"World That Breaks" (opener) - Britt Nicole

"All We Need" - Charlie Hall

"You Never Let Go" - Matt Redman

"Mighty To Save" - Hillsong United

"You Are My Hope" (closer) - Skillet

We did get (almost) an entire service in. Hopefully... we will be able to post that on Vimeo. It really was a great message... so you should check it out later this week.

American Idol Update: TOP 5

2009-04-28T20:15:00.011-04:00

From here on out... it's gonna get really interesting. As far as I'm concerned... we're down to the only 5 contestants that were ever worthy of this competition in the first place. With Anoop and Lil out of the picture... it's all about vocal talent. Allison, Adam, Danny, Kris & Matt will have to sing like they have never sung before. This is "Rat Pack Week". I might be showing my age here... but I love this genre... the standards. It should be a great show. Here we go...

First up...

Kris: He was singing "The Way You Look Tonight". I didn't get home in time to hear him sing... but the recap at the end sounded pretty amazing. I'll have to weigh in on Kris tomorrow... after watching on YouTube.

Allison: She turned 17 yesterday. What a voice for a 17 year old. Tonight.... she sings... "Someone to Watch Over Me". WOW! I love it already! I'm telling you... this girl can sing anything. Listen to the raspy richness in her voice. I love it! She is singing this like she actually lived during that era. She could have WRITTEN this song! WOW.... WOW.... WOW! She is a PRO! Cut the project tonight.... I'm BUYIN' IT! I'm sorry... but obviously... I can't say enough about this girl. OK... Simon is like OUT OF HIS MIND tonight! That was an outstanding performance. I am downloading it on iTUNES tomorrow... no doubt.

Matt:He has been looking forward to this genre. Let's see what he does with "My Funny Valentine". He should sound really great on this. Well... he is a little pitchy on the lower notes at the beginning. Nice "riffing" right before the build. Very nice... big note. I especially liked the ending (Aly agrees with me.). Lowering the key was a good idea/bad idea. It hurt him on the lower notes... but he sounded really great on the high notes.

I'm liking Jamie Fox's advice this week. He is the "real deal". He real has a knack for this coaching thing. You wouldn't think of him being asked to do this... but WOW... what a talent!

Danny: is singing "Come Rain Or Come Shine". Here he goes. Ooooh.... I likey. He sounds fantastic on this... if he doesn't try to "Gokey" it up... he will do great. Man.... what a night! All of these guys sound amazing. He is really bringin' it now. WOW! That was HOT! OK... I'm a Gokey fan again! Great job, Danny!

Man... this is tough! From here on out... just WOW! These are 5 amazing vocalists.

Adam: Is singing "Feeling Good". After hearing Buble sing this... he is going to have a hard time impressing me. I like the "wurly" at the begninning. Nice touch! Does he have to stay up in the stratosphere on every song he sings? It was amazing... but I am getting tired of the high notes with his tongue hanging out of his mouth. It was strong... but what else can he do? I still think that he is a contender... but... show me something NEW, Adam! What a voice! BTW: If you have never heard Michael Buble sing this on the Hit Man: David Foster & Friends show... Check it out:

OVER ALL... great night!

My picks for tonight's show....

Going home tomorrow night... I hate to say it... but...

American Idol Update: STILL THE TOP 7

2009-04-21T20:01:00.012-04:00

Tonight's show is "Disco Hits". OK... so I am totally going to "date" myself here... but disco music was HOT when I was in high school. I have memories of Rivergate Skate Center... skating backwards through the disco lights... in my long sleeve silk shirts... to the Bee Gees and Gloria Gaynor. those were the days.

OK... back to reality...

I didn't get to see the show last Wednesday night. But I can tell you this... I could not believe that Lil didn't get sent home. She must have some sort of underground following that is just out of control. I am so glad that Matt lives to see another week. He deserved the "save" from the judges. That was a good call. After Lil and Anoop go home tomorrow night... They will not need that "save" anyways. It will get very interesting after this week. I am blogging as I watch again this week (in real-time). Again... these are just my opinions.

First up...

