style...

I used to think I'd like 'church' to look like this...

And, having seen the above space--in the flesh--earlier this week, I can tell you it's really beautiful, calming, almost awe-inspiring...

And no longer for me.

See, the older I get, the more I find myself getting less and less religiously-oriented which means I'm starting to think that (more and more) I'd like 'church' to look like this...
I used to worry about 'de-tuning' the christian experience by confusing it with too much 'vibe' or too many lights or an overstated production design.

These days, due in large part to the increasingly plain-blunt-pull-no-punches approach I'm taking to preaching (straight from the text, all about Jesus, period) I'm thinking maybe I could use a little more 'snazz' in my production design.

See, the message is so plain, blunt, and clear that I think anything we can do to 'set' our space in such a way that it 'feels' with-it, non-religious, and comfortable (in the "I'm used to this..." sense) the better off we'll be.

I think.

Another 'clarifying moment' as a result of my trip to Texas.

Maybe it's time to unashamedly/unabashedly mix some of my production know-how and experience into my ethic at 'church'.

Hit us up at THE WELL in the coming weeks/months to see if I can find the personal and corporate horsepower (read: work ethic, leadership ability and 'cash money') to do something with all this.

T

A stranger in a strange land...

And I do mean 'strange'.

I've been at a church planting conference in Texas the last couple days.  A conference full of 'strange' people.

Now before you go getting all offended, lemme' quickly (very quickly) say that every church-related conference I've even been to is full of 'strange' people.

Also...

Every show-business related conference I've ever been to is full of 'STRANGE' people.

(really strange people)

It's not that some people are strange and other people are normal, it's that all people are strange, just in different ways and the key is to figure out which group of strange is your kind of strange.

Feel me?

It's amazing actually, even as I'm writing this I'm starting to decompress a bit.

See, yesterday I wrote a blog from the conference and I was still so upset that I went back and deleted the blog lest I spread my infectious negativity to my 2,000 or so monthly readers and--potentially through them--to their various spheres of influence.  A remarkable step for me, deleting a blog, as I've never--in 300+ posts--felt moved to do such a thing.

I wanted to write.  I was tracking your visits to this site, knowing that you were probably looking for something new this week, but I didn't have anything good to say and while it's one thing to 'feel' a certain way about a thing it's another thing all together to just let your feelings rip in a public forum.

So, I yanked it.

But today, I figured I'd have some distance and some clarity.

And I do.

Here's what hit me.  I realized--for the first time--that the reason I get upset at church planting conferences is because I'm just not that excited about church planting on a large scale.  Yes, I'm a church planter (having planted two churches from scratch by now) but that's not where my passion lies.  And because 'church planting' is such an 'in' thing in christian circles right now there's a lot of 'institutional pressure' to think of church planting as 'the thing' that anybody who's even remotely connected to 'church work' should be doing.

But I'm really just a preacher and a producer.

I was listening to a friend preach and he referenced his 'moment of calling' again; that moment where God made it clear to him what he was supposed to do with his life.  He went on to say how he'd tried to always just do those things, avoiding the other opportunities that have come along the way so that he could focus on what he was supposed to (or called to) do.

He said you must pursue your 'calling' not your 'potential'.

Aha!

I realized in that moment that I 'can' do many things but 'should' only do what I've been 'called' to do.

I have another friend who needs to hear this.

(you're probably reading this aren't you?)

See, he's one of the most multi-talented guys I know.  He can do (and has done) many things at a very high level.  Because he's so talented at so many things he's had a hard time (by times) in his life focusing on just one (or two) thing(s).

To a significantly lesser degree I've dealt with that in some small way (I know I'm repeating my qualifiers but I'll take whatever 'excessive humility' I can get) myself, feeling like I could do many things and, often, trying my hand at them.

Like church planting, for example.

I have church planted (twice). I like church planters.  I admire church planters.

But it's not the thing God 'called' me to do when He saved me at 11.

What God told me to do was to grow up to do a mixture of what Stephen Spielberg and Billy Graham 'do'.  Story-tell, or communicate, or 'preach' from the pulpit and for the screen.

That's it.

That's it.

That's it.

So, that's what I need to do.  Nothing more, nothing less.

