Jesus Camp

So there's been some buzz about this new movie coming out, Jesus Camp. Personally, I'm a little freaked out by it. I'm not talking about just the 8 year olds in Jesus'army or the rolling around on the floor should kids be catching the "Holy Ghost" stuff. I'm mostly freaked out by this one hommie's mullet. Take a look at this trailer and tell me that's not the freakiest mullet you've ever seen.

Funny Shirt of the Week

So it's been a while since I've posted a funny shirt. Partly because I truely love and have gotten great responses from the I gave my word to stop at third shirt. But all good things must come to an end and so in that same borderline inappropriate spirit, I bring you: Gonorrhea: Not as funny as it sounds

A little frustration

I think it would be safe to say that I love this Church. I have been here less than a week, so maybe that's a bit premature, but everything about this place has been great. We had a retreat this past week with the creative arts department and it was awesome. I got to know my team so much better and we laughed a ton. I'm back at the office now, getting the feel for things and as I'm meeting people, doing more of my job and getting ready to lead my first band rehearsal tonight, I am loving this place. Except for one thing. Our office is completely Windows based. PC's on every desk and, while they are mostly new and look nice, they are not the greatest machines in the world. My computer froze three friggin' times this morning! Can you believe that? I got in at 9 and before lunch, I saw message after message from my computer saying, "I'm sorry, I suck and can't do multiple things at once" (that was a paraphrase of the windows error message). Then I went to the music sweet to work on some stuff and the thing takes like 5 minutes to open an application. I'm not talking booting up the machine here, I'm talking I double-click on iTunes (by the way, it's so hard seeing a great program like that having to submit to the will of Bill Gates on these machines) and it takes 5 minutes before it opens! At least the one on my desk is fast. I'm not trying to complain. I know that the cost of switching from PC to Mac would be incredible, not to mention the learning curve involved. As much as I love the idea, I would much rather see those thousands of dollars go to ministry, but seriously; why doesn't this thing just work.

first few days on the job

Well, today was my first Sunday at Clovis Hills. I played guitar, no singing and loved it. We only did three songs, but at the end of the second service I wanted to keep playing. The band is amazing and it was such a cool environment to be in. People were really doing business with God and so being able to see that and help them go to the throne room was a pretty cool thing to be a part of. Here are some pictures. We're in the midst of a campaign called More than Ready where we're asking God to make us more than ready for all of the exciting ministry that is going to happen over the next 10 years as thousands of families move into the area around our church.

Fresno? Fres-yes!

Well, after a long weekend of packing, cleaning, loading, cleaning again, driving, sleeping, waking up, unloading, putting stuff away and then shopping, we are almost completely moved in. All that's left to make this place feel like home is selling, cleaning, throwing away, a lot of sleeping, a little picture hanging and some orientating (that's not really a word, but I'm going with the “ing” thing here). We had so many friends and family help us that we got done with all the hard heavy stuff in an hour or so in LA and here in Fresno. Thank you to all of those that came and helped. It was awesome. It's just one more reminder of the amazing community we have left. I don't quite think it's hit yet, just how much we're going to miss our friends from LA, so for all of you perspective Fresno friends, if Jenn or I burst into tears at a moment's notice, please give us a little grace. I start work on Friday, Jenn's got an interview this afternoon for her job and I'm playing this Sunday. After all this time I am so excited that we are here and that we can start. Praise God for new adventures and for incredible methods of communication to keep in touch with good friends!

A new kind of preacher

So I've been listening to a couple of podcasts lately. Matt Chandler and Mark Driscoll are pastors of churches that are an interesting combination of postmodern awareness and reformed theology. These guys are awesome! They have built and lead churches that love people and love each other. I have been so grieved by much of the emergent church becasuse, while their methods for "doing church" have changed and adapted to meet the needs of this culture, they have also twisted and adapted scripture to meet the needs of their methodology. The dangers of "emergent liberalism" are incredible so it is nice to have guys like these two that will stand firm on theologically and doctrinal issues, but do not have dead orthodoxy, refusing to change methods or practices. Their podcasts are their weekly sermons and are available on iTunes.

