First Weekend Gig

Wrap up

2006-01-17T10:14:00.000-08:00

So now I'm back at my desk on Tuesday. I've had some time to see my family again, detox, sleep, etc. My voice is still kind of ragged. I need to build some more endurance in that respect. Speaking of respect, I'd like to toss up some props to my left hand. It held up MUCH better than I thought that it would. While I'm at it, I owe an apology to my guitar. I used Adam's Taylor this weekend and mine sat backstage in the case the whole time. Sorry, little guitar, you just wouldn't have held up to the punishment.

Looking back at the weekend, I can't think of anything that I'd have done differently. I'd have taken Holly, but that wasn't up to me. It was decided by externals.

The crowd of students was great! As far as I know, everyone was well-behaved. Lives were changed, the Spirit was experienced, and at the bottom line, that's why we were there. To bring that element to the worship of the weekend.

Sunday rotations are going to feel a bit different now. No air guitar, no group hopping, and probably no crowd-surfing. In some ways, "propriety" in worship becomes (for me, anyway) nothing more than a self-perpetuating excuse to sit on my hands, or put them in my pockets. I hope that I learn to be as unabashed in the "crowd" as I can be on stage. I want to worship like that all the time.

There were several college students there from Common Ground. One of them asked if it was ok to worship like that back home. We told him to bring it. I'd like to follow my own advice.

I felt 100% effective this weekend. Like this isn't just using a skill, or playing at a hobby. The music alone could be seen that way, but there's something more. Something ancient and much deeper. I love to set it free!

Next gig is January 26 when I'll be the guest of Ashworth. Adam's other band. It's in Indy, so that's nice, and I'm only playing twice on Saturday.

Monday AM

2006-01-16T05:39:00.000-08:00

Last night's main session was unbelievable! There was the usual games, videos and frivolity. We played three songs, a solid outting. The music was tight, the Spirit was present... everything sparked.

Sean came back up and delivered a talk about the truth and validity of the Bible from archaeological and bibliographic standpoints. It was completely fascinating. He held my attention the entire time, and delivered with authority.

There's one question about the validity of the Bible that I've always had. I've heard several arguments about it's truth and validity that refer to scripture as a proof. Is it possible to proove a thing by itself? Can you ask, "Is the Bible true?" And answer it by saying, "Yes. Because the Bible says so." I've always chewed on that. Shaun went much deeper than this and gave such compelling evidence. I was very impressed.

After Sean, we went back up and did 9 more songs. The vibe in the room was unlike anything I've ever been a part of! 300 people with super-charged energy, jumping, dancing, singing, shouting. Absolutely incredible! The guys back at the booth were panning the video cameras, creating as much of a light show as they could. It was as if everyone was worshiping with whatever means and tools they had at their disposal. Incredible!

Once things died down, we packed up our gear for the night and went to get a late dinner. Chit chat, some chicken tortilla soup, LOTS of laughter. This has been a very interesting weekend.

Truth be told, though, I'm ready to be home with my family. At the heart, I miss my wife. I miss my daughter. This has seemed like a long weekend. Every moment has been rewarding. Three more songs, pack up, 4-hour ride home and that will be that. Stay tuned.

Sunday...

2006-01-15T12:31:00.000-08:00

Sunday afternoon. We had a light set this morning. Three songs with medium energy, then a new speaker came up. He had a good message about the Holy Spirit. He had obviously done a good bit of prep work on it.

After the main session, we got together to discuss the evening's plan. Then we decided to meet in one of the hotel restaurants to watch the Colts game. It's on right now. The Colts aren't looking so good at the moment, but it's a long way to the end. Christin, Adam's wife, had just left to head back for Indy. I've got my laptop in the restaurant and am making some changes to the website, editing some pictures and (obviously) writing for the blog. The minute that Adam came back to the table with his PowerBook, I dumped over a glass of water. There doesn't look to be any long-term damage, but it's powered off with the battery out for now. Say a prayer. I'd hate to be the end of a PowerBook.

