Letting Kona go for a swim in the Spokane River. She loves the water and was in high heaven on this walk. Jumping in the water, chasing rabbits and birds, she was loving it. Plus I got her a new chain collar with blunt prongs that prevents her from lunging forward and boy has that made taking walks a thousand times better. 

My daughter Destiny haging out in a tree on our hike. 

A look East on highway 2 coming back from Leavenworth. The sky felt soooo big on this highway with the road stretching out for miles in front of us. It felt like you could just lift off and float into the sky. It was a good drive home.  

We visited this little farm on Friday, it's right on the way into Leavenworth, you must stop there if you visit the town. 

My family had goats when I was a kid, maybe that's why I have always loved them. They are friendly, cute and have a bit of attitude. Little guys with horns and they know how to use them too, I've been the recipient of their attitude a few times. I cant stand their milk but hey, other than that, they are fun.
 

animal farm...

"Never have the animals been in greater need of human compassion."
-Chief Dan George of the Coast Salish tribe.

This is a little friend we met on our trip at a small petting zoo and fruit farm. They had all kinds of lovely little beasties that we were able to pet, feed and visit with. It was pure delight for all of us. Animals are truly a gift from the Lord that always seem to lighten the heart and bring laughter.

There were spitting lamas, racing chickens, real fat pigs, huge sheep, strutting roosters, hungry goats with huge horns, ponies, a giant turkey, a magnificent peacock, little bunnies and baby ducks. There was a litter of free roaming kittens and about 3-5 cats all lounging in the country store. A scruffy little lap dog that wandered all around making sure nobody was doing anything they weren't supposed to do and even snipped at Micah...obviously a very smart dog!

be a river...

You split the earth with rivers.
-Habakkuk 3:9

I was standing by this river and was struggling to have a quiet time before the Lord but not succeeding. My mind raced with thoughts about my life, ministry and the future. As usual I was bombarded with a thousand little paths that screamed for my feet to follow. It's always that way, it seems I fight with contentment more than anything else.

As I sat there watching the cold water pour down out of the snow capped peaks, I could feel my incessant need for answers begin to melt away like the water streaming past me. I stood there in the cool of the early morning with the sun beginning to creep over the eastern hillside, each ray a stake into the heart of those vampiric feelings.

I could feel the wrestling begin to fade and a still voice has become clearer in the echoes of the rippling waters.

"Look at the river" He said. "It has been right here for many generations, simply flowing down the mountainside into the valley. Countless people have sought rest, food, pleasure and inspiration from its melodic presence."

"It has hardly changed, a little here and there, sometimes swollen and sometime not but always there. It's not concerned about being anything else, no comparisons, no judgment...just a river, flowing."

"Be a river, that's all I ask."

"Let the heavy waters flow down from the heights and purge your streams of the stuff that has polluted your heart. Just flow freely and purely."

"Simply be present...ever flowing, that's all I ask."

"Just be here for thirsty travelers, burdened minds and restless hearts. Allow the hungry to feed from the bounty of your depths if they choose. Let Me quiet their loud hearts and untwist the knots in their souls with My soothing melodic rhythms that I desire to spill out over the riverbed of your spirit."

"Be a river...that's all I ask."

I thought this shot turned out cool for a mid day picture. I took it while we were hiking around the mountains in Leavenworth, WA. on Friday. 

I'm a rock crusher!

The barbarian is loose...mountain man Micah was letting the world know he was there to conquer the hills!

"The mountains see thee and writhe with fear...-Habakkuk 3:10

Lee and I enjoying the morning sun up in the mountains on Friday morning.  

A shot from our hotel on Thursday evening in Leavenworth, Wa.  

We got back from Leavenworth, WA today. Its a Bavarian village nestled under the mountains in central Washington about 3.5 hours from Spokane. I will be uploading all the pictures from our awesome trip at my Flickr page if you are interested.
 

Some music for the movement

OK, as requested here are a few praise and worship CD's worth checking out.
I must confess I spend a good amount of money and time finding a hand full of songs that fit the vibe we are seeking to release. That may sound a bit controlling but I am pretty clear in the sonic direction that I am looking for to manifest the sound our youth church resonates with. So on these CD's there might be one or two choice selections I use and the others lie waiting for another time or season. Often one song on a CD will be the one the Lord uses in our group. It's like a word for us and only it will have wind on it. Hard to explain but that's the way it happens here.