What is Worship?

The last few years of my life have been, in part, about figuring out what corporate worship is. I have had several thoughts that have been swirling around in my head, but I suppose it often times takes someone else to express them. I saw this interview with David Crowder and he says everything that I want to communicate about worship. The cool thing is that even in talking about what worship is I feel drawn closer to the Lord.

My new baby

Before you get all excited about the title, let me put your minds at ease. Jenn is not pregnant. However, there has been a new addition to our family. He requires as much attention as a newborn, but makes a much sweater sound. Meet Martin. Or should I say, my new Martin guitar, which is, by the way, sweet. I was very confident that I made a sound investment, but even more so when Terry Talbot told me he has the same guitar. He could have helped me get this one for about a thousand dollars less than I did, but none the less, it's pretty cool. Now all I have to do is figure out how to play it!

Funny shirt of the week

This week's shirt is a reminder that some things are worth the wait. I gave my word to stop at third

David Crowder Presents - P.R.D.

Last night, I met David Crowder. I shook his hand cracked some jokes and may have left the impression that me and my two friends (who were backstage without passes or security badges) were in the hottest new band on the planet. It wasn't shady, we were legit. My buddy Ryan was working a convention in Anaheim and so Roots, Dave and I went to the show. We saw Crowder from an amazing view. There were two stages and in between them, but sunken down on the ground, is "monitor world." That's where speakers go to make a quick exit off stage and where the sound guys are providing the best possible mix. Ryan said that it was the best place to watch the show and he was right. Crowder ripped and we were right there (pictures to follow). Afterwards, we insulted Crowder's Drummer (Dave did), met Crowder and was close enough to tug on his huge goatee (we refrained ourselves though) and had created our band name - P.R.D. (pronounced Purtty, for Paul, Roots and Dave). We were dressed fairly cool if I do say so, or at least the way Crowder and the guys were and without the name tags or security passes back stage everyone just assumed they should know us. Crowder was like, "I'm sorry, names would help me" in a way that was like, 'I feel like I should know you guys but I can' place it.' We didn't lie or anything, we told him we were nobodies, but it was to pretend just a bit. Maybe he'll produce our debut album? It was awesome. Made me more excited than ever to lead worship and get more into that scene. B-Whack, Crowder's drummer, did say they were on the road almost 250 days a year, which would not be cool, but who knows, maybe at the next Crowder show you go to you'll see P.R.D. opening up.

Funny Shirt of the Week

I tried writing an explanation, but I'm speechless. Donde esta mi chones?

How's this for cool?

So I have a buddy named Micah. He and I went to High School together, and have been friends through college, though we haven't kept in touch as much as I would have liked (probably mostly my bad). We were in a Vocal performance group together (okay, it was a Christian Boy Band), and for some reason the Lord keeps intertwining our lives. When I called Micah to tell him I was getting married he said, so am I (and on the same weekend no less). I went to college in LA and then a year later, where should he end up, but Malibu. So as Jenn and I were in the job search process I asked Micah a few times if he had any thoughts (he had recently searched and found a job in Whittier at a Church there). And then the Lord did it again. I told Micah we were moving back to the "No" (Fresno) and he just laughed as he told me of the direction God was moving them and that the same weekend I was in Fresno interviewing at Clovis Hills, Micah was interviewing at New Harvest and he and his wife Erica have accepted the job. It's pretty stinkin' cool the way God does things. I'm lookin' forward to grabin' some coffee with my friend and talking about Jesus, ministry and loving people. You can check out Micah and Erica's blog right here

A theology for the emergent church

I was reading Rhett Smith's Blog today and he had a link for Dr. Ray Anderson's new book, An Emergent Theology for Emerging Churches. I have never heard of Dr. Anderson, and his book just came out, so I am not sure what is deal is. However, I read his "guest blog" on Rhett Smith's blog and was pleased to find the first commentary on the emergent church, or what it should be that was completely about Jesus! Enjoy.

