CP playlists

“love the lord” by lincoln brewster (cd “all to you…live”)
“your grace is enough” by chris tomlin (cd “arriving”)
(quasi medley w/ “grace greater than all our sin” trad. hymn)
—-prayer—-
“knowing you” by stephen claybrook (as yet unrecorded)
“hosanna” by hillsong united (cd “all of the above”)
—-prayer—-
—-message—- Doc
“rescue” by desperation band (cd “live worship for a desperate generation”)

today was just an awesome morning. for me, it had to do with a combination of excellent message (way to go, Steve!), a solid musical day from a presentation standpoint, and just a synergy with all of the elements of the day working together to create a cohesive worship experience.

highlights:
** kelsey - one of our high schoolers. one of those people who has undoubtedly been gifted by God to sing. it seems to be effortless to her. i was even more impressed today knowing that she was terribly sick this morning. she spent a lot of time between sets laying down and or puking her guts out. way to take one for the team, kelsey!
** “knowing you” - there’s just something special hearing your church community singing one of your own songs - and owning it!
** adama/adam, humus/human - “the only difference between me and this pile of dirt is what came out of God’s lungs.”
** “rescue” - sometimes there’s just a perfect song to close the message - really felt like God was up to something today….

“o worship the king” by chris tomlin (cd “passion hymns: ancient and modern”)
“let me sing” by todd fields (cd “north point live: louder than creation”)
“made to worship” by chris tomlin (cd “see the morning”)
—-connect—-
—-check presentation to Durham Rescue Mission—-
special music - “surely we can change” by david crowder band (cd “remedy”)
—-message— Doc
“faithful” by kristian stanfill (cd “north point live: louder than creation”)

a highlight for me personally today was the addition of the violin by my friend, matt evans. matt is a gifted player. he has really good musical instincts. i’ve played with matt a handful of times now. the best compliment i can give him is that, when matt says he has come up with something and he’s feeling good about it, i have complete confidence that his part is going to come off well.

for several reasons, the music for today was a lot of work to pull off. the band just wasn’t completely gelling together completely on thursday night. we were missing keyboards and having a little guitar tone trouble. but even besides that, it just seemed like we weren’t meshing together. still, it felt quite a bit better to me this morning.

i was struck with the realization today again of the effect on me when i’m not completely confident for whatever reason going into the morning. i tend to shrink back a bit as a leader because my mind is on technical things or stuck in self-consciousness. i’m still trying to grow through this.

however, on an encouraging note: i met a guy tonight at pizza with the pastors who admittedly is currently being dragged to church by his wife. he’s tried to attend with her sporadically in the past, but church has never really spoken to him. since coming to crosspointe, she has been telling him that he would really like the music - trying to convince him that the band really rocks it out. he was skeptical, but told me that last sunday when he could hear the band in the parking lot before even coming into the building, he knew he was going to be pleasantly surprised. he told me tonight that we rock harder than van halen with sammy hagar!

“everlasting god” by chris tomlin (cd “see the morning”)
“i am free” by desperation band (cd “from the rooftops”)
—-connect—-
—-announcements/prayer—-jBow
new song intro - “healer”
video: “healer” song story
“healer” by hillsongs (as yet unreleased)
—-message—-Doc

as far as the musical portion of our worship experience, i think the day centered around the song “healer”. if you missed today, you can see the song story video that we played below. there’s also a video of the original performance which is worth watching.

this doesn’t happen very often, but this was an audible called on tuesday. i had seen the video several weeks before, but for whatever reason when it was brought to my attention again this past week i sensed that God wanted us to use this song as a way of giving some closure to the “pandemic” series we’ve been in.

thanks to the band, singers and tech crew who rolled with it and jumped in to learn and prepare a new song on short notice. i’m very thankful that God has assembled the kind of servants at crosspointe that love a challenge and give it their best even when there’s not much time.

after 3rd service today we had a baptism party outside. it was 95 degrees and sunny - really hot. but we had 100’s of people stay after to celebrate the 40 plus people who were baptized. don’t know how many people ended up coming, but we planned food and drinks for 250 and we ran out pretty quickly. needless to say, we’ll know how to be more prepared next time. still, it was a great to see that many people in our community come out to celebrate our friends and family as they took this important step.

“Healer” song story:

“Healer” original performance:

07.20
“all because of jesus” by steve fee (cd “burn for you”)
“you are good” by lincoln brewster (cd “all to you…live”)
“forever” by chris tomlin (cd “forever”)
—-connect—-
“faithful” by kristian stanfill (cd “northpoint live: louder than creation”)
“my hope is you” by third day (cd “offerings”)
—-message—- Doc

07.27
“heal this land” by the longing (cd “the longing”)
“salvation is here” by hillsong united (cd “look to you”)
—-prayer—-
“everything” by tim hughes (cd “holding nothing back”)
—-scripture: psalm 139:1-10—-
—-reflection: God’s presence—-
“you never let go” by matt redman (cd “passion: everything glorious”)
—-message—- Doc
“create in me” by matt shepardson (not recorded)

i asked chris to plan and lead a decidedly upbeat worship music set for the 20th. we were coming off of two pretty heavy weeks in a row, and i knew that steve was tackling a difficult topic for our culture - spiritual warfare…. i thought our community needed to take a breath and just celebrate. i always miss worshipping with the crosspointe community when we’re away.

then today, i was coming off of our trip to haiti. (which i promise i’m not done blogging about. it’s just been hard to put into words.) i felt the need to reflect on God’s presence, so i took some time out in the middle of the worship set to read some of psalm 139 and to share some thoughts about God saturating all of his creation with His presence. whatever we will be facing this week, we can know that we have the presence of God with us. today was a sweet time of worship.

steve wrapped up the “pandemic” series today. a challenging message - repentance. but i loved the way he spoke about it as a “changing of the mind” rather than a threat of eternal punishment. if you didn’t hear the message, i highly recommend checking out the podcast here….

“not to us” by chris tomlin (cd “not to us”)
“knowing you” by stephen claybrook (not yet recorded)
reading: psalm 13
“heal this land” by the longing (cd “the longing”)
—-message—- jBow
video interview: frank and heather green
special: “praise you in this storm” by casting crowns (sung/played by heather and frank)
—wrap and prayer - jBow

i always miss crosspointe when i’m away, but there are times where i especially feel like i missed out. this sunday was one of those times.

when we returned from our trip (which i will blog about soon) i listened to the message and watched the video interview.
it was a moving experience even without being there live. i can’t imagine adding in the music and the corporate worship experience.

this series, pandemic, is really landing hard at crosspointe. we collectively have an extraordinary amount of pain and suffering that we’re carrying around.
it’s a painful yet beautiful experience to read the hurts that our community has shared, and to pray for each other.
it feels anonymous, yet not.
it’s strangely comforting to know that these are the people that God is allowing me to journey with. and to know that we have the privilege of being part of a church community that allows each person to be real.
i was grateful to see all the circles around my prayer, to know that my community is carrying this burden with me.

c.c. and i are heading to haiti this thursday with some friends, so i’ll be out again this sunday. i’ll definitely miss gathering with crosspointe.

