• Baptizing 87 people in one day!!!
• Baptizing 43 people in one day!!!
• Changing our name to Revolution Church!!!!
• RevolutionaryLove.tv
• Feeding 125 families Thanksgiving Dinner
• $6,000 in gift cards for Goshen Valley Boys Ranch
• Three Truck Loads of coats for MUST Ministries
• $83,000 for our NEXT Step Offering
• Giving back the entire Sunday offering.  See the stories here.
• Our teaching series called “4 Better 4 Worse” - We hit on the leading causes of divorce and hit a nerve big time
• Over 1000 people for Easter
• Adding to our staff
• Partnering with our first church plant.
• Taking over 50 people to the Unleash Conference
• Starting Over Addiction Ministry was started
• Starting a Youth Service
• Deciding to launch a second campus
• Moving from a new church to a young church - There is a HUGE difference
• Adding so many new faces
• Seeing so many lives changed

I can’t wait to see what God has in store for 2008!!!!!  2007 was one of the toughest years for me personally as a leader, but it was a huge year of growing and God preparing us for what He has in store in 2008.

I am not a New Year Resolution guy, but I do think the start of the year is a GREAT time to set some goals and evaluate what is working and what is not working in your life.  I’ve been thinking a lot about my life lately and realize I let some things get me off course in 2007.  I’ve been thinking of the areas of my life that I am going to focus on in 2008 and to keep me accountable, I am going to post them for all of you to see.

Spiritual:

• Start EVERY day in the Bible and prayer
• Consistent Family Devotions
• Listen to at least 2 sermons from someone else a week
• Spend more time with my mentors - I did a BAD job of this towards the end of the year
• Lead our staff by example in spiritual matters
• Learn from others more
• Read 2 books a month

Personal:

• Lose 30 pounds
• Ride 100 miles a week on my bike
• Take a day off EVERY week
• Enjoy the adventure of life more
• Get away twice a year for a few days by myself to spend time with God

Family:

• Date my wife
• Spend more time with my children
• STAY off the computer when I get home from work
• Turn off my cell phone when I get home
• Become debt free
• Realize my family is my #1 ministry

Church:

• Lead Revolution without apology
• Pour my life into our staff
• Become MORE dogmatic aboout our vision (I feel I let some people and some things sidetrack that just a little)
• Love and appreciate our volunteers more
• Get back to investing in church planters
• Continue Revolutionary Love year around
• Launch a second campus
• Invest in Haiti Cheri with more than just our finances (not sure what that looks like yet)

This morning I woke up and went to take the dog outside.  Unknown to me, it rained a little last night and it froze on our steps.  I hit the top step and instantly I was headed down the steps on my back.  We have a lot of steps leading to our front door and I stopped two steps from the bottom.  It sucked.

I thought I was alright, but now it has been about 8 hours and I am so stiff I can barely move.  The good that came out of it is it gives me a reason to lay around and watch TV all day.

I’m a concert junkie and I was thinking of the 5 concerts I want to see in the next few years:

• U2 - I HAVE to see them before I die.  I hear their show is off the hook.
• Jack Johnson - Probably my favorite dude right now.  His music chills me out and trust me I need to chill out. :)  I would imagine his concerts are laid back.
• Lifehouse - I wasn’t a big fan of these guys for a while, but I really dig them now.  They put out really good music.
• Allison Krause and Union Station - She is my back-up wife should anything happen to DeAnna so it would probably be good for me to go see her in case we end up married one day.
• Original GnR - I will be this one with Mandy Harrison.  I know it is a long shot, but I truly believe they will reunite one day and pull off a monster tour.  Hands down, my favorite band of all time.

• The camp was good.  Michael does a good job.  The group he partnered with, not so much.
• I am not suited to preach to students from traditional churches.  We lost one group after the first session. :)  Preaching in other places just reminds me that we have created a unique preaching culture at Revolution.
• I can’t preach in shoes.  Wore shoes first session and bombed.
• We have come great students.  This area needs a place where students can come and be on fire for God.  After this week, I am going to make students a major thing for Revolution in 2008.
• It is amazing how much food students can eat.  Holy crap, they can eat.
• It is amazing how bad teenage boys can stink up a room.  Seriously, I walked in one room and it was all I could do NOT to throw up.
• It is amazing how much drama comes with teenage girls.  Nuff said.
• Loved hanging out with Dave Anderson.  I really like him.
• After being at Revolution for 3 years and hearing Tim lead worship every week, I forgot how feminine a lot of worship music is.  I was actually taken back by a couple of the songs we sung.  Very very girly.
• I also forgot how much a lot of worship songs don’t really make sense.  If an unchurched person came into the average church and read the words on the screen there is no way they would understand most of them.  Tim does a great job with this.
• I haven’t talked to anyone on staff (other then Adam who was on the ski trip) since Christmas Eve.  I don’t plan on talking to any of them until January 2nd when we return to work.  That is the longest we have gone without talking and I think it is going to make us appreciate what we get to do at Revolution that much more.
• Hung out a lot with Michael and Linda Creighton.  Great couple and I enjoy being around them.
• Avery couldn’t even walk in the snow, much less ski.
• Ashlyn was awesome.
• I love the opportunities God opens for me to preach out and include my family.  One of my 2008 changes is to enjoy my family more.  I am blessed with a great family.
• Adam did a GREAT job with the ski trip.  He has really grown as a leader.
• Next year, we are going back to doing our own thing for our ski trip.  This was the first time we did anything with another group and it was just a good reminder of how we know our kids better then anyone else.
• We already got some cool ideas for next year’s trip.
• West Virginia sucks.  Seriously, it is a crappy place. (No offense to anyone from WV)
• I’m glad to be home

DeAnna and I decided to head home from Winterplace last night at 6.  We pulled into the yard this morning at 2.  Needless to say, I am tired.  The nice thing is we don’t have church this morning.  We gave our crew the morning off to say THANK YOU for all they do to make Revolution happen.

