It's Official

I just landed in Colorado Springs about an hour ago and I have made an important life determination...no more traveling alone. From here on out I will take at least one of the kids with me if Holly is unable to go. I can't operate this way. I'm not single, I don't think single, I don't live single, I don't ever want to go back to that way.

I will say this though...I got more revelation in the hour and a half plane ride than I have gotten for any series in the last two months. Good way to start the trip.

Excited to see the way New Life reaches my generation tonight at theMill.

Excited to see how things go with Brady on Sunday.

Maybe I'll get lucky and Jared Anderson will lead worship on Saturday night.

I'm sure many posts are coming over the next 3 days. Until then.

Reason #4,627

This morning in an article featured in USA Today, Apple CEO Steve Jobs was quoted as saying this in response to a question about what he would say to people who bought the iPhone early on "That's technology," Jobs responded. "If they bought it this morning, they should go back to where they bought it and talk to them. If they bought it a month ago, well, that's what happens in technology."

By 2pm his tune had changed a little. In an open letter to Apple customers, Jobs said this..."Even though we are making the right decision to lower the price of iPhone, and even though the technology road is bumpy, we need to do a better job taking care of our early iPhone customers as we aggressively go after new ones with a lower price. Our early customers trusted us, and we must live up to that trust with our actions in moments like these. Therefore, we have decided to offer every iPhone customer who purchased an iPhone from either Apple or AT&T, and who is not receiving a rebate or any other consideration, a $100 store credit towards the purchase of any product at an Apple Retail Store or the Apple Online Store. Details are still being worked out and will be posted on Apple's website next week. Stay tuned."

This is why I love Apple. You gotta take care of your base...your most faithful. If you lose them what do you have?

Personally I was not expecting any sort of rebate. I was not mad at all. But after the rebate I was ecstatic. Read a great quate in an article about this...

The real mark of a genius isn't that they don't make mistakes -- it's how they recover when they do. That'll preach.

A Look Ahead

We spent some time planning the next 16 months for Seven...here are the highlights...

Winter Retreat this year in November.
5k Fun Run to raise money for missions.
Flag football league starts in a month.
Ski trip in January '08.
Spring Retreat in April/May '08.
Missions trip to Egypt summer '08.
Missions trip to Mexico summer '08.
6 guest speakers from all over the country (this is going to be HUGE)(names to be revealed soon)

I haven't been this excited about what is happening at Seven since before we started it.

If Is a Powerful Word

If God knows what he is doing why do I get uptight about the future?
If God knows what he is doing why do I doubt?
If God knows what he is doing why do I try and help his process?

If God can be trusted why won't I let go of it?
If God can be trusted why won't I give them to him?
If God can be trusted why won't I "walk on water"?

If God is for me why am I afraid?
If God is for me why do I focus on my opponent?
If God is for me why don't I move with more confidence?

Apple News

Big news from Apple today. Here are the highlights...

Bigger iPod nano screen.
Wifi iPods.
Wireless iTunes.
NoniPhone iPhone 8gb and 16gb called the iPhone Touch. HUGE!
iPod Classis goes 80gb and 160gb. Wow!
4gb iPhone killed.
8gb iPhone price slashed fromn $599 to $399. Already bought Holly one.
Ringtones for iPhone. Big.

If a church ever learned to market like Apple...I'd go there.

Stock is down because of the iPhone news...the margin was already HUGE...they didn't need to make that much per phone...they just need to sell more phones. Stock will be down for a little but a quarter from now it will be up 20-50%. AAPL at the close today was at 136 and change. It'll be $180 by Feb. 1, 2008.

Love me some Apple.

What's Your Perspective?

Marcus spoke this morning in chapel. It was good. Some things he said got me thinking about some things I'm walking through right now.

When you look at your life and the direction it is presently heading, how do you see it? When you think about how you are doing, how do you judge it? There are really only two perspectives about the progress you are making in life..."Man, I really have come a long way since then" or "I really have a long way to go before I get there".

Which do you say? Where are you?

I'm both. I struggle with both. I do well with both. If I had to nail it down though the one I struggle with most is "I really have a long way to go before I get there". No matter how good things are going I tend to see how much further I have to go than how far I have come. This can be good in that it motivates you to continue on and climb higher...this can be bad in that the pain of growth can seem to be too great to be worth going on.

Growth is painful. Stretching hurts. If one tries to say that growth is painless they're either not growing or they are trying to convince everyone that they don't feel pain.

I try to never get too high but sometimes I run the risk of never getting high enough to get above the low. What does God want? He wants me to celebrate my progress humbly. But how sad is it if I am never able to celebrate what God has done in me, through me, with me? How sad is it to Him as a father?

So today I celebrate. I think I'll start here...once I was lost but know I am found...10 years ago I was single, not a father, not in ministry, getting paid 2/3 less than now, struggling with tithing, broken heart from a bad relationship, had little in the well to preach with...we've come a long way in 10 years...imagine 10 years from now!

That's perspective. I am amazed by you Lord.

Outta Commission

We just got back from my parents lake house.

Rylie caught her first fish.

Moose and Maggie ran and ran and ran.

We had a great time of rest and relaxation.

Good times for 36 hours.