This week I filled up my car with gas. I paid $50. Those of you Hummerers out there are probably wishing you had my car about now (especially if I were to tell you I’m ridin’ in a 2000 green Mercury Sable), but for me – I’m thinking of going the way of all the world and buying a motorbike. I hear they get a cool 70 mpg. Only problem is, my wife is one of quite a few people that think I would look funny on a motorbike. Little Clayton, riding up to the church on his little Harley Davidson… Truston, hook me up dawg, I got something to prove. 

I remember a long time ago in a galaxy far, far away when I had just started driving in high school. I pulled up to a gas station where the sign read: “Regular Unleaded: $.79.” And, no, it was no typo. A full tank was maybe $10, if that! And now, I have to deal with $50 gas payouts every week, and I’m forced to drive like my grandma with no AC just to save as much of this precious, pricey fuel that I can. Do you realize what I can do with $50?! 

• 20 Wendy’s Texas Double Cheeseburgers with 10 orders of fries and 10 small drinks
• 50 items of your choice at Dollar General
• 50 of those dollar dvds in the Walmart bins
• ...and a sturdy pair of Fossil denim jeans

Though I sound it, I’m not worried or frustrated – maybe a little frustrated. But, I still have more wealth than 97% of people on earth, or whatever the statistic is. And there are many people in places like Africa that can only afford 5 gallons of water a week… Water. Last time I checked water is a pretty important commodity. That really brings things back to the right perspective. My word of encouragement for today: stay focused on the needs of others, and let God take care of your own. If you do that – you’ll always have what you need. And, in the words of my 3 year old niece, Ellie: “Peace to all people!"

I'm a huge fan of going to the movies, so as you'd expect, over the weekend I saw the latest installment of the Indiana Jones series. I grew up watching Indy whip (sorry, I couldn't resist) up on bad guys, and having been alive for every single theatrical release, I was pretty excited to see him at it again. A lot of people, though, have been telling me how they were disappointed with it. I have to say - I was not disappointed at all. I will admit there were a few minutes at the beginning that I was thinking "man, Han Solo is lookin pretty old" or "really, with the CG groundhogs?", but overall I was super satisfied and thoroughly enjoyed the movie. In my opinion, it held true to the style and feel of the previous three, while still modernizing the pace and making for a very entertaining action/adventure experience.

Of course, this opinion comes after having seen two pretty lame movies (Speed Racer, Narnia 2) the previous two weekends, so maybe I was just really wanting to like it. I'm a big proponent of the "who you see the movie with determines your movie experience" theory, so thanks guys for making mine awesome (you know who you are). Either way, I left the theater satisfied and honestly, wanting to see it again. Thank you Steven Spielberg, you rarely (War of the Worlds) fail to deliver. And thank you George Lucas, you needed this one (Star Wars prequels). Also, thanks to the guy who yelled "clap, you punks" when the Lucasfilm logo appeared. So clever. Until, next time (The Dark Knight), that's a wrap.

I remember as a child standing at the edge of a diving board afraid to jump in. I knew how to swim, I wasn’t afraid to put my head under water, and when I jumped in from the side of the pool I didn’t even need to plug my nose. But, for some reason, jumping off the diving board gripped me with a paralyzing fear. After a few minutes of waiting, and after the lifeguard threatened to push me in, I took the plunge. It was scary, exhilarating and fun all at the same time. After my head bobbed above the water I laughed out loud and swam towards the ladder only to get out and jump again.

Throughout life I have faced a lot of these moments. Sometimes I jump and sometimes I take the walk of shame in defeat. But I have realized every time I swallow my fear and go for it I find myself swimming to the ladder to try it again. I was afraid to eat sushi, but now I would consider myself an addict. I was afraid to ask my best friend to go on a date with me, but now I'm beyond happily married. I was afraid to drive my brand new jeep down a simple dirt trail, but now I can’t find a hill too steep enough or a hole too deep enough to scare me.

My whole life I have had an underlying fear. It was created by my parents love and concern for my safety. It was fed by horror stories I would hear. It was given credibility by a seaming endless number of negative statistics. They have been called coffins on two wheels, donor mobiles, idiot machines, and rebel transporters. Simply put, I have been told that motorcycles are dangerous. Because of this foundation of fear I would never consider riding a motorcycle. But yet other things in my life I have been the most fearful of are now the things I enjoy the most.

So I jumped off the diving board. I crunched some numbers, took a class, got my license and bought a bike. I’m not saying I’ll keep it. I’m not even sure it’s for me. But all I know is it feels better in the water than it did standing on the edge of the diving board thinking about jumping.

