learning when to run

I was teaching this weekend and was so hit by the message that is taught to us by the life of Joseph. I was teaching out of Genesis 39:7-12. If you read, you see that Joseph was a man that was able to say no to the hardest of sins. At this time, Joseph was approached by the king's wife to come and lie with her and Joseph refused. Then if you look in verse 10, it says that this woman came to Joseph everyday and Joseph continued to say no. I mean this guy was just like us... sin tempts us every day. Yet, Joseph had a heart for purity and righteousness. Then one day, the woman came to Joseph and grabbed him by the garment, and he ran.

You know I was thinking of the things we are faced with every day; temptations, sins, thoughts. I was hit by the thought that we say yes to a lot of little things; we compromise many times in the simplest of sins. Maybe it's movies we compromise to watch, or music we allow ourselves to sing along with, or maybe even just an attitude that rules our actions. I don't know about you, but I am convicted in the fact that I don't say no enough. See, Joseph said no every time, and when the sin grabbed him by the shirt, he ran. If our hardest temptation grabbed us by our shirt could we run?

The Lord desires for each of us to pursue purity and righteousness every time, so that when our greatest temptation is right in our face, we know when to run. What are you saying yes to, and if you were faced with your greatest temptation, could you run? Resist Compromise and Pursue Purity, and when the time comes... RUN!

my hero.

You know I think we all have heroes in our lives. It is that person that we look up to or are inspired by; and many times we model our lives like them. This weekend I found my new hero. He isn't a colleague, or a long-time friend, and he really doesn't even know how to speak. He is a little boy we call, "little man." This week when I was away at a conference, I got to spend a lot of time with one of my newest heroes, Caleb Rogers. As we got to hang out at the mall and eat at restaurants, I was so taken back by this little guy. First and foremost, I was amazed that this little guy had so much life and energy... all of which was given to him by Jesus. Anyway, one of the things about him that I love so much is the confidence that is displayed on his face through laughs and smiles; knowing that he is Shane's child. He didn't have to prove anything to anyone... he just had to be himself. It is the same way with us and God... we don't have to prove anything to anyone... We have an audience of 1. Be who you are and be confident that we are God's children...

Cheer's to you Caleb...

Repossess

Well tonight at Repossess was insane. I have never seen so many students cram into a high school gym. As we opened the doors, it seemed as though kids kept coming in forever. The more full the room got, the more kids that seemed to be coming in. After the dust settled and the event got on its way, we had close to 2000 students packed into a giant mosh pit. From the first song all the way to the last note, we saw God do amazing things. We had 75 students give their heart to the Lord and many more who made a stand to love a world around them. The funny thing about events like this is that you really don't have control at all. We had just about every technical problem happen, but I love that our God is not contained by our technology. After we got out of the way, God was free to move. It was amazing to watch. All in all God did such an amazing thing at Repossess and I can't wait to see the fruit of what God did in students hearts. "Greater things are yet to come... greater things are still to be done in this city."

counting down the hours

Well Repossess is only hours away... I think that we all are getting anxious to see what the Lord has in store for this incredible night. I have a feeling that this is going to be one of those nights that you can't sleep. Anyway, today Boaz and I put the finishing touches on our masterpiece and lit it up. It looks way better than we ever thought it would. I have had such a blast building this canvas. It is so easy to think that this type of creativity isn't doing much for an event like this, but I believe everyone brings something different to the table. Each thing someone brings to the table is just as important as what someone else brings. Some bring their "musical" skills to the Lord, while others bring a little art. Each glorifies Jesus and that is the most important thing. Anyway, all that to say... let's worship the Lord!!

Here is a few pics...

heroes is here

The long wait has finally come to an end for what I believe to be one of the coolest shows on the planet, "Heroes." NBC's 3 hour premiere begins tonight and I am so excited. Anyway, if you have never seen Heroes, you are definitely missing out. You know when I first started to watch heroes, I was so confused and honestly I didn't like it very much. But as I continued to watch the next season from the beginning, my eyes were opened to an amazing story line. Anyway, Heroes is a lot like LOST in the sense that anything can happen at anytime, and you are mostly always confused until the end. After the first 2 seasons, I have definitely become a fan. You should check it out. Well, off I go to watch the premiere.

so you think you can dance

well tonight was an awesome night here at Uturn, as God really moved in all of us. We heard a great Word from Shane Rogers about the importance of living our lives together in unity. Anyway, after all was said and done... students took the message quite literally as they circled together in unity and challenged each other to see if they could dance. All I have to say is that we have some funny students. There is no greater joy than to see young people, despite who they are or where they come from, coming together to enjoy each other's company. Anyway, I am glad that I have the opportunity to be a part of these kids lives here in Olympia. Cheers to them!!