See, I get very excited about preaching.  I'm thrilled to be able to do it week in and week out at THE WELL.  One of the reasons I got into church planting in the first place was because no-one would hire me to preach.  

(believe me, I've tried, and tried, and tried, and tried again to get hired and it NEVER works)

See, Herman Melville said it right in the preface to 'Moby Dick' when he said that 'the pulpit leads the world'.

How much more so does the pulpit lead a church?

Totally.

Whoever takes the pulpit in a church leads that church.  Everything in a church flows from it's pulpit and it's main preacher.  The entire culture of the church is set in and from the pulpit.

So, no wonder, they'd never hire me.  Why on earth would any pastor in their right mind hire someone else to lead (through preaching) their church?

Not gonna' happen.

So, along the way I got confused.  Because I needed to plant a church in order to create a forum (or environment) in which I could obey God's calling, I got sucked into 'church planting culture' and, though I've said I love church planters and get jazzed by the prospect of helping them in any way I can, my PRIMARY calling is simply as a preacher and a producer.

Not a church planter.

It's like I HAD to plant a church in order to be obedient to God's call to preach.

Same way as I HAD to start my own production company in order to be able to produce without punching a clock at some network or studio which would (in turn) have not allowed me to be faithfully preaching anywhere.

("Sorry, our VP of development can't be here for our emergency weekend meeting, he's busy PREACHING at his church...")

Not gonna' fly.

So, I had to start one myself.  Not 'cause I'm primarily an 'entrepreneur' or a businessman (though I 'could' do both somewhat well if I put my mind to it...) but because I needed to create a context in which I could be obedient to God's call.

A simple truth and yet one that's seemed to have evaded me for some time now.

So, I hereby repent of my desire to do 'too many' things.

(if I've wronged you somehow in my attempts at finding my way and finding my place, I ask for your forgiveness...)

I hereby commit to doing only what I've been called to do.

Preach and Produce.

That's it.  That's all.

That's me.

T

waiting...

I'm sure I've mentioned this before.

Waiting is difficult.

That puts me squarely in the middle of a difficult season. I'm currently waiting for a bunch of projects to 'firm up' or get finally rejected.

The key ones include:

-a feature film distribution deal

-several syndication deals for a TV series

-renewal on a TV series

-development progress on a TV series

-funding for a graphic novel initiative

While waiting for those to 'do their thing' I'm working as fast as possible to 'develop' as many ideas as possible.

Those include:

-4 new 'adventure-style' TV series

-A new sit-com

-A new micro-budget feature-film script

-3 feature-scripts for packaging consideration

And--if you were to be really ruthless in your assessment you'd say that NONE of 'em are happening (right now), which could make you one sleepless dude.

Unless you trust.

That's my challenge these days (and perhaps always in my line of work). Learning to trust and allowing that trust to filter into my angst and give me peace.

It does feel like we're slowly starting to 'solidify' as 'real' adults.  Starting to get some actual 'momentum' under us.

Slowly.

My hope is that my friend (the 46 year-old mogul) was right when he looked at me and said (a couple months back...) "You're how old, again?" (I answered) "Oh, yeah, you're just getting started. Watch, these next ten years will be where you really start to pick up steam..."

Plus we found out it's 'my year' (Tiger) this year, so that's supposed to be a good thing (!)

If you're Chinese...

T (aka: "Ting")

dovetailing...

So here's the definition of "dovetail":

"...a flaring tenon and a mortise into which it fits tightly making an interlocking joint between two pieces..." (Merriam Webster)

An interlocking join between two pieces.

That's the part I like.

That's the trick for the life I'm trying to live. A life where you find a way to get your hopes and dreams to interlock with your day to day work.  

My wife and I took some time this morning over our second cup of coffee to talk about some of our long-term 'life goals'. The thing we're struggling with is how to fit those goals in before our kids are too big while still doing the work we've been called (and given) to do in the meantime.

The upshot is I'll write a new treatment for a TV show today (then have a meeting on it this afternoon) to see if we can't take a big step in the right direction.

Dovetailing.

(what two bits of your life should you be working to interlock?)

T

 

In Olympia...

Got stuck in this weird crowd today...

Ohhh, THAT'S why...

Yaletown (my favorite spot in VanCity) overrun by the Olympic Spirit.

