Get Updates At EncounterHelena.org

Hey friends! You're probably wondering why we haven't posted a new post over here at the eSomething Blog for a while.

A lot is going on in our lives and we're really excited about what God's been doing here in Helena. As you know, we're now pretty deep in the process of planting a new church in Helena for this generation - those in their 20s and 30s.

With that said, we've taken a sort of a blogging break from posting here at the eSomething Blog and putting a lot of effort into posting updates over on the Encounter Church Blog and in our regular prayer updates for Encounter.

We will still be posting here periodically. And at some point, we will start posting more regularly again, but not for a while.

As our friends and family, we encourage you to subscribe to the Encounter Blog and as a prayer partner now to keep up-to-date. Here are the links:

Subscribe to the Encounter Blog

Sign up as a prayer partner

Thanks so much! And visit the Encounter Church Blog here.

Happy New Year!

As we say welcome to 2009, I can't help and look back to how transitional 2008 has been in our life.

We are so excited and can only imagine what God has in store for the new year...for us and for the new church plant, Encounter.

Read more on the Encounter Church Blog here.

The 2008 Christmas Vacation Saga

We're in California now staying at Andrea's parent home. They are always so gracious to let us stay here when we visit - we are so thankful. But boy, what a trip down.

If you haven't been following our Facebook updates and Twitters, our van broke down in a snow storm in Idaho just about 300 miles out of Helena on Christmas Day.


A little better conditions than the snow storm our van stalled in

We were sitting in a snow bank with not a car in sight and we didn't know if we would get it re-started. I was a little nervous about that, but after about 30 minutes we got the van started and we limped to the town of Dubois, Idaho with about half power from our engine and the engine light on.

When we finally got to Pocatello, Idaho, we figured it would be wise to stay the night and have the van checked the next day. We got a discount at the hotel because of our sad story :-)


Us, stuck in motel in Pocatello on Christmas Day


Only place open on Christmas + lots of people = 3 hours at Denny's

After a few hours at the Dodge dealer on Friday, we found out that the parts we needed for the van wouldn't be there until the following Tuesday. After much calling to friends in Helena for mechanical advice, we weighed our options and then decided it would cost the same renting a car and continuing to California rather than staying in a motel in Pocatello all vacation. :-)


The car next to ours at the Dodge dealership - Pocatello got a lot of snow

We got a late start on Friday, and drove through the night to Fontana, California arriving about 7:00am. Whew! Andrea and I were tired.


Approaching Las Vegas about 3am - 34 degrees

Anyway, we're here in California now. Saturday, we took it easy and went to Vince's Spaghetti - hands down, the best spaghetti in the world.

We saw Andrea's grandmother in an Poway (San Diego) hospital yesterday. She is looking good, but has a logn road to recovery of she's ever going to get out of the hospital again.


Us and Andrea's grandpa visiting Grandma

Also, we visited the famed Killer Pizza from Mars restaurant in Escondido before we headed back up to Rancho Cucamonga. By the way, the Chargers killed the Broncos!


Fun photos from "Killer Pizza"

Today, we're gonna see several friends at Chili's and El Torrito. We're really looking forward to seeing them.

Tomorrow, we're going see my Mom. She has some major blockage in arteries through her neck and had two strokes in last two months. She lost sight in left eye first time - then during a medical procedure to determine the extent of the blockage, she had another stroke loosing some usage of her left hand.

We've gotta be back in Pocatello on Friday to turn in our rental and we're praying our van will be fixed. Funny thing - wasn't even a mechanical problem with the van - just the "computer." But it still cost us more than $1K with the rental and all.


Our rental - the "mini" version of our Dodge Grand Caravan

After all, we're still actually in a good mood. It was just a little set-back. We know that somehow through all of this, God has a plan. Can't see it yet, but we know things could have been worse. It's been a blessing to see family and friends and we definitely feel a bit refreshed.

This will be a Christmas to remember for years to come. And looking forward to 2009, we know it will be equally challenging and rewarding as we move forward to plant Encounter Church in Helena.


We could use all your prayers and thoughts - and we're looking to connect with many of you who don't yet know what Encounter is all about. Feel free to contact us and we'll get together to talk about it.

Have a blessed Christmas and hopeful New Year!

We'll be adding all of the photos of our trip here.

Let It Snow...

Lots of snow, very cold, at the Powell abode.

Decorations or God's Light?

Amazing Christmas display with 176 channels and 45,000 lights! The show is so popular that it requires a crew of 3 people to manage the traffic. Very cool.



Many of us put up Christmas lights or have neighbors that do. While the light strung on homes or in our front yards may seem commonplace, they are still reserved for the Advent season.

