Brandt Farmer

Best Advice.

2010-07-24T23:56:00.005-04:00

This past week was probably one of the craziest weeks of my life. After about three months of hardcore job searching, I was able to land two interviews and get two job offers. At first the problem was finding a job, then I found myself having to choose between two very appealing job offers. This brought be back to some very good advice I received from my father a few years ago.

[Begin Dream Sequence]

It was the fall of 2005 and I wanted to ask a certain woman to marry me. I remember talking with my dad about it and it was almost as if I was asking his permission. I'll never forget the advice he gave me. It's so simple and practical yet so profound. He basically told me that I was the only one who could make my life's decisions because I was the only one who had to deal with the consequences, good or bad.

[End Dream Sequence]

Believe it or not that was some of the most freeing advice that I've ever gotten from anyone. As I was wrestling this week with choosing a job and leaving another behind, I was reminded of that moment. It was a tough choice because I put a final stamp on one chapter of my life and am taking a huge step into another. I said farewell to The Oconee Enterprise, which was difficult, and I am thankful and blessed for the experience gained over the past two and a half years. But I feel that this is my next move, I have a peace about it. Continue to pray for Megan and I as we both adjust to new job roles, and that God would lead us to a church where He would have us get involved and serve in.

*In case you're wondering, I accepted a job as a Graphic Designer with a company in Norcross, GA. That's more or less the Atlanta area for those who are not familiar with the area. I'm excited and ready to jump into this new role.

River Hills Conclusion

2010-04-21T20:49:00.004-04:00

As some of you may know, I have resigned as Worship Leader of River Hills Church. I am thankful for the opportunities and experiences that God has given me through this church plant.

It has been a blessing and an honor to see this church grow from a family of four to roughly 300+ people. It really is a movement of God. The relationships I've developed over the past several years will last me the rest of my life. I could never fully express my appreciation of the love and support I have recieved from the River Hills Church family.

Please pray for Megan and I as we seek God's direction for our lives during this time.

Set List for 04.18.10

2010-04-18T23:29:00.002-04:00

Marvelous Light - Charlie Hall

All Because of Jesus - Fee

Made to Worship - Chris Tomlin

All Creatures - David Crowder Band

I Stand Amazed - The Alleliua Ep version

New Music Wednesday - See Me Through

2010-04-14T15:45:00.004-04:00

See Me Through

I've really been looking forward to sharing this song with everyone. I wrote the chorus first and for several months couldn't finish the song. I guess it just had to marinate a little longer. It's kind of like checking the oven while you're waiting on a pizza to cook, or maybe some cookies. After the right amount of time the light goes off and everything makes sense.

Anyways, I digress. Let me know if you like it. I've been in the process of capturing some other ideas I have and even re-recording some music that I wrote in college. Enjoy this New Music Wednesday!

Set List for 04.11.10

2010-04-12T10:49:00.005-04:00

Rejoice - Chris Tomlin
We Will Not Be Shaken - River Hills Worship
All We Need - Charlie Hall
Jesus Paid It All - Kristian Stanfill
Jesus Messiah - Chris Tomlin

Easter Set List - 04.04.10

2010-04-05T14:42:00.003-04:00

We had a great worship experience yesterday at River Hills. We had 299 in attendance, and several decisions for Christ! If you weren't there you missed our guest worship leader, Matt Papa, who led us in a very authentic time of worship. Definitely check out Matt's website, find him on iTunes, do what you can to support his ministry. The world needs more guys like him!

Happy Day - Tim Hughes

Jesus Paid It All - Kristian Stanfill

Open Hands - Matt Papa

Stronger - Hillsong

Mighty to Save - Hillsong

Salvation is Here - Hillsong United

Losing My Religion Graphic

2010-04-01T16:43:00.004-04:00

So...Here is the Losing My Religion graphic. Contrary to my last post about the work flow and creative process, this was my first idea and first draft. Sometime things just come together the first time around. Usually the hardest part of design is resourcing pictures to use. You don't always have the ability to go out and take pictures of specific things. For instance in this graphic, I knew that I wanted angelic statues, but there aren't a lot of those available in Winder, GA. About six months ago I stumbled on this website with royalty-free pictures. I always change them or add something to them in some way before I use them. For example, the color is different, obviously, but I've also layered some different, more detailed stone textures over top just to spice it up a little.

I'm excited about this upcoming series, and what better time to start this than on Easter. If you're in the area come celebrate the resurrection of our Lord and Savor Jesus Christ this Easter at River Hills Church. We're going to have a blast, also joining us as a guest Worship Leader is Matt Papa, check his music out if you haven't already. It's going to be good.

Set List for 03.28.10

2010-03-29T14:35:00.002-04:00

10:45 a.m. Service

We Lift You Up - Jason Morant

How Great Thou Art - Charlie Hall

Beautiful Jesus - Kristian Stanfill

'Til I See You - Hillsong United

Everlasting God - Brenton Brown

Evening of Prayer and Worship - 6:30 p.m.

Everlasting God - Brenton Brown

How Great is Our God - Chris Tomlin

Jesus Messiah - Chris Tomlin

Doxology - David Crowder Band

Punk Rock is "Contagious"

2010-03-17T21:42:00.011-04:00

When I'm Ready

So for those who don't know, I was in a Punk Rock band during my high school years. It was a fun time. We called ourselves Contagious. At first, I'll admit, we were pretty terrible. But as we progressed as a band we came into our own. I've always regretted that the last several songs that we wrote didn't get recorded because they were some of our best material.

It all started when me and my best/life-long friend Chris Lee began to learn how to play the guitar. The Bible says that as iron sharpens iron so does one man sharpen another, and I think that applies to all areas of our lives, even learning the guitar and writing music. Looking back I think we pushed and challenged each other to get better. Soon drummer, Marc, and bassist, Matt, came into the picture and we had ourselves a band.

We soon came to the conclusion that in order to be a "real band" we needed to write our own music. So we did. And seeing how we were only 16 we wrote about the two most important things in our lives, Jesus and.......girls. The song above is called "When I'm Ready" it's kind of about both.

The biggest take away I had from my experience with Contagious was the bond, the brotherhood created within the context of a band. I think since then any band I've been apart of, worship related or not, I've tried to nurture that same aspect. Mainly because it's such an awesome thing to experience and be apart of(same goes for my River Hills musicians!)

