We had 221 to officially to launch Seven San Diego Church. We are thankful for each and everyone. Now we move to the Otay Ranch Town Center and the AMC theater, we'll be in Theater #7 of course. Lot's to do before our 2nd official service this Sunday.

Just finished speaking at five services at Skyline Church in Rancho San Diego. Skyline is one of our church partners and it was an honor to speak there this weekend. After each service they took a love offering for Seven San Diego. It is sacrifices like that that make it possible for a new church like ours to get started. 

The MAC 

A couple other things to note: We now have our official ministry action center or simply "offices" and warehouse to go with. We do not currently have furniture but we are working on that. We do have a fantastic espresso maker thanks to our friends at High Desert Church that has finally found its home in San Diego.

Here's to the New Year

I always look forward to the new year. And of course the new year means new goals and visions and things I want to accomplish. This new year is no different in that I'm really looking forward to seeing all that God has for us in 2008.

Today was a win. A win in community service speak is an event that turns out to do just what one envisions and even more. Over 500 people came today to the Kids Matter Safety Fair. I have an awesome team to work with and they really pulled this off. Jules Sneddon is a huge blessing in getting the Safety Fair to this level of proficiency and effectiveness in our first attempt. We had 14 CHP officers doing the car seat checks. The line of cars was backed up. The fire department came. We had three bounce houses (one huge one with a slide) with kids flying off the walls in all of them. We had hundreds of hot dogs being swallowed by the masses. The Sno Cone machine was buzzing all day (it was 75 degrees and not a cloud in the sky today). The cotton candy was spinning all day. The popcorn was popping all day. The band Monday's Alibi did a fantastic job. Santa was set up on a Hollywood movie set like area for pictures with kids. Brittany took pictures of the kids, downloaded 'em onto her mac and printed them on a very cool Seven SD Christmas card. Tons of families took advantage of this little perk.

I talked with the mayor at length about Chula Vista and Otay Ranch and how Seven San Diego can partner with the city to make a difference. I met with a Chula Vista council member at length to discuss future developments in Otay Ranch. Great stuff.

Thanks to all of our new team members that joined us to help for this event. Thanks so much for becoming part of the Seven SD family. 

Next Saturday we've got free Christmas gift wrapping at the Wal-Mart in Otay Ranch and Barnes and Noble and the car wash at Wal-Greens next to Wal-Mart.

We took tons of pictures and videos that will be downloaded shortly. Check back soon and also see our church website at www.sevensdchurch.com.

Looking forward to our Third Preview service on Sunday. Tonight we take the launch team to Cheesecake Factory and then to Balboa Park for the Christmas Nights Production. The entire place is decked out, a great scene. Prior to each preview service we have done a Launch Party. If the rain holds off for us tonight it should be a great time. San Diego is a place full of things to do and it's great to be able to take advantage of these opportunities.
This Sunday at 10:00am we're glad to have Sam Hart leading us in worship. Sam has played for us at Seven HD and he's played at various locations in San Diego including Shadow Mountain's Live at Five. He's a gifted musician and a great fit for what we're doing Sunday.

We've got a couple other projects on the docket. We're doing our Kids Matter Safety Fair on Dec. 15th and we've connected with the band "Monday's Alibi." These guys are awesome. They will be playing for us at the Kids Matter Safety Fair. We'll also have Santa there for free pictures with the kids, bounce houses, food, CHP, Fire Dept., and so much more! Then, on Dec. 22 we're doing two service projects. The guys are getting together to wash cars, hand out info, etc. and the ladies are going to do free gift wrapping in front of Wal-Mart in Otay Ranch.

We continue to gear up, get the word out and believe we are in the right place at the right time with the right people to make a difference.

Once again our peeps from the HD were so great to come and help us. Great to see all of you and thank you for your commitment. We are really looking forward to December 9th. We have some events planned for the community. Our Kids Matter Safety Fair has been rescheduled for Dec. 15. We are also planning on handing out donuts and coffee to people standing in line the day after Thanksgiving for the biggest shopping day of the year known as BLACK FRIDAY. We'll hit the Wal-Mart and Target shops in our area. I hear there are hundreds of people in line for these things because of the huge discounts given on this day only and for just a couple of hours apparantly. So people line up all night to be the first to get in on the discounts. What better way to connect with these people as they are stuck in line waiting, cold, hungry and thirsty for hot coffee. Seven SD to the rescue! Ok, that's a bit dramatic but it'll be cool to give 'em our info along with a hot cup of Starbucks and a Krispy Kreme or two. We will also do an teacher appreciation and/or fire department appreciation day with our ladies baking a bunch of cookies and delivering them to the teachers at Olympian HS and fire department down the street.