All through the opening ceremonies we had the window to our condo open and could hear the actual crowd screams a couple seconds before we heard 'em through the TV.

Pretty cool.

But you know what's even better?

Going home to my wife and babies tomorrow.

Now, that, I could get excited about.

T

Up to my old (new) tricks...

I'm in Van-city again.

Great town.  I miss it a bit.

I posted a lot of shots like the one above during my crazy 2008, a year where this town was my 'home away from home' in the truest sense.

But in those 'working shots' I was always working on something TV or film-related.

Today's shot (though you wouldn't know it) has me working on this Sunday's sermon for THE WELL.

(how very strange)

See, I have no 'church roots' in this town. The time I spent here was hiatus time, self-discovery time, getting my a$$ kicked by the Almighty time.

So to be back (on the eve of the Olympics with the whole WORLD walking the streets) and to be spending my one free day here cooped up in a 19th floor condo working on my sermon for this Sunday is a sweet kind of counterpoint.

Sweet.

Simple.

And hard work.

Lemme' just say I'm thankful for the journey--it's been quite the strange and amazing ride. T'will be very interesting to see what happens next.

(hopefully it involves a 'good' sermon--with some 'West Coast' flair to it)

T

pivot and drive...

(iPhones--as awesome as they are--really do take crappy 'low light' shots)

But, we had a great time bowling with some friends last Friday night.

I also totally stunk the join out. Came dead last first game, second last second game. 

Shameful.

Reason I mention it is 'cause I said something to someone today in a meeting that reminded me of something.

(how's that for 'direct')

Here's what I said:

"I figure, what you gotta' do now is pivot, and drive..."

Like in basketball.

You're running one way, dribbling the ball, trying to evade the defense, trying to find a way to score, and you run out of court or run into someone too big to run through or see an opening you never saw before until you got to that spot on the court.

What do you do?

You pivot (plant your foot, shifting your weight to the ball of it) and drive (running off in a new direction as fast as you can).

I won't go into how that advice was applicable to the someone I met with today but I will tell you how it was applicable for me.

I remembered that I suck at bowling.  That reminded me that there are other things I suck at that can fast become (if I let 'em) things that I get focused on (in my work) instead of staying focused on the things that I'm actually good at.

So, I faced my failure(s) today, decided to stop doing those things I'm not good at and, instead, recommitted to doing the things I'm 'made' to do, with all my might.

Pivot and drive.

Maybe that's what you gotta' do...

T

reminded by the mall...

Have you noticed that 8/10 of the people who work at 'the mall' look depressed?

Seriously, the lady at the 'customer service' desk looked like she was about to burst into tears. The girl at the mid-aisle stand trying to sell dead-sea body scrub to me, the dude at the audio/video store, the girl at Cinnabon, the dude pushing the mop aimlessly; depressed.

All of them depressed.

And I was struck, again, by the powerfully urgent truth that you MUST discover a way to do something you like (nay, love) doing while getting PAID to do that thing you love.

I realize this isn't a novel idea.  I realize it might be a concept you've heard before.  I am also acutely aware that you might be reading this while on break from your depressing job at the mall.

Here's what I have to say to you:

You don't have to do this.

You can do something else.

You can pursue your passion.

Yes, you might struggle for a while--or even quite some time--while you find, first what you love to do and are good at, and second, find a way to earn your living by doing said thing, BUT there is no other way to live friend.

Seriously.

Regardless of what you believe about life, God, and eternity it's very clear that you get this one life to live in the here and now.

Do you want to spend it languishing the hours of your life away in a mall?

Heck no.

You must escape!  Do it now! Put in your notice!  Quit your job! 

Find a passion, a career, a mission.  Know where to start? What's that thing you like so much you'd do it for free?  Well find a way to start doing it (volunteer, apprentice, mentor under somebody) and do it with all your heart and before too long (it'll be long enough to stretch your faith to the limit mind you...) you'll find yourself getting hired to do that same thing you've been doing for free.

Just don't waste your life at the mall.

Please.

T

pushing it...

I was gong to have a pro-photographer friend of mine shoot that shot--and it would have been better if he had--but his schedule was just crazy this week so I up and did it myself.

