Journal

Don’t go to your church if one of these three things are present:

- The sermons don’t include scripture.   What MUST be in it is sound “walking through the text” understanding the authorial intent of the author and making it applicable to the people.  Expositional proclamation of the Biblical Text

-They preach that they are the messenger. Wrong!  Christ is the messenger.  Don’t be deceived by preachers who put themselves where Christ should be.

-That YOU are the main agenda.  Wrong again!  Christ is the main agenda.

1 John 4

Test the Spirits

¹Dear friends, do not believe every spirit, but test the spirits to see whether they are from God, because many false prophets have gone out into the world. ²This is how you can recognize the Spirit of God: Every spirit that acknowledges that Jesus Christ has come in the flesh is from God, ³but every spirit that does not acknowledge Jesus is not from God. This is the spirit of the antichrist, which you have heard is coming and even now is already in the world.

⁴You, dear children, are from God and have overcome them, because the one who is in you is greater than the one who is in the world. ⁵They are from the world and therefore speak from the viewpoint of the world, and the world listens to them. ⁶We are from God, and whoever knows God listens to us; but whoever is not from God does not listen to us. This is how we recognize the Spirit of truth and the spirit of falsehood.

2 Timothy 4

Preach the Word

¹ I charge you in the presence of God and of Christ Jesus, who is to judge the living and the dead, and by his appearing and his kingdom: ²preach the word; be ready in season and out of season; reprove, rebuke, and exhort, with complete patience and teaching. ³For the time is coming when people will not endure sound teaching, but having itching ears they will accumulate for themselves teachers to suit their own passions, ⁴and will turn away from listening to the truth and wander off into myths. ⁵As for you, always be sober-minded, endure suffering, do the work of an evangelist, fulfill your ministry.

Selah!

Hey everyone out there.
We’re done with the bulk of recording the new record, unfortunately it won’t be released until early 2010 (such a futuristic looking date).  Anyway, we’re super excited.  In fact, we’re elated.  It’s been such a blessing to feel so good about a project.  The boys and I have been so encouraged by this whole experience.  I hope that God uses this new record in the same (or more!) than the last, but in a different way.  Over and Underneath connected with everyone at such an epicenter of the soul, and this new one may very well do the same thing but in a different place of the heart.

It’s a funny thing this blog.  Now I know i’m one for flights of fancy and daydreaming, but this blog sounds like a sci-fi novel.  2010…an omnipresent being employing and working in a unique way; an art piece moving and reaching into people and being used by the omnipresent being.  Crazyiness.  I like it.

Today we went whitewater rafting.  It was such a wonderful experience.  Our guide recited poetry he had written.  He also said he grew up in church but “not so much” anymore.  He’s out in mother nature and that it was the “first book ever written.”  Not sure what that means still.  I recommend this lightly colored rafting.  Like Indiana Jones and a roller coaster wrapped in one…except there’s no theme music or white-gloved mouse.

It’s 11:21pm and it’s about lights out for me.  I’m going coo coo.  I bid you all pleasent dreams.

-jeff

So we watched this movie called “Taken” last night.  It stars Liam Neeson and Shannon from LOST, I don’t know her name.  Anyway, it’s a pretty Jason Bourne kind of movie with international baddies, butt kicking, but more than that, it has a very serious issue in the plot line.  Liam’s character in the story has a daughter that gets taken in Paris and being sold into sexual slavery.  Liam is on the hunt to find her and kill anyone involved that stands in his way.   I recommend the movie for anyone who isn’t afraid to be offended, and has the slightest interest of seeing a hollywood movie that leaves you feeling heavy for humanity.

Granted, there’s violence, a birdy is flipped, and the subject matter is offensive, but for what it is, it is a rude awakening to a reality that is so very present.  Each year, an estimated 600,000-800,000 men, women, and children are trafficked across international borders (some international and non-governmental organizations place the number far higher), and the trade is growing. This figure is in addition to a far larger yet indeterminate number of people trafficked within countries. Victims are forced into prostitution, or to work in quarries and sweatshops, on farms, as domestics, as child soldiers, and in many forms of involuntary servitude.

