We will miss you ElleMae

Today is a sad day for us. ElleMae, our pet pot bellied pig passed away. We took her in as part of the family when she was just a few weeks old. She had such a great disposition and learned everything very quickly. From the time that she arrived at our home, she never once had an accident in the house. We could take her places and she would bring a smile to everyone's face. She made frequent visits to the Adult Daycare centers, Fall Festivals, Daycares, even church events and she was the feature pig at UPS "Kiss The Pig" contest. Elle loved to roll over and have her belly rubbed. She loved to climb up in my lap even if she weighed about 120pounds. Elle enjoyed playing with pumpkins and eating the mush from the inside. She also loved to drink from a bottle. She never out grew that. I guess I can say she was a little spoiled. I have had many pets during my life and including a few pot bellied pigs, but there was something about Elle, that won my heart. Someday's when I was stressed or just feeling down, I could sit down and she would lay down beside me and I would rub her belly and it may have been relaxing to her, but it was therapy for me. I have shed many tears today over this silly pig, but she meant a lot to me. I will have many stories and memories to share and I know she will continue to bring smiles to everyone that hears about her.

It is Christmas!

Here is a small video clip of before and after (Christmas Eve to Christmas morning). You can see at the end of the video, Dave did like his gift. I hope you enjoy the video and the pictures. I have a lot more fun pictures, but I will same them for tomorrow.

Christmas Tradition

Every year, the weekend before Christmas, we go out to dinner, go get pictures made with Santa (they still have to do this even if they don't believe in him anymore..they gotta make momma happy) and then we go and look at Christmas lights. There are a couple of house they we go back to year after year. It just gets you in the Christmas mood. This year I made some video of the two homes that we visit again and again. The first home is located in the Adams Run neighborhood and the second (my favorite) is located on Mile Of Sunshine. That is just off of Old Shepherdsville Rd. between Outer Loop and Fern Valley. I hope you get a chance to go see them for yourself.

Amazing Day at New Vision

Real people experiencing Real Love at New Vision Ministry Center. Acceptance, Love and Forgiveness...It is a church for people like YOU!

Cardboard Testimonies at New Vision Ministry Center from New Vision on Vimeo.

God Is Here Mime Slideshow

Behind the Veil Slideshow

Wings of Worship

If you are following me on this blog, you also may want to keep up with the Wings of Worship blog site. http://wingsofworshipdanceministry.blogspot.com/

Jefferson Mall Santa Parade

Visitors at out church

Check this article from the LEO magazine. You never know who could be sitting next to you at church.
This is the article word for word. you can also check it out at the Leo Weekly web site. Let me remind you, this is a very liberal magazine.
The Church Hoppers
Music, marriage and a mosh pit

There was a lot going on in New Vision Ministry Center’s sanctuary.

Robotic lights pivoted on shiny metal trusses that hung over the stage. Huge woofers pumped out Gospel-infused rock while lyrics flashed on video screens.

But the Church Hoppers’ overwhelming first impression of the church was people. Folks were crammed into the modified gym up to the rafters, filling the room with expectation. It felt like a rock show. As the band played, the under-18 crowd surged forward to stand in front. Simple worship choruses flashed on the screen: I want to jump higher than before … I want to shout louder than before … I want to worship deeper than before … I wasn’t sure what jumping and shouting had to do with God, but it sure got the congregation energized as — yes — they actually bounced and screamed. In the midst of the passion and intensity, something happened to Zach. He tried to explain later: “I felt a Presence that I haven’t experienced in church since I was a kid,” he said. “It was actually kind of scary, like ‘I shouldn’t be enjoying it this much.’ I was clapping; I was feeling it … and yet I was really at peace with myself.” My skeptical side figures Zach’s experience was the product of music and emotions. But my Christian-idealist side hopes maybe he was sensing the presence of God.