So here are words with wind:
* Day of Fire (rain is the song we use)
* Something like Silas
*Matt Redman (all of his CD's except the Fathers heart have been good ones for us)
*Delirious (we use a lot of their stuff but the songs: Majesty, Come like you promise, mountains tremble, Inside outside, Touch and their Rain song are the ones we use most)
*Darrell Evans
*David Ruis (songs: Wide wide world, Let the river flow, Lily of the valley, and a few others).
* Tree 63 (songs: What can I do for you, Blessed be the name and A million lights).
* Sonicflood (old stuff is good if its new to you and their new album, the song God Is Here is one that has power.)
*P40 (the u2 song 40 and we lift you up)
* Andy Hunter (this is techno but we have used it a lot for prophesy and dance intercession)
* Rita Springer, all here albums have some good ones.

Hope some of those are new for you to discover.

LeeElla and I went to see Sting in concert last night...it was great concert. A good mix of old and new music and an awesome rendition of A Day In The Life by the Beatles. A whole lot of middle age people there, made me face the fact that I am getting older. Strange indeed.

 

I think you need to have the thorns to appreciate the rose.

Even if you choose to ignore the thorns, they are still there and sooner or later you will feel them acutely.
It's been my experience that in order to have a healthy understanding of life and the bible you need to have Romans 7 in order to have Romans 8. Much of the Bible is a written account of man suffering from sin, with sin and because of sin. You cannot read the whole bible and not get a heavy dose of reality as to mans condition.
But I think the modern church has often excelled in painting a completely unrealistic picture of reality of real people's conditions. To many religious people are taking the blue pill and not enough are taking the red pill (to steal some imagery from the Matrix). I think the art of spiritual gardening is making sure there is a proper balance between providing enough fertilizer (i.e., crap) and all the other nutrients and actions needed to maintain healthy growth. You need all the elements and a knowledgeable and attentive gardener to see things grow.

It's not all fun and games, prancing through the garden with glee. It takes a lot of death in order to produce life. It takes vision and commitment to seeing that vision come about. It takes work and sacrifice in order to see something beautiful bloom. People can walk into a scrumptious little Eden in someone's backyard and say..."I want to live in this." But have no clue to the hours of life that have been poured into creating such a haven.

The reality is there is always a snake in every garden.
Face it...if you want to walk in Eden than you have to deal with the serpent too.
I think to ignore him or preach like he isn't there or pretend that he hasn't bitten anyone is being unfaithful to the true story.

The earthly garden has been shut and now we must cultivate the heavenly garden and low and behold the serpent is even there too!

Man has been trying for centuries to expunge himself of his fallen nature but to no avail.
I think we need a more honest talk about the truth of where people really are and not try to continually put on a religious pageant that hides the painful realities of living life on this planet.

This is Derek, D or D'ness as I call him.
He has been a faithful part of our youth church for years. I have watched him grow into an amazing young man. Last Wednesday night during our youth church meeting he went to a whole new level in living out God within him. We were in a prolonged time of free worship and hour and a half of praise, worship, prophetic ministry and intercession all wrapped within a moving unguided time of spontaneous expression.

As young people sang, danced and prayed for each other, I moved through the room praying for people, as I felt led. During the cd songs that were playing D grabbed his Jim bay drum and stated playing along with the music. At lulls between songs in the semi dark room he would play as he felt led and soon Ty joined him playing drum on his guitar case. It was an awesome moment of organic worship emerging out of the crowd vs. the stage.

But then Derek got up and started playing next to me as I was praying for youth. No one told him to do it, he just took his drum and started ministering to people with me. No direction, no guidance just two people moving with the wind of God, using their gifts to touch lives. No worries about, is this ok, just pure freedom. A young man with daring faith to just follow God and watch Him paint a meeting that hadn't been painted before. It made me so glad that I am a youth pastor...adults are just so cramped up and constricted that such beauty rarely can be seen because of all the restraints either within or without that come with age and domestication.

Thanks Derek for getting it...you inspire me to keep believing.

Outside time has finally arrived... 