The top picture was our promo with drummer, Marc, and below we have a picture of a concert we played on the beach-front with our second drummer, Patrick. Miss those days...

Set List for 03.14.10

2010-03-14T19:03:00.004-04:00

Sing to the King - Billy Foote

Nothing But the Blood - Brandt Farmer arrangement

Sing Sing Sing - Chris Tomlin

How Great is Our God - Chris Tomlin

We Bring You Praise - River Hills Worship

Glory to God Forever - Fee

Warrior Poets Graphic Revealed

2010-03-03T13:33:00.008-05:00

So Monday I finished up the graphic for the upcoming sermon series Warrior Poets: Biblical Manhood. I thought I'd share a little bit of my creative process with this particular graphic. Unfortunately, they don't come as easy as some may think. I had a screen writing professor in college compare an idea to a pile of crap with a golden nugget inside. Basically, you have to dig and sort through all the surrounding crap to get to the golden nugget. This process is very obvious in this particular graphic design.

The first image I thought of when I heard the phrase Warrior Poet was Mel Gibson's character from Braveheart. I like the vivid imagery of the blue war paint on his face. So I attempted to recreate that in a graphic. In my mind Warrior Poet is an oxymoron, so it needed an edge but also a softer, sensual quality. Usually 9 times out of 10, the first graphic is just there to work out the overall idea. Seen here, it's plainly a terrible graphic. Keep diggin' Brandt.

As I worked through this first I idea, I kept coming back to a western feel with Native American Indians. Shortly after that I had my "Ah Ha" moment and found my golden nugget in the shape of a feathered arrow(this only took me about a month). The warrior side would be an arrow and the poet side would be a fountain pen. Warrior. Poet. In turn as I designed the new graphic I moved from the western feel into more of a Frank Miller's 300, graphic novel type feel.

All in all I think it came out nicely, and a lot better than I could have expected. But isn't that how God works?

Set List for 02.28.10

2010-02-28T19:02:00.002-05:00

Hosanna(Praise is Rising) - Paul Baloche/Brenton Brown

Jesus Messiah - Chris Tomlin

You Are Enough - Elevation Worship

My Deliverer w/Everlasting God tag - Chris Tomlin

'Til I see You - Hillsong United

Top 12 most influential albums(Part 2)

2010-02-24T10:50:00.007-05:00

Just some background before I go any further with this post, a lot of people may be surprised to find that my interest in music didn't really begin until the mid '90s. As I have discovered all types and styles of music since then, I think I picked out the albums that best directly relate to my personal musical style. Here's the top 6.

6. New Found Glory - Sticks and Stone

For those of you who may not know, I was in a pop punk band throughout the majority of my high school career. That in itself is worthy of its own blog. In the beginning, we were horrible. But over time, we grew into our own skin. This album was one of the biggest influences on me in that particular musical stage of my life. I love the guitar riffs/rhythms. I had a chance to catch a show of theirs at The House of Blues in Myrtle Beach, SC. Their energy and stage presence was incredible. During the last song of the show, they encouraged people to jump up on stage. Of course the bouncers were against that idea, so NFG got mad at the bouncers. Eventually, chaos broke out and the stage was flooded with people(mostly teenagers). I think our bassist at the time ended up with a drum stick. Call it brand loyalty or what have you, but I've continued to invest in every album of their since.

5. Dave Matthews & Tim Reynolds - Live at Luther College

If you don't own this record, Go. Buy. It. Now. I picked this up as a senior in high school. I saw a VH1 Storytellers of these two guys and have been hooked ever since. I think most people would agree that Dave Matthews is on a higher level than most singer/songwriters. You know it's Dave when you hear that percussive acoustic riff. Only Dave can sing and scat the way he does and still get away with it being cool. Plus, adding a phenomenal guitarist like Tim Reynolds is just mind blowing. I can't believe that he(Tim) can play an acoustic with that much speed and still retain its clarity and voicing. My favorite song is probably Trippin' Billies, I just love the riff.

4. Delirious? - Mezzamorphis

This album belonged to my sister. As I went to visit her one summer in Columbia, SC, we were listening to this as we drove around. Somehow I ended up going home with this. If I'm not mistaken we traded cd's. I digress. For me, this was one of the records you put on repeat and listen to over and over again. Delirious? has a very unique sound and I would count them in as one of the pioneers of Christian rock, even some aspects of worship music. I remember plugging in my Epiphone SG into my little Peavey amp and working my way through this record. Deeper is one that stands out in my mind that I spent hours playing to. It's not typical music and I think that's why I was drawn to it.

3. Third Day - Time

Time is one of the first albums I was introduced and listening to when I first felt the calling on my life to get involved with performing/writing Christian music. Every song was solid. They all have a strong message, strong riffs and melodies. I've Always Love You, Your Love Oh Lord(Psalm 36), What Good, Sky Falls Down, and Give are my favorites if I had to narrow them down. Unfortunately after this record I started to grow away from Third Day. Can't explain it, I could but it would take too long, but I do have a lot of respect for their music and appreciate the impact they've had on me my life.

2. Brevada - This Too Shall Pass

This band, native to the Columbia, SC area and also formerly known at The Doc Sommers Band, rocked my world in high school and a little of my college life. They may have had the greatest impact on me as a whole being a young musician when I discovered them. First off, one of the coolest things about the band is the fact that the lead singer's mother played the drums. Yeah, it was awesome because she rocked out better than most. The guitars were aggressive yet extremely melodic. There was passion and authenticity in the lyrics, overall great music. Sadly, they dispersed in, I think, the spring of 2005. The lead singer, Mack Brock is currently on staff at Elevation Church in Charlotte. If you haven't heard any of the worship music coming out of Elevation, you should do that right now. You might even catch a hint of Brevada in the music.

1. Third Eye Blind - Third Eye Bling

This was my first real record purchase. I was a 7th grader and for my birthday had a gift card to a record store. I had heard Semi-Charmed Life on the radio and thought that it was a good enough reason for me to buy the cd. I can listen to this album at any time and all day long. I know the content is questionable for most middle schoolers(which is crazy cause that's when I bought this), but it's poppy. I like Pop Rock. The hooks/songs are great. No doubt. You'll be singing these songs long after you have listened to them. The guitar tones are superb. There are a lot of alternate tunings which gives it a very open feel. Favorite songs are Narcolepsy, Semi-Charmed Life, How's It Going to Be, you know actually every song is a favorite.

