Gilbert Thurston

Random Thoughts About Life, Ministry and Whatever Else Happens to be on my Mind

Inside Today’s Experiences

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  • Another great day!
  • Had a few minor issues in the set-up time this morning but other than that everything went according to plan.
  • We changed up the order today and it was effective…we’ll do more of that in the future.
  • Great to add Jenny Shifler to the vocal team…we’ve been on her for awhile to help out and she finally auditioned and made it!
  • Speaking of the team, Brian did a great job of leading Uprising by Muse.
  • That song is everywhere right now and it fit perfectly with the message.
  • We added some additional special lighting effects for the song and it worked awesome.
  • To be honest after a really good first Experience or message , I usually have an “oh my we’ve/I’ve got to do it again”.
  • Today everything went great at the first but the 2nd was even better…that’s awesome!
  • Met a visiting pastor from VA after the 2nd experience.  He actually said, “Wow that was quite an experience that you all create”.
  • I love that when someone actually calls it an experience.  That’s what we try to create each week…an experience with God…sometimes we do, sometimes we don’t.  Today though was definitely a great day.
  • Tomorrow I’m taking a group to Baltimore for a conference…pray for us as we travel and that everyone will come back energized and ready to kick the devil in the butt.

 

Inside Today’s Experiences

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  • Great day!
  • 6 more people gave their lives to Jesus!
  • Many more responded to the call to follow Jesus even closer than they are now.
  • The day got off to an even earlier start than normal because of some problems we had Thursday night.
  • Everyone was tired but by the time the 1st Experience started, the energy was high.
  • This carried over to the crowd.  Great energy and participation.
  • The first Experience also had one of the higher attendances that we’ve had for awhile…the ushers were busy getting more and more chairs out!
  • Hopefully this means that all the sickness that’s been going around is starting to subside.
  • I had great anticipation going into today about the message.
  • I really feel it was one of the best I’ve ever given…if you apply this one then your whole world will change.
  • As I said during the message, there actually was a prayer that Rabbi’s prayed when they went to the bathroom…here it is:
    Blessed are you, O God, ruler of the world, who created man in wisdom, with numerous orifices and spaces. It is known before you that if one of them should open when it ought to close or close when it should open, we would cease to exist. Blessed are you.
  • Speaking of…during the 2nd Experience I jumped up onto my stool at one point and all the air left out of it.  It made a really funny sound like I had passed gas.  Of course the teenagers in the front were giggling…I don’t think anyone else heard it.
  • All in all a really great day…loved the music…loved the response to the message.
  • Had lunch with the Capital Campaign team members at the house of Scott and Robin Despres.
  • They’ve done a great job of organizing the campaign and tonight we have the last big event.
  • Have a great week….may you always be covered by the dust of your Rabbi!

Inside Today’s Experiences

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  • Really good day!
  • Loved being able to just hang out.
  • Doug gave a great message for the launch of the Maverick series.
  • He had been sick all week long so I was glad he was feeling better.
  • So nice having others that can step in and deliver God’s Word in a United like way.
  • Although Doug talking about the trampoline and being able to see into the neighbor’s yard was a bit disturbing?  :)
  • Peeping Doug.
  • The 9:45 crowd was rowdy today…loved it…great energy!
  • Brian and the team did a great job with the new stage design…looked really cool!
  • Thanks to Dan Bogle for the loan of the motorcycle and to Dan Fry for playing the Maverick in the bumper video and for revving the bike on stage.
  • Dan said when he did it at the first Experience the entire front row jumped.
  • It was cool, but the fumes on stage were strong.
  • Thanks for Kris and Klayton, two more new techies today!
  • The band as always was amazing…I threw them a wrinkle at the end of the first Experience by asking them to start in the middle of the song…no problem, when you’re that good!
  • Other than a couple minor things, it was a smooth day and many shared with me how touched they were by Doug’s message..yea Doug, but more importantly yea God!
  • Also since I forgot, here’s the link to last week’s Reality Check video.

Inside Today’s Experiences

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  • Not the best of days but anytime you’ve got people giving their lives to Jesus, there’s not much you can complain about.
  • We had a brief power outage this morning during set-up time which delayed things a bit and then we had a cable connector go bad on my mic which meant Andy had to do some early morning solidering work.
  • We had two of our teens running projection and lights today and both did a great job.  Well done Ben and Dustin!
  • As always the worship team did an excellent job…both crowds seemed to really be into the music today!
  • I re-did the message on Monday, which I’m glad I did…still not one of my best but I think the point was clear…don’t be just a consumer, become a contributor.
  • I’m glad this series is over…not because I didn’t like it, but because I’m really excited about the Maverick series which starts next week.
  • I got to see a little bit of the stage design changeover that the team was doing this afternoon and it’s going to be awesome!
  • During the 1st Experience announcement time I kept getting tongue tied.  I couldn’t figure out if I wanted to say, “the dictionary definition” or the “definition in the dictionary says”.  My mind couldn’t figure it out so I kept saying, “the defionary”.
  • The more I tried to get it right the harder it got…finally I just gave up.
  • I met a great couple after the first Experience, who just moved here from Hawaii,  who get what we’re all about.
  • They loved United and realized it’s not about making them happy but reaching out to those who are far from God.
  • I attribute this great attitude to their former pastor when they lived in Virginia Beach.
  • He’s a friend of mine by the name of Vince Antonucci.  Vince is passionate about reaching out to his community and just took a big step of faith by leaving his church to start a brand new one on the Las Vegas Strip.
  • Thanks Vince for such an awesome job of teaching and modeling for people that it’s not about what we want, but it’s all about sharing the good news of Jesus with others.
  • Speaking of…make sure you invite lots of people for the new Maverick series…I think people will be surprised by the fresh look at Jesus we’ll be taking.
  • Be there…be there early…and don’t forget to sit up front!
  • I’ll be posting the final Reality Check video later in the week…great job by Brian and Aaron in making these happen!
  • Ok time for a quick nap before heading back over to the church for our annual congregational meeting…come on out to hear the exciting things we have in store for 2010!