Everyone has pet peeves. Recently, I have been thinking about mine.  A lot. I was out of town and hanging out with a bunch of guys when one of them asked, "what's your biggest pet peeve?" I really didn't know what to say. Oh, I got pet peeves, but I didn't know what would be my biggest. That was tough. Thus, I have been thinking about mine. I still don't know what would be my biggest, but i definitely got a top 5. Here are my top 5 pet peeves, in no particular order:

1. Driving slow in the fast lane. (Really!?!)
2. A dirty car. (Ugh)
3. A cluttered room. (UGH)
4. Depressing movies. (Hello, its called 'a happy ending')
5. Socially unaware comments. (Dude, you're below the clouds)

Some of my runners up are when people are unwilling to try something new, smacking your food while eating and uncommited people. As I think about it more, my top 5 may change. I may even find the biggest. In the meantime, what about you? What's your biggest pet peeves? Maybe we can change the world together, one pet peeve at a time.

March is here and the eyes of the sports world are on college basketball. Even if you're not a sports fan, you can get caught up in this madness. We're talking 'the big dance', 'the field of 64', or 'the ncaa tournament'. It's here and it's the greatest days of sports. Men will take vacation days, women will get babysitters, students will skip school and the whole nation will watch. The first 4 days of this madness should be a national holiday. So get ready to cheer for your favorite team.  And if you don't have one, there's 64 to choose from.

Bring on the upsets. Bring on the last second shots. Bring on the miracles. Bring on the underdogs. Bring on the goliaths. Memories will be shared. Heroes will be made. Legends will be told. Cinderella has her ticket and always shows up. Let the Madness begin.

Last weekend was sweet for so many reasons. And not just for the nuggling. :) One, it was our first retreat in like six years. Two, I had the best time hanging out with some awesome new friends I made. And three, having a weekend to refresh and relax truly rocked! Massive bonfire anyone?

Now, I did get schooled a bit by Annalise, Caleb and Cooper on the basketball court, but I think I at least got an "E" for effort.  Saturday, eating a half gallon of butter pecan ice cream with Refuge and XS7 was fun, but nasty at the same time. Then having to run everywhere, do a walking pyramid and then do 300 push-ups as a team; we were kinda dying. All was okay afterwards, though, since Dillon and Zach did the "Beyonce" on stage. Not to be out-done, of course, was Will and Hunter lip-syncing to the Backstreet Boys.

For those of you who missed it, sorry, you better come next year. For those of you who were there, you know what I'm talking about when I say: "Wow!" God showed up and definitely helped refresh and "reseven" us. Is that even a word? I say yes, and you know what that means: "Done!"

No, this blog isn't about our current series being available in high definition. Although, in some ways it is. It's what got me thinking about my status in the world of HD.

Before getting my new Samsung HDTV last November, I wasn't allowed in the secret club of the high definition experience. But now that I'm in, I've become an expert (snob?) of all things HD, and I'm loving every minute of it. There truly is nothing like watching NFL games, Lost episodes, and nightly news broadcasts in spectacular widescreen beauticity.

For that reason, I was ultimately forced to get the XBOX 360 HD-DVD player over the holidays. The price was at an all-time low and I wanted to rock King Kong and Planet Earth in it's native HD glory. But my decision to go HD-DVD versus Blu-ray was one that, sadly, I should have waited on. Yesterday marked the official whistle to end the two-year deathmatch, that was the HD format war. Just like LaserDisc, and BetaMax before it; HD-DVD goes down in history as the loser in the consumer video arena. It's sad to see it go, but more sad because I was not only an owner of HD-DVD, but also it's second-place ancestors: BetaMax and LaserDisc.

Perhaps fate has it that I always be an early adopter of possible technology successes or maybe it's just a hard knock life. What will happen in the future for HD? Will Blu-ray be the next DVD? Or will HD downloads make it big enough in time to run clean-up? What are your thoughts? Time will certainly tell us. I do know this, I'm not getting a Playstation. So there.

It's super bowl weekend and everyone's going nuts. The pats, the g-men, the spying and possibly the biggest story of them all... Extreme Bowl 13. Yeah, the press has been all over this one. No one had a clue how this forty homegroup tournament would turn out, but on Saturday, February 2, all our questions were put to rest.