Lil: She is singing Chaka Khan's "I'm Every Woman". I can't believe she made it past last week. This is definitely more her style... but she is all over the place vocally. she is screaming... and I STILL cannot stand that slow vibrato. Auugh! It is time to go home.

Kris: He is singing "She Works Hard For the Money" by Donna Summer. Well... I guess it doesn't have to be performed as a disco song... huh? This is unique. I was wondering why he was going to play his acoustic guitar on this song. He is a little pitchy in places, but it's working. I love the congas and Cajon. It was a fun... original... nice arrangement. I liked it. Cool vibe.

Danny: He singing a song from one of my favorite bands ever... "September" by Earth Wind & Fire. Danny is probably a fantastic worship leader... but he is not bringing anything new to this competition. He is a strong singer... I like him a lot... but again... he's fading for me.

Allison: She is singing Donna Summer's "Hot Stuff". She is amazing! WOW! I'm not crazy about the tempo on this arrangement. This song needs to be driving. The vocals... are... HOT though! Like Randy says... "That girl could sing the phone book!". I think Allison has... what it takes to win this whole thing. Not my favorite arrangement... but she DID sound really good on it.

Adam: He is singing The Bee Gee's hit "If I Can't Have You". Well... we know that it is going to be unique. He is flat at the beginning. He doesn't have the big band to mask some of his "pitch-iness" on this one. He sounds really good on this. Spit it out, Paula!

Matt: For his second life... tonight... he will be singing "Stayin' Alive" by The Bee Gees. Oooh... a hip hop version of the song. I kinda like this feel. Nice falsetto! He sounds great! He never deserved to go home last week. Again... good call, judges! Ugh.... he should never have tried the high ending. He was doing a nice job... and then... THAT! I think he was trying a little too hard... like he had something to prove. He should have stayed down in his "wheel house". It was almost like he had to out-do Adam on the upper range stuff. Oh well... it was still a good over all performance.

Anoop:He is singing yet another Donna Summer song... "Dim All the Lights". I guess she WAS the queen of disco music. Why do they all feel like they need to slow the songs down? OK... here it goes. It doesn't have the right feel to it though. It is sort of a "lazy" upbeat. He is pitchy through the whole thing. Last note was just... ouch! He should be joining Lil on the trip home this week.

My picks for this week:

Allison

Adam

Kris

The two to go home should be Lil and Anoop. Come on, America... please get it right this week! There aren't any more "saves".

My Cell Phone

2009-04-21T11:14:00.031-04:00

I have had my "new" cell phone since the first of the year (I realizing that means that it is already obsolete). Of course... it has a camera... not a good one... but it's a camera none the less. At least I can capture moments that otherwise I would have totally missed. The problem is that (until today) I could not get the bluetooth connection to work. I could not get the photos OFF of my phone... and I have had a few shots on there that I wanted to Blog about over the past few months. Well... this morning... my MacBook recognized my phone for the first time. I don't know why... but all of a sudden they are "getting along". So... I thought that I would just post all of the random photos that I found on my phone. Enjoy!

First up:

I like to call this one "My Boss". It features John Bunn, our Service Programming Director. Let me tell you... this guy is ALL BUSINESS.

Our staff has been participating in a wellness challenge for the past 13 weeks. Here are a few shots from that event.

We had a Staff Wellness Olympics the other day. This is a shot of one of the events that was much like shuffleboard... only we had to hurl staff members in office chairs. Like in shuffleboard... you could actually aim for your opponent to knock them off of a good score. So... you can see how this turned into a crazy and very competitive event for our guys. Too much fun! (And yes... we actually get "work" done too.)

Another challenge in the Wellness Olympics was "archery". We had 5 minutes to take turns trying to shoot a cup off of another teammate's head with a NERF bow. Here is a shot of our new Technical Director, Dan Knight (It was his first day on the job) with his first attempt... which was successful. Later in the round... Chad Stutzman nailed another cup and won the event for our team.

Yesterday was the end of the 13 week challenge. Here we find Jerry Vacha and Scott Bell celebrating with a light snack. Mmmm.... breakfast of champions?

Here is a shot of "my girls". Aren't they gorgeous???

