It's been quite a summer

Today is Labor Day...my last post was Fathers Day...oopps
Sometimes you need two and a half month breaks from things in your life...like exercise!
Here's my summer in bullet points
- In-laws visit Redding...got a ridiculous amount of projects done
- Lake Siskiyou with the Gafners...amazing
- Mom came to town...Alyssa and I got away to Sac to celebrate being married for 10 incredible years.
- Camping in San Simeon with great friends that are now spread up and down the coast
- Went to Indiana for a week to hang at a lake house for a huge family reunion. All of Alyssa's side lives out there.
- Came home...Zeke started first grade
- Staff retreat on a house boat
- Mo's almost walkin'...Sof is almost making sense when she talks
- It's a good time to be alive
- See...now you're all caught up.

In the midst of all this my job has changed significantly. I now oversee our staff at the Stirring and define most of the systems that we operate under as a church...I love it.
I still speak about once a month and lead worship here and there but I also hire and fire and figure out how we will retire. I've also been known to change a mean tire :)
In the midst of the job switch the Stirring was presented with a building that we are praying about purchasing. Because I've owned more homes than anyone on staff I'm the "experienced one" when it comes to these matters so I'm leading the way in figuring all that stuff out...it's been an adventure.
I love my church...I love our team...I love what God is doing in Redding and around the world.

It's been a great summer...I'm back.

When home stops being home

It's happened before.
I'm fourth generation Riverside, born and raised.
But I went to Simpson college in Redding almost 10 years ago...wow, I'm old.
The first two years I was there, Riverside was always home.
I just went to school in Redding.
But the third year something happened.
When I would come to Riverside on break, things felt weird.
I missed my Redding friends, Riverside skies looked extra brown, and catching up with friends here wasn't as easy.
Right when Redding started feeling like home I moved back to Riverside...it was weird...it took a while for Riverside to become home again...but it did.
Well, a year and a half ago we moved back to Redding and it's happened again.
Redding is my home.
I love Riverside but it's not home.
My family is here and I miss them, but I miss my family in Redding.
I'm wondering what's going on and what I'm missing. I love my church. I love the blue skies. I love the pace of life. Redding is my home again...weird.
When we would go home last year to visit Riverside I would say I'm going home for vacation. Now I just say I'm going on vacation.
I love seeing friends and family here. Riverside will always have a special place in my heart but Redding is home now.
Anyone else experience this...it's weird.

20's-40's

That's the temperature range for this week.
I love it.
Cold is my favorite time of year.
We keep it 65 at our house.
Our sheets turn into thin strips of ice...Awesome.
We leave for Riverside in a few days.
I just know it's gonna be 87 on Christmas...unbelievable.
I'm soakin' it up while I can.
Bring on more snow!

It's official...

I'm a 530 area code guy!
It's been a year...I took the plunge.
No more 951...crazy.
It's gonna suck gettin' that old english Inland Empire tattoo removed from my stomach.
I'm a Reddin' boy...yeehaw!

I miss my family

Tonight I watched the Redding fireworks for the first time. They got postponed because of the fires earlier this year. They were amazing...hands down...best fireworks I've seen!
But it was bitter sweet.
I wasn't holding Zeke in my lap for them.
Fireworks and Zeke have a love / hate relationship.
He will scream and yell and punch you in the face and put his hands over his ears and shake uncontrollably during the fireworks but the minute they are over he will talk about them till next July 4th. If you don't know my son this might sound weird.
There were tons of kids around and I would of loved to have my family there.
Instead I was sitting next to the Gafners and a lady that was having an interactive worship service during the show. My favorite line to come out of her mouth was, "Father God, America blesses you with our fireworks...praise Jesus!"
I seriously can't make stuff like that up...ask the Gafners...classic.
Come home family...I miss you!

And so it begins...

Tonight we start a new series.
It's actually more than that. We believe this is why God has placed the Stirring in Redding.
It's five words that we want to live out for the rest of our lives.
WE LOVE. WE MAKE DISCIPLES.
We love God
We love each other
We love the world
We love the least
Jesus said that the world would know we were his disciples by our love.
And every follower of Jesus has the call to make disciples. How? By teaching the people they're walking with how to love God, each other, the world, and the least.
We're trying to keep it real simple.
Church's can be about 4,872 things...we want to be about 2!
What are the things that make your church unique? I love to hear what other churches are doing.
You've gotta be at the Stirring tonight. Nate made a film that is going to blow your mind!