Pig by Dave matthews Band

Come sister
My brother
Shake up your bones shake up your feet
I’m saying open up
And let the rain come pouring in
Wash out this tired notion
That the best is yet to come
But while you’re dancing on the ground
Don’t think of when you’re gone
Love! love! - what more is there?
We need the light of love in here
Don’t beat your head
Dry your eyes
Let the love in there
There are bad times
But that’s ok
Just look for love in it
Don’t burn the day away

The rest of the lyrics are here but it would be best to hear the song to truly enjoy it.
I needed to hear this song real bad today...

A few cool things....

Here is a song that made me laugh.

Here is a great tool for finding out information quick.

Here is a list of tons of hikes and places worth visiting in and around Spokane.

Here is a book I want.

Super Stupor...

I was thinking about the post on John Wesley and thought how crazy we religious people can get, even the super dudes too. John's religious oddities seem so outrageous but don't we have such religious blind spots too? It cracks me up how we can hold some things in such disdain like he did with tea but wine and beer were OK in his mind. Go figure.

I see that all the time...like:

Some people will not allow secular music but secular movies, TV and books are OK...huh?

No beer drinking but pot bellies and fat thighs are fine.

No money for the offering plate but a dinner and movies for entertainment every week.

No cigarettes but a $4 coffee drink habit is allowed even though it resembles the worst nic fit ever if they don't get their Java jump.

We preach against sex before marriage, brutality, adultery, immorality, vulgarity but we will sit in front of our TVs for house watching and listening to it.

On and on it goes...and that isn't an excuse for being so warped but the reality is, we all have holes in our holy garments and our butts are hanging out.

Music for the movement

Here is a small part of a book I am writing called: Youth church for a new generation.
It's more our story than directive, even though it has a lot of my own opinions in it.
Just thought I would throw it out there for anyone that is interested. -Eric
---
One of the main areas of impartation has been within the area of worship. For me worship is a main catalyst for spiritual transformation. We have never had a worship band, we worship to worship CDs. This has allowed us to have a cutting edge worship “band” without having to have people to rely on to produce good music. This generation is hungry for raw, powerful, energetic worship expression and frankly most praise bands just can’t play what young people like. Nothing is more painful than a lame band that is playing stuff from 20+ years ago.

There has been a massive movement of fresh, relevant, creative worship music in the last 10 years. That wave has to be caught to capture the momentum needed to break free from the powerful worldly attractions this world has to offer. The accumulation of solid old music, fresh new music and anything that has a anointing on it is essential to acquire.

I think each youth church has to discover its own vibe. Each tribe has to discover its own sound, their own music for the movement. I have been continually challenged by the Holy Spirit to explore and be prayerfully daring in pushing the envelope in this area. Flags, banners, dance, scripture reading/praying/prophesying, drums, prophesy, sound, lighting, space and visual elements are all tools in fleshing out a more creative and engaging time of worship. We keep the lights low or mostly dark to allow student to be free to focus on worship and not each other. We spread out all around the room to get away from peer distractions and encourage them to focus all their energy into this VERTICAL time. We only allow horizontal time if it is centered on ministry student to student within the praise and worship time.

But just playing music isn’t enough. In order to unleash young people into the spirit of worship they have to be led. There has to be Davidic like anointing present to raise up worshippers that are free from religious hand clapping, sit-stand-sit stuff. The claustrophobic, worship in a box model has to be broken out of. This generation longs for freedom of heart expression. They respond to fluid, creative, not just the traditional forms of worship. They are tribal by nature and when nurtured and fanned into flame, they can become the aggressive and passionate bearers of high praise.

This takes time and godly leadership and daring faith to break free, dream fresh dreams and be radical in our leaps out of the religious boat. Like Peter they want to leave the safety of the known and explore what it feels like to walk into unknown waters of worship. We use a gifted, talented and anointed band for our yearly BLAZE youth conference and our developing youth band for a once a month live worship on the first Wednesday of each month. This gives our youth band time to practice and prepare and yet feeds the young people with free form worship weekly.

We have seen most unsaved young people dramatically impacted by this part of the life of our youth church. Most end up weeping or joining in on their first night. Like Saul they end up prophesying in the presence of the prophets when the Spirit of the Lord comes on them. We are not ashamed of wild, passionate and often extremely loud encounters with God in worship. Whether it’s face time in the carpet in adoration, repentance or jumping in the house of God, worship is a mighty weapon in advancing the purposes of God in this generation.

