Man Camp Trilogy – Part I
(Beware: the video below has been known to cause sudden outbreaks of manliness in viewers. It has also been proven that watching this video will make men want to go to Man Camp… watch at your own risk.)
Man Camp Trilogy – Part II
(The video below was made especially for Mother’s Day. And what do moms love? That’s right – they love musicals. Check back for next week’s much more manly conclusion to the Man Camp Trilogy.)
Man Camp Trilogy – Part III
(The Epic conclusion of the Trilogy is below. It’s not too late to sign up for Man Camp! So, watch the video, laugh like a man, sign up – in that order.)
Calvary’s Man Camp is finally here. I’m looking forward to this brief time away. I’m also really happy with the way all the promo for it came together. Tim McMahan did a great job on the print work and Dan, Tom and Rocco were really just amazing as they pulled together the video trilogy. I hope the weekend can live up to all the hype and be truly mantastic.
Today I went to the doctors for the first time in about a decade. I guess it’s a good thing that I haven’t had to go due to any major illness or accident. But, I’ve put it off way too long and I know I’m not in the kind of shape I should be. Just over a year ago I turned 30, and since that wake up call, I’ve lost about 60 pounds and I’m definitely more fit than I’ve been for a few years now. But, I’ve been avoiding really dealing with my health for way too long and I know I’ve still got a long way to go. I won’t know the full results until my blood work is done up, but it feels good that I finally made the right call and went in to get checked out.
Last night I was happy. It was fantastic to watch everything happening at once in downtown LA. The Lakers took the first game in the Western Conference finals against the Spurs at the Staples Center. Then, David Cook took the upset and won it all by a landslide in American Idol at the Nokia Center.
I know it’s pretty trivial, but these are two things that really did make me very happy. It’s fun to see the team or contestant you’ve rooted for all along win it in the end. It feels like you get to share a tiny piece of the thrill of victory.
In a way, I get the same feeling every time I hear a good story about something at the church where I work. When I get to see someone turn their life around or hear about a way in which our local community has been blessed in a tangible way, even if I didn’t really have anything to do with it, I still get a sense that I’m rooting for the winning team and I do share in those victorious moments.
Last night, as millions watched grown men playing basketball and the finale of a giant-sized karaoke contest – it made me think of how there are moments to celebrate victories all around us, but we often miss or even dismiss those joyous moments because we’re not really watching for them.
What things do you root for in life? What makes you happy? Learn to rejoice in those moments. Celebrate the good things, especially when it’s more than just your favorite team. Root for your family. Cheer on your pastor. Take time to revel in the success of others and encourage them for the good things you see in them.
Filed under: Ordinary Life
Leslie got four free tickets just behind home plate for last night’s Angel’s game. We usually manage to make it out for a game once, maybe twice a year. This time we took our friends, the Ashtons with us.
What was really cool about it, was that it was 70s flashback night with free retro caps. There were 70s movie clips and songs mixed throughout the evening as well. Greg Brady sang the National Anthem and Take Me Out to the Ballpark in full 70s garb. Even the grounds crew was in tie dye and big wigs.
The Angels were trailing in the game which meant the Rally Monkey came out. Except this time, he showed up singing in a Queen music video and surfing through a Jaws clip.
The best part was when they show who is up to bat with their stats on the jumbo screens – they photoshopped all the players, giving them 70s hair and accessories. It was a lot of fun how they really weaved the theme throughout the whole night.
The Angels lost, but it was still a great night out. Speaking of great night outs – we also got some tickets from Leslie’s amazing mom (my wonderful mother-in-law) to go see Wicked tonight up in LA. I hear it’s supposed to be phenomenal.
Filed under: Ordinary Life
I don’t feel like writing anything. I’ve felt that way for a couple weeks now. I don’t really like that my blog has been dead lately. So, this is a random post just to say I’ve got nothing to say. How about them apples? Maybe the blogging bug has worked its way out of my system. Maybe I’m just in a dry spell. If inspiration strikes, I’ll try and get back to it.
Yesterday was the National Day of Prayer. Each year at Calvary we set up a self-paced prayer walk through our Worship Center. This year we added something new. Towards the end of the walk we had an opportunity for people to be prayed for by someone on staff at Calvary. I’m one of the few people at Calvary who knows how to turn everything on in the Worship Center and get a room set for an event, so I figured I should be there first thing in the morning anyway – so, I signed up for the first prayer booth slot at 7 am.
I was nervous. But, I signed up anyway. I hung out in the booth for my full hour… and nothing happened. It was so early that only about 6 people came through in that hour. None of them stopped for prayer. But, I still felt like it was a good stretching experience.
Over the last several weeks, I keep getting asked to be up front in one of our worship services to give announcements. I think that may require some sort of double-jointed, freak-show type stretching on my part. Maybe someday.
