Monday, April 30, 2007

What's In My Wallet?


What is up with the ENORMOUS Kansas Turnpike Authority receipts?! I have to fold them FOUR TIMES to fit them in my wallet! After two trips on the turnpike, I'll need to empty the wallet because I won't be able to sit comfortably with the extra tree product stuffed in there.

Sunday, April 29, 2007

Final Church Experience in Kansas City

Here's the final church experience we had from today compared with the other three worship gatherings. This time we drove to Kansas City to be at church #4. Church #1,2 and 3 were all in Topeka, KS. The newest column is highlighted in yellow.


Name Church 1
Church 2
Church 3
Church 4
Worship Gathering Attended 4/15/07 @ 9:15am 4/15/07 @ 11am 4/22/07 @ 10am 4/29/07 @ 10:20am
Type Evangelical Evangelical Charismatic Evangelical Evangelical (Purpose Driven Model)
Parking & Getting In Gravel parking lot, easy to find where to go since there was only one building on campus, parking was getting kinda full Paved and gravel lot, they were in the middle of constructing a new worship place on-campus so we things were a little confusing as to where to park and walk-in, we only knew where to go because another guy parked right next to us and walked in ahead of us, parking was extremely full and we had to walk a long way, no signage Parking lot was nicely paved, even though there were several buildings on campus it was easy to know where to go since it was the most impression structure with the "religious" looking stuff sticking out of the roof (a world globe penetrated by a huge spire), they had visitor parking row but we skipped it because no one else parked there, we didn't want to be known at this point We tried to find parking close to the theater where this church's sattelitte campus was located, but the complex was enormous. We ended up parking in a parking garage and following some other people in to the theater side door. I couldn't tell that church was being held at this location from the outside from where we went in. I later discovered that the main entrance was on the opposite side of the building, but the outside simply looked like a theater.
Staff who helped us once we got in A staff member greeted us at the door and interacted with us all the way to the children's rooms, he asked us a little about us in a non-threatening and comfortable way, we felt fairly comfortable leaving our kids with the staff, we were given a beeper No one offered to help, but we walked right in, so I can't fault them on this, but the sleeping veteran in the chair at the door as we entered was an interesting first impression, we didn't leave out kids in childcare (and we should have, but we already subjected them to the torture the first time this morning) Staff initially greeted us and asked if we needed assistance (because we looked like we did), the greeter who took us to the class simply walked ahead of us for 1.5 minutes without turning around or interacting with us, at one point my wife dropped something and had to go back to get it but the greeter didn't even realize this, we had to hurry to catch up, felt uncomfortable, had to fill out information at the door where I dropped off kids which took 3 minutes to fill out (long time when our kid knows what's coming and they are freaking out) Initially, we walked down a long hallway crowded with people. We located the children's registration tables, but they weren't manned at this point - but people were signing their children in automatically. But we needed a PIN number to sign in -- sooo off to the main lobby welcome center. Here we met Randy - who was extremely friendly and helpful. He walked us back to the (now manned) children's registration tables and we filled out the information we needed to for our two children. All staff was very helpful and friendly.
Dress Casual, jeans OK Casual to more formal, jeans OK Fairly formal (mostly suits/ties, felt uncomfortable wearing jeans Very casual. The entire worship band was in jeans and nice casual shirts.
Facility Met in a multi-use room (sports and worship) Met in a multi-use room (sports and worship) Met in a fairly new 1,600 seat auditorium An upscale theater that held about 500 people
Age Demographic Younger and middle-aged families Mostly younger families Broad range Mostly younger families
Music Style Non-top CCLI songs, one traditional hymn/song done in a contemporary style, very fine vocal leaders, decent audio mix Non-top CCLI songs, very fine electric guitarist, vocalists were average, audio mix was average and slightly less than average at times R&B Gospel intermixed with one top CCLI song, very fine vocalists especially Gospel choir, good audio mix overall Top CCLI songs, very well-done acoustic style (acoustic guitar, banjo, 12-string, acoustic bass), very light percussion mimiking drum loops, and two singers, this music style was not their usual setup, but it was a nice breath of freash air
Worshippers Interaction Slightly interactive, some hands raised, average participation Slightly interactive, some hands raised, good participation Interactive with hands raised, extreme participation and non-participation Slightly interactive, some hands raised, good participation
Speaking/Preaching Seemed rushed (probably due to baptisms), I'd love to sit down for a drink with the guy but the public speaking part was OK Good communicator, however didn't seem as approchable over a cup of coffee (but remember this is a first impression) Too shallow for me, could have summerized what he said in 5- minutes, but he seemed down to earth Guest speaker did an excellent job of speaking on forgiveness and healing, used lots of scripture which was all displays on screen
Highlight Baptisms included great real/authentic and un-scripted stories of how people placed their trust in God alone Electric guitarist was excellent, pastor seemed like a good communicator Video announcements done by the church staff, it introduced the staff and got the information out in a timely and un-boring fashion, they were very well done, most likely due to the high-end cameras and Being at a church going through a difficult time and having a guest speaker and church seems to be handeling it very well by seeking God for an appropriate response
Oddly Enough Baptism was done in a horse trough, but once I heard the first personal story I didn't care, it was awesome, announcements were extra long however You walked into the worship area on the second level looking down into the worship area which was very different than other places but I kind of liked it, the sleeping veteran at the door was how I identified this church (he's the first guy I saw) One dear woman raised her hand to rededicate her life to God at the end when the pastor asked everyone to bow their heads and close their eyes with "no one looking around" (the elders were peeking, and so was I), at the end of this the pastor CALLED THE POOR WOMAN UP to the front to pray with him in front of everyone, as she came the pastor asked everyone to stand, he proceeded to ask her her name (yikes!) and why she came forward (double yikes!!) with his headset mic still on (yikes, yikes, yikes!!!), oh yeah - they use time in the worship gathering to greet each other a total of three times (after I meet the guy on my left once, I found it wierd the 2nd and 3rd time), then at the end I was promted by the pastor to ask the folks surrounding me (AKA guy on my left) if he needed to go down front to recommit his life to God This was the most "contemporary" feel church but they started with a bluegrass-like feel to an older hymn "I'll Fly Away," going to church in a theater is odd but refreashing, the greeter actually INVITED me to bring a drink into the worship space because there were cup holders in our seats, the theater seats were some of the nicest seats I've ever sat in (I'll need a set for my office and home), there was NO MENTION OF THE OFFERING but there was a simple small table with a silver bowl with a small sign that read "please place offering gift or communication card in the bowl" (and yes, it was all lower-case and no puncuation - so LAY OFF)
Follow-Up Letter from the pastor came on Tuesday We didn't fill anything out, so they couldn't contact us if they wanted to None yet, but I did leave an address with the childcare ministry so we'll see what happens None yet, but I did leave an address with the childcare ministry so we'll see what happens
Nicely done Real authentic stories used, loved the church logo and common identifiable look Good communicator from the front, unique worship space in a positve light Video announcements by staff, guest information nicely printed and clear Video work was very nice (MediaShout), graphic layout/design of all print/electronic media was very well-done and had a readable modern feel, website was attractive, inviting, and gave the important information I needed as a guest