(And, no, the tylenol are not arranged like a cross on purpose. I just kept pushing them around while shooting and this one was the one I liked best.  So I colored it, THEN realized the whole cross thing which almost made me cut it, 'cause I 'knew' some people would think I did it on purpose which would be really cheesy.  But I didn't, so there...)

It's for the promo card we'll be using for a new sermon series we're launching this week at THE WELL.  

I mention that new series because it's a new deal for me.  I'm going to be preaching verse by verse, chapter by chapter through an entire book of the Bible.  I figured, given that this is such a new thing for me, I'd preach from one of my favorite New Testament books--Philippians.

Here's how I used to preach--like from 1994-2006--I'd read my Bible every day (typically between three and nine chapters a day) always reading my way through the Old Testament, the New Testament and the Psalms and Proverbs all at the same time.  So, I'd keep three bookmarks in there and just keep cycling through it.  I'd typically read through the whole Bible twice a year or so.

I'd read with pen in hand.

(I figure reading with a pen is 'work', reading without a pen is 'fun')

And every time something would jump out at me I'd make a note next to it in the margins. Then, come Wednesday or Thursday depending on my mood I'd sit down, ask God to speak to me, and review all the chapters I'd read in the past week taking note of the 'notes' I'd made. The note that 'sang to me' (or grabbed my attention) with the most resonance would be the one I'd pick to preach on.

So, my preaching came from my devotional life.

Almost all of my peers during that time (and to this day) either preached through some kind of lectionary (a list of readings that have been compiled by their denomination) or through thematic series or through entire books of the Bible.

I never did.

But when I decided to launch THE WELL I decided to try and repent of every system or habit I used to employ.  I figured I'd try to start 'fresh' since this was, truly, a fresh start for me in that particular 'zone' of my career/gift mix/calling.

So I started by preaching monthly series.  I'd pick a theme then pick a book of the Bible and build all the sermons for that series from that Book, in a sort of 'broad thematic survey'. Even that was a stretch for me as the longest series I'd ever preached in my entire preaching career was three sermons and I'd only ever done two series period; the aforementioned three-week one and a two week one a few years prior to that.

Obviously I was 'reaching' with my approach at THE WELL.

But it went very well and, I've got to admit, the growth we're seeing so far is much faster than anticipated in any book you read on church planting and much faster than what I experienced at FT the first time around.

Now, let me be clear, I don't pretend to 'know' the reasons for the growth we're seeing. The Bible is very clear that it's Jesus who builds His Church, so any kind of 'trying to figure it out' we do must ultimately be done in submission to Him with open hands and hearts.

That said, conventional wisdom is that preaching is 'the' thing that most impacts the growth of a church.

That said, I'm not altogether surprised that THE WELL is growing faster than anything I've ever experienced because I've never preached with the kind of series-consistency I've deployed with this church plant.

So, I had planned to spend 2010 doing 12 monthly series that were hooked to the major cultural events (or themes) that dominate each month of the year (new years, valentines, St. Patrick's day, etc...) but as the new year approached I started feeling a sense that I should just bite the bullet and start preaching through books.

The peers I admire most have been doing it that way for their entire ministry and I had to face the fact that I might have chosen to not preach that way just because I wanted to be different. Now, I 'get' that that impulse can be 'sinful' and therefore something I must confess, repent of and learn to walk in newness of life through, but, I also know that I've been 'wired' with a desire to be a bit different, to do things in unexpected ways, to try new things and to buck the system to some degree.

("I mean, come on, "Producer" AND "Preacher"? Those two just don't FIT!")

I'm also a guy who can easily get proud or arrogant.

So, I had to weigh all of the above in trying to figure out what I should do.

Anyway, I asked my congregation to let me know what they thought (being very clear that I wouldn't 'decide' based on their feedback but that I'd carefully consider it) and asked some of my peers and mentors what they thought and ended up deciding to go for it.

Totally out of my comfort zone. Totally different than anything I've ever done. Making a me a bit worried--'cause, really, how can you sustain interest in a book for 19 weeks?--and forcing me to trust.

Which is a good thing.

I thought maybe you'd take the above and spin it into your own life and see if there's an area in which you can grow and expand while trusting.

Just wondering...

T

following the pattern...

Do you see a pattern emerging?

That's what's happening in my life.  See, it's February and my Februarys have been getting more and more similar with time.

