a little shakey at shakeys

A new Shakeys Pizza Parlor opened near our house. It's the first one I've been to since growing up in Peoria. We used to go this Shakeys on University in Peoria. It even had a player piano and you could pick the songs it played. Nothing but fond childhood memories.

So you can imagine my excitement to have a new Shakeys nearby. The excitement had greatly dissipated during the 50 minutes it took to get two mini pizzas. The whole time I kept thinking about this article in USA Today that talked about the new ovens Papa John's is installing that can bake a pizza in four minutes. Shakeys must have running low on coal.

back from florida

Ok, I could have blogged last week but the simple truth is ... I didn't want to. Well, actually, I had things I wanted to blog about but I didn't want to take the time to do it.

I spent last week in Orlando at the National New Church Conference. It's a gathering of all kinds of nutty people -- people who have started a new church or who are considering doing so. Either way, you're a bit nutty.

It's hard to describe the conference's atmosphere, or mojo as the Seattle crowd would say. Electric. Passionate. Creative. Risky. It was either the Holy Spirit or the air conditioning, but I felt more than a few tingles.

Speakers included Mark Driscoll from Mars Hill in Seattle, Gene Appel from Willow Creek, Ed Stetzer, Dave Ferguson from Naperville, Larry Osbourne from North Coast, and a dude from Walt Disney Co.

There were about 100 people there who were connected to Stadia. I got to visit with Marcus Bigelow, Stadia's president and the guy who ignited my calling to plant churches.

All in all, it was an outstanding week.

to lake havasu and back

We left this past Monday to drive to Lake Havasu City to see friends from the Bay Area. For our Monday route, we chose the charm and beauty of Barstow and Needles. For our theme song, we chose Jay Farrar's "Barstow." "By the time we make it to Barstow, we'll be more than halfway to _____." Those of you who have been to Barstow and Needles can fill in the blank. Those of you who haven't been to Barstow or Needles, save yourself the trip and use your imagination.

We arrived at Lake Havasu on Tuesday and had a great visit with Curt and Kim Russell (and John and Jake). We knew the Russells from our church days in Walnut Creek. Curt works for PG&E and recently took an assignment in Needles. Needless to say, they live in Lake Havasu and he drives about 35 miles to work. He's overseeing the clean-up of a contaminated site.

Most people in Southern California think of Lake Havasu as a party town. Many western college students will head to Lake Havasu for spring break and I can see why. It's hot, sunny, and there's water. Lake Havasu also has a number of snowbirds; typical of Arizona. But there are people who actually live there year-round. It has a number of nice parks and family activities. It even has two Starbucks. (Though I committed a coffee faux paus and bought coffee at McDonalds on the drive out of town).

For the route home, we opted to go South to Yuma. This meant following the Colorado River along AZ 95 until arriving in Yuma. We stopped in Quartzsite, AZ, and enjoyed a fine dining experience at the local Carl's Jr.

Unfortunately, the air condition does not work in Tonya's van. As we travelled south to Yuma, the outside temperature peaked at 102 degrees. Of course, it only felt like 98 degrees to us. I think the girls did better than I did. After entering San Diego County, Tonya's van also decided to start cutting out. Three times we had to pull over, wait a few minutes, and then start back up. It didn't appear to be overheating. It may be time for a new van.

So ... we arrived back in San Diego around 5:00 and within minutes the girls were in the pool. By 6 PM, dad was asleep.

another good sunday

We fielded a full band this morning at LifePoint. It was good to have a full stage again -- we had bass, djembe, guitar, and keyboards. I also announced a new schedule change that we're making on April 30. We'll be moving to a one-service format with worship being at 10:30. This will give us the 9:00 time slot to do occasional classes, seminars, etc. It will also give us the benefit of having one larger service rather than two smaller ones. More to come later ...

the easter bunny

OK, I had about fifteen minutes of free time that I used to Photoshop a few pictures of the Easter Bunny. Actually ... I wanted to put something a little off-beat up on the LifePoint website.

one of my friends is almost famous

One of the elders from our church in Covington is featured on the ABC News website in this story. It's about "age-appropriate automobiles" ... I bet you didn't such a term existed. I've saddled up inside this particular car/truck/suv and can tell you firsthand it's pretty cool.

Jan. 3, 2006 — It wasn't until Jim Tudor got his new Honda Element that he noticed a quirk in its design. Why was the boxy vehicle's sunroof over the empty back seat instead of over his spot up front?
"I found out that it's supposed to be for my surfboard," says Tudor, who's 56, a grandfather of two who never surfs anywhere but the Internet. "It was really only after the fact, when I started doing a little reading on the car, that I found out I wasn't supposed to be the one driving it."

lifepoint sermon video

Here's a link to a sermon video a few of our media guys put together. They went to a local mall and asked people what they knew about Jesus. I've reduced it in size for quicker loading. If you'd like the the uncompressed version, let me know.

reconnected with a friend

Last Saturday I ran into a guy at Hannah's softball game. Our daughters were on the same team last year. What I really appreciate about him is the fact that he reads ... and I mean READS. He is constantly reading things for the purpose of stretching and growing. I'm always sure to ask him what he's been reading and he usually throws out three or four things I should read.

Last Saturday was no exception. We spent the better part of the game talking about a theology of governing. Fascinating stuff.