In junior high, we had an intense day full of exciting games. But it was the championship game that was the one to remember when Havoc (the EB12 champs) squared off against 3d. An early lead by 3d made everyone think they had it locked up. But a late first half touchdown by Havoc and a quick second half start put 3d behind. However, in the end, it was 3d pulling away and taking the EB13 trophy.

In senior high, we may have broken every Extreme Bowl scoring record. When the final score is 74 to 71, you'd think you were talking about a basketball game... But no. That was the offensive onslaught that was Taken versus Hype. It was a back and forth game that stayed close all day, but Taken stayed tough and etched their name on the trophy one more time.

Props to everyone who was at EB13. It was an awesome day with hundreds of students, thousands of memories but only two champs... 3D and Taken. Congrats. Everyone else, start practicing. Cause EB14 will be here before you know it.

The holiday season has past us once again. It is definitely one of my favorite seasons of the year. The season is crazy. The malls are packed, the weather is cold, houses are decorated, lights are everywhere, and Christmas parties happen almost daily.

This year, as I drove home from Christmas in the middle of the night (thanks to Jordyn and Avery, who now dictate my schedule), I began thinking of all of the holiday memories and Christmas gifts that stood out to me over the years. There are tons. Some made me laugh and some simply made me smile. It has been years and years of good times. 

Some of my favorite memories were: building a snowman on Christmas morning, drinking hot chocolate, eating all kinds of desserts (especially peanut butter and chocolate ones), the rubik's cube family tournament held one year (I won in 43 seconds), driving around town searching for Santa's sleigh on Christmas Eve with my dad, leaving milk and cookies for Santa every year, watching those old-school animated Christmas movies curled up on the floor, playing games with family, and, of course, watching the movie Elf every year. Very nice. However, no memory will replace my top two, my first Christmas married and my first Christmas with my twin baby girls.

Some of my favorite gifts were: the official vibrating electronic football game (think late 1970's), the classic Atari video game station, my dog named Pepper, my complete Star Wars action figure collection, a Grapette pencil with $20 bills wrapped around it found in my stocking each year, my first tree house built in my back yard (it was massive), my 50'' lcd screen tv, and everything my wife gets me. I hope she reads that. There are loads more that I could list, but the best memories and gifts are simply being with family and friends. That is what it's all about.

So what about you? What memories and gifts stand out to you over the years? Think about them. Don't forget them. Let every holiday season add to them, that's her job.

A few weeks ago, I got the amazing privilege to go on vacation to Hawaii and be a bridesmaid in my bestfriend's wedding. Plus, I got to be on vacation for eight days on the island of Kauai. It was such an incredible trip. I was in Hawaii with about 15 of my really good friends, hanging out at the beach, snorkeling, boogie boarding, and eating great seafood. We had a blast...until day 6 of my trip - when we went on a 60 foot catamaran sail boat trip. About 45 minutes into the trip (and after seeing two whales breach) it hit me...and by "it" I mean, the sea sickness. Here I am on this awesome boat with my best friends, looking at the most beautiful coastline ever imagined, and I'm puking off the back of the boat; yes, heaving over the rail. It was horrible. For two hours I was nauseous, dizzy and ready to pass out. The water was crystal clear, the sun was shining and the waves were 6-8 feet tall. Needless to say, I was ecstatic. Yet, still very ready when we finally stepped onto dry land three hours later.

Overall though, the boat trip was amazing! We saw 4 whales, about 100 dolphins and snorkeled with sea turtles; it was just the whole "sick thing" that killed it a bit. The rest of the week we totally chillaxed. We hit the beach everyday, shopped around and watched the sunsets. My vacation was great! I got time to rest and just reflect on life and what I'd be coming back to. As much fun in the sun as I had in Hawaii, I was ready to come back home, ready to hit the holidays and ready to come back to Seven. And with Holiday in the Seven starting, I've got tons to look forward to during the next four weeks. Better than sand and surf, I've got our Christmas Party: where I'll get to dress up in costumes with my homegroup. Better than swimming with sea turtles will be the Awards Night. Man, that reminds me, since I was out of town for so long, I better go nominate some people quick. See you at Seven...Aloha!

This fall has been awesome and insane. Wednesdays and homegroups have been awesome, the all-nighter was sweet, gaming has been real fun... Oh, and Tucker was born.

Yep, September 26th all kinds of early in the morning, Mindy and I had our first child. It was definitely the most amazing morning of my life. He was little, cute and just hanging out like any other baby. The next morning, things took a pretty dramatic turn... for the worst; the absolute worst.

