I had a very unique opportunity last weekend; I got to fly in a float plane up to a mountain lake and camp/hike/fish. I have been to Lake Isabel 3 previous times and all three involved a good 4 wheel drive and a brutal hike. The trip always takes at least 5 to 6 hours of driving up Hwy 2, taking the Reiter Rd, driving across a creek, taking your rig as far as you can and then and hiking. This time, we started from Lake Washington and after a 30 minute flight over Bellevue, Carnation, and Gold Bar, we were on the water.

The last time I was there was 3 years ago while I was in the worst season of my life. Working at a job I hated for a guy I couldn't stand, wondering why there were no ministry doors open. I think I literally spent the entire trip complaining about my boss. I was emotionally unhealthy to say the least. I will spare you the details, but that trip really started the chain of events that lead me where I am today.

This time around, I think I spent the whole trip in amazement at the fact that I get to do what I love for a living at a church that blows me away. What a difference.

So Tim and I got up to the lake on Thursday afternoon and got our gear to the shore. After the plane left it was unbelievably quiet. It was pretty peaceful except for the biting flies but they calmed down after some liberal doses of bug spray. Once the sun went behind the mountain and shade hit the water, the fish started surfacing. I put on a little black dry fly and caught a couple beautiful brook trout. Brookies are the most beautiful trout I've ever seen. I will believe that until I catch a Golden trout. None of them were very big, 9" was the largest but they were fun on a fly rod. We camped on the beach that night and got up in the morning. Did a little fishing, did a little exploring and in the afternoon, the plane came and picked us up. We flew back to the Renton airport and went home. It was a beautiful trip and a great getaway.

Worship Fast

I started a "Worship Fast" a couple days ago. For the month of August I have decided to cut out any music that isn't what you would traditionally call "worship" music.

I understand that this can be a touchy subject and sound real religious and I can hear your mind beginning to get all worked up already so relax, and let me explain:

I am not saying that all secular music is bad.
I am not saying that some secular music can't be worship.
I am not saying that Christian music is bad.
I am not saying that Christians should never listen to secular music.

What I am saying is that I am taking a month to feed my spirit only music that is focused on bringing honor and glory to God. If you are what you eat, then as a worship leader, I want to be full of worship. In Matthew 12:34 Jesus says that "...out of the overflow of the heart the mouth speaks." (NIV) I want my heart to overflow with worship so that when I stand in front of New Life Church, I am not drawing from a dry well.

We are beginning a series on worship on August 16th and I would invite you to join me on this fast during those 2 weeks and finish the fast with the first Simply Worship of the fall on September 2.

Passion Problem

Have you ever met someone who was more passionate about something than you are? Chances are you have. Passion is an amazing driving force that makes our world what it is today and what it will be tomorrow. Now, have you ever met someone who was more passionate about something than you and actually looked down on you because of it? I have, in fact, I was that guy. As I've aged and mellowed a bit, I came to the realization that everyone doesn't and won't share my passion. I have been created and uniquely designed to be passionate about certain things. This seems to be a problem in the church world. You hear people say, if not directly, "If you aren't actively reaching out to the homeless, you aren't doing God's will", or "If you aren't sharing your faith with everyone you see, you're lukewarm."
Romans 12:4-8 describes us as the Body, made up of many different parts and many different gifts. My gift is music, I don't look down on people who aren't passionate about music, I think they are weird, but I don't look down on them. Can you imagine saying "If you don't do the songs we do at our church then you are doing it wrong"?
Everyone doesn't have the gift of an evangelist, and everyone can't be a public speaker, and everyone can't be a Pastor. Find your gift and be passionate about it and be the best whatever you are that you can be.

Maybe later

I don't really feel like blogging right now.

LMP

I once again, have the honor of being featured on Spirit 105.3's Local Music Project. It used to be on the radio every day at around 5pm but now they have it online 24/7. Swing by and give a listen. http://www.spirit1053.com/content.php?contentID=30. Scroll down to the bottom of the page and the player is there.

I Need Your Help.

So this was pretty random, but I was nominated for an ITM Live Charity Music Award in the category "Best Male Vocalist". I'm not sure how I got nominated but it's pretty cool. You can help me out by clicking here and voting for me. Polls close June 30th. Thanks!