Other honorable mentions(in no particular order): Relient K - Mmhmm; Hootie & The Blowfish - Cracked Rear View; Jennifer Knapp - Lay It Down; Switchfoot - The Beautiful Letdown; Nickelback - All The Right Reasons; Shane & Shane - An Evening with Shane and Shane; Nine Days - The Madding Crowd; Erich Skelton - Some Other City; Dashboard Confessional - A Mark, A Mission, A Brand, A Scar; John Mayer - Heavier Things; Further Seems Forever - How to Start a Fire Disc 1; David Crowder Band - Illuminate, Story of the Year - Page Avenue; Maroon 5 - Songs About Jane

Set List for 02.21.10

2010-02-21T20:57:00.004-05:00

Sing to the King - Billy Foote

How Great Thou Art - Charlie Hall

Glory to God Forever - Fee

Beautiful Jesus - Kristian Stanfill

I Stand Amazed(How Marvelous) - Chris Tomlin

We Will Not Be Shaken - River Hills Worship

Top 12 most influential albums(Part 1)

2010-02-19T20:56:00.018-05:00

I've been wanting to write this post for a long time. I always get a lot of questions about my influences and what music I listen to. It's probably not going to be what you would expect. Sometimes I think people assume, as a worship leader, all I listen to is mainstream Christian music, which isn't entirely true. These albums have had the most impact on me musically and inspirationally. I'm going to split this into two posts in order to keep them shorter. This post fill be followed by another blog about my top 10 favorite/most influential worship albums for those who are interested in my favorite worship artists.

12. Lifehouse - No Name Face

I wore this cd out in high school. Hanging by a Moment was one of my favorites. They write great songs with great hooks, the kind that leave you humming the melodies for the rest of the day. And somehow this guy gets the thickest guitar tones that I've ever heard. Still trying to get mine to sound that good. I haven't made it a priority to see them live, but I'm really wanting to. I've heard they put on a solid show.

11. Edison Glass - A Burn or a Shiver

My good friend Chris Lee invited me to attend a concert with him in Charlotte one time while I was in college. Since Megan was there at school I made it a weekend trip with a rock show and some time with the future Mrs. Farmer. Just happened to be an Edison Glass concert. Changed my life. These four guys blew my mind with the live show. Killer guitar rythms and leads all meshed together with great hooks and melodies, I never get tired of listening to this record. You can bet that you'll catch yourself singing one of these songs at the top of your lungs while you're driving down the road too.

10. The Working Title - About-Face

I saw these guys for the first time as a freshman in college, found out they were from Charleston, SC. I've always tried to support the local music scene. Didn't get their full album until I was a junior. I wore this thing slap out. The vocalist has a very unique voice, but every song is strong. If I had to choose, I think The Mary Getaway (I Lost Everything) would be my favorite track on the album. But that's a tough choice to make.

9. Hillsong United - Look to You

Right when I felt I was in a drought of good worship music, here comes Hillsong United. I still have songs from this album in a regular rotation in my set lists. They have a sound that is completely their own, one that everyone else has tried to replicate, including me. But these songs connected with me on a very deep level and they still do today. Salvation is Here and 'Til I See You are two classics.

8. Jason Morant - Abandon

I stumbled across this album sometime around my sophomore year of college. It was extremely inspirational, and always motivates me to worship authentically and try to write songs out of that worship. I think that his version of I Love You Lord is genius. There is No One is probably my favorite worship song of all time. It basically states that there is no one like our God, so let's worship Him with all we have.

7. Derek Webb - She Must and Shall Go Free

Derek Webb is a very passionate songwriter. You may not recognize him, but since he is formerly of the group Caedmon's Call, I'm sure you'd recognize something that he's written if you've been listening to Christian music. This album is all about the church and it's flaws. It's very convicting yet encouraging at the same time. I got to meet him once and after talking with him I walked away with a greater appreciation for his music. Nobody Loves Me, Crooked Deep Down, Saint and Sinner, and Wedding Dress are four of my favorites on this album(hard to narrow that one down). I would cover Nobody Loves Me when I played shows in coffee houses.

Stay tuned to find out the top six...I know you're on the edge of your seat. I can tell.

Keeper of the Night Stand

2010-02-11T00:25:00.016-05:00

Meet Ted. You can call him Ted, Teddy, Theodore, Cat, or a few other choice names that I will keep to myself. He likes to perch himself on my night stand and one night Megan and I got tickled at him and nicknamed him Keeper of the Night Stand. He reminds me of the lion statues you see on either side of a driveway or something like that. Ted is the first cat that I've ever had. I've always been a dog person. My family have always been dog people. So there was a bit of a learning curve for me when I brought Ted home to live with us for Megan's birthday surprise. There are a few differences between cats and dogs that I've encountered.

1) When cats wag their tails, that doesn't mean they're happy. It's usually more of a warning. Example: Cat says as he swishes his tail, "I'm not a dog so stop rubbing my head that hard or I will tap into my ancient lion instincts and kick your —."

2) Dogs crave attention. Cats demand attention. Ted is a very affectionate cat, but usually when it's most convenient for him. The best example occurs in the morning time. The cat has associated the sound of our alarms in the morning with the fact that he is going to be fed soon. So in an attempt to speed up the process, he tries to wake us up by rubbing his head into our faces, this happens to be a form of affection for them, but at 7:00 o'clock in the morning it's just plain annoying.

3) I believe the saying "Cats Rule and Dogs Drool" is completely false. Whoever coined that phrase is/was an idiot. Cats may rule, but they drool far more than dogs. And to make matters worse, they prefer to rub the slobber on you, on your leg, hands, face, or anywhere that is in a neck's reach. I understand they are marking their territory and showing affection all at the same time. But cut me some slack, and don't rub your drool on my nose, it's gross and it stinks.

However, over the past five months or so I've grown very attached to this cat. I think most any pet brings joy to a family and Ted definitely brightens up our lives. I could fill a blog just about the crazy things this cat does on a day-to-day basis. He's chilled with me even as I've written this blog. I never thought I'd feel this way, but he definitely makes me a cat-person.