“let the praises ring” by lincoln brewster (cd “all to you…live”)
“the solid rock” by charlie hall (cd “passion: hymns ancient and modern”)
—-connect—-
“blessed be your name” by matt redman (cd “where angels fear to tread”)
“heal this land” by the longing (cd “the longing”)
—-message—- jBow
special: “everybody hurts” by R.E.M. (cd “automatic for the people”)
“heal this land” by the longing (cd “the longing”)

we started a new series, “pandemic,” today. pain and suffering is universal. we are each victims and carriers at the same time. jonathan opened up the series by addressing our first question when we suffer - “why?”

to want to know why we are suffering is natural, because it’s easier to endure if we know there is a purpose to our pain. the problem is that we can’t always know why. the bible doesn’t always address the why question, but more often deals with the question of what God is doing about the suffering.

good start. i’m looking forward to this series.

i said to the guys on thursday night at rehearsal, “alright, i can’t really pretend and play this cool. singing ‘everybody hurts’ is fulfilling some sort of latent, subconscious dream.”

i’ll be out the next two sundays, but crosspointe will be in good hands with chris mills….

“our love is loud” by david crowder band (cd “can you hear us?)
“the solid rock” by charlie hall (cd “passion: hymns ancient and modern”)
—-connect—-
“let me sing” by todd fields (cd “north point live: louder than creation”)
“you never let go” by matt redman (cd “passion: everything glorious”)
“faithful” by kristian stanfill (cd “north point live: louder than creation”)
—-message—-Andy Stanley (via video)

not much to say today. the theme of god’s faithfulness sort of threaded through the worship set. “the solid rock” was new to us today.

at crosspointe:

“sing, sing, sing” by chris tomlin (cd “passion: god of this city”)
“majestic” by lincoln brewster (cd “all to you…live”)
—connect—-
—baby dedications (2nd service)—
“here is our king” by david crowder band (cd “passion: how great is our god”)
“the highest and the greatest” by tim hughes (cd “holding nothing back”)
“mighty to save” by hillsong church (cd “mighty to save”)
—interview w/ parents—

i missed being at crosspointe sunday. my buddy, chris, led worship capably as always. i wish i could’ve been there to hear the collective parenting wisdom from the stoners and the smiths. i’ll get the cliff notes from c.c…..

i was glad to fill in for my friend, nathan fancher, at his church in chapel hill this past sunday. nate and katie are fairly newly-wedded. she just finished up nursing school and her boards, so they are taking a much needed vacation.

here’s the music we did at grace….

“sing to the king” by billy foote (unrecorded version)
“all because of jesus” by steve fee (cd “burn for you”)
“how great thou art” by charlie hall (cd “passion: hymns ancient and modern”)
“mighty to save” by hillsong church (cd “mighty to save”)
“jesus paid it all” by kristian stanfill (cd “passion: everything glorious”)
“let me sing” by todd fields (cd “northpoint live: louder than creation”)

“made to worship” by chris tomlin (cd “see the morning”)
“i am free” by desperation band (cd “from the rooftops”)
—-connect—-
steve’s dad via iChat
father’s day slideshow “just the two of us” by will smith
—-message—-
—-haiti offering announcement—-
“all because of jesus” by steve fee (cd “burn for you”)
“all over the world” by matt redman (cd “passion 05: how great is our god”)

WOW!!! today will be remembered for a long time in our church community. the celebration at the end of the services was crazy, because we found out that we came together in just over a week to raise over $400,000 to buy 17 acres of land for orphans and abandoned kids in Haiti.

here’s jonathan’s response…

man, it’s hard to put into words. but one thing i know is that as a worship leader, i can absolutely sense the difference between “worship as usual” and this kind of celebration. truly, the kingdom of God, when actually experienced and participated in like this is the rocket fuel for worship. i don’t think our church will be the same.

i had an extremely intense emotional week….more on that later….but this morning after first service, i broke down backstage. just so grateful that God has chosen to invite us to be a part of His redemption project on this earth.

don’t read any further if you want to be surprised about the special father’s day song for this sunday at crosspointe……

….for the 5 of you that read this, here’s a sneak peak….

“o worship the king” by chris tomlin (cd “passion: hymns ancient and modern”)
“all because of jesus” by steve fee (cd “burn for you”)
“knowing you” by stephen claybrook (as yet unrecorded)
“made to worship” by chris tomlin (cd “see the morning”)

this was the wrap-up to our “live in concert” series. the most memorable thing from the day will be the challenge that jonathan brought to our community - to pool together and pitch in to come up with $385,000 to buy 17 acres for Haitian Children’s Home.

i also wrote a song for our community to sing together. it was good for me to get back into the discipline of songwriting. it had been too long. i shouldn’t let that part of me atrophy like i have been. thanks to the band for helping me to flesh out the arrangement. i look forward to writing more. through the process of writing this song, i realized that i have lots more in me. it just takes dedication and discipline to get it out.

here’s to catching up….

04.27.08 playlist
“you are good” by lincoln brewster (cd “all to you…live”)
“everlasting god” by chris tomlin (cd “see the morning”)
“here is our king” by david crowder band (cd “illuminate”)
“satisfy” by desperation band (cd “from the rooftops”)
“all because of jesus” by steve fee (cd “burn for you”)

05.04.08
“let the praises ring” by lincoln brewster (cd “all to you…live”)
“our love is loud” by david crowder band (cd “can you hear us?”)
“majestic” by lincoln brewster (cd “all to you…live”)
“faithful” by kristian stanfill (cd “north point live: louder than creation”)
“you never let go” by matt redman (cd “passion 06: everything glorious”)

05.11.08
“all over the world” by matt redman (cd “passion 05: how great is our god”)
“not to us” by chris tomlin (cd “not to us”)
“hallelujah” by hillsong united (cd “united we stand”)

05.18.08
“faithful” by kristian stanfill (cd “north point live: louder than creation”)
“salvation is here” by hillsong united (cd “look to you”)
“mighty to save” by hillsong (cd “mighty to save”)
“hallelujah” by hillsong united (cd “united we stand”)
“let me sing” by todd fields (cd “north point live: louder than creation”)

05.25.08
“majestic” by lincoln brewster (cd “all to you…live”)
“beautiful one” by tim hughes (cd “when silence falls”)
“made to worship” by chris tomlin (cd “see the morning”)
“how great is our god” by chris tomlin (cd “passion 05: how great is our god”)
“breathing the breath” by matt redman (cd “facedown”)

“sing, sing, sing” by chris tomlin (cd “passion: god of this city”)
“not to us” by chris tomlin (cd “not to us”)
“the highest and the greatest” by tim hughes (cd “holding nothing back”)
“let me sing” by todd fields (cd “north point live: louder than creation”)
—–connect—-
video: great moments in cinematic wisdom, part 4: star trek
—-message—- the doc

had my friend ryan sit in with the band and lead a song. loved the personality and energy that he brought to our worship gathering.

i led from piano today. it’s fun for something different every once in awhile, but i was telling c.c. today that for some reason i feel less connected to the crowd when i’m leading from piano. maybe something to do with sitting down, but there’s got to be more to it than that. oh well…

a word of apology to those that attended first service: i handled the transition into the video very poorly. it was way too quick a transition from heartfelt worship and prayer to a goofy video including a crack about nipples. we fixed it for 2nd service, but to those of you in first service, i’m sorry….

every week i meet someone who is visiting for the first time.