It's a little hard to see it through the darkness... but this is a 2009 "super charged" Corvette that I had the opportunity to take for a test-drive... 0-80 in less than 4 seconds. WOW! What a rush!

Doug Sparr helping me get a dryer connected at Brandon's new apartment. I was just a little too... let's say... "chunky" to get in that space. Thanks, Doug!

Here is a shot of Lee Ann's obvious disgust at some pretty nasty tasting crackers. I can't remember if she knew that I was taking this photo.

I took this picture while I was playing the keys (Don't try this at home) at the end of one of our services during the "Up Close & Personal" series... just to show what the crowd looked like from the stage.

Here is our fearless leader, Dwight Mason "bringin' it" at the "Sticks Conference". It was STRONG!

I like to call this one... "AWKWARD"? We were still waiting on a couple of other guys to get in the van... so it's all good. ( I just couldn't resist.)

One day... while ordering food at McDonald's... I asked about the "buy one get one free" Indian's ticket special that they had going on. A small sign on the way into the drive-thru advertised that with the purchase of a Big Mac... you could "buy one get one free". The lady in the window... AND THE MANAGER said that they had no idea what I was talking about. Here is a photo that I took as I was leaving the drive-thru. Hmmm... they might want to take a look at that sign... huh?

Earlier in the year... we had a message series called "XCELR8". As we talked through the different options for the graphic... several of us liked XLR8 (Sorry Dave D')... but we went with the CE in there instead. Well... I was walking through WalMart the very next week... and look at what I found. It's a card game called... XLR8. Hmmm... now THAT'S a great idea for a series title!

Here is Jody Engstrom "rockin' it out" with Rocky Stull's (Our drummer's little boy) miniature electric guitar. He had it plugged into his rig... and with a little distortion and delay... it sounded amazing! Ha ha! Go figure.

Here is a shot of Matt Beres taking a picture of our Weekend Design Team working on a storyboard. We needed the shot from a higher perspective. So... Matt got higher for us. What a great guy! ... always going the extra mile for his fellow staffers.

Here's Brandon and his girlfriend, Allison leading worship at "Wide Eyed Life" at First Christian Church in Canton the other night. It sure makes this dad proud to see him up there leading.

Is it just me... or does Kevin (in the middle) look a little uncomfortable here?

Here is a shot of our Operations Team... deep in discussion. I love the fact that our thinking and processes are constantly challenged. There is always room to improve... and this team is a big reason that NewPointe keeps moving the ball down the field... and leading hundreds of people into a growing relationship with Jesus Christ.

It's finally SPRING in North East Ohio!!!! That's all. Gotta love it!

This Weekend @ NewPointe

2009-04-21T10:39:00.005-04:00

Once again... I am behind on our set-lists. Easter Sunday morning we started a new series @ NewPointe called "He Still* Has The Whole World In His Hands". Already... it has been an unbelievable series. So... here are the songs that used for Easter Sunday morning.

"Jesus Is Alive" (opener) - Todd Fields

"Shout Unto God" - Hillsong United

"Beautiful The Blood" - Steve Fee

"How He Loves" - John Mark McMillon

"Never Let Go/Amazing Grace" (closer) - Matt Redman/John Newton

Then this past weekend... for the second week of the new series... we used the following songs:

"I Run To You" (opener) - Lady Antebellum

"The Solid Rock" - Charlie Hall

"Salvation Is Here" - Hillsong United

"Everlasting God" - Chris Tomlin

"Storm" (closer) - LifeHouse

This coming weekend.. we will be using:

"The Noise We Make" - Passion Band

"Blessed Be Your Name" - Matt Redman

"Amazed" - The Desperation Band

"God Will Lift Up Your Head" (closer) - Jars of Clay

You can always check out our weekend services on Vimeo.com.

Easter Sunday @ NewPointe

2009-04-17T10:53:00.014-04:00

We had an unbelievable Easter Sunday morning @ NewPointe. In 3 services... there were over 4500 people who came out to celebrate the resurrection of Christ! The hallways were packed! Check out this photo that Dave D'Angelo took with his camera phone in the hallways after the first service. It was just like a "sea of people".