Biggest news to hit Redding...

...since they made shirts and shoes optional at Winco!
No, we haven't had the baby yet.
Travis and Annette Osborne and fam are moving to Redding!
Read the story on Trav's blog.
Words can't begin to explain the level of stokedness.

I saw Shasta today!!!

I'm pretty sure it's been there for the last month but I was just glad that no one moved it when the smoke rolled into town. That would of been really weird. Great Sabbath today!
Rest
Family time
Operation Baby Preparation commenced! OBP as I like to call it.
Alyssa is 90% effaced...2 cm. dilated...whatever the heck that means.

Looked at a house today...

...because that is what we do 2 weeks before we have a baby! It's right on the corner of sketchyville and a nice neighborhood...perfect. It's a really cool house...could be going up for a short sale so we might put in a ridiculous low offer...see what happens...they say short sales take awhile...you think they'd consider changing the name...we'll see.

What just happened??@!?

I just walked into the Redding DMV fully ready to punch someone in the throat and yell at someone at the top of my lungs. To my wonder and amazement it was a pleasant experience. I have a history of losing my salvation at DMV's but Redding has changed everything.

I walk in on a Friday at 4:30pm. Last day of the week. Everyone is probably ready to kill people. But no...
Lady at the first desk...nice...friendly...gives me more information than I need.
Stunned I sit down...10 minutes later I'm talking to another nice woman behind the desk...I'm looking for hidden cameras. She sends me to a 3rd lady that is the nicest yet...takes my picture...gives me provisional license and I'm on my way.
I honestly had no words. I just had a fully enjoyable experience at the DMV. Kudos Redding Department of Motor Vehicles. Your love has covered a multitude of morons!

Let's test the power of RevRock

I've got a good handful of you comin' to hang out on my blog on a daily basis now...I enjoy the community, the back and forth, the spewing of ideas. I'd like to see if we can actually use the muscle of this blog for good.
Our church, the Stirring is launching its first church plant, hopefully in the fall. We are funding the whole plant ourselves. We'd like to cover all the start up costs by raising money from friends and family. We have 30 of us that are doing a fund raiser called Hack Fest. It's 30 dudes, golfing 100 holes, and asking people to sponsor per hole. Each person has committed to raise $1,000.00
I've already got more than that but I haven't even tapped the power of the blog world yet. There's over 100 of you out there that are going to read this today. If you each sent me $10 we'd have another $1000. If you each sent me 2 million dollars we'd have 200 million dollars!
We believe this is how God is calling our family to grow in Redding. We don't desire to grow bigger under one roof. We want to spread out through the city, empowering more leaders, sharing space, and making more disciples in the way of Jesus. One vision, different campuses. WE LOVE. WE MAKE DISCIPLES. That's what we're about!
Sound interesting...start praying for us...send money!
Make checks payable to The Stirring at 3468 Bechelli Ln. Ste E - Redding, CA 96002 and put Hack Fest in the memo. All contributions are tax deductible.
Please pray about supporting us. Thanks!

Contentment

I'm working on being content in every situation but its difficult. Here's the things on my list that I'm realizing right now I'm not content with.
1. My town house. Not because its not nice enough or big enough. Its awesome. Its almost too awesome. I'd rather be in a place that frees us up financially more to help people and buy food that isn't so crappy. (side note: why is it more expensive to eat healthy?)
2. My phone. The iphone has officially done it to me...I've got at&t envy!
I keep all my own appointments and am constantly scheduling and getting back to emails so I broke down when I moved up here and got a Blackberry. It's awesome. I could probably be getting by with my old Razor and a little organizer but how cool would that be? The iphone at this new price has me wanting to put my Blackberry on ebay and drop Verizon like a bad habit.
3. My weight. I guess its ok to want to be healthy but I'm not content in my own skin right now and that kind of sucks.
4. My job! Just kidding Nate...just wanted to make sure you were still reading this thing!

Areas I've grown in contentment
1. I love my bucket of a car! 2o00 Toyota Echo (sea foam) The air gets cold 5 minutes after you arrive at your destination...love it!
2. I love my guitar gear! That's a first. I've spent my whole life trying to acquire that next thing with guitars...I'm satisfied...my tone rules!
3. I love my family, my friends, my church and Redding. Totally content with where God has me right now...I love that!

What are you not content with right now?