Too often Christ-followers bring a superficial line of reasoning to very complex stuff. It doesn't have to be that way. We should not be afraid of wading into the deeper waters because that's where the mystery (and truth) lies.

a tom petty sighting in la mesa

There's this guy who comes into Cosmos nearly every time I am there. He's always wearing a denim jacket and looks like Tom Petty. I'm expecting to hear "Free Falling" at one of the open mics.

the water wasn't that cold

This is confession time. Our pool has a vacuum system that runs along the bottom of the pool, sweeping up leaves, etc. However, it has a very bad habit of getting stuck in the corner where the steps are. So every now and then I have to go "set it free" and walk it to a different side of the pool.

Today at lunch I noticed it was stuck and went outside to fix it. After leaning down to grab the hose, I lost my balance and ended up in the pool. Standing up. I was in the water up past my waist. Shoes, wallet, everything.

But I fixed the sweeper. And it was stuck again fifteen minutes later.

i'm back

Finally ... it's been over a week since I've last posted a blog. I'm sure this has been a major bummer for at least three people, two who probably live in the far reaches of Siberia. Thanks for reading!

Since 2003, I have had ongoing back troubles. If you were to ask my Georgia-based chiropractor, he would tell you I have a herniated disk in the my lower back. Ask the orthapedic and he would say it was two degenerative disks. Either way -- it hurts when it flares up!

Well, it flared up last Wednesday. Which meant that Wednesday and Thursday were spent lying on my side watching television. I felt my mind and body begin to adjust to the news cycle. Same stories every 30 minutes. By Friday I was able to move around, even drive to breakfast. Spent the latter part of the day back on the bed. By Saturday I was able to walk for extended periods of time. By Sunday I was able to speak at both services, though I confess to running out of gas midway through the second message.

Whenever this flares up, it creates an odd sight. My legs will be straight but my upper torso will be slanted to the left. I stretch, sleep on my left side only, and occasionally try to physically move my body back into alignment.

This time around, I started taking MSM as well as additional calcium. I also reverted to something that is probably due to my dad's influence -- I purchased apple cider vinegar and began drinking three tablespoons three times a day. There's no way I could drink that stuff straight ... I mix it with either honey and water or just straight apple juice. Does it help -- who knows!

Today is Wednesday, one week later, and I'm standing straight again. On my "to do" list once it settles even more is to lose a few pounds and start exercising.

Well ... there you have it. More than you ever wanted to know.

ups and downs of church planting

LifePoint turned six months old last weekend. We held our first public worship gathering on September 11, 2005, and it has been a wild ride ever since.

Starting a new church is so much different than working in an established church. In our previous churches, there was a certain continuity -- the ball kept rolling on its own. I could drive in the parking lot on any given Sunday and expect a certain number of people, and know that most of the volunteers would be there.

In a new church, you have to be comfortable with a high level of uncertainty. We don't know from week to week who may or may not be there. As a church that sublets our worship space, we also don't know what new stuff may mysteriously appear. We've shown up on Sundays and found choir risers (which we don't use), professional lighting racks, missing chairs, no cables ...

On the flip side, we couldn't have asked for a better rental arrangement than the one we have with Mission Valley Christian Fellowship. Working with them has given us a level of stability that is critical in starting a new church community.

There is also the blessing of working with people who are discovering church for the first time or rediscovering it after a long time away. I've always heard that new churches attract new people and it's true.

Personally, it has been one of the most tasking things I have ever undertaken. I can certainly appreciate how the apostle Paul felt when he spoke of carrying the burden of his churches. Numerous mornings I have awoken early with thoughts about needing to do something -- or wondering "how in the world are we going to do this?"

Well ... that's enough reflections for now. My coffee is getting cold.

recent graphics

Here are a few graphics I've been working on lately. Some are finished, others just drafts.

floating our boats

Last Saturday it rained cats and dogs, with my apologies to cats and dogs. We're talking serious rain, not the light sprinkle that most San Diegans confuse for a downpour. At about 9:00 AM I got Hannah and Hope together to make boats out of Tupperware and we sailed them along the curb. It reminded me of a similar time in my own childhood. We were visiting Grandma Hensley in West Plains, Missouri, and it thunderstormed. My cousin and I improvised boats out of old milk cartoons and set sail. Grandma lived on a steep hill and the boats often went faster than we could run.

Good times ...

excused from jury duty

After being called back for day two of jury duty, I was unceremoniously excused by the prosecutor. I think he felt that since I am a pastor that I might be reluctant to convict someone. I got that idea from the question that he asked me. Surprisingly, he didn't ask me my convictions about drinking. What kind of world are we living in?

jury pool continues to shrink

The jury pool has begun to shrink. I'm not seated among the first 24 so I'm not sure about my chances. In my mind there are several I would strike. It's a DUI case involving an old lady - 2 counts.

jury duty

So I'm blogging from the courthouse.

hand dryer at city library

Every now and then we venture downtown to the main city library. It's quite an adventure (Usually connected to the homeless dudes reading magazines to kill time).

Well ... today I needed to wash my hands and used the vintage air dryers in the men's room. It was so strong that it created a circle on the back of my hand! It was like turbo-dryer.

lifepoint cafe ... march 26

Our next LifePoint Cafe will be March 26 and will feature the music of Kim DiVincenzo and Kyle Phelan. Look for flyers to come out soon.

On another music note ... The Gooses will be releasing their first CD this Friday night at Cosmos.

watching the sparks fly

I spent about five hours in the dentist's chair yesterday. For most of the morning he worked to replace a few old fillings and added two new ones. It's the strangest observation to be lying there while a drill is inside your mouth. The smell took me back to my childhood and going to Dr. Spaulding, a dentist on the south side of Peoria. Only Dr. Spaulding didn't have a television with headphones like Dr. Salazar did.