Of course... we didn't have any idea how many people would show up... so I had asked a couple of our vocalist to be on "standby" just in case we needed to use our overflow video venue (It makes a HUGE difference when at least part of the experience is LIVE in there.). When I came off of the stage after the first service worship set... somebody caught me in the hall and asked if I had looked into the "overflow" room. Of course I had not had the chance to check it out yet. When I got there... IT WAS PACKED! It was standing room only in the main auditorium... AND in the "overflow". We had an amazing day!

We kicked off a new series on Easter Sunday... called "He's Still* Got The Whole World In His Hands". Dwight's talk was powerful as he wove the Easter story into a timely message of hope for today in these troubled times. We opened the service with Todd Field's song "Jesus Is Alive" into Hillsong United's "Shout Unto God". WOW! What a celebration to kick thing off! We also featured Steve Fee's "Beautiful the Blood" and John Mark McMillon's "How He Loves" (another off-the-charts powerful moment in the service). Then we ended the service with Matt Redman's "You Never Let Go" going into the "Through many dangers... " verse and then the first verse of "Amazing Grace"... back to "You Never Let Go" (We got that idea from North Point worship). It was soooo POWERFUL! Here are a few photos from the actual services.

But the biggest highlight of the day... was really our awesome volunteers who went above and beyond the call of duty all morning long (Thank you... thank you... thank you!!! You're the best!) AND our amazing NewPointe folks who answered the call to attend the 12:50 service and "make room" for our guests. Because of your intentionality... we had room for the huge crowds in our first 2 services. Thank you so much for understanding and embracing the mission of NewPointe Community Church! We have so much to celebrate!

Passion

2009-04-17T09:51:00.005-04:00

This may come as a surprise to you... but...

I LOVE MUSIC

As a kid growing up in Nashville, my appreciation for music came from my environment... my family, my church, my piano teachers, the talent competitions that I participated in (They don't do that any more because some kid might get his feelings hurt that they didn't win - PLEASE! That is where I decided that I was going to WORK at being a musician. NOW it's "everybody's a winner". That's another post... for another day.), listening to the radio and 45s (Those were those round black things with a whole in the middle), but mostly... from the schools that I was a part of that had great music programs. Music was a BIG THING. There was such an emphasis on the arts that it was actually something you were proud to be a part of.

It saddens me to see our schools having to cut music programs because of a lack of funds... a lack of support. You may have already seen this video... but it is one of the most inspirational things that I have seen in a LONG TIME. Obviously... HERE is a school that has found a way to inspire kids to sing with all of their hearts... and to LOVE music in another way. Check it out:

Is that AMAZING... or what? (There is another version of this song with the director playing the piano. It is just as amazing.) WOW! I guess this proves that it doesn't have as much to do with having the latest tech gadgets and the coolest instruments that money can buy to get kids to sing. It just takes one person with a PASSION to inspire the next generation. It takes a teacher who cares enough about kids to share with them one of the greatest gifts ever given to man... MUSIC. Passion may very well be the greatest resource that we have when it comes to inspiring people to learn and to grow.

BTW: This teacher/director is now one of my modern day HEROES. All of these kids will (no doubt) go on to pursue the arts in some way. THAT is so exciting!

What if we were as PASSIONATE about reaching out to the unchurched and disenfranchised people all around us with God's love? Can you imagine the difference that we could make in our neighborhoods... in our cities... in our world. It just takes people with a PASSION to share with them... THE greatest gift ever given to man. That is the message of God's love and his saving grace in their lives. All of those people that we reach with this message will (no doubt) go on to pursue Jesus in some way. What are we waiting for?

American Idol Update: TOP 7

2009-04-14T19:59:00.007-04:00

Tonight's show is featuring "music from the movies". Over the years... there are have been some pretty great songs on the soundtracks of movies. I hope the contestants pick the ones that they sound great singing.... and I sure hope Adam doesn't sing "My Heart Will Go On" from the Titanic.