Set List for 02.07.10

2010-02-07T18:49:00.005-05:00

Everlasting God - Brenton Brown

You Are Enough - Elevation Worship

Glory to God Forever - Fee

How Great is Our God - Chris Tomlin

We Bring You Praise* - River Hills Worship

We Lift You Up - Jason Morant/Paul Baloche

*If you missed out on The Alleluia Ep you can find "We Bring You Praise" on it, and you can find it here.

Floods of Grace

2010-02-04T00:58:00.008-05:00

I had a chance to read through the story of Noah, and just like before, it doesn't matter how many times I read this story something new always hits me like a ton of bricks. Here's my brief summary of Noah and the Ark:

God became disappointed in man. God found favor in Noah. God told Noah to build an Ark and collect two of every animal. Noah obeyed God. The floods came. The floods left. The Ark settled on dry land. Noah offered praise to God. God was pleased, blessed Noah, and made this promise:

"I have set my bow in the cloud, and it shall be a sign of the covenant between me and the earth. When I bring clouds over the earth and the bow is seen in the clouds, I will remember my covenant that is between me and you and every living creature of all flesh. And the waters shall never again become a flood to destroy all flesh. When the bow is in the clouds, I will see it and remember the everlasting covenant between God and every living creature of all flesh that is on the earth." —Genesis 9:13-16 ESV

As I read this the other day all I could think about was Jesus. I always find it fascinating to see allusions to Jesus in the Old Testament, an added support to the fact that God had a plan of redemption from the very beginning. For the true believers in Christ, God looks upon us and sees His son Jesus. He are covered in the blood of Christ. Just as God sees the rainbow and is reminded of the covenant He made with Noah and all living things, He looks on us and sees Jesus and that we are redeemed through that relationship. When we mess up and give into our sinful natures, God doesn't seek to destroy us but shows us grace. It's a beautiful thing.

Mercy

2010-02-01T13:27:00.010-05:00

Today I started a new chronological Bible reading plan, so obviously I started in Genesis. It seems over the course of my life I've probably read this book a dozen times and heard many sermons and talks on it as well. But it never seems to amaze me that something new and very relevant pops out at me.

At the end of the third chapter God is about to banish Adam and Eve from the Garden of Eden after their disobedience(sin). However, I found it interesting what he does just before that.

"And the Lord God made for Adam and for his wife garments of skins and clothed them." Genesis 3:21 ESV

I think it is so cool that God in the midst of our sin and consequences takes the take to provide for our need. He is mercy and He is faithful.

*One struggle I have in my personal bible study time is knowing what to read. Sometime you have to get yourself on a plan. I hate scheduling things but you do what you have to do. Anyway if you need a good resource for reading guides or plans, check out this website. It's definitely one of the best resources I've come across lately and if you're really tech-savvy they have apps for your phone. When it's this easy you can't have any excuse when it come to studying your Bible.

Set List for 01.31.10

2010-01-31T16:44:00.003-05:00

All Because of Jesus - Fee

My Deliverer - Chris Tomlin

Glory to God Forever - Fee

Hosanna - Hillsong United

Mighty to Save - Hillsong

We Will Not Be Shaken - River Hills Worship

Set List for 01.24.10

2010-01-24T18:59:00.004-05:00

Sing Sing Sing - Chris Tomlin

Hosanna - Hillsong United

Salvation is Here - Hillsong United

Heart of Worship - Matt Redman

From the Inside Out - Hillsong United

Set List for 01.17.09

2010-01-17T19:00:00.004-05:00

Run - Hillsong

Sing to the King - Billy Foote

How Great Thou Art - Charlie Hall

Lead Me to the Cross - Hillsong United

From the Inside Out - Hillsong United

Hosanna(Praise is Rising) - Paul Baloche/Brenton Brown

Set List for 01.10.10

2010-01-11T10:50:00.003-05:00

Salvation is Here - Hillsong United

How Great Thou Art - Charlie Hall

We Will Not Be Shaken - River Hills Worship(available on The Alleluia EP)

Beautiful Jesus - Kristian Stanfill

There is No One - Jason Morant

We Lift You Up - Jason Morant/Paul Baloche

Free Ep Download!!!!

2010-01-06T11:26:00.012-05:00

Hey guys. Here is the second installment of New Music Wednesday. Although not all of this music is new, some of them are hymns, it is FREE! Megan(my lovely wife) and I are broke church planter and didn't have much money for Christmas presents this year so we decided to record a few hymns and a couple of original songs for our family and dear friends. Since it's expensive to make everyone we know a CD, I had a brilliant idea to post this link, click here or on the graphic above, so that everyone and anyone can get there hands on it. We hope you enjoy this and please share it with your friends!

***You should be able to right-click on the link and then click "Download Linked File" or "Save Target As" or some other form of that phrase. You'll be downloading a .zip file of a folder with the music inside. There are six songs, four hymns, and two originals.

The Alleluia EP

1. I Stand Amazed(How Marvelous)

2. The Solid Rock

3. How Deep the Father's Love for Us

4. All Creatures of our God and King

5. We Will Not Be Shaken

6. We Bring You Praise

Set List for 01.03.10

2010-01-06T10:12:00.003-05:00

We welcomed on staff, Spencer Breedlove and his family this week. He was able to share his heart with us during this past Sunday. His message will be available online later this week. Here is the set list:

All Because of Jesus - Fee

Sing to the King - Billy Foote

Mighty to Save - Hillsong

Beautiful Jesus - Kristian Stanfill

Everlasting God - Brenton Brown

Set List for 12.13.09

2009-12-15T11:29:00.004-05:00

All Creation Sing(Joy to the World) - Fee

Today is the Day - Lincoln Brewster

Run - Hillsong

Do You Hear What I Hear? - River Hills Worship arrangement

Jesus Messiah - Chris Tomlin

O Come All Ye Faithful - River Hills Worship arrangement

Set List for 12.06.09

2009-12-08T19:47:00.004-05:00

O Come All Ye Faithful - River Hills Worship arrangment

Angel We Have Heard on High/Here is Our King - River Hills Worship arrangement

We Will Not Be Shaken - River Hills Worship

Here I am to Worship - Tim Hughes

Prepare the Way - Charlie Hall

'Till I See You - Hillsong United

Glory to God Forever - Fee

Set List for 11.29.09

2009-11-30T15:14:00.003-05:00

Hey guys, we had a great Sunday yesterday! We announced the identity of our new Executive Pastor who will be joining our staff at the beginning of the new year. We are exited to add Spencer Breedlove to our team and the River Hills family. I know that God will use Spencer in great ways here at River Hills. You can check out Spencer's blog here, post some love on his wall and let him know you're praying for him!