Sunday High

You know you are at a great place in life when you start to feel bad for talking about how good things are going. I was talking with a new friend who is also a worship pastor and I was describing our situation at New Life Church and I felt like I should shut up so I didn't make him feel bad. I wasn't bragging, just expressing my excitement.
I feel like I am drinking from the Holy Grail of ministry and I fear that I might become too familiar with this for my own good. Like someone who climbs Mt. Everest and then says, "Now where do I go from here?" I have to remember that mininstry isn't about doing the newest and greatest thing or having the best musicians, it's about people. If I become focused on the "Sunday High", I will lose sight of that and become bored. If I filter everything I do through our purpose; "Leading people into a growing relationship with Jesus Christ", I will continue to enjoy every step of the journey.

Another Great Day

We had another great day at New Life Church yesterday celebrating Mothers' Day. We have been doing a song called Reign in Us by the band Starfield and it's really catching on. I've been trying to get my mind prepared for youth convention even though it's not until October. I have been polishing up some new songs and will be trying to record them soon. I came up with a cool melody hook for one of them this morning, that was encouraging. I'm going to try to have a new CD available by Youth Convention.

It's all Math's fault

It has been a very busy last couple months. It's been a good busy though. I've done a few conferences, done a lot of church, and when you throw an 8 week old baby in the mix, things can be hectic. So much so that I have allowed myself to resume some very bad eating habits. When you add that to the fact that I've come up with some very convincing excuses to avoid the gym, the end result is me getting out of shape. That is really starting to sound like a math problem. [(conferences3+church) x (baby+food) x (tired+back pain) = sloppy]

Anyways, I dragged myself to the gym last night for the second time in about 2 months. It felt pretty good even though I didn't quite have the stamina I previously had. I'm sure it will return. I'm starting another cleanse soon and those always are miserable but worth it.

Twit

Hey, I'm on Twitter, blah, blah, blah. www.twitter.com/samleyde.

Good Times

At New Life Church, we have been in a crazy season of blessing. Giving is up, attendance is up, things seem to be firing on all cylinders. We took a special offering this past Sunday for Convoy of Hope and raised enough money to feed 30,000 people for a day. On top of that we started moving dirt on the property! I am making a conscious effort to enjoy this time and not take it for granted.

Torn.

Yesterday was the 4 year anniversary of the day we moved back to our home state. This rainy, cold weather has really been weighing on me lately. I was thinking this morning about a fishing trip I took one time. We lived in Bend, OR at the time so you could actually count on sunny days in the summer. It was the 4th of July and I got up at 4am so I could be on the water before the sun was. It was already warm out and the smell of smoke from recent local forest fires still hung faintly in the air. I decided to fish an area of the Deschutes river that during our time in central Oregon, became my favorite place in the world. This particular spot was just above Benham Falls but below the footbridge. I turned onto the forest service road as the sun was making it's appearance through the Ponderosa pines. Since it was summer, I had the top down on the Jeep and the mixture of pine needles, Juniper pollen and forest fire smoke filled the Deschutes National Forest. I had just received a copy of Jason Upton's album "Faith" and was listening to it while I drove. If you've ever heard the title track from that record, you know the part where he says, "Because I'm learning to trust that it's not you that hurt me, I'm learning to believe that it's not you that deserted me, I believe that you still love me, brokenness and all." When I heard that, something inside of me broke and I began to weep. It was a bit of a spiritual re-awakening for me.
I pulled up and parked, got my waders on, strung up my rod, and began to walk the trail up to the footbridge that at one time had been a railroad grade. I got on the water and found a spot where the reeds were tall and right against the river. I knelt behind them and pulled some line out of the rod tip and gently dropped the fly onto the surface of the slow moving water. Since the reeds were so tall, I couldn't see my fly. After a few drifts and no action, I began to wander mentally. I was admiring the trees, the birds, the sunshine and I was so enthralled by nature that I was startled by the splash of the fish that had come up and crushed my fly. I felt the weight of a bigger-than-my-average fish on the end of my line. I had been so shocked by the disturbance of my quietness that I was not in the state of mind to actually play and land a fish and as suddenly as it had made it's presence known, it was gone. The price of barb-less hooks.
I fished a while longer once my hands stopped shaking from the adrenaline, and about 9:30 am, I called it day, fishless. I drove out the forest service road, onto the highway that connects Bend to Mt. Bachelor and drove home. Even without ever seeing a fish that morning, it had been a great excursion and I knew that I had been changed as a person and that I would remember that morning for the rest of my life.

Picks Down Please.

