It's Monday!

Good Monday Team,
I start this morning with some special thank yous to our tech team yesterday. We did a major overhaul of our sound system this past week (replaced all the worn out wiring) and we had to do a full resetting of our sound board. Most people cannot understand how difficult this task was. Our sound techs (Coleen, Andy and Marie) did a marvelous job of setting mics and dealing with new speaker settings and avoiding feedback during our worship celebrations. Outstanding sound for the services...great job! And a special thanks to Bob Rutan for resetting the video sound and our DVD was great! We are so fortunate to have such talented musicians and technicians. God is good.

We currently have 18 going to the Casting Crowns/Kutless concert on Feb. 23. I'm ordering tickets later this morning so if you want to go, contact me RIGHT NOW!!

Our Reach Out Owego concert on March 19th is shaping up. Rehearsals are Wednesday night at 6:15pm in the sanctuary and we have 8 weeks to go. I appreciate your efforts to make every rehearsal. It will be a special night of worship and community service. More details coming soon!

What will you do special this week to make a difference in the lives of those around you? A word of encouragement? How about telling someone what you admire about them? Maybe an act of generosity? Think about it.

Blessings,

Dave

It's Monday!

Good Monday Team!
I am still rejoicing in the ministry opportunities this last weekend provided. Thank you to all of you who helped us minister to the Kemp family. We had more than 1000 people come to the church on Saturday for the viewing and I witnessed my first ever fly over honoring a deceased fire fighter. Here's the video:

I want to give a special shout out to Bob Rutan who helped with the video production that allowed the overflow crowd at the funeral on Sunday to be a part of the service. Did you see the coverage on TV last night?

It was great having the Owego Naz Worship Choir back. Music for Easter and Spring 2010 is in. Rehearsal on Wednesday at 6:15PM.

Make today special for someone you come in contact with by offering an encouraging word or an expression of thanks for something they are doing!

Blessings,

Dave

It's Monday!

Good Monday Team!
Coleen and I (and Cagney) are home in NY after a couple of weeks with family in Columbus, OH... Englewood, FL... Wilson, NC... Washington, DC. We put more than 4000 miles on our car and spent 46 hours traveling... it was awesome! Many people think that driving that much would be painful, but it is actually fantastic alone time for us. But it is always nice to be home!

We were gone two Sundays and the first one was in Columbus, OH and we attended the Heritage Christian church where my daughter and her husband...and our coming grandson attend. This is a very large church and we worshiped well. Check them out at Heritage Christian church.

Our second Sunday was in Florida and we drove 2 and a half hours to visit with good friends at Metro West Nazarene in Orlando. Metro West is an International church with a strong Caribbean influence. Very energetic and spirit filled with clapping, flag waving, dancing in the aisles...like it use to be in the early Nazarene church :) They have a brand new building that is debt free after they sold their old property to developers for several million dollars. Check them out here... Metro West Nazarene.

I was able to spend some of my vacation time in Florida listening to music and I am so excited to introduce the Owego Naz Worship Choir to our new Easter music. Rehearsal starts back up this

WEDNESDAY at 6:15pm.

It was great to be back home for worship yesterday. There is comfort as we gather together with friends and family and this is what the world is searching for. Invite your friends to come with you to church. They can develop friendships and meet Jesus...what could be better?

Blessings,

Dave

It's Monday!

Good morning Team,
Yesterday was a wonderful Christmas Sunday as we gathered together to worship the newborn King. Thank you to Miss Cheryl and the Wee Naz Kidz for the Nativity recreation and to Ari Manwaring and the Naz Kidz singers for adding "Away In a Manger." Add the Owego Naz Worship Band and Praise Team and wonderful Christmas songs and we have an awesome worship celebration. Pastor's message that Christ came for all and the Owego Naz Worship Choir's finale brought it all home! And here's a surprise... if you go to our website and listen to the end of the podcast, you'll hear Tiffany and the choir's rendition of "Go Tell!!" Check it out:
http://owegonaz.com/current-sermon-series

Our most special service of the year is on Thursday night at 7PM. The Christmas Eve service will include all the elements that prepare us for Christmas Day...

Christmas carols
The Christmas story from the Bible
Special music
Pastor's Christmas message
Candle lighting to "Silent Night"
"Joy to the World"

Check your email this week and I'll give you information and times for all participants.