First up tonight:

Allison: She is singing "I Don't Want To Miss A Thing" by Aerosmith... from the movie Armageddon. I LOOOOVVVEE this song. My favorite singer on Idol this season... singing one of my favorite movie songs EVER. She is knocking it out of the park! Simon just said the Allison is the only hope for the girls (There are only TWO. Big compliment from Simon there!) .... but I think that she is the ONE TO BEAT in this whole competition. WOW... WOW... WOW.... that was awesome!!!!

Anoop: He is singing a song from the movie, Robin Hood called "Everything I Do I Do For You" by Bryan Adams. Let's see what he does with it. Not a good start... a little pinched off and pitchy. He's opening up a little now. He sounds much better on the pre-chorus. He actually sounds really good on the chorus... but it was still a little pitchy to the end. Over all: Not a bad performance from Anoooooop. I think he may just be safe again after that.

Adam: He is singing the song "Born To Be Wild" by Steppenwolf from the movie, Easy Rider. He is going BIG on this one. What a range! He sounds a little too much like Tina Turner instead of John Kay though. I just want to hear a real "male vocal" on this song. Adam is definitely giving it everything he's got. WOW! Courageous... courageous... courageous! Unbelievable range... impressive vocals... performance was a little over the top though. It was still pretty amazing!

Matt: Matt is singing another Bryan Adams song called "Have You Ever Really Loved A Woman?". It is from the movie, Don Juan DeMarco. OK... here he goes: He sounds great on this song. He's really opening up on the bridge. Oooops... he wiped out. Maybe too many ad-libs. It hurt him. I am not a big fan of the "yodel voice break head tone" stuff. Not his best performance.

Danny: Danny is singing "Endless Love" by Lionel Richie & Diana Ross. This song is sooo dated. Auuuugh! I am not sure he has the voice for it either. We'll see what he does with it. Well... nothing new here... same sound as last week... and the week before that. Danny is definitely "fading" for me.

Kris: He is singing "Falling Slowly" from the movie, Once. This is a beautiful song. His pitch is just not very accurate on this. It's all over the place. I think maybe that is what he is going for though (You know... sort of like One Republic's lead vocalist.). I just don't think it works on this song though. Again... with the "yodel" voice break thing. Randy and Kara completely disagree on this one. And I have to go with Randy... it was not Kris' best performance.

Lil: She is singing the Bette Midler song, "The Rose". This song is way too slow and her vocal is way too "exposed". It reveals all of her weaknesses. That slow vibrato is just killing me! She can't do anything that sounds modern. Ouch... so pitchy! She needs to go home this week. OK... that's funny... she is actually fighting with Simon. She said that she thought that she sounded really good. That is so sad. Let her go home, America.

My picks for tonight:

Allison ran away with it tonight.... no doubt.

Adam

That's it. I don't have a 3rd pick for tonight. These two vocalists stole the show. WOW!

To go home tonight... Lil Rounds

Vote For April!

2009-04-10T13:29:00.006-04:00

There's a series of commercials for California Milk that features different cows auditioning to be the next "Happy Cow". Well... you may have seen it... but the newest commercial in the series just happens to feature a singing cow by the name of April (which is my wife's name). Check it out...

The real coincidence... My wife's sister's name is... HEATHER (OK... now you can cue the twilight zone music).

This Past Weekend @ NewPointe: Set List

2009-04-07T21:49:00.006-04:00

I didn't get a chance to post the set list from this past weekend @ NewPointe. This is the first time that we have actually repeated a couple of songs from earlier in a series. So... for the last weekend of our "Up Close and Personal (Getting To Know the Holy Spirit)" series... here are the songs that we used:

"Spirit Thing" (opener) - Newsboys

"Everything To Me" - Planetshakers

"His Grace Is Enough" - Chris Tomlin

"All We Need" - Charlie Hall

"Come Holy Spirit" (closer) - Planetshakers

You can always check out our weekend services on Vimeo.com.

American Idol Update: TOP 8

2009-04-07T19:56:00.010-04:00

Woooohoooo! Megan is gone! And wouldn't you know... I didn't get to see the show last week! Now... with Scott leaving this week... and Anoop the next... and then Lil the week after that... we should be able to get on with a great competition. Hey... a guy can dream... right?