What has Antioch to do with Jerusalem? Guest blogger: Ray S. Anderson ...This is why I argue that we must recover an emergent theology, not merely explore the edges of an emerging church in its attempt to make the message culturally relevant. Here is my case: An emergent theology is messianic. That is, it is a theology that is anointed and Spirit-led to point the way forward. An emergent theology is like the finger of John the Baptist, pointing into the world and saying, "Here is the lamb of God" (John 1:29). Emerging churches are missional. That is, these are churches that only exist as the continuing mission of Christ (the Messiah) in the world. Emerging churches are like Jesus arising out of the water of baptism, anointed by the Spirit, and moving into the streets and market place to heal, promote justice and seek peace. An emergent theology is revelational. It is a theology of the Word; it is the bread come down from heaven; it speaks truth and opens minds and hearts. Emerging churches are reformational. They seek to put new wine into new wineskins; they want to renew the church that already exists and translate the older formulas of the faith into new paradigms of contemporary communication. An emergent theology is Kingdom coming. It is a theology that proclaims a new order of God's reign already present as a transforming spiritual, social and economic power of liberation and rehabilitation of humankind. Emerging churches stress Kingdom living. They seek to be the gathering of all who seek the blessing of being 'grace-filled' believers and the empowering community that sends them forth as Spirit-filled disciples. An emergent theology is eschatological. It has the mind of the risen and coming Christ as well as the heart and soul of the historical Jesus. It is a theology that keeps hope alive by preparing the way of the future into the present while, at the same time, keeping faith alive by "looking forward to the city that has foundations, whose architect and builder is God" (Hebrews 11:10). Emerging churches are incarnational. Their language is that of the people; their message is communicated through culture; their presence in the world is ordinary so as to get within arms length to embrace others with extraordinary love.

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Funny Shirt of the Week

Not sure why this is funny? That's because you do the same thing. For the record, it should read You're a loser. Enjoy! You're a loser

Thoughts from a church planter

I saw this on "Church Marketing Sucks" and thought it was pretty cool. Some very cool thoughts on how God can build churches. 2 year thoughts.... In two weeks, we turn 2. It seems like yesterday we were trying to get this thing started. I have looked at so many pictures and video getting ready for this service and I have laughed more the this week then I have in a long time. I am a blessed man. What has happened here is an amazing thing and only God can get the glory. I look at other plants who have more education then me, are better speakers then me, are in larger cities then me, had more money when they launched, look better (that isn't too hard), and yet very few churches are doing what God is doing at RSC. I don't say that at all to be cocky, I say it to give God glory for all that HE has done. IF God can use me, HE can use anyone. Read More

This is stinkin' awesome

Okay, so Jenn was searching around the internet and stumbled upon this website which has the Bible acted out in Legos. That's right Legos. Check it out

The humbling experience of being dunked

Today, I was baptised. It was a pretty cool experience and stirred up some thoughts that surprised me so I thought I'd share. I've been walking with the Lord for about 7 years now, but for some reason had never been baptised. I've been involved in a church for a long time, got a job at a church and even seen dozens of baptisms before taking the plunge (pun very much inteneded) myself. So while I expected emotions to come surrounding the event, I didn't quite know what kind to expect. What I felt, and what surprised me the most was that I felt a little embarassed. Not embarassed about Jesus or anything; I love Jesus. I think He's great, and every day I am falling more in love with Him. I was embarassed, however, because I thought that people would say, "I can't believe you haven't been baptised yet. aren't you going into ministry?" It's weird to come face to face with the reality of how much I've bought into my own hype. A lot of who I am and what I do is about people thinking I'm someone; people thinking I am capable or even that I know what I'm doing. I didn't want to be baptised because I didn't want people to know that I hadn't taken what I considered to be a "beginner step." What was cool though, was that no one said that. I got hugs, and congratulations and people saying it was so great. No one else had bought into my hype and it made me realize that what people love is when we are real. They want us to be authentic. I learned that what I want my life to be about is Jesus, not this image of myself that I've created for others to be impressed with. Today, I was baptised. As a declaration to the world that I am passionately in love with Jesus and that I want to follow Him. Praise God for an opportunity to understand more and more who He is and who I want to be...and that I didn't even get water up my nose.

Does anyone else feel a little behind the times?