Here is our Set from Sunday:

Hosanna(Praise is Rising) - Paul Baloche/Brenton Brown

Awesome is the Lord Most High - Chris Tomlin

Here is Our King - David Crowder

We Bring You Praise - River Hills Worship

I Stand Amazed - Chris Tomlin

Everlasting God - Brenton Brown

Set List for 11.22.09

2009-11-24T09:45:00.004-05:00

We Lift You Up - Jason Morant

Sing Sing Sing - Chris Tomlin

Sing to the King - Billy Foote

Heart of Worship - Matt Redman

We Bring You Praise - River Hills Worship

Glory to God Forever - Fee

Set List for 11.15.09

2009-11-17T10:13:00.004-05:00

We Lift You Up - Jason Morant

Run - Hillsong

Hosanna(Praise is Rising) - Paul Baloche/Brenton Brown

Redeemer - River Hills Worship

I Stand Amazed - Chris Tomlin

You are God - Charlie Hall

Set List for 11.08.09

2009-11-10T01:07:00.003-05:00

Today is the Day - Lincoln Brewster/Paul Baloche

Run - Hillsong

Sing to the King - Billy Foote

Joyous Light - Chris Tomlin

The Wondrous Cross - Chris Tomlin/Matt Redman

Marvelous Light - Charlie Hall

Set List for 11.01.09

2009-11-02T12:20:00.002-05:00

We had a great day at River Hills yesterday. Make sure you're there earlier than normal as we are trying our best to get started on time! We've added an additional song to the beginning of the set to allow people a few more moments to get into the worship center. I hope everyone has a great week!

Awesome is the Lord Most High - Chris Tomlin

We Will Not Be Shaken - River Hills Worship

Made to Worship - Chris Tomlin

How Great is Our God - Chris Tomlin

Lead Me to the Cross - Hillsong United

Mighty to Save - Hillsong

Set List for 10.25.09

2009-10-26T11:02:00.003-04:00

All Things New - Elevation Worship

Awesome is the Lord Most High - Chris Tomlin

My Deliverer - Chris Tomlin

God of This City - Bluetree/Chris Tomlin

Center - Charlie Hall

Set List for 10.18.09

2009-10-21T14:43:00.003-04:00

Today is the Day - Lincoln Brewster

Here is our King - David Crowder

Jesus Messiah - Chris Tomlin

From the Inside Out - Hillsong United

We Will Not Be Shaken - River Hills Worship

New Music...Wednesday?

2009-10-14T22:43:00.004-04:00

Most everyone expects something new on Tuesday. Movies are released to DVD on Tuesday, and most all music records are dropped on Tuesday. Well, unfortunately for me, Tuesday don't fit well in my schedule to share new music. So today I'm introducing New Music Wednesday.

Wednesdays are the day that I set aside time to practice and prepare musically for Sunday morning worship, but also to spend time writing music that relates to River Hills as a church, and what God is revealing to me in my own life.

New Music Wednesday probably wont happen every week, but I'll do the best I can! So here is a new song, it's called We Bring You Praise.

We Bring You Praise
[verse 1]
we bring you praise, we bow our hearts
we set you high, above our thoughts
My King You reign, God of all
we bring your praise, we bow our hearts

[chorus]
glory and honor, strength and power
majesty our king eternal
You are god always faithful
we give our songs to glorify
we bring you praise, we bring you praise

[verse 2]
we rest our hope in your love
we know that you have overcome
may your kingdom reign over all
we bring you praise, we bow our hearts

[bridge]
you are holy, you are mighty
you are holy lord

Set List for 10.11.09

2009-10-12T11:47:00.003-04:00

Everlasting God - Brenton Brown

Marvelous Light - Charlie Hall

Glory to God Forever - Fee

How Great is Our God - Chris Tomlin

Beautiful Jesus - Kristian Stanfill

YouTube Project

2009-10-07T02:56:00.003-04:00

So I made a decision tonight that I'm going to start posting some videos on YouTube of some of my original music. I've got a good many songs that I haven't really shared, and feel like it's time. You can even find some of them on Myspace.

For the past couple of years I've wanted to record a serious album(as far as quality) and I was thinking this would be a good way to see which songs people like and identify with the most. Hopefully, I'll try to post at least two a week. I'll make sure they're referenced here as well as on Twitter and Facebook.

Check them out and please let me know what you think! Here is the first song I've posted, it's called When Songs Are Not Enough. I'm house-sitting for The Martin's this week, which actually makes for a cool video set!

Set List for 10.04.09

2009-10-05T12:19:00.004-04:00

Wow, it's October already, can't believe it. We mixed things up with an acoustic set, and instead of it being me by myself, Robert and Travis joined me. It was cool and different. Here's what we played:

Rejoice - Chris Tomlin
Hosanna(Praise is Rising) - Paul Baloche/Brenton Brown
Jesus Messiah - Chris Tomlin
'Till I See You - Hillsong United
Glory to God Forever - Steve Fee

Set List for 09.27.09

2009-09-28T11:37:00.003-04:00

Hey guys we had a record breaking Sunday in church attendance this week as we kicked off our amped up Children's Ministry! Here is the set from yesterday:

Salvation is Here - Hillsong United
We Will Not Be Shaken - River Hills Worship
Jesus Messiah - Chris Tomlin
Mighty to Save - Hillsong
Sing Sing Sing - Chris Tomlin

Set List for 09.20.09

2009-09-21T11:42:00.003-04:00

We Will Not Be Shaken - River Hills Worship(lyrics and video below)
Glory to God, Forever - Fee
Mighty to Save - Hillsong
Beautiful Jesus - Kristian Stanfill

We were able to introduce a new original River Hills Worship song this week! It's titled We Will Not Be Shaken. It's taken pretty straight out of Psalm 62. God is our rock and our salvation, He is our refuge and we will not be shaken. This song is an anthem that testifies to that truth as it resonates in our lives.