Robbie Seay Band led us in worship today for all three services. as a worship pastor, it was a gift to be led by such a talented group of guys. i’m currently sitting in the auditorium as they’re finishing the setup for the concert tonight. if you’re local and still haven’t decided, let me extend the invite again…..it will be a good show tonight at 7pm. $10 at the door.

“rise” by RSB (cd “give yourself away”)
—introduction—
“here is our king” by david crowder band (cd “a collision”)
“song of hope” by RSB (cd “give yourself away”)
“you never let go” by matt redman (cd “beautiful news”)
—prayer—
“shine your light on us” by RSB (cd “give yourself away”)
—prayer, announcements—-
—video: cinematic wisdom, part 4: barney and friends”—
—-message—- doc

“your grace is enough” by chris tomlin (cd “arriving”)
“the highest and the greatest” by tim hughes (cd “holding nothing back”)
—-connect—-
performance song: “i’m not the only one asking” by mindy smith (cd “long island shores”)
scripture: excerpts from psalms
“mighty to save” by hillsong (cd “mighty to save”)
“faithful” by kristian stanfield (cd “north point live: louder than creation”)
video: great moments in cinematic wisdom, part 2: karate kid
—-message—- jBow

i’m starting to get into the rhythm of 3 services. i wasn’t quite as completely exhausted this afternoon.

today was a little change of pace in that we inserted a performance song in the middle of the flow of a worship set. mindy smith’s song is refreshingly honest - God sometimes seems to hide himself. the song expresses a desire that we’ve all felt at one time or another - we just want to hear from God, why does he seem distant? kristi daugherty did a great job with the solo on the song.

we followed up the song with these excerpts from the psalms…

From the writings of Israel’s King David…

“Why, O LORD, do you stand far off?
Why do you hide yourself…?”
“How long, O LORD? Will you forget me forever?
How long will you hide your face from me?
“How long must I wrestle with my thoughts
and every day have sorrow in my heart?”
“Look on me and answer, O LORD my God.
Give light to my eyes…”

this song and the psalms definitely gave the next two songs a bit different context. i think it was a good reminder that we don’t worship God in a vacuum. life is hard. faith is sometimes difficult. i think that worshiping God is sometimes about expressing desire to believe as much as it is believing.

we’re having fun with the cinematic wisdom videos. although i have to say, the idea of coming up with 4 more of them is a little daunting. anyone got any ideas?

“all to you” by lincoln brewster (cd “all to you…live”)
“faithful” by alex nifong (recorded by kristian stanfill on cd “northpoint live: louder than creation”)
“you never let go” by matt redman (cd “passion 06: everything glorious”)
“how great thou art” trad. arr by charlie hall (cd “passion hymns: ancient and modern”)
—-connect—-
performance song - “meant to live” by switchfoot (cd “beautiful letdown”)
video: great moments in cinematic wisdom: empire strikes back
—-message—- steve daugherty

today we started a new series, “you know. you want her.” steve gave the intro talk today - basically laying out that God is up to more than just trying to get us to behave according to a particular morality, but that he’s inviting us into wisdom. it will be fun to see how this series plays out.

shared the worship leading duties with chris mills today. that was fun. we don’t get to lead together very often.

“faithful” was new. simple song. simple message. we’ll see how well people grab it in the coming weeks.

i’m sure i’ll get into the rhythm and adjust to the 3 service schedule soon enough, but i gotta say, i definitely felt pretty wiped this afternoon. my awesome wife was fully supportive of me lounging on the couch and watching basketball. i’m a blessed man.

performance song - “what i want” by daughtry (cd “daughtry”)
—welcome—
“sing sing sing” by chris tomlin (cd “passion 08: god of this city”)
“let me sing” by todd fields (cd “north point live: louder than creation”)
“jesus paid it all” by kristian stanfill (cd “passion 06: everything glorious”)
—connect—
video: emily’s story
—message— jBow
performance song/video - “better days” by the goo goo dolls (cd “let love in”)
—wrap up / prayer— jBow
“marvelous light” by charlie hall (cd “flying into daybreak”)
“all because of jesus” by steve fee (cd “burn for you”)

great celebration on sunday!

steve pushed through the throat pain and rocked out on the daughtry song. thanks, shaun, for letting me borrow the les paul. it made all the difference.

it was packed out! we launched our third service. second hour we had 75+ people watching on video from the high school room.

jBow brought a very different message than we’ve come to expect on easter.
:::for resurrection to happen, something has to die
:::god breathed life (spirit) into adam; after resurrection, jesus breathed life (spirit) into his disciples
:::the resurrection means eternal life now, not just heaven when we die
:::the new life is not just for us, it’s new life for the whole world, all of creation
:::the best way for western christians to celebrate our jewish rabbi savior is to go out after easter service and eat a honey baked ham.

while i’m on the subject of how great jBow is…..let me just say that i’m more and more impressed with how artfully he crafts his messages to ramp to whatever comes after. he truly sees the whole service as one message. it’s not just me setting him up. he sets me up. i love that.

don smith, greg stoner and jed anderson worked hard and long this week to make upgrades to the auditorium, including two more screens to make one giant widescreen, and a fresh coat of black paint on the stage floor.

oh yeah, and then don had to make sure that we had video for all three screens! don will be sleeping for the next couple of days i hope.

at the end of the day, what is most satisfying is knowing that the creator of everything has - at great cost to himself - rescued me and has invited me to be part of his mission to redeem, rescue, refresh, renew, restore, reclaim his creation…..

“majestic” by lincoln brewster (cd “all to you…live”)
“beautiful one” by tim hughes (cd “when silence falls”)
“let me sing” by todd fields (cd “northpoint live: louder than creation”)
—prayer—-
message - steve d
special: “at the foot of the cross” by kathryn scott (cd “satisfy”)
—-communion—-
“surrender” by lincoln brewster (cd “all to you….live”)

today was week 3 of 4 in the trouble with jesus series. steve talked about surrender. the trouble with jesus is that he asks us to surrender control of our own kingdoms and our inner world, and to trust in his way.

went without a keyboard player today. i played rhythm electric instead of my standard acoustic. it was fun to change it up a little. went pretty well, except for capo snafu that ended up knocking my guitar horribly out of tune! that was a fun moment…

mara sang great on the special. a great song to set up communion. don brought the tight harmonies. it was very satisfying for me from a pure musical standpoint…

looking forward to easter next sunday. 7 songs!