Tucker was having trouble breathing and therefore his face turned blue. He was rushed in an ambulance from Arlington to Children's Medical Center in Dallas. There, after about four days of testing, they diagnosed him with a very rare congenital (no reason for... you're just born with it) heart disease. From there he had two open heart surgeries, spent 9 days on life support, spent 29 days getting oxygen through a ventilator and had countless other procedures performed on him. However, after five weeks of all that, Tucker went home and he's been home now for almost two weeks. The only medicine he's on is aspirin... Not bad for everything he went through.

This was the hardest thing Mindy and I have ever had to deal with. Physically, emotionally, spiritually and even relationally it was so tough. But to now be on this side of it and see everything God's done is so amazing. It was tough, but it's like the Bible says in 1 Peter 1:7 that the trials we face are to purify us and make our faith stronger... and our faith definitely is.

Thanks to everyone who prayed for him. God did a miracle in his life. We see it every day, and one day soon you'll see it to. He'll come hang out with everyone one Wednesday real soon.

Sometimes I forget what I have. I mean, I'm not a millionaire or really famous or anything, but I'm not really lacking either. But sometimes it's hard to recognize that truth, especially when life gets hard. So why do we feel sad or frustrated? Why are there moments when it seems nothing is going right? Is it true that we just don't have anything to smile about? Not exactly. There's joy to be had, even when it doesn't make sense. God's given us a secret weapon to help. Here it is: when life is hard, and everything seems to be going wrong - just James it. That's right, James from the Bible. Who knows what the rest of the book of James even says? The first four verses say enough to last a lifetime. Basically, it goes like this: when life stinks, get happy. Junk only comes to test your endurace and on the other side is satisfaction and completion. You'll have a story and a way to help others when they're struggling. So remember, when life gives you pity-parties, make pity-party-ade. Just James it. Read it and don't weap.

What do you get when you cross 500 student leaders, christmas and William Wallace? A conference that will inspire the mess out of you and that equips you with all kind of free resources. Enter LIFT07. Talk about amazing. All weekend long I was blown away by the many people that worked hard to make this conference what it was: energizing, fun, exciting, challenging, and just plain life-changing. We touched God, grew together and got a bunch of free stuff!

It all began Thursday night. We started off with Jeanne Mayo at a pre-conference dinner and q&a session. Nice. The atrium was slammed with people seeing old friends and many people meeting new ones. We then proceeded to kick off the conference with some old school tv tunes and a room packed out to hear Jeanne pour out her heart. The night was a perfect way to get things rolling. Friday was no slouch either. It was a full day that took us all on a roller coaster ride of learning and inspiration. we had 21 different breakouts to choose from in 3 different blocks, not to mention 3 general sessions that were off the chains. Friday morning was the mock Seven service, Friday afternoon was Leonard Sweet, and Friday night was Jeff Deyo. Wow! All 3 Friday general sessions far exceeded expectations and filled you up with vision from God. On Saturday we got 7 more breakouts and 2 more general sessions. Saturday morning Sy Rogers straight told it like it was. Saturday afternoon Blaine Bartel wrapped up the conference perfect.

At the end of the weekend, one truth remained. We must all go do what God has called us to do: reach this generation. God equipped us with tools, filled us with strength, and sent us with vision. What a great conference. If you were there, you know what I’m talking about. If not, don’t take my word for it; talk to someone. Either way, see you at the next LIFT!

Yeah, yeah, yeah, the fall is great and all; because of the weather, and the time change and all that other stuff, yada, yada, yada. But I have to be honest...I get more excited about the sweet new tv shows. Seriously, television has all but replaced movie going for me. Of course, there is still the occasional blockbuster film that I must see, but for the most part, I'm torrenting my favorite shows like a champ instead.

It all started with 24; the true and original breakthrough in television excellence, quality, and...addiction. I watched it exclusively and with obsession for five seasons straight. And then it happened; everybody else caught up. New shows started popping up everywhere; Lost, Prison Break, Heroes, Studio 60, The Office. The list goes on... Now I can sit down and get an action-drama-suspense-comedy-packed thriller in a neatly-wrapped hour-long episode. And, of course, they each usually end in a cliff-hanging conclusion that locks me in for the next week.

So today, only a couple years into this phenomenon, we've come to expect - nay, demand - this type of quality from the networks. It's that greatness of excellence that I look forward to week after week. Yet still, with all that happens on tv, I don't have a clue what airs on Wednesday nights. Because, even as sweet as the new tv is, it doesn't beat the best weekly episodic event there is, we call it Seven™. You can't tivo it, and you won't find it on a torrent site. You have to be there. So here's to Seven™; it still beats the new tv.