Friday, April 27, 2007

Things Gained Topeka, KS

After being in Topeka, KS for two weeks - there are a couple of things that we've really enjoyed - since the last post what on what Lititz, PA had that we'd really miss.


  • Everything is within a 5-minute drive of our house (West Ridge Mall, Wal-Mart, Home Depot, Lowes, restaurants, you name it...)
  • Our house has everything that was on our "wish list" in a next house (dishwasher, gas fireplace, studio, space for piano, quiet location, attached garage, dsl or cable internet access, driveway with room to play, no leaves, some landscaping, close to work, medium-sized yard, cul-de-sac dead-end street)
  • Topeka has a fairly decent ethnic diversity for the midwest.
  • Be in the city one minute and feel like you are in the country the next.
  • Kansas doesn't have annual auto inspections with the DMV.
  • Interesting weather with good weather reporting.
  • Straight roads, you start going west and you will end up going west (in PA you never knew which direction the dumb road would end up).
  • A culture of courteous and open people (for example a local store allowed me to take an item and serviced my mower without paying for it and trusted that I'd come back to pay for them when a part I ordered came in, or the propane place that didn't really deal with grill propane tanks but said they'd take care of it for me anyway with no charge, or the guy in Home Depot that re-keyed our locks for free)
  • Enormous refueling airplanes flying overhead every 15 minutes because of Forbes Field, Joshua loves the 'pains' that fly by
  • Burger King is one block from where I work (I may have to switch loyalties)
  • Over ten different wifi signals in our neighborhood, thanks to mr. 'default' for not setting up any encryption so that I could freeload until we got our internet up and running
  • Crystal clear analog TV reception (at least until Feb. 18, 2009)
  • Family is close by, we can grab a bite to eat or hang out whenever we want
  • Taking walks on sidewalks with no broken slabs of cement (couldn't do that in Lititz, PA)

Thursday, April 26, 2007

Things Left Behind in Lititz, PA

After being in Topeka, KS for two weeks - there are a couple of things that are dearly missed. Here's a list. The next post will be things that Topeka has that Lititz didn't.