Coleen and I want to express our thanks to all of you for your generous gifts and expressions of love. We are blessed to be a part of the Owego Naz family and we wish you all a very Merry Christmas!

As you start this week, purposefully allow the specialness of the season to guide you through your days. Choose to dwell on the news that the angels announced and then be the angels to those you are with this week.

Blessings,

Dave

It's Monday!

Good morning team,
I always have mixed feelings the Monday after we do a musical. I'm excited with the satisfaction that you all did a magnificent musical and that we touched so many lives over the weekend. I'm relieved that we pulled it off again. I'm sad, because I love the preparation and rehearsal road we travel to get to this point. But there's good news...EASTER'S COMING!! I especially like completing our Christmas musical because we always head to Florida after Christmas and I get to listen to Easter music on the beach...the hot, sunny beach!

But Christmas is still yet to come. We have 2 more special times that the Owego Naz worship team gets to celebrate. This week is Christmas Sunday and we will be singing, "Go Tell" in the second service. We will NOT rehearse this Wednesday night. Meet in the choir loft on Sunday at 10:40am for a run through.

Then, perhaps, the most special service of the year is our Christmas Eve service at 7PM. We will allow you to sit with your families for most of this service and then we will sing "One Child" as the introduction to Pastor's message. As always, the candlelight finale will be awesome.

"I vow to worship you this Christmas Day,
I'll stand and say,
'Glory, glory to the Highest in excelsis Deo.'
I pledge to celebrate the meaning of this holiday
Giving praises to the beauty of your holy name."

"More than anything I do, more than anything I say,
More than anything I say or do, I worship You.
More than any card I write
More than any Christmas light I light
More than any gift I give
I'll give you my praises from morning to night!"

May it be so, Lord Jesus!

Blessings,
Dave

It's Monday!

Good morning Team,
A special time yesterday as we gathered to worship the King. As you know, I'm all about preparation and rehearsal. While these are essential elements in our worship arts program, they don't replace the power of the Holy Spirit leading us. It was a good morning!

Tonight...6:30pm - 8:00pm... The Owego Naz Worship Choir will rehearse for Rejoice! Woohoo!

Wednesday... 6:15 - 7:45pm... The Owego Naz Worship Choir will rehearse for Rejoice! Hooray!!

Friday... 7:00pm... The Owego Naz Worship Choir presents "Rejoice!" a soulful Christmas musical. A cookie and coffee reception will follow in The Gathering Place.

I want to remind you about the power of a personal invitation. No amount of advertising is as effective in getting people to attend an event as a personal invitation. When you invite a friend, neighbor, co-worker...anyone, that invitation says, "You are important enough to me to get a personal invitation." Think now...who can you invite to our musical on Friday or Sunday? Send an email, text, phone call, or verbal invite right now to those you care about. The message of Christmas is life changing!

Blessings,
Dave

It's Monday!

Good morning Team,
I'm so looking forward to this week. Thanksgiving has always been a special time for our family and I suppose most families because it is a time when scattered kids gather together. It seems that our busy and structured schedules force us to use these planned holiday times to meet up with our parents and siblings and spend time together. Now, men and women look at these gathering times quite differently. Men tend to spend time just being together. This can be accomplished very well watching football or playing Wii. Conversation is of minimal importance. Women on the other hand, don't understand this male thing. They want to TALK! Sitting around chatting is all that is necessary for a wonderful time. Now, I'm not saying that's not perfectly fine to do...just don't expect us do it.

Well, now that I have gotten myself into some deep weeds, lets talk about what's ahead. We have 3 critical rehearsals before our Christmas musical, Rejoice! I need everyone to make a special effort to be at them all:

Wednesday, Dec. 2 at 6:15pm
Saturday, Dec. 5 at 10am
Wednesday, Dec 9 at 6:15pm

last Wednesday I gave a cool gift out to those present. That will likely continue for these remaining rehearsals as well.
Listen to your CD's often!

Have you ever wondered how monks who take a vow of silence can share in the traditions of Christmas music? Now you know...




Coleen and I wish to express our heartfelt appreciation to all of you for the time and talent that you offer freely to the Lord and makes our Worship Arts team so special. Your positive spirit and unselfish efforts are truly the aroma of Jesus to all who enter our sanctuary for worship. Thank you.

Blessings,

Dave