There’s organized child prostitution in the states too.   There are currently an estimated 300,000 children under the age of 16 working as prostitutes in  america.

Religion that God our Father accepts as pure and faultless is this: to look after orphans and widows in their distress and to keep oneself from being polluted by the world.  Wow.  James couldn’t have said it any clearer.   I hope this journal can spark a desire for you to educate yourself of this current situation.  Then after that, doing something about it.  Please, friends… these people aren’t captives of themselves, but rather from others who keep them under their decisions and lusts.

www.thehomefoundation.net

www.ijm.org

www.childrenofthenight.org (a non-christian organization that deals with child prostitution in the states, primarily southern California)

Two days deep into recording our new record.
Now i know that the Dove awards just happened and we’re still so pumped about it, and “Hold My Heart” is being added to radio stations across the country, but as musicians I know we’re pretty excited about crafting our next record.
We’re off to a great start, and we couldn’t be more excited about whats in store and what God has given to us.  May we be most excited for the work that Christ is doing through our music.

A quick catch-me-up in the past few months:
The Rock and Worship Roadshow was a complete success.  Thank you to EVERYONE who came.  Wow.  What an adventure.  We met so many wonderful new friends and there was just so much support from everyone who attended and the bands and crew we traveled with.  Thank you.  Thank you.  Thank you.

We won “Best New Artist” at the Dove awards.  Thank you for everyone who took time to vote for us, and for believing in us.  What an honor.

Now the following is strictly for pure documentation purposes and to see just how crazy it all looks when it’s actually written down.  It’s out of left field and has nothing to do with the aforementioned events.

On Feb 22nd-Mike developed a sickness  in Florida with a cough, flem and ache.   Jason’s wife Melissa came out to Islamorada with us with bronchitis, but it wasn’t too bad.  We think Mike’s sickness and Melissa’s weren’t related.

12 hours in a van to Hilton Head, SC with Mike and Melissa coughing, Jason and Melissa’s 5 month old baby Riley began coughing and snotting at the nose.  Later that night after load in, myself (Jeff) had pain swallowing.
The next morning, Scott and Jeff developed the snot and cough with an ache and Jason wasn’t feeling too good either.   We realize that Gizmo the band dog has an ear infection and is irritable.

Three days later baby Riley has crazy snot and is coughing like a champ.  Scott and Jeff are in shambles, and Mike and Melissa are only slowly recovering.  We play two shows in Jacksonville, drive down to play in Delray, then back up to Jacksonville in 24 hrs.

We go to Georgia, a week goes by, everyone slowly recovers.
Next week, Mike’s wife Kelly comes back out with a gnarly cough all the way to South Dakota.  The cough continues as we start our tour for two days then my wife Heather catches the cough and they make a pit stop for a few days to recover in Idaho with a friend.
We get the girls then continue to Oregon.  Kelly flies home to recover.  Two days later I wake up in the middle of the night puking my guts out.  We go to Disneyland.  I did not have a good time.  By the end of the night I recover.

Two days later in the van on the way to Las Vegas we awaken to Scott hurling in the back seat of the van.  Same illness that I had, 2 or 3 pukes with a bad ache then a quick recovery by the next morning.

Two days later Mike wakes up ralphing.  Same thing.  Sick all day then fine in the morning.

Two days later Kelly wakes up vomiting.  Same thing.

One day later- Jason.
One week later- Tim.

We’ve since recovered and everyone is fine.  Gizmo’s ear is healthy and everyone has a stronger immune system since the “Great sickness of ‘09.”
Don’t take long trips in a van with other people.

Just listened to a Francis Chan sermon.

Why are the hardest sermon’s about giving? Mr. Chan just preached about a “loving with a love that expects death.” This economical crisis isn’t as big of a deal to us because this country and world are not our citizenship. Our treasure is in Christ and heaven. Why keep and save up tons of money for an “emergency?” Are the enslaved children in the world and the millions starving in India and Uganda not an emergency? Free those who are enslaved! If you’re waiting for a burning bush is the living word not enough? True religion is to help the widows and the oprhans. James 1:27

Man, am I preaching to myself now or what? Geeze…

-j