OK... so tonight's show will be songs from the year that the contestants were born. Once again... I will be blogging about the show in real-time.

First up...

Danny: He is singing "Stand By Me" from 1980. He's starting out a little pitchy on this one. I think he sounds better on the upbeat "soulful" stuff. I hope this kicks into something with a little more...... OK...... there it goes. That's an interesting groove. Sort of "Al Jarreau-esque". The BGVs and drum mix are driving me crazy this season. Is it just me... or is the kick drum mixed way too "hot" every week? Danny did a great job with the song. I'm not sure I liked the arrangement that much. I am still waiting for him to WOW me back into being a Gokey fan though.

Chris: He will be singing Don Henley's, "All She Wants To Do Is Dance" from 1985. The horns are HOT!!!! WOW! Love it! Chris is doing a nice job. This particular song is not going to show much of his vocal ability. It never really goes anywhere melodically. He needed to ditch the guitar for that performance. It seemed to be a distraction. That was not his best effort. I still like his voice though.

Lil: She is singing "What's Love Got To With It" from 1984. She is singing it straight up... no new arrangement here. I just haven't really liked her since her original audition. She has really struggled since then. She has a very "dated" voice... and so far she has not brought anything new to the competition. She is trying way too hard... over singing... and that is making her vocal go sharp. Ooooh... now she's flat on the very last note. I just didn't like it at all. For the first time (in a long time)... I totally agree with Paula. There was nothing original from Lil again tonight.

Anoop: He is singing "True Colors" by Cindi Lauper. The song was a hit in 1986. This should be interesting. I have to admit... Anoop is sort of growing on me. He CAN sing. He has also been "improving" through the season... where some of my original favorites seem to be "fading". Let's see what he does with "True Colors". He sounds pretty good so far. Smooth vocal. The arrangement is a little "lazy" but it works for this song. He will probably get "picked on" for choosing a "safe" song.

Scott: From 1985... Scott is singing "The Search Is Over". Auuugh! He reminds me of a high school glee club singer. The guitar is not convincing enough. It does not make him a rocker. Auuugh!!! The high notes hurt! Stop! OK... so it was pitchy... it was boring... and it was a bad song choice. Paula is actually "coherent" tonight. She is actually making sense. It's just time for Scott to go home. Come on, America... stop voting for him already!

Allison: She is singing "I Can't Make You Love Me". The song was a Bonnie Raitt hit in 1992. She sounds amazing on this! The GIRL CAN SING!!!! WOW! OK... I'm going out on a limb here. She'll win it all this season. I love her voice! 16 years old... with such a rich... raspy... smooth as silk... and right on pitch... vocal (constantly). Amazing! I TOTALLY agree with Randy... she reminds me so much of Kelly Clarkson.

Matt: His song is from 1985... "Part Time Lover" by Stevie Wonder. I love the shuffle groove on this arrangement! He sounds really great with this style. Nice riffs (for my friend Dan Liebman). GREAT JOB, Matt! That is HIS best performance of the season! WOW!

Last... but not least...

Adam: Well... you KNOW... it's going to be something "unique". Adam definitely keeps you wondering what he's going to do next. Let's see what he does with "Mad World". The song is from 1982. Very strange start... sitting in a chair? It's a little pitchy right out of the gate... but the boy CAN sing. I didn't care for the last note... but it was definitely a courageous move to sing that song int he first place. WOW! Strangely..... I liked it. Noooo way! Simon? A standing ovation? Is that like a first?

OK... so my favorites of the night were:

Allison

Adam

Matt

NewPointe North: Week Two

2009-03-30T00:33:00.006-04:00

Tonight was our second service at the North campus in Canton. There were close to 80 folks there. So... we are growing already! It's pretty exciting to see what's happening up there. Our next service is on the Sunday night after Easter. So come on up and check out what God is doing in Canton, Ohio through NewPointe Community Church.

I had asked a friend to take a few photos with my digital camera during the service tonight. Well... while he was shooting I guess he decided to put it in video mode and this is what he caught (It's short, but it will give you a glimpse of the experience):