Here is the blackmail video...LOL

paint meets sharpie

Well today paint met sharpie as Boaz and I painted on top of the sharpie drawing on a giant painter's drop clothe. It was so neat as our painting truly came to life. We spent a little extra time working on the little details that make a good painting great. We even put hot pink stardust all over the canvas. Anyway, now that the painting is done, we have to finish building the soft box to illuminate the painting on center stage. All I know is that as we finished the painting, we were more excited than ever for Repossess to come. I know that the Lord is going to do something so huge in our community and I am so privileged to play a part in this great movement of God. Again, don't miss this event, and make sure you check out the video on my "video slice" and pass it around. 4 MORE DAYS!!!

change the world with a sharpie

Tonight, my best friend Boaz and I began to piece together an epic art piece for Repossess coming up next Wednesday. Everyone has a role and has something to bring to the table. For us... we decided to bring a little art and creativity by using a canvas, our hands, and a couple of sharpies. Anyway, all that to say, we are definitely beginning to count down the days. I am really excited to see this canvas when it is all done. Tomorrow we are putting the canvas onto a frame to make a soft box that will illuminate the art work on center stage. Then we will paint all the art that we drew with sharpies. Anyway, I am pumped to see it all come together. Fun times... Make sure you don't miss Repossess next Wednesday at Tumwater High School... See you there!

with expectant hearts

The day is drawing near to Repossess. We are all so anxious for this day to arrive. If you haven't heard what it is all about, it is about the church as a whole; as a community, coming together to seek the face of God and be the change we all want to see in our community. Last year we had over 850 students show up from around the community to worship and then they all came downtown to Olympia to serve the city however we could. Anyway, this year's Repossess is at Tumwater High School and the principal himself is speaking. It is going to be an awesome night. I said all this to say that I have such an expectant heart to see the Lord show up. It is times like these where you know that you can prepare all you want day and night, but if the Lord doesn't show up, then it is all for nothing. We come with expectant hearts and know that the Lord is always Faithful to show up when we invite Him. You can't make any excuses... you have to see for yourself, and you too should show up with an expectant heart and watch as the Lord will transform your life.

Here is the new Repossess video. Check it out and post it wherever you can.

friends and pizza.

One of the greatest things in the whole world happened the other day... Seattle finally built a BJ's Pizza. Before today we have had to drive two hours to Portland to eat at this amazing pizza place... well times have changed. Last night a bunch of us went to pick up a friend from the airport and ate at the infamous BJ's Pizza. It was quite amazing. I had a peperoni mini pizza with their seasoned cut fries... mmmmmmm. so good! Well the night was awesome, but the best part was not even at BJ's. On our way to the airport, we thought it would be funny to make a big scene in front of everyone at the airport, to welcome our good friend Jeremy Beye home. So we rolled down the windows and blasted a rap song really loud. As we pulled up to the curb, everyone was already looking at us. Then, as we pulled up to Jeremy we all hoped out and began to yell and welcome Jeremy really loudly for the world to see. But the moment we started to pick up Jeremy and hug him, we noticed that a comrade was missing. As we looked back, our friend Noah Wimberly was rushing out of the car late. He ran and jumped at Jeremy and right before he embraced him.... ok stop... let me tell you about where we live. This is Seattle, so it rains a lot and can tend to get slippery. and I mean it rains a lot... ok... so right before he embraced Jeremy, both of his legs were swept from underneath him and he found himself on his back with Jeremy on top.... It was one of the funniest moments in friends history. As I looked up, all I could see was this old Asian man pointing and laughing hard at what he just saw. Anyway, good times... it is moments like these that friends can never forget...