The wedding in worship
I grew up in a conservative church where worship songs came from the hymnal and the preacher was in no danger of succumbing to excitement. So I’ve always been suspicious of Bible-thumping holy rollers. Yet I’m not completely cynical. Somewhere inside, I wish I could find as much faith in God’s power, as much passion for Jesus as they have at New Vision. There, it seems like anything could happen on a Sunday morning. Yes, I mean anything. Halfway through the service, Pastor David Boggs explained that a couple in the church wanted to get married, but they couldn’t afford the ceremony. So he conducted a wedding in the middle of worship, with a thousand cheering parishioners as wedding guests. “I sure didn’t see it coming!” said Zach later. “But hey, it’s celebration, and we’re all here anyway. It was really nice of the pastor to do it.” I actually choked up as I watched this couple exchange vows in the middle of a Sunday service. Boggs went on to preach from Romans 12:2, where the Apostle Paul instructs his readers to let God’s wisdom reshape their thinking. “Don’t look like the world; don’t act like the world — it’s messed up,” said Boggs. “We’ve got to learn to make decisions with the mind of Christ. There’s no addiction, there’s no boyfriend … there’s no job, there’s no financial problem, there’s no spiritual problem that Christ can’t conquer … I want this church to mature to the place where we all have the mind of God.” The pastor challenged his flock to renounce their sins, then move forward with the conviction that God would bring blessings as they followed him.

Blessings galore?
Unfortunately, it was that talk of blessings that made Zach and I a bit uncomfortable as we left New Vision. The church seemed to believe that material prosperity is the inevitable result of a Godly life. During worship, they repeated this mantra: “We believe the Lord for jobs and better jobs … explosive growth in mutual funds … all bills are paid, all debts are cancelled …” When I read the Bible, I see wisdom for enduring life’s struggles — not magic spells for eliminating them. “Jesus said that life isn’t going to be easy,” Zach pointed out, “and wealth is not the source of happiness.” Nonetheless, the Church Hoppers walked away with admiration for the heartfelt faith at New Vision Ministry Center.

God may not bring “explosive growth” to the members’ mutual funds, but perhaps that’s not the big idea. Their passionate convictions might still help them through hard times — even a recession.

This month’s Church Hop

Name: New Vision Ministry Center
Location: 6901 Outer Loop Road, Louisville (near the corner of Fegenbush Lane)
Service Times: Sundays at 9 and 11 a.m.
Website: www.nvmc.tv
Size: Megachurch — the congregation claims more than 2,000 regular attendees.
Denomination: Church of God; Cleveland, Tenn.
Senior Pastor: David Boggs
You Might Like This Church If: You enjoy passionate worship and preaching that emphasizes God’s blessings.
Source for church facts: www.nvmc.tv
The Church Hoppers visited on Sept. 7, 2008.

I'm Back

It is Sunday evening about 9PM and I just woke up from a short nap of about 8 hours. I have been running on fumes. Over the last few weeks I have been putting the final things together for our Behind The Veil Expressive Worship Workshop. The past week I have gone on less that 15 hours of sleep. It was well worth it.

The workshop was wonderful. We had over 40 people registered. The attendance has tripled from the last workshop, Praise God! We closed the workshop out with a River Service. Sherri Hart and her band opened our RIver Service with a couple of songs. Sherri was a guest at the workshop back in April and everyone loved her and we invited to join us for the Behind the Veil Workshop. This time she brought the band with her. They came Friday night to saturate the atmosphere with worship before the workshop began on Saturday. On Saturday they ministered throughout the day. It was a wonderful addition to the workshop. Sherri also delivered the Word Saturday afternoon. She was a blessing to us all. After Sherri opened the RIver Service, we had some of the participants from the workshop minister in dance, song and mime. It was neat to see the different styles of expression through worship. Then Pastor Curtis and our very own NVMC Worship team took us even deeper into the presence of God. The River Service was phenomenal. Many lives were changed and many lives were charged, as they spent time in HIS presence. It was a full day and a long day and a day that many will not soon forget.

We don’t have to wait till another workshop, another conference, another River Service or another Sunday to experience HIS presence. Spend time in HIS presence on a daily basis. Worship is like breathing, it has to be a lifestyle not a routine.

I will be posting video and pictures of the workshop and River service over the next week.