As we see them, be reminded that they can be more than just pretty decorations. May they serve as symbols of God's great love, given to us through His son Jesus Christ - the great light of this world.

It's Beginning to Look A Lot Like Christmas

Negative 1 degrees here in Helena today. Brrr...

An Important Phone Call...

Been blogging a lot about starting a new faith community in Helena over at the Encounter Helena blog. (That's why there haven't been so many posts here at eSomething.) We have a vision to provide an engaging and irresistible way for the unchurched and dechurched of this generation to enter into an authentic relationship with Jesus.

More specifically, I've been blogging about the ARC Church Planting Assessment we just attended last Monday and Tuesday. We just got an important phone call and I blogged about it here.

By the way, please subscribe over at the Encounter Helena blog, too. :-)

Quotable Quips - Encounter

"The word ENCOUNTER carries a nuance of surprise with it. Encounters are not always planned; in fact the cliche 'chance encounter' is nearly redundant. Well it is simply a spiritual truth that encounters with God usually occur, not when they have been planned, but in unexpected places when God chooses to reveal Himself in a more personal way."

David M. Edwards, songwriter, worship leader, and editor of Worship Leader Magazine. Quoted from his book "Encountering God"

Encounter is a great word that is packed with meaning!

Quotes That Have Messed Me Up!

I've been collecting quotes over a month or two from several of the blogs I follow. You can follow some of the original posts and my short comments on my Google Reader Shared Items Blog here. Recently, I've come across some that have absolutely messed me up!

Craig Groeschel [Swerve]
I believe one of the biggest ministry challenges in our day is small vision. Without intentional effort, most people tend to think small, play it safe, and avoid risks. Is God honored by the size of your vision?

To reach people that nobody else is reaching, you have to do things that nobody else is doing.

C.J. Mahaney
The proud person seeks to glorify himself and not God, thereby attempting in effect to deprive God of something only He is worthy to receive.

Dorothy Sayers
No crooked table legs or ill-fitted drawers, I daresay, ever came out of the Carpenter's shop in Nazareth. (Translation: excellence honors God.)

Mark Batterson [Evolutional]
Most people are bored with their faith. And as Soren Kierkegaard said, boredom is the root of evil. You cannot live by faith and be bored simultaneously

Francis Chan in Crazy Love
Having faith often means doing what others see as crazy. Something is wrong when our lives make sense to other believers.

Our greatest fear as individuals and as a church should not be of failure but of succeeding at things in life that don’t really matter.

Tony Morgan [blog]
Direct mail won’t fix your problem. Billboards won’t fix your problem. Neither will platform announcements or bulletin ads or bumper stickers...until you answer the right questions, marketing could be what’s preventing your success.

I had a very wise man once ask me, ‘If I was new to the area would I go to the church that I was serving at?’ When I answered no, he gently let me know that I was stealing from that church and it was time to move on. (a comment from Ryan over on Tony's blog)

Troy Kennedy [NewWorship]
Is my heart broken for the things that break Jesus' heart? Does my heart rejoice over the things that Jesus rejoices over?

Bill Hybels in Axioms
Passion always leads.

Perry Noble [blog]
Your sin cost Jesus as much as that person's sin

An idol is anything we like more than Jesus.

For far too long, the Church has gotten mad at non-Christians for being non-Christians. I don’t get mad at a duck for quacking. It’s a duck. It quacks.

We need to accept people where they are. Meet them where the are. And take them to a place where they can meet Jesus.

A disciple isn’t someone who knows a lot of information. It’s someone who says, ‘Jesus, I will follow you.’

The early church was HEAVILY led by the Holy Spirit…they didn’t know what to do without Him! We don’t either!

People ask me how I hear the voice of God. How do you not hear the voice of the Lord? ... Where there is no expectation, there is seldom any revelation.

Let me know if any of these mess you up...

Would You Go To Starbucks If...?

Another video I found over at Monday Morning Insight. What if Starbucks marketed itself like the church does? Funny, but sad and true.

Engaging The Senses

I think how we express the message of life matters. Especially new life and second chances. What does it look like to be a new creation?

I love the creativity of expression in the use of lighting, sound, and color to engage the senses in this video. It speaks volumes more than simply saying "we are a new creation." What do you think?

Quotable Quips - Sing Me Better Songs

"If they want me to believe in their God, they'll have to sing me better songs... I could only believe in a God who dances."

Frederich Nietzsche, German philosopher

Just an interesting thought. Never mind those who don't believe, do you think God is satisfied with the songs we sing to Him? How about the lackluster way we sing them? If we don't seem to believe what we sing, how will others? What do you think?