Picture by Frederic, Lord Leighton 1830-1896
The Philistines try to trap Samson in Gaza by securing the city gates; he is locked in, so they think. But Samson lifts the gates with his enormous might and carries them to Hebron, 40 miles away! It's estimated that these gates may have weighed over a thousand pounds. In Bible times the gates of cities were considered the symbol of their strength. By removing the city gate Samson caused Gaza great humiliation. Samson did this at Midnight.
I read all of this in my morning devotion time in response to a leading to read this chapter. Recently I have been thinking about reviving our Midnight Madness prayer time at our youth church, mostly in response to Jesse, one of my leaders. this scripture confirmed that leading.
Strange time to be taking the gates of the enemies but it's a promise in Genesis 22. Right after the LORD has provided a substitute sacrifice for the life of Isaac. An angel of the LORD calls out blessings to Abraham from the LORD because Abraham did not withhold his son from the altar. Among the blessings, he declares, “And your seed shall possess the gate of his enemies."
let us pray...
 

He who finds a wife...

I just wanted to say that I am a happily married man. It's too bad we don't hear that enough these days. It will be 15 years this July and marrying LeeElla was the best decision I have ever made, besides yielding to the call of Jesus. We have been through a lot over the years but I would not have been able to make it without her. When the Lord called Eve a helpmate, He chose a really weak word in my opinion. That word doesn't even come near describing the actual reality of what a good wife can bring into ones life. I just wanted to give her some props for being such an amazing woman of God, loving mother and my best friend. Luvs to you babe.

Killer Kona

Caesar once, seeing some wealthy strangers at Rome, carrying up and down with them in their arms and bosoms young puppy dogs and monkeys, embracing and making much of them, took occasion not unnaturally to ask whether the women in their country were not used to bear children; by that prince-like reprimand gravely reflecting upon persons who spend and lavish upon brute beasts that affection and kindness which nature has implanted us to be bestowed on those of our own kind.

There are 41 references to dogs in the Bible ... and most of them are negative. As a dog owner, I can understand why. Reference the above photo of canine culprit example A: Given name-Kona. AKA: devil dog, bean head, beaners, kona beans and walnut brain.

She shreds for a living and chews like a redneck cowboy or a 9th inning pitcher.
She targets items that she knows will exacerbate and drive me to flashing outbursts of anger that force me to exercise the fine line between be angry and sin not...a line that seems to get extremely blurred in such visceral moments.

She stinks like a dog too. I know that seems to be a no brainier but in the fever of need, when you are under the childhood nostalgic spell of the doggie dream...you forget such olfactory assaults.

She finds the need to bark at all the moments when I would wish for silence. Usually right in those spaces of time when all the 5 children have gone to bed, got knocked out or are enjoying a quite moment of TV with the mute button on (mandatory during blood sugar crashes).

Oh don't forget the crap and pee...oh glorious patterns speckled throughout the once pristine lawn, now poor testimony of a fountainous bladder. Nothing like mowing over a mound of hidden poo, ummmm delightful!
But on and on I could bemoan my plight but to no avail because I am a canine junkie and what kills me seems to give me a dance of delight as well, so I am a slave to my pooch.

Hanging out at the park. 

10 things you would hate about John Wesley

I love this kind of stuff.
The more I read about plain old people the more I realize we are all a bunch of messed up puppies in need of a whole lot of grace. Man loves to idealize man but in the end man is fallen, even religious man.

Why crowbar massage?

Dues where dues are due:
Crowbar Massage is credited to my friend George Gostavich from way back in highschool.
It was a fictional name thrown out one day for a band that stuck in my cranium.
Nothing ever came of it to my knowledge but to my little brain it became a treasured little expression that embodies my yin and yang.

Ah the crowbar...It can be used for good or evil.

It's great at opening locked things, like a stubborn trunk, crate or a closed mind or chained heart.
You could scratch those places that only a crowbar could reach for yourself or others.
You can wield it like a Jedi master and liberate oppressed people or fend off an attack by a one-eyed poodle facing a neutering appointment that afternoon.
You could hang a few things from it too...like your boxing gloves and just relax with a cup of tea while playing soft feminine music in the background.

I also want it to be the name of my metal band.
It will be my zine name also.
It would make a good book title for my first publication.
I could see a clothing line in the future...black tees with white lettering.
How about a record company, film studio and a drink....inhale deeply here and....