Let's see if we can spot it...

Feb 2000--> First son just born, back from producing in Vancouver, wondering what to 'do' with my life.

Feb 2001--> Just planted FreeChurch Toronto, totally immersed in trying to survive.

Feb 2002--> Pastoring FT, feeling the 'itch' to become a screenwriter. Decide to start that year.

Feb 2003--> Pastoring FT, church starts growing, start second screenplay.

Feb 2004--> Pastoring FT, church is getting really solid, third and fourth screenplays done, start feeling the itch to direct.

Feb 2005--> In my 'exit year' at FT, church is really rockin', direct my first commercial then another one then another one then a music video. Write two more scripts.

Feb 2006--> Retired from FT, busy prepping then starting to direct my first feature film.

Feb 2007--> Finish my first film, getting ready to screen it, about to embrace 'the year of doom' as nothing happens for the rest of 2007.  Write another screenplay.

Feb 2008--> Up to my eyeballs producing two TV series out of Vancouver.

Feb 2009--> Waiting to see if I'll have any work in 2009, get the call to start budgeting, end up producing the series and making a whole bunch of new L.A connections. Start feeling the itch to plant another church. Write another screenplay.

Feb 2010--> Just planted THE WELL, waiting to see if I'll have any work in 2010, get the call to start budgeting...

Okay, the pattern's not quite as clear as I thought it might be. 

Here's the thing. Every year since 2000 I've had this kind of 'ramp' deal going on where the year unfolds then slows right down at the end of the year leading into the start of the next. In the years between churches (FT and TW) the slow down was more pronounced because I, literally, had nothing to do.  I'd read and blog and think and write and hang out with my wife and kids and hope and pray and wait.  

2007 was a terribly difficult year, getting worse and worse from March on.  From August (after getting a final 'no' on a job prospect in Chicago) to December 17th we just sat around (I mean, we were hustling our butts off but nothing was happening) slowly approaching bankruptcy. Then a series we'd pitched in October 2006 finally 'locked' and that led to an insane 2008 where I produced more than 450 half-hours of television.

However...

November 2007 our deals were all supposed to 're-up' and none of them did. What we didn't know at the time was that the Network we were working with was about to get bought out by one of Canada's most prolific media barons totally changing the landscape.  From where we sat though, November 2007-May 2008 was another wasteland.

Very depressing.

It was February 2009 when my business called me saying, "Hey, I think you should start working on a new budget 'cause I think this thing might be starting to trend positive..."

"Starting to trend."

But I did it, getting down to the production design of what would become our most successful (by far) TV series ever.  

We then spent all of 2009 working on the thing and then, started hustling our butts off in late summer/early fall hoping to get some pitches and concepts ready in time for the pre-christmas surge.  Pre-Christmas 2009 arrived and we were in full-on blitz mode trying to lock funding for a new graphic novel initiative, immersed in development on a drama series, trying to get our talk series syndicated Worldwide and set up for a second season, shopping two reality series and a sit-com.

Then Christmas hit and, BOOM, wasteland again.

January was a write off.

And that brings us to February 2010 where, just Monday of this week, my wife and I were feeling that same old, "Man, it looks like we might not have any work this year..." feeling. I was actually starting to brainstorm what kind of 'real job' I could go out and get.

(this, while planting a new church that's growing explosively at this point, continuing to develop that drama series, those reality series, workshopping a new small feature concept, trying to suck blood from a stone to fund a graphic novel project that's getting awesome-er by the second, negotiating a distribution deal for our first small film and giving our talk series absolutely everything we've got to try and get a second season locked)

And it's going nowhere.

Or at least that how I felt Monday.

Then Tuesday (yesterday) I get 'the call' from my business partner.  "Hey, I think you should start working on a new budget 'cause I think this thing might be starting to trend positive..."

And, just like that (which is SO NOT 'just like that') we seem to turn the corner into a new year that might (MIGHT) not be spent doing nothing.

Because, you see good reader, there is a pattern here.  I am beginning to see a method in the madness, a design in the desert, a Maker in the mayhem.

And that gives me hope.

And, maybe, that gives you hope.

'Cause, if you take a moment to think about it, chances are you'll see that a pattern has begun emerging in your life as well.

T