Yesterday after church we hosted a lead guitarists workshop with the intent of getting all the current and future lead guitarists on the same page. Essentially, the message was, "If you're going to play lead guitar at New Life Church, this is how we want it done." It went really well, Corey presented the technical aspects of technique, theory and tone, while I was there to provide demonstration music.
It was really an "Above and Beyond" kind of event. We have a wealth of quality musicians here and it would be easy to sit back and enjoy that fact but we want to go above and beyond just having quality musicians, to actually developing our musicians into quality worship teams. The hardest part was keeping 9 guitar players quiet long enough to say anything!

If you would like to learn how to play guitar, check out www.coreysublett.com

No Communion Cup Holders?

We purchased a used vehicle yesterday. During the test drive, I tried out the radio and it was set to 106.9 which is a pop station. While I was talking with the salesman, the fact that I work at a church came up. When we drove off the lot, we noticed that the radio had been set to 105.3, the local Christian music station. I thought that was funny. Religious profiling.

What Do You Say?

I just talked with a guy who came in to the church office wanting to talk. He told me his story. Let's just say he had a sordid past. He moved out here from really far away to escape his old life after becoming a Christian. He has been struggling to find work and more importantly, someone to talk to. He has been to a number of churches but found judgmental stares and words. He is contemplating returning to his former life.
So what do you say to someone who has turned to God but found nothing but rejection from people who bear the Name of Christ? Sorry? What do you say to someone who can't find work and is staying in his car? Wow that sucks?
I prayed with him and encouraged him to get connected here at New Life. I hope too much damage hasn't already been done. Say a prayer for this man, let's call him Joe.

What Beats a Black Hole?

I was playing with my 4 year old son the other day and he wanted to play "Rock, Paper, Scissors". We were playing and he kept making a gun and I kept correcting him saying "No you can't use a gun, it's not a rock, paper, or scissors." A few more times through the process and he started waving his arms around in front of him and I said "What is that?" and he immediately replied, "Black hole."
Since I don't know what beats a black hole, I gave up.

The best prison ever.

I have been working on some scripts for some videos we are doing for an upcoming series, "Joesph: The E True Hollywood Story" and while studying for it, I came across a verse in Genesis that made me stop and laugh. In Genesis 40, two of Pharaoh's servants are in the prison with Joseph and they each have dreams that upset them. So Joseph walks in that morning and says "Why do you look so sad today?" (v7)
Why do you look so sad?!! They're sitting in prison! Did they normally sing in the morning? What kind of prison was this that he would notice that they were sad? Wouldn't they have been sad every morning?
Anyway, that made me laugh.

Coffee

I was just thinking about coffee and how much I enjoy drinking it and smelling it and going to a coffee shop and leaving smelling like coffee. I think the only thing that makes coffee any better is when it's free and enjoyed with a kindred soul.

Any Day Now

Well, we had what is supposed to be our final interview for the foster/adopt process on Monday. The phone could ring any day now.

On the Online Radio

Spirit 105.3 is the local Christian music station in the Seattle area and they have a program called the Local Music Project where they play local artists and give a little bio. They have moved it to their website now and this week, I am being featured on the program. Give it a listen.
Scroll down to the bottom of the screen and click on My Everything.

Adoption

So we made the drive down to Kent this morning to the DSHS office to watch a video on caring for, and recognizing the symptoms of drug affected babies as part of our process for adopting a child from the foster care system. Wow. It was one of the most sad things I have ever seen. The good news is that with proper care and environment, these children can, in most cases, go on to live very normal, productive lives.
When we started this process, our motivation was purely selfish in that we were doing it to be sure we got a girl. After going through the process, we have come to realize that we really will be helping someone have a chance at life they would not otherwise have had.
I would never say that everyone who can should adopt because it's not for everyone, but there is such a need for these kids to find homes that maybe we should search our hearts and see if there is room for a child who needs a family.

You Know You're In A Large Church When...

I brought my oldest son to the kids event at the church Friday night called Friday's Rock. It was great and he was so excited. There were so many people there we stood in line to get in line. We had to fill out an emergency contact sheet and the woman helping at the table asked me if we had been to the church before. I thought that was pretty funny because I get a lot of "face time". I said "Yeah, we come" not wanting to embarrass her or pull the whole "Do you know who I am?" bit. You know you're at a big church when that happens.

It's things like this that illustrate the importance of small groups. In a congregation this large, it is easy to get lost in the crowd (apparently even for me). Having a place where you can experience accountability, belonging and care is vital to our spiritual growth.