Check out this article. Apparently my generation thinks email is just a little too slow. Email is so last millenium.

Young people see it as a good way to reach an elder – a parent, teacher or a boss – or to receive an attached file. But increasingly, the former darling of high-tech communication is losing favor to instant and text messaging, and to the chatter generated on blogs and social networking sites such as Facebook and MySpace.

The responsibility of a worship leader

Well, I said I would post tonight and so I'm going to give it a shot. The more I think about this, the more excited I am, for what this could be. I think that as we bounce ideas back and forth, it will help us all to not only be better worship leaders, but better worshippers. So many times, whether leading or being lead, my worship is bogged down by unfair expectations. I often times expect people to take me places, or the band to be completely spirit-led, or even expect God to give me a warm and fuzzy feeling. Ultimately, however, worship is not about that. I wrote a blog about what worship is and what it isn't a couple of weeks ago, so rather than repeat myself, I want to talk about what the responsibility of a worship leader is and since so many of us, I believe, go into worship with the same unfair expectations the job of a worship leader is that much more important. A worship leader's job is to point the eyes of the people to the King for as long as possible. This doesn't just mean while he or she is on stage, but in conversations, phone calls, rehearsals, emails, the works. Worship is about God, seeing Him for who He is and then responding. You have to be wrapped up in the person of Jesus and have a burning passion for others to know Him too. That's why missions and worship are not mutually exclusive, but instead, worship should lead to missions. This doesn't mean you have to be on all the time. It doesn't mean that you can't be authentic and have a bad day from time to time, but it does does mean that your job is much more than playing a few songs on Sunday morning. This means that it is your job to get the band focused on leading people to the throne room. It's more than musical, it's about your band thinking in terms of worship, not music. Guitar solos, drum patterns, sound issues, vocals, whatever. They all need to be thought of in the frame work of worship. Musicians should think more of making much of God than of making much of themselves. What do you guys think? let me know. Next time, I'll talk about how we do this.

The everchanging corner of the blogosphere I call home.

Okay, so a couple of weeks ago, I changed the name of my blog and as I've been thinking of what to post, I believe that I have narrowed my focus. You see, I've been inspired by Carlos Whittaker and Phil Ayres, both blogs about leading worship (they are different though and you should check them out). I've thought maybe I would blog about my experiences as a worship leader, but the next month or so would be pretty boring cuz I don't start at Clovis Hills until September 1st. Plus, I'm young and still learning and maybe thinking that those blogs may not be that helpful because I'm still learning myself. So what I've decided to do is blog about an area that I feel I do know a little something about, and that's what worship should be. Not how it should sound or what it should look like, but what it should really be. I've been thinking about this a lot lately and feel like there's some stuff there. I'm hopefully going to post the first part of this blog series tonight, which I think will be called

what worship should be

(not a particularly clever name since I just told you that's what this whole things going to be about, but bare with me). And then from there, I want to break it down into catagories like, but not limited to,

The worship leader's responsibility in worship,

the people's responsibility in worship,

and maybe even

what does monday look like?

So stay tuned, I think it's gonna be fun.

About Me

Ryan Walton is the worship leader at Flood church in Sacramento. I stumbled upon their website and thought his about me was pretty cool. I changed a couple of things and made it mine, but I think it's a pretty cool attitude to have for someone in leadership. Enjoy. About Me I actually have no idea what I'm doing. I am the blind leading the blind and the broken healing the broken. I am a 'work in progress' and sometimes I change my mind just to make sure that it's still there. I have good days and bad days. I don't always like everyone I know. I've had some terrible church experiences. Both my finger and my heart have both been broken. I've doubted my faith, bought clothes to try and fit in, and even lied in order to make people think I am cool. I often put hope in things that are hopeless, faith in princes, and love in a world that revolves around me. I'm terrified of being alone and yet weary to give my heart away. I've voted democrat and republican. I've broken promises and compromised my integrity. I've judged other people and treated people unfairly. Finally, you should know that through it all, I've discovered that I am in desperate need of a redeemer. Through the despair and pain, I've tasted heaven and experienced this man Jesus in the lives of people I have known. It is my truth, my heart, and my life. It is in my desperation that I see...and in my confession that I am free.