With the way it is pouring rain here, I know our set-up crews are happy we took the Sunday off.

I have a lot of thoughts on the ski trip and I willl share them later.  I have LEARNED a lot hanging out with our crazy students this week.

We made it to Winterplace last night with our kids and it was a LONG drive.  Our kids were awesome and I was actually proud of them.  Last night we had the first service and I got to say, I am not called to teach to students. :)  I enjoyed it, our kids enjoyed it, but there are SEVERAL more traditional churches here and I am not sure their leaders enjoyed it.

Today, we hit the slopes and we might have the most untalented group of skiers in the world.  I am not sure ANY of them can ski, including me.  It is now raining and they are still on the slopes falling all over the place.  Good times.

Got a lot on my mind so here goes:

• Christmas was GREAT!!!!  We went nowhere.  We just stayed around the house in our PJ’s till about 1.  Grandparents came over about 3 and stayed the perfect amount of time (about 2 hours) and then we just laid around some more.
• BEST GIFT: VAN HALEN tickets!!!!!!!  Not to just one show, but to both of their shows.  Two different people got me tickets and I am pumped!  I love concerts.
• Of course the only gift we give in this family is concert tickes so I got DeAnna tickets to Bon Jovi/Daughtery.  Should be fun also.
• Today is DeAnna’s birthday.  She is the love of my life and I thank God every day for allowing me to be married to her.  As is our tradition, we spent the entire day at the mall and I wasn’t allowed to complain.  Had a blast!!!
• Heading out to West Virginia tomorrow to teach a few hundred teenagers at the Sidekick Students Winter Retreat.  We got a good group of our kids going and my family is going.  I haven’t taught to students in probably 9 years so I really don’t know what to say or do.  I just plan on bringing the heat like I do on Sundays.  Our kids seem to dig it so I hope the other kids dig it.
• We have a 50,000 piece mailer hitting mailboxes next week and we are featured on the cover of Around Canton Magazine in January.  It all points to our new teaching series called Confessions Of A Pastor.  This series is going to be me no-holds barred.  I’m a open book already so this should be interesting.
• NO CHURCH THIS SUNDAY!!!!!!!! Enjoy the Sunday with your family.
• We’ve made a couple of additions to our team at Revolution.  Aaron Olson is coming in for the next few months to do programming and stage design (which he had already been doing since our 24 series) and we have hired Jennifer Vogelpohl full-time to come be do all our business administrative.  I’ve been trying to hire Jennifer since about 3 months after we started the church and finally with some of our people moving onto other things and her ready for a new adventure, the stars aligned.  Very excited to have her in the office.
• Seeing our people show up to deliever doughnuts on Christmas Eve was awesome.  Very proud of our church.  Loving pastoring a church I would attend even if I wasn’t on staff.
• I can’t lie, it felt weird not having our big Christmas Eve blow-out, but we’ll come STRONG next year with it.
• Still can’t believe we brought in $83,000 in our Next Step Offering.  Revolution is amazing.
• I almost bought some shoes today.  I haven’t bought a pair of shoes in probably 5 years and have only worn shoes about 3 times this year, but it might be time for a change.
• No good music out right now.
• We took the dog to a bording place today and I am not happy.  I am worried about the little fellow, but I guess he’ll be fine until Sunday.  He better be….
• I’m going to enjoy the next week off but honestly, I am ready to go back to work now.  I love what I do, but I know resting from it is good for Revolution, for my family, and me.
• I started praying some VERY specific prayers about our church a few months ago.  They included location issues, staffing issues, multi-site issues, and financial issues.  God has rocked my world by answering those prayer requests.  Some the way I thought he would, some NOT they way He would.  Either way, I am glad He is control and trust Him to build this place.
• Chris and Taylor close on their first house on Friday.  VERY proud of them.
• I wonder what God has in store in 2008?

• Chinese Food
• Cookies being made for Santa
• Kids in the front yard throwing out Reindeer food (silver glitter)
• Tim and Courtney coming over to play cards
• Fire raging (no matter how hot it is outside)
• Hanging out with the people of Revolution

NOW, it feels like Christmas!!

MERRY CHRISTMAS TO EVERYONE!!!!!!! 

I’m not to prideful to admit when I am wrong. Last night I told you that the people of Revolution Church gave $71,000 to the Next Step Offering. I was wrong.

As of right now, they have actually given $83,000!!!!!!! That literally just blows my mind. We simply mentioned the vision from the stage, asked our people to pray, gave them a CD where I explained where the money was going, and you guys stepped up like you always do.

Simply amazing. The last part of 2007 was awesome with so many new people coming in, some people deciding this wasn’t the place for them, and us even changing our name. God was getting us ready for what He has planned in 2008.

It is going to be wild.