250 Sundays

I've been holding off on writing down my thoughts on Mitch, Rebecca and Cooper leaving. To be honest it's something that I chose to ignore, for now, thinking that the weeks remaining would go slow, and I didn't have to face it. Well, time was unusually cruel and passed super fast, and last night we had our last rehearsal with Mitch as our leader, our last rehearsal with Rebecca and me laughing about something crude, or arguing about who's singing the tenor part on a song. Our.... last.... rehearsal.... I can't even type the words without wanting to cry.

First, let me start with Rebecca. There is not a person on this earth with a more compassionate soul. She inspires me to see the good in people and give them second chances. I've watched her grow from this newlywed, newly everything girl, into a strong, loving wife and mother. I will miss her dearly (She is crying by now reading this.)

Cooper. Awe man... Ole Cooper... People that know me, know that typically me and kids don't get along. But, Cooper and I, we have this love/hate thing going on. One minute we are high fivin', and the next he won't give me the time of day. But, he is an independent soul who is going to grow up to do great things, and I can't wait to see what God has in store for him.

Mitch...

So now I get to Mitch. A friend, a brother who I love with all my heart. When he started 5 years ago and he would listen to everything I said, soak it in, but over the last few years, he has grown into his own leader with his own vision and ideas. He has pushed back on some things that I thought would flop. But it never did. It has been phenomenal. Now that I know he is leaving, it is so

obvious how God has developed his heart, his talent and his leadership skills for the next chapter in his life.  His heart is on fire for God, and I am sooooo jealous that he gets to start this church plant! It is going to be one of the most exciting times in his life, and I can't wait to keep track of the progress and see the lives changed as a result. He has promised me that if my work travels ever lead me to North Canton, Ohio, that I can come sit in with the Worship team. (I'm going to hold you to that)

Another way to describe what I love about Mitch is to tell you some things about his personality...

Heart First, Talent Second. Mitch never, ever required a musician to be at a professional level to start on his stage. His thought was that if you love God with all your heart, have the raw talent, and are willing to make the commitment to serve Him then you're good enough to play by his side. That doesn't mean he settled, he would work and develop talent with a patience I've never seen before, that will serve him well as he goes forward with his ministry.

Creative Vision. 

Christmas Carnivals. Mitch has lead us through so many creative events. One of his first things as our new leader were the Christmas carnivals. I've never seen so many "un-churched" people attend a Christmas event. His thought process was to put on an event that would give our Crossway folks a chance to pour out love on top of them and "Change the way they feel about Sunday".

Special Worship Services. I remember the special services. Like the one in the picture below where we setup the band in the center of the room. His creative mind is always looking for new ways to present the message. To not stick to the old religious traditions, or "that's the way we've always done it" mentality. 

His Stage Designs. Mitch had strong ideas about how he wanted the stage to look, and we were happy to help him execute it. 

Nights of Worship. His two special nights of worship where we all got together to praise and worship were so special. 

Heart For God. Mitch is the real deal, the complete package. Talent that is overflowing, and a love for God that is takes that talent and makes an offering to God each and every week. I will miss these guys with all my heart, but we send them off knowing that Crossway is better off for the time they gave us, and God has only begun the works at Crossway Church and Missionview Church!

Red Barns - Gone

Digging through some old photos I took a while back and coincidentally found two red barns that are no longer with us. First, this old barn was still being used, freshly painted when I last took its picture. But the 2011 flood wiped it out. Nothing left where it once stood. It was located right off the dry side of the levee over in Mound, Louisiana.

This old barn was located in Rolling Fork, MS. The famous Graft Family Barn that recently fell after a storm blew it down.

Making Picture Frames From Cabinet Doors

So, lately I've been into making homemade picture frames for some of my photos. I am in the middle of remodeling my bathroom and when I took the cabinet doors off of my 1979 bathroom vanity I had an AH HAH moment! Why not make picture frames out of these doors. Once I'm done I will have 4 perfectly matched frames.

That is where this blog begins! Here is a shot of the original door, complete with the fake brass decorative knob...