I really like my week

Sunday's I hang with the fam all morning. Head to the Stirring around 2pm. Get home in time to talk to my wife and chill for about an hour.
Monday is my Sabbath. I think I took three naps today. Monday's are awesome.
Tuesday is staff day. Nate, Meg and I meet. Nate, Derrick and I meet. We have staff meeting. Tuesday night are my Life Group nights.
Wednesday I get up early. We pray with the advisory team. Nate and I go work out. Then it's off to downtown Starbucks. One of my favorite times of the week. We study, laugh, argue, talk vision and ask them to turn the music down for hours.
Thursday and Friday I spend a lot of time with my Life Group leaders and other peeps. Phone, email, coffee.
Saturday I chill. Hang with friends and family.
I've realized that showers are optional Monday and Saturday...I like it that way...these are the days I get refreshed with my family.
I really like my week. I feel like I've got a pretty good rhythm in Redding. There are weeks that are crazy but it's a good crazy. I don't feel overwhelmed.
I'm telling you...when I start eating right and exercising, everything in my life makes more sense.
BTW...I lost 3 pounds this week...WORD!!!

May is moustache month!!!

I've only been in Redding for five months and the inner hick has already surfaced. Alyssa can't get enough of it. I need everyone's opinion...who do I look more like???
1. Wyatt Earp
2. Cereal killer
3. Hulk Hogan
4. Member of Village People
5. You decide

What month is it???

Farmers market this morning at 7:45am...80 degrees.
Yesterday at 3pm...105 degrees.
What happened to spring?
Thought my allergies were gone in Redding...they aren't!
Sorry for the Debbie Downer post

Graduations

So I sat out in the sun today with my family and watched the seniors at Simpson graduate. There were three students that all came through The Grove youth group that graduated today. Tyler, Holly, and Daniel. We were also there to see our friend Trisha graduate with her masters...you go girl!
Graduations crack me up. Old people singing weird songs...choirs...outside speaker that comes in a throws out one last don't do drugs and make sure you got good friends speech.
Seriously...Is that the best we can do? Did these students spend TONS of money and four years in classes to dress up in robes and weird hats and have someone make sure they have everything checked off on their Christian checklist? (pretty sure that was a run on sentence)
Why can't someone get up there and challenge these students to change the world by loving God and each other and the world and the least? What about the emphasis that Simpson is supposed to be about...go into all the world and make disciples. Make God's kingdom a reality in Redding and the ends of the earth. Seems like the easiest platform in the world to inspire some folk. But instead they got one last play it safe speech...bummer.
Sorry for the soapbox...if any graduates are reading my blog...go out and change the world...there are a ton of people in your city that need to know Jesus. Love people in such crazy ways that the world is forced to take notice. Don't play it safe...break all the rules...don't do it the way it's always been done...we believe in you.
Congratulations!

One crazy night!!!

450+ people in a gym
6 amazing musicians
6 great films
100+ pieces of art
The best food even eaten
$5500 total raised for Cypress Elementary and Eagles Soar after school program
Our first Erase the Dark music, art, and film festival was a huge success.
Thanks to everyone that made it happen!

Much needed update to Rev Rock

Gave a lot of link love.
Split up my Riverside crew, Redding crew, and Random crew.
Side note...there's some people like the Risinger's and Osborne's that feels weird putting in the random crew but it also felt weird keeping them with the Riverside crew.
If I put someone in the wrong camp let me know.
If I left you out and you come here a lot let me know.
Go check out all my new peeps...they're awesome.

Turning over a new leaf

No I did not go outside and pick a leaf off a tree just so I could take a picture in photo booth that would visually capture the idea that I am turning a new leaf in my life. There just happened to be a leaf sitting on my computer desk for some reason...I'm assuming Zeke's doing.
Anyways...I've decided that I'm going to start becoming a blog commenter. I've realized that I still have a lot of Riverside crew that comment up in this piece and I hardly ever get to talk to them so I figured blog comments are the next best thing. Because everyone knows that a comment on your blog is just like hangin' at Starbucks and sharing your heart over an Americano! I'm going to start with commenting back to people that post to my blog. There's a possibility that I will venture into commenting on other blogs but don't bank on it. But just in case you're wondering...I do check in on the Riverside and Redding and Random crew everyday. Keep bloggin'...I'm readin'!

Things you only see in Redding (part whatever)

Redding local commercials have to be the most hilarious things you've ever seen. We just saw a car commercial that had a guy that painted his face green, wearing a fuzzy green body suit, and a kermit the frog taped to his head jumping around the cars yelling REBATE...REBATE...REBATE.
Hilarious!