So, as I look around the table, it's Adam, Kyle, Matt, Cam, Joy, Rene, Jamie, Cory and me. Our band is becoming a nice little community. I'm enjoying this moment, except that the Steelers just scored their second TD.

This morning, I had sort of a hard time getting into the worship frame of mind. I hadn't slept too well, and just wasn't feeling it. We took the stage, Adam read some scripture, and that grabbed me. Then we did Your Grace Is Enough and Matt pulled out the disco groove on the chorus. I was totally in at that point. I thought back on it later and decided that this is one of the reasons that it's important to have a good foundation of godly friends. For one, they'll help when you need it. Another aspect, though, is that they'll provide someone for YOU to give help to. You can get outside of yourself and join your life with theirs. It's that relationship that provides God a context to reveal Himself.

I'll write more again later... I'm going to watch the Colts and pray that the self-destruction stops.

Saturday...

2006-01-15T12:29:00.000-08:00

Friday night was nuts! The crowd has such a supply of energy, and it's so easy to get pumped up and in the Spirit when that's coming back to you. Bed time ended up being around 2am, with a morning meeting at 8am. So sleep was a precious commodity, though it was in short supply. Breakfast was also elusive, but some leftover pizza managed to get me through the morning.

On a side note, I've decided that I'm an official spokesperson for Good Earth brand tea. I'm undergoing a slow transfusion with it, and am enjoying every sip. I've gotten Matt in on it, as well.

So the main session happened this morning. The speaker, Sean McDowell (son of Josh McDowell, the godfather of Youth Ministry), did a very good job in terms of content and his presentation of it. His comedic interjections betray a touch of self-consciousness that cause him to get off track from time to time. He tended to grab me and hold me very effectively, until he got off track with jokes. He clearly picked up a measure of his dad's personality. I believe that he's well on his way to being a highly effective speaker.

The music went very well for us. We're being careful to surround each session with plenty of prayer and are giving credit to God whenever we can. We've had very little difficulty with technical stuff. A couple of minor monitor things, but nothing that Kyle couldn't handle.

We all decided to go and get some lunch after the session, so we found a nice little place just down the street from the hotel. I have to say, I'm HIGHLY enjoying the community that our band is developing. Personalities are meshing, everyone is interacting, it's a great thing to be a part of. The wives continue to be great examples of grace and support to the whole community, not just their respective husband.

We had some free time in the afternoon, so Adam, Matt & I came up to our room and worked on a new song. It's good. I'm excited about it. We then faced the decision to either take a nap, or get out and do something. We opted for a trip around town. The three of us ended up seeing Glory Road. I slept through a good portion of it. It won't make my Favorite list.

So we got back, had a good practice, then some dinner, and the evening session. We did 3 songs before Sean came up. He delivered a lot of very interesting content, again, peppered with a little misplaced humor. He went a little long, so our 4-song set got shortened to 2. No sweat. We took the stage with the Spirit obviously on the scene. We had a very good outting, and helped to continue that worship. It's clear that God is doing things in the lives of these kids.

We wrapped up and headed to the room around 10:30. It's now 11:30pm, and I'm very tired. I'm going to sleep. We have the same schedule to maintain tomorrow.

Friday Night... trip up and pre session

2006-01-13T18:46:00.000-08:00

The trip up was good. Rainy and gray the entire time. Crummy weather, but Kyle did all of the driving. He did a great job. We were in a 15-passenger van with a big box trailer behind us. Kyle had experience towing a boat, so he was the obvious choice.

So here's who came in the van: Me and Matt (we get first mention because we're the two wife-less slobs), Cam and Rene, Cory and Jamie, Kyle and Joy. What a fun trip it was, too. Lots of laughter, iPods being passed around, etc. I had the privilege of giving Renee her first taste of Coldplay. Any past readers of these blogs know that I'm the source for them. :)

Taco Bell for lunch, and we hit K'zoo in plenty of time... about 12:30, I think. We unloaded the trailer and got the stage as set up as we could. The Student Venture staff were still getting everything put together, so it was "do a little, wait a little."