For God alone, O my soul, wait in silence, for my hope is from him. He only is my rock and my salvation, my fortress; I shall not be shaken. On God rests my salvation and my glory; my mighty rock, my refuge is God. Trust in him at all times, O people; pour out your heart before him; God is a refuge for us. - Psalm 62:5-8

We Will Not Be Shaken
[CHORUS]
You are our rock and we will not be shaken
We belong to You, we belong to You
You are our hope and our salvation
We belong to You, we belong to You

[VERSE 1]
Trust in Him at all times
Pour your hearts out before Him

[PRE-CHORUS]
He is a refuge for us
God, You are a refuge for us

[VERSE 2]
God, You are our Glorious One
Upon Your rock, we lay down our hearts

[BRIDGE]
You are powerful, and steadfast in love

Deeper: Day #3

2009-09-17T02:03:00.004-04:00

So I just wrapped up Day #3 of the River Hills Deeper: New Testament Challenge, and I thought I would share something that stuck out to me. *you can download a reading guide here.

On Labor Day we had one of our fine Interns, Will, preach while Chip was on vacation. He spoke on the story of Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego and the fiery furnace. Most everyone knows the general story. But the three men had this response to the king when threatened with death for not worshiping an image of gold.

"If we are thrown into the blazing furnace, the God we serve is able to save us from it, and he will rescue us from your hand, O king. But even if he does not, we want you to know, O king, that we will not serve your gods or worship the image of gold you have set up." - Daniel 3:17-18 *read it in context here.

I say that to say that I've had this on my mind the past several weeks. I've questioned myself many times with the question, "Do I believe God is able to save me from whatever situation I am in?" I know this to be true, but sometimes...ok, most times, I find it hard to trust God and not rely on my own strength, which tends to fail me always.

I'm sure you're asking yourself what this has to do with the New Testament Challenge...

I came across a passage in Matthew when a leper comes to Jesus and says, "Lord, if you will, you can make me clean." Jesus reached out his hand, and touched him, saying, "I will, be clean."

These two passages are different in their own right but I find them similar. I think it's a matter of perspective. It's one thing to say, "God WILL save us." and then if it's not in His will, it's easy to be angry, disgruntled, or disappointed. But saying,"God is able to save us...and even if He doesn't we will still be obedient," is a completely different outlook, and one, if I might add, that is a lot more freeing.

It's quite humbling for me to say in my heart God is able, because I'm taking the control out of my hands and placing it in His. Sometimes there is nothing more gut-wrenching than knowing that you're not in control of whatever the situation may be. For instance, some people have a hard time riding in a car when they are not driving. Even with a professional driver, the lack of control could "drive" them crazy. But how do I change my heart about this and have an attitude of God is able, if God is willing...

Tonight I imagined being a leper, having no other options, completely desperate but completely believing that this Man is able to cleanse me.(Most of my situations aren't that desperate, so it is a great reminder for me.) As a broken man at the end of his rope, I would not demand healing but recognize the power and authority of Christ in my situation and state, "If you will, you can make me clean."

The hard truth about this is even if God doesn't, He is still God, He is still Holy and Just. Let that become our perspective.

Set List for 09.13.09

2009-09-14T11:16:00.005-04:00

Doxology - David Crowder Band
Hosanna(Praise is Rising) - Paul Baloche/Brenton Brown
Not to Us - Chris Tomlin
All Creatures - David Crowder Band
My King - River Hills Worship
Marvelous Light - Charlie Hall

Set List for 09.06.09

2009-09-08T11:14:00.002-04:00

Hey guys, hope everyone enjoyed their Labor Day Weekend! We had a great service this past week, the energy level was incredible. Here is the set list:

Awesome is the Lord Most High - Chris Tomlin
Marvelous Light - Charlie Hall
Glory to God Forever - Fee
How Great is Our God - Chris Tomlin
All We Need - Charlie Hall

Set List for 08.30.09

2009-08-31T14:09:00.003-04:00

Sing sing sing - Chris Tomlin
We Lift You Up - Jason Morant
Beautiful Jesus - Kristian Stanfill
'Till I See You - Hillsong United
Everlasting God - Brenton Brown

Set List for 08.23.09

2009-08-24T11:44:00.005-04:00

Today is the Day - Lincoln Brewster/Paul Baloche
Salvation is Here - Hillsong United
Heart of Worship - Matt Redman
Center - Charlie Hall
Beautiful Jesus - Kristian Stanfill

If you haven't made it out to River Hills in the past several weeks, I hate to say that you're missing out. God's really been showing up in a mighty way during the entire worship service. I focused on a verse of scripture that struck me last weekend.

Psalms 86:11 says, "Teach me your way, O Lord; and I will walk in your truth; give me an undivided heart, that I may fear your name."

That was our prayer during worship this Sunday for us to trust in God and stand firm on His truth.

Lazy Daze Music Festival

2009-08-17T11:45:00.006-04:00

So this past Saturday was the first time the band and I ventured outside of River Hills to play music. The City of Winder put on a three-part music festival this summer, one in June, July, and August. It just so happened that the event in August was slated to be a more Christian oriented event, which worked out great for us considering that's what we do.

Let me just start by telling you that the guys I play with are certified Rock Stars. We were at the festival from 4 p.m. til about 9:30 p.m. Then, everyone was at church the next day around 7:30 a.m. to set up and get ready for the worship service. Their willingness to serve and their unfailing commitment blows me away every time.

The coolest moment at Lazy Daze for me was during the song How Great Thou Art. First off this song is about the raw power and authority of God. At times I feel that I forget exactly how powerful and sovereign God is. I didn't hear any thunder Saturday, but I did in fact see lightning on the horizon as I was singing these words.

I see the stars, I hear the rolling thunder, Thy power throughout the universe displayed

A chill definitely ran down my spine. I was scared there for a second, realizing that I was not only holding a guitar made with a lot of metal pieces but also surrounded by things that were very fine conductors of electricity, and they were all over the stage. Another cool thing was nobody could actually see the lightning, because it was behind them.

The band could see it clearly.

Thinking through this point just as I am writing this, it maybe more for worship and church leaders. Often times we have a front row seat to see all that God is doing and wants us to do. And it is our job to point them in God's direction. Through our music and words we describe Jesus to them and as we begin to lift high His name people will follow us. We see first hand the awesome power of God and communicate that through whatever medium we were trained and gifted to use. It was a great reminder for me in many ways.