WARNING!!! KEEP YOUR DIRTY LITTLE HANDS OFF MY IDEAS, YOU INSPIRATION PARASITES!

sorry...a burst of fear came over me.

Anywayzzzzzzzzzzzzzz....on and on I could wax painfully ineloquent or I could just say:

I've moved from dreaming, to making something happen and it seems a crowbar is what will get the job done.

There R U happy? >:P

T-Dono

One of my very best friends Tim Donovan and His family came up from Portland, OR. for the weekend. It was great to hang out, shoot some pool and spend time with our families together. At 6 foot seven, he is my tallest friend. Thanks for coming bro...it was good.

Tons of pictures...

You can find a whole lot of pictures (over 600) of our life and ministry here.

What age will you die?

Take this quiz to find out.
Mine said I would die at 82.

A dance or a sword?

You should never give a sword to a man who can't dance.
-Old Celtic Proverb.

This quote really moved me this week when I read it in The Barbarian Way by Erwin Mcmanus.
It spoke to me about joy and being a man that first knows how to dance not just war. Being a leader who has the dance at the center of his life not the sword. The first miracle of Jesus was making the best wine around. He started his ministry with the dance of God.
Joy was the christening image of this new era, new gospel...new man.

Joy is one of the most elusive graces to me...but a song the Lord has been desiring to teach me to sing for a while. It began a year or more ago with a great season of spiritual renewal, a sweet time of refreshment and prophetic intensity that extended for months. Within that time the Lord poured new wine into my weary and dead soul. He fed me with fresh bread and breathed hope into me about the future. It was one of the most exhilarating times in my spiritual history. For a short season I tasted a joy that I had only sipped on previously, it was deeply satisfying.

Little would I know the darkness that would engulf me in the following season. The previous season became a frightfully dim guiding star that has barely helped me navigate the last handful of months. When I read this proverb the Lord tenderly touched my heart again, like seeing land after a long windless sailing.

Yesterday I sat thinking about this proverb and wondered to myself...When will the Lord give me a sword. When will God see a dance in my heart?

That very afternoon this ax came in the mail from my Dad.

God you have my ear...

Do not go gentle into that good night

Do not go gentle into that good night,
Old age should burn and rave at close of day;
Rage, rage against the dying of the light.

Though wise men at their end know dark is right,
Because their words had forked no lightning they
Do not go gentle into that good night.

 

Good men, the last wave by, crying how bright
Their frail deeds might have danced in a green bay,
Rage, rage against the dying of the light.

Wild men who caught and sang the sun in flight,
And learn, too late, they grieved it on its way,
Do not go gentle into that good night.

 

Grave men, near death, who see with blinding sight
Blind eyes could blaze like meteors and be gay,
Rage, rage against the dying of the light.

And you, my father, there on the sad height,
Curse, bless me now with your fierce tears, I pray.
Do not go gentle into that good night.
Rage, rage against the dying of the light.

By Dylan Thomas

The stories that we love

...We have to go to the stories that we love. The movies you love are telling you something about the role that you were meant to play. My favorite movies are not my wife's favorite movies, and my son's favorite movies are not my favorite movies. They're unique to us. We are drawn to stories of a certain kind, stories that speak to our heart. And this will be absolutely mind-boggling, eye-opening, revolutionary, if you'll allow the possibility that the reason that you love those stories, somebody may love the story of Joseph in the Scripture; well, it's because you probably are a Joseph. Someone may love the story of The Return of the King in the Tolkien series, and they particularly love the warrior hero Aragorn. Well, it's probably because you were meant to be a kind of Aragorn in your life.

The stories you love will do two things for you: They will open up and illumine the story that God is telling, they will help you recover the larger story, and they will also tell you something about the secret written in your heart. Stories that you love will reveal something of the role you were meant to play.

-John Eldridge

Pitifully true for too many of us... 

Some men are like reverse baboons.
Baboons have hair all over their body in copious amounts but are buck naked on their rear. Some men, like me, have hair all over their body in frighteningly excessive amounts but are buck naked on their head. If we sat in a crowd of Baboons and bald men and some sat on their heads and some on their butts...I am not sure if you could tell the difference between some of them! What was God thinking...?