Next, I scraped the old loose paint off the door, this was pretty easy for my doors because we didn't paint them correctly last time, so the new paint scraped right off. 

Then, I drew boxes in where I wanted the cutouts for the pictures to be. In this case, the door was a perfect size for three 5x7 pictures. The cutouts were 4 3/4 x 6 3/4 so that the photo could rest on a 1/8" lip inside the cutout. In other words, whatever photo size you want revealed, make the cutout 1/4" smaller. 

Then I drilled holes on the inside of the four corners so I could use a jigsaw to cut out the openings. 

Here is the door once I cut out the openings. 

And here is the door once I took a power vibratory sander and gave the door a little distressed look by revealing some of the underlying wood. 

 Here are all four doors once I completed the job. Tomorrow, I will rub stain on the doors to give the wood that has been revealed a really cool distressed look.

I Heart Faces Photo Challenge - Heart!

My wife and I sometimes will go out to the downtown water fountain where kids go to play and keep cool in the Summer heat. I will take pictures and give the parents a card that shows them where they can download the pictures for free. Nothing satisfies my heart more than giving parents photos that show emotion in ways they will never get from the local Sears photographer. When I saw that this challenge was about heart, I immediately remembered this little girl. When I took it, it struck me that she wasn't thinking about bills, or work, or stress in her life! Every time that water came up out of the hole she laughed and screamed. Her life at this moment was full of hearts and rainbows!


This picture was submitted to the I Heart Faces Photo Challenge!

Abandoned Piano Brought Back to Life

When I'm out shooting photos, so many times I will stumble across old pianos that have been left behind. When we find these old pianos, we always wish we could just take it home and do something with it. Well we finally did!

This old piano was in the top floor of a church, in a room that hadn't seen daylight in many years. We stripped it down and brought it back to life as a new piece of furniture. These are just a few of the photos. For the complete story see my other blog! www.worshipmacgyver.com

BEFORE



AFTER!

Rest for the Weary

Matthew 11:28 "Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest."

We were out shooting one day going about 60 miles an hour up highway 65 when out of the corner of my eye this frame flashed before me. I yelled out to Marty to stop and go back, which I rarely do. I jumped out of the truck and shot this photo. There was something so wordy about this picture. It was like it was trying to tell me a story. Here is the story it has revealed to me...

There are three characters in the story.

First, the field. The field is the enemy, representing our toils in life that seemingly never end. So much work to do, the field never stops needing attention, it constantly takes up our time and needs watering, and plowing. Even when we are sleeping it still is looming in the darkness waiting on us to remember that it is there are needs our attention.

Secondly, the tree. The tree is Jesus. Standing alone, proud and tall among the toils. Providing a place to rest, to provide shade from the heat. As in this photo, when the fields are brown are dying and hopeless in the world, our Savior stands tall proud and green.

Finally, the tires. The tires are us. Having to plow through the field of toils and rolling with our burdens day after day. We exhaust ourselves going through the never ending motions.

So, "Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest." is the story that was revealed through this photo. This photo reminds me that I can prop up against the tree when I'm tired and burdened. The tree is always there when I need Him.

I Heart Faces Photo Challenge - Oh So Silly!

My followers remember Mr. Slim from the Mississippi Delta! The story goes as my wife and friends were photography free styling when we came up on an old country store in Greenville, Mississippi. My wife goes inside while I am shooting the old gas pumps outside, when all of the sudden she burst outside and said, "You have GOT to come see this man!" She knows I love faces and people that exude "character". Well Slim was everything I wanted in a picture and more!

I asked if I could take his photo, and the other old men in the store starting "ragging" him. It was hilarious! They were saying things like "Show 'em your good side slim!", or "Show 'em your teeth slim!".  I started shooting and he sat there real still, but then unprovoked he started "posing". Like a supermodel that needed a good shave, he puts his hand to his rugged face and his pose was the shot you see here.

I am submitting this photo to the IHeartFaces silly photo contest. It may not seem as silly as some of the other faces in the contest, but for ole slim, it was as silly as he will ever get!