Sorry to get on a tangent, but here are some pics,the set, and a video from Saturday! If you want to see more videos of the band go here.

Set List:
Today is the Day - Lincoln Brewster/Paul Baloche
All Things New - Elevation Worship
All We Need - Charlie Hall
We Lift You Up - Paul Baloche
How Great Thou Art - Charlie Hall
From the Inside Out - Hillsong United
Mighty to Save - Hillsong
Lead Me to the Cross - Hillsong United
All Because of Jesus - Fee
Everlasting God - Brenton Brown
Glory to God Forever - Fee

Set List for 08.16.09

2009-08-17T11:34:00.005-04:00

All Because of Jesus - Fee
Marvelous Light - Charlie Hall
Glory to God Forever - Fee
My Deliverer - Chris Tomlin
From the Inside Out - Hillsong United

It was a great Sunday yesterday! God is ever faithful to us as He continues to show up and reveal Himself. Here is a video from the previous Sunday (08.09.09) if you missed out. Check out the new lighting and let us know what you think!

Set List for 08.09.09

2009-08-10T12:43:00.008-04:00

WOW!

That's all that I can say regarding worship yesterday. It was pretty incredible, by far the best service that we've ever had at River Hills. I've got to give it up to the band. They especially sounded great and came ready to rock it out. You may not realize how much time and effort they put into Sunday mornings, but we are truly blessed to have some of the best and most committed musicians involved with our worship team.

We finally got our new lighting set up and the difference that it made was unmeasurable. The energy was great and it was an amazing experience to worship such an awesome God with so many wonderful people.

Since we started our Deadliest Catch: Anchoring Your Marriage sermon series, we thought we would kick off the service with fun song. Megan rocked it out!(I'm married to her by the way, how cool is that?) Here is the set from Sunday. (if you missed it you can download Chip's message here)

Set List:
Love Story - Taylor Swift
Sing, Sing, Sing - Chris Tomlin
Made to Worship - Chris Tomlin
How Great is Our God - Chris Tomlin
My King - River Hills Worship
Hosanna(Praise is Rising) - Paul Baloche/Brenton Brown

Let's See How Far We've Come...

2009-08-07T12:56:00.009-04:00

Every Tuesday at The Oconee Enterprise when I finish work, I fill out a time sheet. In my normal routine of the past 20 or so months, I drop my time sheet in the shelf on the General Manager's door. However, being concerned with shutting off the lights and making sure the door was locked, I simply carried the time sheet with me out the door. As I sat in my car I realized that my time sheet was still in my hand. Not having a key, there was nothing I could do.

Out of the 20 some months I've been an employee at The Enterprise this is only the second time that I have misplaced my time sheet. The Manager blames it on me recently getting married stating with a chuckle, "You've got one more thing to think about, so I guess your time sheet got knocked off the list."

Seems logical.

I say all this to say that I made an extra trip to Watkinsville this morning to return my time sheet to its rightful place in the universe...and so I'll have a paycheck awaiting my arrival next Tuesday. Since I was going to be in the area, I decided to spend some time in one of my favorite places, Panera Bread.

There is a point this, so stay with me.

Starting in September of 2007, I moved to Georgia, returning to the land of my fathers. The reason was simply to help plant a church, River Hills. In the beginning of a church plant, there may not be enough resources to supply certain things such as office space. And seeing how one of the coolest, and only coffee house in Winder with free wi-fi closed, my only resort was to drive to either Athens or Lawrenceville and work out of Panera. Consistently sweet tea and delicious tomato soup had everything to do with this decision. Although, most times I would just order a glass of sweet tea, and with a self-serve drink fountain I'm sure I've drank my weight in tea as I sat there and worked for some 6 hours at a time. I would say most all of the first sermon series graphics took form in this layed-back atmospheric establishment.

Now since the Spring of 2009, River Hills is able to support it's own office space. Which really is a great thing. It gives us a presence in the community and helps us(the staff) be a little more organized. It is a place to make our own by covering the walls with white dry-erase boards.

It's little things like having an office that help you see the progress that River Hills Church is having. It's not much, but I've heard from some respectable church leaders that slow, steady progress is the best way to grow.

The irony in this blog is that every now and then, when the day feels just right, even though we finally have an office, I have the urge to spend a day working in Panera. In a sense, it's a monument, for me, in the life of River Hills that reminds me of the small victories we've had and seen as a church.

Set List for 08.02.09

2009-08-03T11:20:00.016-04:00

Unchanging - Chris Tomlin
Joyful, Joyful(We Adore Thee) - Charlie Hall
Nothing but the Blood - Brandt Farmer Arrangement
Center - Charlie Hall
Hosanna(Praise is Rising) - Paul Baloche/Brenton Brown

Sorry if there was any confusion in my last blog about something special for this past Sunday.

Let me explain.

This coming week(08.09.09) we're going to officially have lighting!!! No more bright gym lights! Unfortunately we were going to try to have a dry run this past Sunday, but we've had a lot of issues with the shipping of said lights. So I'm sorry if I was Lucy and pulled the football away from you, Charlie Brown. Anyway, great things coming this week.

We start our new marriage series, "Deadliest Catch: Anchoring Your Marriage." Being a newly-wed, I'm looking forward to seeing what Biblical principles I can apply to my marriage. It's going to be good, don't miss out!

Set List for 07.26.09

2009-07-27T14:14:00.003-04:00

Our Elevate Series has been very enlightening. It's all about worship. This past Sunday we talked about Giving our best. You can catch the sermon if you missed it here. There's something cool, and a first for River Hills, in store for you this coming Sunday. Be there, this is an exciting time for our church! Here is the set for this past week.

Rejoice - Chris Tomlin
Made to Worship - Chris Tomlin
Yearn - Shane & Shane
How Great is Our God (tag bridge and chorus only) - Chris Tomlin
Beautiful Jesus - Kristian Stanfill

Set List for 07.19.09

2009-07-21T19:41:00.004-04:00

We Lift You Up - Jason Morant
This is the Air I Breathe - River Hills Worship Arrangement
Mighty to Save - Hillsong
Heart of Worship - Matt Redman
Glory to God Forever - Fee

New Graphics on Flickr/Explaination of Deadliest Catch Graphic

2009-07-16T15:10:00.011-04:00

Lately I've been spending a lot of time reading and watching tutorials for Adobe Photoshop and Illustrator, trying to stay on top of my game. It's so easy to get comfortable with a certain technique or style. This is my way of staying fresh with my designs. I've found a great site with some cool tutorials and even some screencasts of those tutorials. The tips and tricks you learn are far more valuable than the art that is created. It's a cool way for other artists to share their designs and why they chose certain methods over others during their creative process. Also for me, it's a great way to see what others are doing and keeping up with the times. I'm only two years out of college and already so many things have changed.