  • Smelling chocolate from Wilbur and manure from the fields at the same time. It's a love/hate thing.
  • The Lititz Community Band, Moonlighter's Big Band, and other community music groups. Where else can you find great volunteer musicians who do it for the fun of it?
  • The Grace church family. Joshua and Kayla had tons of grandparents that sat in while we were away from family.
  • Going to Two Cousins for lunch every Monday. I'll miss Juan and Scott complaining about getting skimped on chips.
  • Going to McDonald's for lunch every Tuesday thru Sunday. Let's hear it for value meal cards!
  • Walking to see the ducks at Lititz Springs Park. Feeding them bread illegally.
  • The house on West Lincoln...it was our house where a lot of firsts happened for us. First home owners. Joshua and Kayla's first home there. First time I've mulched.
  • Getting free chinese food samples at Park City's food court. You can eat a whole meal by strolling thru the food court once.
  • Hearing the horse and buggies clip-clop in front of our house.
  • Driving our cars through the horse and buggies 'slip-slop' in front of our house.
  • Getting hit with shrapnel from the July 4th fireworks at our place.
  • Watching all the suckers get rained on from our porch during the July 4th fireworks.
  • Our neighbors. The Stauffer's (on our left) and the Swinehart's (on our right) were great neighbors. We will really miss them and their kids.
  • Walking to Greco's Italian Ice on hot summer nights.
  • Bomberger's Store. If they don't have it, they'll order it for you. If you can't fix it, they'll show you how.

Wednesday, April 25, 2007

Low-Tech Idea of the Week

Make home-made ice cream with ice, rock salt, and a (high tech electric) crank. Then again, I bought the ice and didn't mill the salt...so it's still a little high-tech.

Topeka Church Experiences

The past two Sunday's we explored churches in the Topeka area. Below is a summery of our experience and findings. This next Sunday, we'll venture to Kansas City to check out a church.





Name Church 1
Church 2
Church 3
Worship Gathering Attended 4/15/07 @ 9:15am 4/15/07 @ 11am 4/22/07 @ 10am
Type Evangelical Evangelical Charismatic Evangelical
Parking & Getting In Gravel parking lot, easy to find where to go since there was only one building on campus, parking was getting kinda full Paved and gravel lot, they were in the middle of constructing a new worship place on-campus so we things were a little confusing as to where to park and walk-in, we only knew where to go because another guy parked right next to us and walked in ahead of us, parking was extremely full and we had to walk a long way, no signage Parking lot was nicely paved, even though there were several buildings on campus it was easy to know where to go since it was the most impression structure with the "religious" looking stuff sticking out of the roof (a world globe penetrated by a huge spire), they had visitor parking row but we skipped it because no one else parked there, we didn't want to be known at this point
Staff who helped us once we got in A staff member greeted us at the door and interacted with us all the way to the children's rooms, he asked us a little about us in a non-threatening and comfortable way, we felt fairly comfortable leaving our kids with the staff, we were given a beeper No one offered to help, but we walked right in, so I can't fault them on this, but the sleeping veteran in the chair at the door as we entered was an interesting first impression, we didn't leave out kids in childcare (and we should have, but we already subjected them to the torture the first time this morning) Staff initially greeted us and asked if we needed assistance (because we looked like we did), the greeter who took us to the class simply walked ahead of us for 1.5 minutes without turning around or interacting with us, at one point my wife dropped something and had to go back to get it but the greeter didn't even realize this, we had to hurry to catch up, felt uncomfortable, had to fill out information at the door where I dropped off kids which took 3 minutes to fill out (long time when our kid knows what's coming and they are freaking out), we were given a number that would come up on the video screen if our kids got out of hand, but I've always wondered what if someone takes my number (and my kids?)
Dress Casual, jeans OK Casual to more formal, jeans OK Fairly formal (mostly suits/ties, felt uncomfortable wearing jeans
Facility Met in a multi-use room (sports and worship) Met in a multi-use room (sports and worship) Met in a fairly new 1,600 seat auditorium
Age Demographic Younger and middle-aged families Mostly younger families Broad range