“love the lord” by lincoln brewster (cd “all to you…live”)
“our love is loud” by david crowder (cd “can you hear us?”)
“sing, sing, sing” by chris tomlin (cd “passion 08: god of this city”)
—-connect—-
“endlessly” by desperation band (cd “from the rooftops”)
“here i am to worship” by tim hughes (cd — lots of them)
—-message—-jBow
—-prayer—-

chris mills led worship today. i always enjoy when chris leads for several reasons. one: he’s extremely gifted as a musician and a worship leader! two: i love to see other people serve with their gifts, and to give them these opportunities as i can. three: i get to experience crosspointe from a somewhat objective perspective, which is valuable for me as a leader. four: i get to sit with my lovely wife. (although that didn’t happen today….keep reading). five: gives me the freedom occasionally to visit other churches or to take a worship band and serve another church by giving their worship leader(s) a break, etc…

today, before coming to crosspointe for our second service, i visited lifepointe church in north raleigh. crosspointe helped to plant this church several years ago. recently they launched a second location in the wakefield area. i think it’s cool that this church is expanding to two locations, using rented facilities (movie theaters) in both spots. the creativity in churches today is encouraging to me. as recently as 5 years ago, the idea of a church staying “mobile” and using rented facilities instead of investing in land and a building was virtually unheard of.

i wanted to check out the second location for one, and i also got to be led in worship by a worship leader acquaintance of mine. ryan is leading a couple times a month to help lifepointe with the transition to two locations. even though ryan and i have known each other for more than two years, this was the first time i’ve seen him lead worship. it was a good morning. if you had told me that this location had been running for a year, i would’ve believed you. but i was impressed to find out it was only the 3rd week!

back to crosspointe, i’m always encouraged whenever i experience our church from the other side of the stage. although it’s difficult to be objective, i’m so glad that our services are relatively easy to walk into and to participate at whatever level you feel comfortable. the music and “production” are presented well and are engaging. the messages are intellectually challenging and spiritually compelling. the “vibe” is real, comfortable, etc….

our church is not without room for improvement by any means, but let me just say that i’m honored to serve by being part of the leadership of this community!

“let the praises ring” by lincoln brewster (cd “all to you…live”)
“sing, sing, sing” by chris tomlin (cd “passion 07: god of this city”)
“the highest and the greatest” by tim hughes (cd “holding nothing back”)
“let me sing” by todd fields (cd “northpoint live: louder than creation”)
—-series intro / fun with rubik’s cube—-
—-connect—-
video: improveverywhere.com
—-message—-
video: “breathing air again” robbie seay band

“sing, sing, sing” was new today. i’m hoping that it will take quick and be a good celebration song for easter this year. tomlin definitely has the knack for writing singable hooks….

turns out my recent obsession with the rubik’s cube paid off. i gave it my best shot during the service today…..1:09 in the first service, 1:28 in the second …..not bad considering i had 450 people watching me.

doc kicked off a new series, “the trouble with jesus,” with a message on sabbath. i need this reminder regularly.

kind of funny that we had one of the most frantic preparation mornings i can remember in a long time…. and preparing for a service about rest.

“everything” by tim hughes (cd “holding nothing back”)
—-prayer—-
“let me sing” by todd fields (cd “northpoint live: louder than creation”)
“here is our king” by david crowder band (cd “passion 05: how great is our god”)
—-connect—-
—-3rd service volunteer recruitment—-
special: “american dream (acoustic version)” by switchfoot (cd “oh! gravity”)
—-message: doc—-
—-prayer—-

tried to stretch a bit and start more mellow than normal. interspersed some space for scripture and meditation during “everything”. i’ve felt lately like we tend to rush through the music. i think it’s because we typically want to keep things moving to keep the energy up. this is good thing. i just think there can be too much of a good thing.

today was the drum debut for stephen james. i’m excited about having stephen as a new addition to the worship band. and he’s going to play next sunday too….

things are exciting at crosspointe these days because we’re gearing up for the addition of a 3rd service. obviously there are challenges - we need to add about 200 new volunteers to our children’s ministry and first impressions ministries. anyone reading that’s going to take the plunge to serve?

“american dream” is a modern day protest song. but instead of protesting war or racial discrimination, the protest is against over-consumption. against the capitalism machine that’s come off the rails.

this was the wrap up of our “say when” series. this has been a challenging series - hitting us right where we live in cary, nc.

“beautiful news” by matt redman (cd “beautiful news”)
“salvation’s chorus” by todd fields (cd “north point live: louder than creation”)
—-connect—-
“everlasting god” by chris tomlin (cd “arriving”)
“let me sing” by todd fields (cd “north point live: louder than creation”)
—-message—-jBow

“let me sing” was new today. always tough to predict how well a song will take hold, but judging by the amount of participation first time out of the gate, it looks like people will grab onto this one.

planning is well underway for our easter series, we’re going to call it “the trouble with jesus.” we’re moving to three services starting on easter sunday. growth is good.

sorry for the random nature of these thoughts, but hey, i’m feeling kind of random.

“not to us” by chris tomlin (cd “not to us”)
“salvation is here” by hillsong united (cd “look to you”)
“majestic” by lincoln brewster (cd “all to you…live”)
—-connect—-
“the highest and the greatest” by tim hughes (cd “holding nothing back”)
“glorious one” by steve fee (cd “burn for you”)
—-message—-jBow

chris mills led today and did a great job as always. it’s been awhile since chris has led because he’s recently become a first time dad! it was good to have him back….

i got to attend today with my family - a very rare treat. darby had a good time in her preschool class. c.c. and i were glad to get to worship together in the main service.

“all because of jesus” by steve fee (cd “burn for you”)
“all over the world” by matt redman (cd “passion 05: how great is our god”)
“you never let go” by matt redman (cd “passion 06: everything glorious”)
—-connect—-
interview with danny pye (haitian children’s home)
“mighty to save” by hillsong (cd “mighty to save”)
“salvation’s chorus” by todd fields (cd “northpoint live: louder than creation”)
—-message—- jBow

yesterday was a good day. the band played great. people seemed to really engage with God during the music.

i had an emotional moment when we sang “mighty to save” after hearing from danny. it’s easy to sing songs about believing that God can move mountains, that he’s mighty to save, the author of salvation, etc. but it’s another thing to keep that hope when you live day-to-day in a place where you see some real darkness.

danny told the story of the latest girl that they’ve been able to bring into the home - 6 year old, vonia. she was sold out of her family for $13.00 (USD) to be sacrificed in a voodoo ceremony. haitian children’s home was able to buy her back (redeem) just a few days before she was to be killed.

wow. God is mighty to save, and the way he chooses to operate is to invite us to be his hands and feet, to offer our lives as living sacrifices to usher in the good news of the kingdom of God.

i was struck with the beauty of it, and at the same time the disconnect between that beautiful picture and the reality of my comfortable, over-consumptive, American life.