Funny Shirt of the Week

I saw this shirt a while back and have been trying so hard to find it and I have! But you'll probably never see it, because "No one cares about your blog!"

My blog has a new name

So I was thinking about the name of my blog in comparison to the content and realized that rather than commenting on the Church the Bible and the emerging culture, I want to talk about Jesus. Not that those comments and discussions aren't welcome, they certainly are, I just wanted to give this little corner of the world wide web a new focus. So here's why I went with Jacob's Well. It's taken from John chapter 4 where Jesus meets the Samaritan woman. This has long been my favorite passage of scripture, only because it's the first example of cross-cultural ministry in the new testament (which is pretty cool), but also because I believe gives insight into our condition as humans. You see Jesus calls this woman out as having had five husbands and now living with a man who is not her husband. In asking her for a drink she is shocked that He would even talk to her a "half-breed" and asks Him if he is greater than Jacob who's well this is (hence the name). Jesus' response is to tell her that if she knew who He was she would ask Him for water and that she would never be thirsty. So what does this have to do with the name change? Well, Jesus doesn't tell her that it's wrong for her to want love (presumably why she runs to guys) he tells her that she's drinking from the wrong well. We are all tempted and have desires and wants and needs. The problem is when we run to things that won't satisfy to fill them. Counterfeits (and there are many in my life) prevent us from walking with and seeing Jesus as the source of all joy and satisfaction. So if my blog is about anything, it's about trying to see Jesus for who He really is. Ahh! Now that's refreshing.

Funny Shirt of the Week

There's nothing I like more than a cheesy Christian shirt, and since I think Jesus is pretty cool, this week's shirt is right on.

Anyone looking for a job?...NOT ME!

Well, after nearly 10 months of searching and praying and wondering if the Lord wanted Jenn and I to pursue this crazy worship thing, I have found the perfect job in an unlikely place. Clovis Hills Community Church in Clovis, Ca (the neighboring town of Fresno, where I grew up) has offered me the job of music director, which I am very excited about. It is amazing to me how the Lord provides. Over the last few weeks I was realizing more and more that I probably just need seasoning at a small church and maybe need to work part time for a little while, but God has taken care of me. This job is full time, an opportunity to work with a great staff who cares about helping me grow and developing me more as a leader. It means working with a tremendous group of volunteer musicians ( I was blown away by their band) and it's a situation where I'll be able to grow as a musician and worship leader, without the pressure of leading worship every week. I will be in charge of the music department, rehearsing bands, auditioning people and working on the creative arts team which has a couple of stellar people already on it. I start in September and the more I think about it, the more blown away I am that the infinte God of the universe who is so vast and big is at the same time passionately concerned with me and my wife and desires that we are in a great situation. And that He would take us through this process of finding the perfect fit, which I believe this is. I confess though that I am a little overwhelmed at the size of this thing and self-doubt begins to creep in more and more. It is however, an opportunity to lean wholly on Jesus and trust Him with everything, which is a great place to be.

What worship is...and isn't

I've recently started (again) the book Knowledge of the Holy by A.W. Tozer. It's a book on the attributes of God and written in response to what Tozer calls

the lose of the concept of majesty from the popular religious mind.

Tozer says that

The Church has surrendered her once lofty concept of God and has substituted for it one so low, so ignoble, as to be utterly unworthy of thinking, worshiping men.

His belief is that this was not done intentionally but unintentionally and slowly over time, and that her unawareness makes the situation all the more tragic. Reading this book (which is very short and easy to read by the way) resonates so deeply with my heart as I think about how to help people understand true worship. I'm not only talking about singing songs or coming to church but how do we get to a place where we are struck with the reality of God. What could happen with our lives or our communities if we lived in light of the reality of God? I think it is here that the problem lies. We know, at least in theory, that to be fully engaged with and in the person of Christ, our lives would be drastically different. I think we know that to get there would, in addition, require surrender; a handing over of our lives and our comforts and our dreams to God. For some reason though, we are afraid. We are terrified that if we were to give our lives to God and open ourselves up to be changed it would mean the entire world seeing me for who I am and could mean a drastic change in my world.