Music Style Non-top CCLI songs, one traditional hymn/song done in a contemporary style, very fine vocal leaders, decent audio mix Non-top CCLI songs, very fine electric guitarist, vocalists were average, audio mix was average and slightly less than average at times R&B Gospel intermixed with one top CCLI song, very fine vocalists especially Gospel choir, good audio mix overall
Worshippers Interaction Slightly interactive, some hands raised, average participation Slightly interactive, some hands raised, good participation Interactive with hands raised, extreme participation and non-participation
Speaking/Preaching Seemed rushed (probably due to baptisms), I'd love to sit down for a drink with the guy but the public speaking part was OK Good communicator, however didn't seem as approchable over a cup of coffee (but remember this is a first impression) Too shallow for me, could have summerized what he said in 5- minutes, but he seemed down to earth
Highlight Baptisms included great real/authentic and un-scripted stories of how people placed their trust in God alone Electric guitarist was excellent, pastor seemed like a good communicator Video announcements done by the church staff, it introduced the staff and got the information out in a timely and un-boring fashion, they were very well done, most likely due to the high-end cameras and
Oddly Enough Baptism was done in a horse trough, but once I heard the first personal story I didn't care, it was awesome, announcements were extra long however You walked into the worship area on the second level looking down into the worship area which was very different than other places but I kind of liked it, the sleeping veteran at the door was how I identified this church (he's the first guy I saw) One dear woman raised her hand to rededicate her life to God at the end when the pastor asked everyone to bow their heads and close their eyes with "no one looking around" (the elders were peeking, and so was I), at the end of this the pastor CALLED THE POOR WOMAN UP to the front to pray with him in front of everyone, as she came the pastor asked everyone to stand, he proceeded to ask her her name (yikes!) and why she came forward (double yikes!!) with his headset mic still on (yikes, yikes, yikes!!!), oh yeah - they use time in the worship gathering to greet each other a total of three times (after I meet the guy on my left once, I found it wierd the 2nd and 3rd time), then at the end I was promted by the pastor to ask the folks surrounding me (AKA guy on my left) if he needed to go down front to recommit his life to God
Follow-Up Letter from the pastor came on Tuesday We didn't fill anything out, so they couldn't contact us if they wanted to None yet, but I did leave an address with the childcare ministry so we'll see what happens
Nicely done Real authentic stories used, loved the church logo and common identifiable look Good communicator from the front, unique worship space in a positve light Video announcements by staff, guest information nicely printed and clear

Saturday, April 14, 2007

Made it to Kansas

We finally made it to Kansas. We are all moved in (thanks to the staff at TBC) and all the boxes are unpacked, except for downstairs. In fact, Lisa is working on it as I post.

I don't start at TBC until May 1 - so the plan the next several Sunday's is to check out some local churches to scope things out. It will be interesting to get a perspective as a guest to these other churches. If I'm brave, I'll post the findings over the next three weeks. If I'm really brave, I'll even put the names down. If I'm stupid, I'll send the link to the churches. Yes, I've been known to be stupid.

Sunday, April 01, 2007

Fun in the Yellow Truck

Since we have the 26' Penske truck in front of our house...Joshua and I go out for some fun every once and awhile. Why? Because we only have an air mattress in the house.

Our Relationships Remembered

How will we remember Grace since we began the transition to Topeka Bible Church? It came crystal clear to me last week Sunday when I came in early to setup my guitar rig. Garry, a guy who's been a part of our stage crew, said to me..."You know how I'll remember you Bryan? I'll always remember the breakfast we had together with the load in crew before our patriotic event. I was able to spend time with you outside of regular stuff."

Garry is right...it's the relationships that we will remember most. Not the tech toys, not the organized structure of ministry, not the impressive productions, not even the fun music. True, these are important and they can be helpful tools and methods - just not as important as our relationship with each other.

I'll miss my time with Garry...and the rest of the team at Grace. But I know that God will have relationships on the other side too. At the end of this life, it's the relationships that we'd want around our deathbed. Family is some of the most important relationships.

God, help me to remember that people are the most important in life right after my relationship with You. Help me prioritize life right. You first, others second, me last. Help me use things to get relationships. Show me how I can avoid using people to get things.