We're looking forward to making a difference in our community!

Last year, the Marlboro Man topped the list of 101 “most influential people that never lived”. In their book, Allan Lazar, Dan Karlan and Jeremy Salter rank characters of myths, legends, television, and films. These men from New Jersey entertain the idea that even people that never existed in the real world have had the ability to “shape our society, change our behavior, and set the course of history”. And…well…they’re right! These characters have changed our thinking, for better or for worse.

While I’m usually excited about reading through list, I found this list to be alarming. Don’t get me wrong, this list was fun to read, but it also made me uneasy. The influence these “nobodies” have had on our culture is substantial. As a marketer, I get excited when “brands” pervade so deeply, but I certainly don’t jump out of my skin when the “brand” promotes unhealthy habits, poor dietary behaviors, inflated alter egos, or mindless consumption.

Ladies and gentleman, when are we really going to start raging against the machine? When are we really going to start getting real? I find that the “nobodies” these days are making a difference only because the “somebodies” have stopped believing in what they could do to change the world. The “somebodies” have taken a backseat to fabricated truths about sex, drugs, and yes, even rock and roll.

If you want to start making a difference in people’s lives, you’ve got to start living life. You’ve got to start blogging about things that will help enrich others. You’ve got to stop posting discouraging notes to friends on social networking sites. You’ve got to start uploading videos with good ideas. You’ve got to stop being just another chump on the block! As artists, writers, poets, musicians, or Christ followers for that matter, we bear the responsibility of transforming our cultures for better not worse.

If you desire to make a difference long after you’re dead, you’ve got to stop thinking about your own problems and start helping others with theirs (Phil 2:3-4). If you want to start influencing people, you’ve got to start making better choices about who you want to be. Our attitudes should be the same that Christ Jesus had. The Apostle Paul notes “though he was God, he did not demand and cling to his rights as God (Phil 2:5-6).

Unfortunately, under the influence of a “nobody” like the Marlboro Man, people smoke themselves to death. Fortunately, under the influence of a “somebody” like you, people can have a better understanding of a life that is not only physically more enjoyable, but spiritually as well. Photo by Spencer Batcheider.

We have officially titled our first message series "iNeed a Life: A guided tour through messy spirituality." Titles for each preview launch date are as follows:

pt. 1 Oct. 7......What to do when iThink God doesn't care 

pt. 2 Nov. 4 ....What to do when iHave been wronged 

pt. 3 Dec. 9 ... What to do when iFeel overwhelmed 

pt. 4 Jan. 13 ...What to do when iNeed a new start

Make sure to stop by and visit us at 10 AM at Olympian High School.

You have less than four days to watch “Evan Almighty” before it drowns in the flood of hype surrounding the highly anticipated war epic—“Transformers” (July 4th). The comic take on the biblical story of Noah and the Ark (Genesis 6-9) is more than just a “feel good” adaptation encouraging “acts of random kindness.” It is the story of Evan Baxter (Steve Carell), a former anchorman turned congressmen who gets the opportunity to change the world. Yes, “Evan Almighty” offers more than meets the eye. Underneath all the product endorsement, slapstick humor, special effects and Hollywood fanfare is a simple message about faith. Much like the story found in the book of Genesis, Evan Baxter does what God has commanded him to do regardless of the costs. 


I suspect that is why director, Tom Shadyac, wanted “Evan Almighty” to camp on Genesis 6:14. The passage is about God telling Noah what to do, or in this case, what to “make.” That’s always step numero uno in “Faith 101.” As we read on, we discover that when we obey, God fills in the gaps. In “Evan Almighty”, God (Morgan Freeman) is quick to remind Evan Baxter of that truth. This week, as you celebrate patriotism, make sure your consumerism isn’t just another form of escapism. Please exercise your right to be “aware-ism”. And, well, if you need a fix of the Office this summer, this film will suffice. (Originally posted on RoBlog on June 30th, 2007.