“here is our king” by david crowder band (cd “passion 05: how great is our god”)
“salvation’s chorus” by todd fields (cd “northpoint live: louder than creation”)
“let the praises ring” by lincoln brewster (cd “all to you…live”)
—-connect—-
message - jBow
prayer

we went with a shorter music set this week because jonathan needed more time for the message…..which was extremely practical and helpful, by the way… who knew that jesus was a kung fu practician?

“here is our king” is a relatively new song for our crowd. i think it’s still on the upswing in terms of how well people are owning it.

“salvation’s chorus” was brand new this week. we’ve been needing a new uptempo rocker worship song for awhile now. thanks todd fields! i hope that our community will grab onto the song and that it will be part of a great Easter celebration in a couple of months.

“sing salvation’s chorus now
our chains are gone, our victory won
death no longer holds us down
the Lord of love has overcome”

we wanted to round out the 3-song set with a tried and true song, so “let the praises ring” fit the bill nicely. our crowd really seems to dig lincoln brewster songs.

“sing to the king” by billy foote (arr. taken from 722)
“love the lord” by lincoln brewster (cd “all to you…live”)
—-connect—-
“endlessly” by desperation band (cd “from the rooftops”)
“hosanna” by hillsong united (cd “all of the above”)
—-prayer—-
video promo: financial peace university
—-message—-
—-prayer—-
“everything” by tim hughes (cd “holding nothing back)

kelsey stoner, one of our high school students from the turningpointe worship band, introduced “hosanna” as a new song in our adult service today. the first line of the second verse is “i see a generation / rising up to take their place / with selfless faith”. that’s exactly what’s happening with kelsey and others in our high school ministry. it’s so cool for our adults to be led and inspired in worship by our youth. kelsey has a beautiful gift as a singer! she did an awesome job with the song.

don smith and i are planning new worship songs that we want to introduce to our community between now and easter. we’ve got some great worship tunes coming up!

“your grace is enough” by chris tomlin (cd “arriving”)
“all over the world” by matt redman (cd “passion 05: how great is our god”)
“the highest and the greatest” by tim hughes (cd “holding nothing back”)
“glorious one” by steve fee (cd “burn for you”)
—-connect—-
“i won’t back down” by tom petty
—-message—- jBow

mike soper made his vocal debut today with the tom petty song. he rocked it. AND, what you don’t know is that mike jumped in with very short notice. i called him on thursday morning to see if he could take a crack at it at rehearsal thursday night. way to go, mike!

we didn’t have a keyboard player today. i missed having keys.

jonathan’s message was really good. largely inspired by an andy stanley message that jonathan had each of our staff watch last year. we’ve been praying for each other and our “big asks” ever since.

let me use this opportunity to say that i love working with the staff at crosspointe. we have really good chemistry, and a great balance of work and fun. it’s really nice to look forward to going into the office (most days).

“beautiful one” by tim hughes (cd “when silence falls”)
“majestic” by lincoln brewster (cd “all to you…live”)
connect
“everything” by tim hughes (cd “holding nothing back”)
“jesus paid it all” by kristian stanfill (cd “passion 06: everything glorious”)
“how great thou art” by charlie hall (cd “passion hymns: ancient and modern”)
message - steve d
prayer

great new song, “everything” by tim hughes. his new cd, “holding nothing back,” is really growing on me. my first impression was that there weren’t as many good corporate worship-type songs on it as his previous cd, “when silence falls” (which, incidentally, is one of my all-time favorite worship cd’s.) but the more i listen to this one, the more i love the songs. it’s been really good for personal worship times in my car and such….

two remade hymns in a row today. i gotta say, that was very satisfying. i always get thanked by several people every time we sing a hymn in our church. we have a lot of people who grew up in church, but left at some point and are just coming back. i think the hymns connect them to their young faith, and they are an encouraging reminder that it wasn’t God that they left, but rather out-of-touch religion. the hymns (a lot of them, not all) are rich with lyrical depth and good theology (certainly not all of them).

i had a good time in worship today.

“o worship the king” chris tomlin arr. (cd “passion: hymns ancient and modern”)
“here is our king” by david crowder band (cd “a collision”)
“everlasting god” by chris tomlin (cd “see the morning”)
“all because of jesus” by steve fee (cd “burn for you”)
connect
message - steve d.
reflection
“everything” by tim hughes (cd “holding nothing back”)

special thanks to my friend david dollar for sitting in on guitar. david is a member and regular guitar player for grace church in chapel hill, where our mutual friend nathan is worship leader. nathan just got married on saturday. congrats!

after the craziness of the christmas eve services and a nice break with my family, it was nice to get back to a “normal” crosspointe sunday.

farewell 2007.

bring on 2008!

christmas eve services

“the bucket thing” - thanks to kyle dillard, john hogan, and others….
“little drummer boy” by jars of clay (cd “drummer boy e.p.”)
“hark the herald angels sing” homegrown arrangement
“angels we have heard on high” arr. borrowed from “gloria” by mercy me (cd “the christmas sessions”)
connect
drama - mission nearly impossible - nick and gwenn mangine
video: interview with kids (”what do you want for christmas?”)
message - jBow
“the miracle of christmas” by steven curtis chapman (cd “all i want for christmas”)
carols and candles:
“the first noel”
“silent night”

christmas services were a lot of fun.

started extremely high energy with the bucket thing - a “stomp” inspired extravaganza. 10 guys banging on 5 gallon buckets, water bottles, and a trash can. this was originally performed at willow creek community church in chicago for their 25th anniversary celebration. written by my friend kyle dillard and others. we added a few elements to kick it up a notch.

another highlight was nick and gwenn’s “kid’s story”, which started with nick repelling down from the rafters above the stage, a la tom cruise in mission impossible.

over 2,000 people attended across the 4 services. this is crosspointe’s highest attended weekend ever!

selfishly, my highlight was seeing my wife and daughter dancing and singing along on the front row at the 7:00pm service tonight. this is darby’s first christmas with us. really her first christmas ever, since i doubt they celebrated christmas at her orphanage in china.

THEN, we had an amazing “small world” moment on the way home tonight. i’ll save that for another post later this week…

merry christmas.

cuddled with darby
made waffles for c.c. and darby
played “play kitchen” with darby
helped c.c. with christmas cookie baking
watched john mayer and wilco on austin city limits
leftover ham and homemade mac & cheese for lunch
put darby down for nap
(thinking about a nap myself)

all in all, this is shaping up to be one of my favorite sundays in awhile!

3 more christmas eve services tomorrow.

we had our first of four christmas eve services tonight. it was bucketfuls of fun! it was a party from the floor to the rafters, or vice-versa.

i don’t want to spoil the surprises for those who are coming on monday. just get there a few minutes early. you don’t want to miss the beginning. or the middle, or the end, for that matter.

i’ll post the music playlist and service order on monday night…..

monday’s services are at 3:00, 5:00 and 7:00pm.

thanks to all who are involved in pulling these services off. i’m extremely grateful.