As the sound board was getting patched together, Kyle and Jamie discovered several missing parts. One of the conference directors was going to make a run for some supplies, so I got a list of what we needed and asked if I could tag along. "Sure. No problem. We're going to go get a TV, and we'll leave in about 10 minutes" he said. About 30 minutes later, Matt and I borrowed a car from a servant-hearted stranger named Josh and got directions to Guitar Center. Turns out, the speaker for the weekend had some trouble getting here and the director was taking care of that. I volunteered my services to one of the other guys in charge. He was interested.

So Matt and I took off, found GC with no problems, got the goods and headed back. On the return trip, I mentioned that I was wondering if I was going to have to speak. I was looking forward to it since I knew that the Spirit was moving. I want to be all up in the middle of that!

We got back safely, delivered the parts, and had a quick chat with the conference guy about speaking. Sure enough, I was up for tonight. 15 minutes. No sweat. I spent some time preparing some things and had some chats with the other guys to get some insight. In that time, Chris Nieshalla called, prayed with/for me and offered this advice, "When you feel the Spirit start to take over, give in." I smiled and hung up. Good advice. Chip Neidigh had also called me to check in. I have some darned good friends.

A little later, the same conference guy came back up to me and said that they weren't going to need me to speak. "The director didn't think it was the best idea since we've never heard you speak before." I told him that my time with the Wiccans had really honed my speaking skills, but I'd submit to their wishes. :) No speaking.

A couple of hours later, we ran a full rehearsal. Let me just say... if you've heard us at church and it was loud, this is Band3 unleashed. It's a great room, a great sound system and several more decibels. We finished sound checking, I broke a string (of course), changed strings, had a salad for dinner and now we're up in our room (Matt and I) relaxing. We don't play until 11:00pm. I'm usually in bed by now, and it's only 9:30. Holy cow, I'm old.

Here's my hope: we'll get in there with a room of 300 pumped-up high school students and I'll draw on their energy. That coupled with Matt and Cory laying down grooves, and I should be home free! Maybe I'll have enough energy to make another post after the first session. Don't hold your breath.

I'm REALLY missing Holly and Sydney. Thankfully, Rene has been conscious of that and took care of my dinner. I must be exuding some pitiful vibe or something. In all, the wives on the trip have been a HUGE blessing. Helping set up, clean up, get dinner, take pictures, etc. They are really godly women, and it shows. I wish Holly were here.

OK. Time for some hot tea with honey. More to come!

Coming up fast...

2006-01-11T19:20:00.000-08:00

So the day of our first weekend gig is fast approaching. I have to start thinking about packing, getting my gear together, making sure I actually have the things I need, etc. The luxury of playing in a band at church is that the church provides all of the equipment (including a good guitar). When striking out on our own, we have to come up with our own stuff. Never having done this, you can imagine the amount of stuff I own. Not much. So props to Keynote for hooking us up with a PA system. Adam's got mics, Bryan Myers (a drummer and friend of Band3) is lending some more gear. God's providing, to say the least.

I'm certainly excited to travel and play. This is something I've always wanted to do, and I finally feel confident enough in my musical ability and leadership to NOT be afraid for my life. :) I have the privilege of spending time with the most talented group of musicians that I've ever been around, and doing this with the purpose of leading adults and teens before the throne of God. Does it get any better? Yes it does, but Holly and Sydney couldn't make it this time.

My hope for the weekend is to worship with reckless abandon and empower others to do the same, to serve my brothers and the strangers that will become friends, and to search for insight into myself. I want to make this weekend about God in all respects. I want my worship of Him to pour forth from my listening to His Spirit.

That's it for now. The gig cometh, but not before another full trip to the Day Job. Stay tuned!!!