You know you're in a big church when...

You can't see the building from where you parked.

The walk from your car to the building counts as your 30 minutes of daily exercise.

The camera operator is closer to the stage than you are.

The ushers have to swap out for empty plates halfway through the offering.

The pastor introduces himself every Sunday.

They have trough style urinals like the Kingdome had.

Every week in staff meeting, the pastor asks "Is there anybody new here today?"

The band has more members than your old church did.

Knuckle Head

Winter Camp '09

This past weekend was our youth ministry's Winter Camp. We had a great time on the ridiculous tubing hill and the drive over the pass provided enough memories and inside jokes to last for a long time. The best part however, was seeing the kids engaging God in worship and praying for each other. The last night, after service we were packing up and getting ready to head back over the mountain and I started to feel a tickle in my throat. So now I am fighting a pretty bad cold. I am thankful that it waited until we were done with camp to come on.
The speaker for the camp was Roosevelt Hunter who really connected with the kids. On Sunday morning, he spoke at New Life in the Main Services and absolutely KILLED it! I think the funniest thing he said was in regard to Jesus not being white or black but in the middle: "He was white enough to get into the dignified places but dark enough to eat chicken with the brothas on the weekend."
Roosevelt is dealing with cancer and if you read this, say a prayer for him and his family as they go through it.
Here are some inside jokes from the weekend, you probably won't get any of them but I put them on here for posterity.
Fly Away
Busting Grumpys
"No, I have coffee."
T-Shirt
"Uh, they have good coffee there."
"Ees on dee paper, ees close enough"
"I don't know anything about trailers...I don't know anything about guys either."

Discipline

This is what I ate tonight.

Knucklehead

So this morning I got out of the shower, put my towel on and went downstairs to get something out of the laundry room. My kids were downstairs eating breakfast and as I went in, I heard my youngest say "I saw Dad wearing a Man-skirt!"
Knucklehead.

7 Years

My oldest son turned 7 today. It doesn't seem right. I remember when he was born, feeling so inadequate and feeling like I had no idea how to be a dad. I guess you learn on the job.
I am so proud of the boy he is. He is generous and thoughtful. He is smart and curious. He is excited about life and loves to laugh. He is a good big brother and a well behaved son. He likes to dance when he thinks no one is watching. He likes to sing when he thinks no one is listening. When we ride to school in the morning, he is content in the back seat just thinking and looking out the window. He asks the occasional question or asks whether or not I remember a certain scene from a movie we have watched together, but mostly he is quiet. He is always thinking.
7 years.

The Discipline of Worship

In Celebration of Discipline by Richard Foster, there are some good insights into worship, among other things. Here is some of what he says:

Worship is our response to the overtures of love from the heart of the Father. Its central reality is found "in spirit and truth." It is kindled within us only when the Spirit of God touches our human spirit. Forms and rituals do not produce worship, nor does the disuse of forms and rituals. We can use all the right techniques and methods, we can have the best possible liturgy (I would add music as well), but we have not worshiped the Lord until Spirit touches spirit."

As a worshiper, how do you (or I) cultivate the atmosphere where "Spirit touches spirit" in our own lives? If you are a worship leader, how do you cultivate that atmosphere in a corporate setting? I would love to hear any thoughts/insights you might have on this.

Sunshine

Sunshine

It's been raining forever.
Promises fall from the sky, broken on the ground,
at least in my mind.
Oh I wish these clouds would break.
To see some blue sky above would lift my soul.
I could use a little sunshine today, just a little sunshine today.

Semi-self-inflicted exclusion
is exclusion nonetheless.
A kind word, a smiling face,
some good news for a change.
I could use a little sunshine today,
Just a little sunshine today.

A River Runs Through It

Last night I got out my favorite movie. A River Runs Through It. It is the story of Norman and his brother Paul, the sons of a Presbyterian minister growing up in early 1900s Montana. I saw it a couple years ago on t.v. and enjoyed the scenery and the fishing. My wife got it for me for Christmas last year on DVD. Watching it now I love it because I connect emotionally with it on 4 levels. I relate as a father, watching two sons grow up. I relate as a son wanting to make a father proud, and I relate as a brother. I relate to the characters' love of nature and fly-fishing as well. It is a beautiful story of love, family and loss set in the beauty of pristine Montana. If you've never seen it, I would highly recommend it.

"Eventually all things merge together, and a river runs through it."