I love the fall. No, seriously, I have a season crush on it. There are so many reasons to love it. It finally gets a little cooler. Reruns end. Football begins. Soup doesn't sound gross anymore. Oh and, possibly my favorite, Wednesdays gaming events get cooking again.

Crazy began a few weeks ago and it has been CRAY-ZEE to say the least. We saw some major upsets in the strength department and even had one homegroup get 26 students packed into a Ford Festiva! And as if that wasn't crazy enough, the insanity continues. Tonight, we're loading up a scale to see what group packs the most weight, followed next week by an eating contest that'll make Kobayashi slow his roll. After that, 'Guess What' is back. And if you thought last year was tough to figure out, well let's just say, you ain't seen nothing yet.

So basically, if you've not checked out everything in gaming lately, then you're seriously missing out. Maybe you lost your calendar and didn't know it was here already. Either way, grab your sweater and be sure you're at Seven™ this fall for gaming. And maybe, just maybe, you'll love the fall as much as I do.

Every year about this time I can’t help but sing a little song. It’s by my boy Adam Sandler, and it’s called "Back to School". This summer was awesome, but as they say all good things must come to an end. And with the end of summer comes the beginning of a new school year.

Going back to school usually gets a bad rap, but it’s not all bad. Think of the positives: you get to see friends you haven’t seen in forever; you get to show off your summer tan; your mom usually hooks you up with a new pair of kicks; and best of all, you get to tell all your summer stories. Like what happened at Adventures Inc. Or about how some crazy fool woke you up at camp. Or about how the church almost got blown down with you in it.

But the best thing about going back to school is telling people about how sweet God is. He really changed me this summer, but not just me, us. He changed Seven™ this summer. And now we get to go back to school and tell our friends what He did. If you’re a little nervous about that, it’s all good. It can be kinda scary, but that’s what this series Light is all about. You can make a difference in your school, and we’ll show you how. So make sure you’re here this Wednesday to hear our new strategy on how to reach your friends.

Summer was sweet, but this school year is gonna be off the charts. Get ready, because your back to schoooooool.

So every time I get on this site now, I’m hooked. I usually spend anywhere from 15 to an hour and 15 minutes playing around, looking at things and staying distracted from the work I’m supposed to be doing. (Thanks, Preston.) Anyways, the question of the day is why am I so bad at Yetisports games? I seriously can’t hit that penguin with the flamingo very far or bat him any good distance when he plummets from the cliff. I always jack it into an elephant leg or a tree or miss him altogether. My high score is like 25, for real. I’m definitely not entering any Yetisports tournaments anytime soon, but I sure wish I at least didn't completely embarrass myself when playing. Not that people are watching me play, but if they did, I’d be a huge embarrassment to Seven™. Sorry, I’ll try to get better.

Summertime at Seven™ can only be described as sweetness. The last 3 months have been unforgettable. Years ago, Will Smith rapped "Summer, summer, summertime. Time to sit back and unwind." He obviously had never met Seven™. From creative services, to summer discipleship, to summer camp, to fine arts, to hanging out Seven™ style, summer was anything but kicked back. We went full throttle and no holds barred.

Will spoke a little more Seven™-ese in a later verse, as he rapped, "Just a bit of a break from the norm. Just a little somethin to break the monotony." Summer was definitely a break from the same ol, here's a taste of what we expereinced: around 75 of us trekked up to Indianapolis for a week of National Fine Arts competition, over 155 of us experienced 3 crazy weeks of Adventures Inc. discipleship program, 400 locked into homegroups Sunday after Sunday, 470 spent an entire week at Adventure Camp, and almost 650 of us journeyed from one creative God enounter to another on Wednesday nights. Throw in a set of twin girls, born on July 12, and you got one incredible, unbelievable, memorable, different and just plain exciting summer of Seven™.

Well, it's finally here. After months and months of grueling details and juggling acts, we're happy to announce the launch of the much anticipated, and much needed second generation of the Seven™ site. You'll soon find out that, compared to our old site, this one is massive and much prettier, eh hem. So without spoiling all the surprises, we wanna let you know what's included in this V2. You'll recognize several sections and content from V1, but alot of it is brand spankin newy goodness, including a new LEADER section, INVITE section, enhanced ad window, enhanced MEET section, this Seven™ Blog, and so much more. Just like the Matrix, you just have to experience it for yourself. Oh, and don't be scared to let us know what you think!