1. “o come all ye faithful” - homespun arrangement
2. “sing to the king” by billy foote (arrangement ripped off from 722)
–connect–
3. “here is our king” by david crowder band (cd “passion 05: how great is our god”)
message - doc (daugh?)
4. feature song w/communion - “come and worship” by bebo norman (cd “christmas…from the realms of glory”)
5. “here is our king”

steve did a great job bringing the two-punch to jBow’s talk last sunday. more historical context - this time focusing on caesar augustus, who was known in the roman world as “savior of the world”.

for those readers who are familiar with modern worship music, it might be surprising, but we introduced david crowder’s “here is our king” for the first time ever at crosspointe. to borrow from an old nbc slogan - if you haven’t sung it, it’s new to you.

our pastor of communications, don smith, made his solo vocal debut today singing “come and worship” by bebo norman. he was really nervous, having not sung a solo in over 10 years. but he rocked it. i was proud of my bald friend.

i pretty much have no voice left after today. not sure what is the issue, but i’m hoping it’s worked out by thursday night for the first of our 4 christmas eve services. no big deal…except it makes it really hard to yell at my wife and daughter.

series: a different way in a manger

opening “unplugged” set:
“o come o come emmanuel” - a cappella
scripture reading
“we are hungry” by brad kilman (various recordings)
scripture reading
“here i am to worship” by chris tomlin (cd “passion: our love is loud”)
message: jBow
closing “full band” set:
“joy to the world” by third day (cd “christmas offerings”)
“the highest and the greatest” by tim hughes (cd “holding nothing back”)

i’m “pre-publishing” this post because we’ll be leaving right after services to drive to TN to an early Christmas celebration with family. unfortunately i can’t comment on the message until later.

crosspointe 12.02.07

“o come let us adore him” - homegrown arrangement
“our love is loud” by david crowder (cd “can you hear us?”)
connect
baby dedications (awwww!)
“love the lord” by lincoln brewster (cd “all to you…live”)
“satisfy” by desperation band (cd “from the rooftops”)
message - jBow
prayer

today was one of those messages that every pastor dreads….$$$….. in talking with jonathan earlier this week, he said something that struck me. he actually really enjoys talking about money. counseling people about honoring god with finances, radical generosity, smart money management, etc.

unfortunately, the reason that pastors don’t like talking about money is because of all of the abuses that some christian leaders (most notably some on TV) have perpetrated. we have so many first time visitors every week at crosspointe. we take that very seriously. the fear is that we’ll get lumped in with the abusers before people get to know and trust us.

still, the $$ aspect of a growing church is important.

i appreciated jonathan laying it all out there for us today. i need to be challenged regularly with the question of how important the mission is to me.

i love crosspointe. i love the people i serve with on staff. i love the volunteers that i work with in the worship bands and production ministry. i love the specific vision that we’re chasing after as a community. and i love financially supporting God’s unique mission for crosspointe.

looking forward to jumping into the christmas series - “a different way in a manger” - next weekend….

worship set:

“all because of jesus” by steve fee (cd “burn for you”)
“the highest and the greatest” by tim hughes (cd “holding nothing back”)
“mighty to save” by hillsong (cd “mighty to save”)
connect
“my hope is you” by third day (cd “offerings”)
“you never let go” by matt redman (cd “passion 06: everything glorious”)
message
“my hope is you” by third day

steve basically did part 2 of last weeks message. jesus reclaiming all things. today was centered on the resurrection. the christian faith hinges on the resurrection. if jesus did not defeat death, then we have no hope. he is our hope.

worship set:
“sing to the king” billy foote (ripped off from www.722.org)
“indescribable” by chris tomlin (cd “arriving”)
performed song: “hallelujahs” by chris rice (cd “deep enough to dream”)
“how great thou art” by charlie hall (cd “passion: hymns ancient and modern”)

message: god hugs trees

steve daugherty is a funny man. in a rant about the traditional (is it traditional?) view of heaven - clouds, wings, harps, singing - he threw in a reference to patrick swayze in “ghost”. nice.

God loves his creation, so we should too. Jesus is renewing ALL things. renewing, reclaiming, redeeming. you renovate your house because there’s inherent value. you don’t burn it down and build something different. several OT prophets and the book of revelation speak of heaven (the new jerusalem) coming down. new heaven, new earth. what if we don’t “fly away” some other place at the end of the age?

the longer i follow christ, the more i learn about and study the bible, the less i know for sure. but somehow that strengthens my faith instead of weakening it.

series: reverb

opening worship set:
“you are good” by lincoln brewster (cd “all to you…live”)
“everlasting god” by lincoln brewster (cd “all to you…live”)
“glorious one” by steve fee (cd “burn for you”)

closing song (w/recent baptism footage on screen):
“amazing grace (my chains are gone)” by chris tomlin (cd “see the morning”)

my friend and worship associate at crosspointe, chris mills, led worship yesterday. he always does such a great job - incredibly gifted musician and worship leader. i love having a front row seat to what God is doing in and through chris!

yesterday was just another great day. again, i love the direction our church is headed. this week we focused on the specific ways that our church community is making a difference in the broader local community - through our partnership with the durham rescue mission, the way we’re walking with tasha and her kids, and just through the ministry that goes on at our church campus, people consistently making the decision to trust their life to christ and to follow in his way.

loren price made his vocal debut as part of our worship band. he rocked it on the bgv’s and sang the snot out of “amazing grace”. i love the diversity in terms of vocal stylings that God is developing at crosspointe. loren grew up singing southern gospel. big voice.

that’s it for now…..

series: reverb

opening worship set:
“i am free” by desperation band (cd “from the rooftops”)
“majestic” by lincoln brewster (cd “all to you…live”)
“all over the world” by matt redman (cd “passion 06: everything glorious”)

special (w/video highlights from africa and haiti mission trips):
“solution” by hillsong united (cd “all of the above”)

closing song:
“salvation is here” by hillsong united (cd “look to you”)

today was an awesome day! jonathan updated us on what’s been happening in our ongoing DRIVE campaign. today was focused on our efforts globally, with our strategic partnerships with ministries in kenya and haiti. kristi and kris shared some of their experiences on the two trips that some of our leadership has taken to visit each ministry. these first trips were to meet the kids and staff people, as well as sort of a fact finding trip to start to dream about what a long-term partnership will look like.

we used video to help tell these stories, thanks to my friend and co-worker, don smith. he’s got the mad editing skillz… one of these days, don’s going to start a blog. and when he does, the world will never be the same!

today was one of those “i’m SO glad to be part of this church” days. and for anyone reading who’s ever been on staff at a church, you may realize what a rare blessing it is to be able to say that.

i’m sure i’ll have more thoughts as a reflect on today, but one thing that strikes me is that today was very tangible. not only are we painting a picture of how things could be (like we did when we kicked off our DRIVE journey), but today - a year later - we were able to show it. here’s what being a part of ushering in the Kingdom of God looks like!

within 5 minutes of the end of the first service, every child in both of our partner schools/orphanages in kenya and haiti were sponsored. we’ve started a waiting list. incredible to think of the way these kids lives will be forever changed.

thank you God for allowing us to play a small part in your redemptive work in the world! thank you crosspointe, for seeing it and stepping up to do your part!