What if I surrender myself to God and I don't like what he does with my life?

What if it means being uncomfortable?

Does God know better what I need than I do?

These questions are the crux of Tozer's book and I believe the reason that we can't give ourselves over to good in worship. Simply put we don't trust Him.We don't believe that God can provide for our futures, so we try and make it happen on our own and pray that He'll bless our efforts. We don't come to Church or walk through life with an expectancy of meeting the Lord, because we don't really believe He's there, or if we do believe He's there, we don't think He can do anything for us. Tozer says that this innacurate view of God is the reason for all of our theological inaccuracies and morever, the reason for all of our sin. Oh, that we would think rightly about God. Would we continue to run to T.V., sex, money and any thing else if we understood that God and God alone is the source of infinite satisfaction and Joy? If we understood fully or at least more fully, that God is capable of anything and desires for our good, would we trust Him more with our lives? Worship, whether through music or interaction with others or any other activity should be the joyful expression of our hearts celebrating the person of God. We should at all times be amazed and overwhelmed at His willingness to be huge yet here and His passionate care for us, His people. I suspect however, that the definition of worship I just gave is not the one we would all use to describe our lives.

Funny Shirt of the Week

Here it is, this week's funny shirt.

The Great Church Job Hunt

So, it's been a while since I've posted anything, so I thought I'd write before my bride and I leave for Montana this afternoon. I'm feeling a little frustrated with the job search. It has now been six months of looking for something, and though I am convinced that the Lord has something for us, it's not here yet and that is hard. I feel like a small child saying "are we there yet?" But I've put together a list of things I have learned through this time that hopefully will encourage you to seek the Lord in the process, but it probably mainly a reminder for me that this has been the biggest period of growth I've ever experienced. 1) I've learned about the kind of church I'd like to be at. Because of my experience, or lack there of and primarily because of my gifting and passions, I want to be at a smaller, younger church that I can help build into something big. I don't want to walk into an incredibly established worship ministry and fit a mold of the sunday morning guy. I want to create, to build and to develop a worship culture. 2) I've learned for whom I'd like to work. I've talked to a lot of pastors now, all of them very nice and I'm sure filled with passion, but only one that oozed that passion. I want so badly to work side by side a man that will lead; someone who is passionate about the lost, the world, but mostly, someone who can't stop talking about Jesus. 3) I've learned what salary is important for me. Early on, I went deep into the application process with a church who was offering quite a bit of money, and immediately I started thinking about all the cool things I could do with that cash. I didn't get the job, and then was offered a chance to join two church platers in St. Louis. No money at the beginning, not sure when they could pay, but some amazingly cool ideas about ministry. I think the God's been showing me a few extremes so that we go where we will go for the right reasons. 4) He's showing that He'll provide. I've been waiting tables, Jenn's been nannying, and I've been finishing school (two classes to go). We haven't had a ton of money, but we've had enough, it's come in at just the right time, and we have been fine. This job search has been about so much more than a job. It's been about the process; it's been about drawing closer to Him and each other. When we do land somewhere, and I'm convinced that wherever that is, it'll be just where the Lord wants us, we will have grown more through this time than any other.

Funny Shirt of the Week

This week's funny shirt comes from RandomShirts.com You can check them out at www.randomshirts.com. There are all sorts of well...random shirts. Ninjas Hate Pirates

Something from Mark Driscoll

The recent April issue of GQ magazine includes a most curious article about Adriana Lima. She is the Brazillian Victoria’s Secret supermodel and the ninety-seventh highest-paid famous person in the world, according to Forbes. She made Maxim’s Hot 100 list in 2003. She was engaged to rocker Lenny Kravitz in 2002. And, like many supermodels, the internet is filled with nude photos of her, which I swear I did not look at. What makes story so dang weird is that in addition to being a supermodel, she’s also a devout Catholic virgin. Of her modeling (that includes a lot of nudes and near-nudes), she says, "God has given me a lot of work." Apparently that work includes a part-time job learning to spell the word c-o-n-t-r-a-d-i-c-t-i-o-n. Read More