“salvation is here, and He lives in me!”

series: reverb

opening worship set:
“o worship the king” trad. arr by chris tomlin (cd “passion: hymns ancient and modern”)
“rooftops” by desperation band (cd “from the rooftops”)
“love the lord” by lincoln brewster (cd “all to you…live”)

communion:
“breathing the breath” by matt redman (cd “facedown”)
“we are hungry” by brad kilman (lots of people have recorded this one…)

closing song:
“all because of jesus” by steve fee (cd “burn for you”)

jonathan’s message was a reminder that we’re not about converting people to the Christian religion, but rather helping people pursue God himself. one requires formulas and sales techniques, while the other just requires us to share the story of what God’s done for us. his final thought has stuck with me…..”for God” vs. “with God”. is it possible to get so involved in doing stuff for God that we neglect to do things with God?

today was crosspointe’s 10th birthday celebration!

worship songs:
“let the praises ring” by lincoln brewster (cd “all to you…live”)
“forever” by chris tomlin (cd “the noise we make”)
“your grace is enough” by chris tomlin (cd “arriving”)
“mighty to save” by hillsong (cd “mighty to save”)
“all over the world” by matt redman (cd “passion 06: everything glorious”)

performance song:
“all for you” by sister hazel (cd “somewhere more familiar”)

today was a fun day. we looked back and celebrated 10 years of god’s faithfulness and his work in and through the diverse and rag-tag group of people called crosspointe church. we highlighted several personal stories, interviewed the 3 families that founded the church in 1997, and just generally had a good time.

chris rocked out on the sister hazel song. those were fun vocal harmonies. we wanted to do a top 10 song from 1997. some other front runners were: “mmmbop” by hansen, “lovefool” by the cardigans, “semi-charmed life” by third eye blind.

“majestic” by linclon brewster (cd “all to you…live”)
“beautiful one” by tim hughes (cd “when silence falls”)

today we had a guest speaker: gary thomas. gary was in for the weekend to do a marriage conference at crosspointe on saturday. he stayed over to speak this morning. gary is about to publish his new book, “the beautiful fight.” he spoke from this book for the first time this morning.

probably what stuck with me most from the talk was a challenge to abandon the “what would jesus do?” question in favor of a different one: “what is jesus doing now?” we seem to forget that jesus is alive and well, living and working through his body, the church.

series: above ground
message: self-control

opening worship set:
“sing to the king” by billy foote (various recordings)
“love the lord” by lincoln brewster (cd “all to you…live”)
“the highest and the greatest” by tim hughes (cd “holding nothing back”)
“beautiful news” by matt redman (cd “beautiful news”)

post-message set:
“surrender” by marc james (cd “vineyard UK: surrender”)
“all because of jesus” by steve fee (cd “burn for you”)

today was an awesome celebration. jonathan wrapped up the “above ground” series - it’s been a challenging series based on the “fruit of the spirit” from galatians 5.

the highlight of today was easily the baptism celebrations after each service. in all, [correction: 20!] people took the plunge to publicly declare their trust in jesus and desire to follow him. woohooo!

series: above ground
message: gentleness

worship set:
“all over the world” by matt redman (cd “passion 05: how great is our god”)
“how great thou art” by charlie hall (cd “passion hymns: ancient and modern”)
“surrender” by marc james (cd “vineyard: surrender”)
“satisfy” by desperation band (cd “from the rooftops”)

series: above ground
message: faithfulness

chris led worship today and did a great job, as always!

opening worship set:
“bless his name” by vineyard music (cd “more than ever”)
“everlasting god” by lincoln brewster (cd “greatest hits”?)
“the highest and the greatest” by tim hughes (cd “holding nothing back”)

performance piece:
“expectations” by caedmon’s call (cd “overdressed”)

closing worship set:
“my hope is you” by third day (cd “offerings”)
“you never let go” by matt redman (cd “passion 06: everything glorious”)

series: above ground
message: goodness

worship set:
“marvelous light” by charlie hall (cd “flying into daybreak”)
“majestic” by lincoln brewster (cd “all to you…live”)
“endlessly” by desperation band (cd “who you are”)
“here i am to worship” by tim hughes (lots of different recordings)

maybe i’ll write a “worship ministry thought” post about it later, but first service yesterday was a technical nightmare. this rarely happens at crosspointe, thanks to don and his team being so capable and committed to excellence. days like today remind me of how important the technical piece is.

i was also reminded how much i work at getting over self-conciousness when i lead worship. yesterday’s issues thrust me right back into the spotlight and i realized how uncomfortable i am when people’s attention is drawn to me instead of being on their experience with God. anyway, more later….

steve’s message was very thought-provoking: does your faith start in genesis 1 and 2 where God calls his creation good? or does it start in genesis 3? at the core - is the human heart good or bad? huge implications depending on how you answer that…

series: above ground
message: kindness

worship set:
“salvation is here” by hillsong united (cd “look to you”)
“bless his name” by vineyard usa (cd “more than ever”)
“blessed be your name” by matt redman (cd “where angels fear to tread”)
“glorious one” by steve fee (cd “burn for you”)
“all because of jesus” by steve fee (cd “burn for you”)

very fun today. great spirit of celebration in the room, which was durn near full.

a couple of notable things happened in second service….

after glorious one, i looked back at our drummer, joe, to click us into the last song. he had the deer-in-the-headlights look and mouthed something about not being ready. not knowing what was going on, and not being willing to risk completly breaking the momentum, i decided to just move ahead by starting with the chorus just acoustic guitar and vocal. by the time i ended the chorus, joe had lined up the click track (i played most of the chorus against the click track from the previous song, which i don’t recommend) and came in at the right time with a fill into the intro. what i DIDN’T know at the time, was that he changed out his snare drum because he had busted the head in the previous song! once i found that out afterwards, i was even doubly impressed!

then, after “all because of jesus” i had everyone have a seat and then did my usual strumming on guitar until jonathan was ready to go with the message. generally, i just play until he says his first words, then i wrap it up and get out of there. today, i had my back turned to him and was just listening for his first words. a few moments later, having not heard him speak yet, i was curious so i turned around to find jonathan turned toward me with a “when are you going to stop playing?” look on his face. all at once i realized that everyone was waiting on me. so i did what anyone would do… i went pete townshend on the last couple of chords, playing it up like a rock star. i figured the moment was already ruined, so why not take it a bit further?

series: above ground
message: patience

worship setlist:

“o worship the king” by chris tomlin (cd “passion: hymns ancient & modern”)
“the highest and the greatest” by tim hughes (cd “holding nothing back”)
“you never let go” by matt redman (cd “passion 06 everything glorious”)
“everlasting god” by chris tomlin (cd “see the morning”)

series: above ground
message: peace

worship setlist:

“bless his name” by vineyard music (cd “more than ever”)
“marvelous light” by charlie hall (cd “flying into daybreak”)
*new song - “the highest and the greatest” by tim hughes (cd “holding nothing back”)
“mighty to save” by hillsong (cd “mighty to save”)
“the beauty of your peace” by tim hughes (cd “when silence falls”)

i just have to say that tim hughes’ cd “when silence falls” is one of my top worship albums ever. great songs, great sequence, start to finish.

series: above ground
message: joy

worship set:
“all over the world” by matt redman (cd “passion 05: how great is our god”)
“glorious one” by steve fee (cd “burn for you”)
“holy is the lord” by chris tomlin (cd “arriving”)
“o worship the king” by chris tomlin (cd “passion: hymns ancient and modern”)
“our love is loud” by david crowder band (cd “can you hear us?”)
“friend of god” by israel houghton and michael gungor (various recordings)

the opposite of joy is not sorrow, but hopelessness.

it was good to be back today after missing last sunday because of vacation.

series: above ground
message: love

worship set:
“all because of jesus” by steve fee (cd “burn for you”)
“bless his name” by vineyard music (cd “more than ever”)
“o worship the king” trad. arr. by chris tomlin (cd “passion: hymns ancient and modern”)
“majestic” by lincoln brewster (cd “all to you…live”)

we used a clip from comedian, brian regan, to set up the message. love that guy.

a bit late with this one….

chris and the band led last sunday while my family and i were on vacation.

new series: above ground

jonathan gave the intro message. the kingdom of god is like a mustard seed. starts small but eventually takes over the garden. it’s said to be recognized by its fruit - love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control.

worship set:
“rooftops” by desperation band (cd “from the rooftops”)
“all to you” by lincoln brewster (cd “all to you….live”)
“bless his name” by vineyard music (cd “more than ever”)
“endlessly” by desperation band (cd “who you are”)
“you are the one” by lincoln brewster (cd “all to you…live”)

Message: a Conversation with Bono

Worship set:
“Love the Lord” by Lincoln Brewster (All To You….Live)
“Our Love Is Loud” by David Crowder Band (Can You Hear Us?)
“Friend of God” by Michael Gungor and Israel Houghton (various arrangements)

today was awesome. we showed the video interview that bill hybels did with bono for the leadership summit ‘06. i was so glad that our people got to hear the simple, pure, christian faith of bono and the motivation behind all of his tireless work for justice around the world.

i have to admit, i too, in the past, have been guilty of chalking bono’s faith up to some pseudo-christian, hodge-podge spirituality. if that’s your impression, you’ve got to check out this DVD. but he’s the real deal. he came across as very genuine. very challenging interview.

makes me proud of what our church is doing through our DRIVE journey. bringing the tangible good news of the resurrection of jesus to people at home and around the world, and helping to usher in the kingdom of god in a big way in small places. things like this.

one more thing about the service today…..the turningpointe students (high schoolers) were freshly back from a week of camp at CIY. They were en masse taking up a good portion of the center section seats. obviously pumped up and ready to worship. they lead worship today as much as me and the band did, no doubt! their enthusiasm was contagious!

series: rethink
message: rethinking you

worship set:
“all over the world” by matt redman (passion ‘05: how great is our god)
“let the praises ring” by lincoln brewster (all to you…live)
“sing to the king” by billy foote (no recording)

communion:
“jesus paid it all” by kristian stanfill (passion ‘06: everything glorious)

series: rethink
message: rethinking the church

worship music set:
“majestic” by lincoln brewster (all to you…live)
“all because of jesus” by steve fee (burn for you)
“glorious one” by steve fee (northpoint live)
“everlasting god” by lincoln brewster (let the praises ring: best of…)

chris mills and the band led worship today. way to go guys! my fellow pastors will appreciate this: i was able to drive to the church and attend with my wife and daughter today! she made it 20 minutes in her toddler room before a complete meltdown.

message thoughts: rethinking the church. not about a place or a weekly event, but rather a people or a group (ekklesia) that’s marked by their common mission to follow jesus’ example. to live the way of jesus. steve challenged us each to consider the question, “what does you mean when you think about becoming a member of a church? what are you joining?”

series: rethink
message: rethinking the man upstairs

“we are hungry” by brad kilman (hodge-podge arrangement)
“the time has come” by hillsong united (united we stand)
“o praise him” by david crowder band (illuminate)
“how great thou art” traditional hymn

so….if you have trouble continuing to believe in God it may be because the god that was passed on to you doesn’t really exist. wow, steve really helped us chase down where we get our picture of god, most often referred to as “the man upstairs,” then gave us permission to throw that picture out in favor of Yahweh (I am what I am). good stuff. i like my church. i like that i like my church.

guest speaker: craig gross, founder of xxxchurch.com

“i am free” by desperation band (from the rooftops)
“salvation is here” by hillsong united (look to you)

performance song - “what i’ve done” by linkin park (minutes to midnight)

series: role models

“friend of god” by michael gungor and israel houghton (hodge-podge arrangement from various recordings)
“let the praises ring” by lincoln brewster (all to you…live)
“the time has come” by hillsong united (united we stand)
*new song - “glorious one” by steve fee (north point live)

i gave a couple of minutes worth of thoughts on lifting hands in worship. 1. as surrender - giving control over to god. 2. as a child reaching up to father, wanting to be held. this second one has more meaning to me now that i’m a father. made sure to say that crosspointe is a place of freedom to express your heart to god through whatever outward means seem appropriate to you. on the flip side, we never want anyone to feel coerced into any particular outward expression. what matters is the heart - opening yourself up to god and responding to his lead.

jonathan wrapped up the “role model” series with a message about authority. referred to saul, david and absalom and the different ways they dealt with authority. also challenged us hard with paul’s words in romans 13 about every authority being instituted by god. ouch. tough questions necessarily follow that! i’m sure it is inspiring some interesting discussion today. i know it did in our house.

i had the opportunity yesterday to take a worship band from crosspointe to a sister church across town to lead worship. true north church was planted in march by a good friend of mine and former associate here at crosspointe, jon mcclarnon. i love keeping up with true north and with jon’s thoughts as he rides out this adventure by regularly checking in at his blog.

it was a great morning. we started at 8am unloading sound, video and lighting equipment from the truck. we set up the stage, which the theater has graciously allowed them to store under the movie screen. jason, mike, john, and stuart were there to lead the tech side of things. it took me back to my two years of church-in-a-box before crosspointe moved into our current facility (although there were 6 years of it all together). ahhhhh….the good ol’ days!

anyway, even though it’s a new church and i was a guest worship leader, leading with jon was comfortably familia