With all this said I've decided to post some of the River Hills Graphics on Flickr. If you look on the sidebar to the right you'll see the lastest six designs. If you click on one of those it should take you to the site where you can see all of them and even leave critics and comments. If you happen to be a friend on Facebook, I've also started a photo album there.

Below is the graphic for our upcoming Sermon Series on Marriage. Chip wanted to use the theme of Deadliest Catch (the TV Show). So I did my best to imulate a stormy sea scene. The final product was a composite of around seven different pictures (seen below the actual graphic). It took a lot of cloning, color adjustments, masking effects, and photo filters to get everything to take shape and blend together. Here are a few different tutorials that I refered to before and during this process, tut 1, tut 2, tut 3, and tut 4. When all is said and done, I would estimate that it took me somewhere around 10 hours, from beginnig to end, to complete this graphic. One reason it took me a little longer than normal was the fact that I was teaching myself and learning new techniques as I created this piece.

Set List for 07.12.09

2009-07-14T13:40:00.001-04:00

Here is our King - David Crowder
Awesome is the Lord Most High - Chris Tomlin
You Are God - Charlie Hall
My Deliverer - Chris Tomlin
Holy is the Lord - Chris Tomlin

Set List for 07.05.09

2009-07-09T11:56:00.003-04:00

So this past Sunday had a quite interesting set. Unfortunately, I broke a string on my guitar in the middle of the second song, and didn't play every song scheduled. But here is the set.

Unchanging - Chris Tomlin
Raise up the Crown - Chris Tomlin
Desperation - not sure of the artist, I picked this song up from a friend.

Despite the string-breaking fiasco, it was still a sweet time of worship. I feel God moving more and more in the life of River Hills and the lives of His people.

p.s. Worked on a new song last night, hopefully next week I can have something posted to share it. It will probably be up on MySpace and Facebook today!

Set List for 06.28.09

2009-06-29T10:19:00.003-04:00

Today is the Day - Lincoln Brewster
All We Need - Charlie Hall
I Stand Amazed(O How Marvelous) - Chris Tomlin
'Til I See You - Hillsong United

Set List for 06.21.09

2009-06-22T13:51:00.003-04:00

All Things New - Elevation Worship
Beautiful Jesus - Kristian Stanfill
Let God Arise - Chris Tomlin
This is the Air I Breathe - River Hills Worship Arrangement
From the Inside Out - Hillsong United

Trials, Tribulations, and Treadmills

2009-04-29T13:27:00.005-04:00

trib⋅u⋅la⋅tion [trib-yuh-ley-shuhn] –noun
1. grievous trouble; severe trial or suffering.
2. an instance of this; an affliction, trouble, etc.

I happen to be an optimist, I don't know why, I can't help it. It's just who I am. Whether I've always seen the glass half full or whether I was taught to look at it that way beats me. Going through trials in my life so far has been fairly easy. Being older, however, it's a little bit harder. The tribulations are bigger, more complex, and have heftier consequences. In a perfect world, there would be no trials, but would that be a good thing? We would never grow as individuals, as Christians.

I've been directed to a couple of verses in James today, and it has really shed some light on my life and the season that I feel I'm in and fixing to break out of. If you need, you can read the first chapter of James in its entirety here.

James 1: 2-4

Consider it pure joy, my brothers, whenever you face trials of many kinds, because you know that the testing of your faith develops perseverance. Perseverance must finish its work so that you may be mature and complete, not lacking anything.

In the month of March I had a short stint with a personal trainer as I wanted to get in a little better shape for the big day coming up on May 30. One thing I learned on the last session was that your body will get use to a workout routine. You will "plateau" and not see the same results you did when you first started. That's when you mix it up, confuse/shock your body. Changing things around causes your body to adjust, and as a result you break out of the slump and start getting stronger again, but at a higher level.

I see this is exactly what God allows to happen in our lives as we get use to a routine. We grow stagnant, and then God throws us a curve ball to get us moving, growing. And as a result we become stronger as people, in our avenue of life, and the next time it happens we are able to handle more "weight" from whatever life can throw at us.

Church Culture

2009-03-10T11:33:00.004-04:00

So I started reading this book this week on discipleship, and it has definitely got my head spinning with several issues. The biggest issue that has been brought to my attention is the idea of the church culture. Why does that issue raise so much anxiety in heart?

I feel, and have seen, over the past 10 years of my life, that Christians have created an entire culture, a bubble so to speak, that hinders any contact with non-believer/the rest of the world. Is that bad? Not entirely. I definitely think that a strong community of believers is important to the spiritual growth of any believer. But it is devastating when there is no outlet for one to share their faith. I am walking a thin line by writing this because sharing my faith has been a big struggle for me my whole life, especially in college when all my activities outside of class revolved around a church or Christian organizations.

I say all that to say this. Are we hindering non-believers from knowing/experiencing Jesus Christ because they first have to conform to a culture created by Christians and the Church? Are people uncomfortable with taking the first step in coming to church because they feel they need to dress/act/speak/appear a certain way? Must they jump through flaming hoops before they are able to see Jesus for who He really is?

I wonder how the spiritual temperature of the Church would change if people were able to be transformed by the saving grace of Christ, rather than first being converted to this fake culture, a facade, put on by Christians as a whole.

All this may sound harsh, and I am no one to criticize the Christian culture, which I've been apart of my entire life. But being involved in a church plant, it has been a challenge to take myself out of that thought process, out of that bubble, and see the issues some people have with the current church and try to overcome those issues to reach people for Jesus. Looking from the inside of the Christian bubble it is real easy to see the problems and shortcomings of the world. But it's not easy to see what's wrong with yourself. I think to understand how to reach people we have to first understand why we are not reaching people. Minimizing the noise between the gospel and people would minimize the confusion of the outside view of the Christian world, allowing the gospel to speak more directly to the hearts who need the good news more than a makeover.

River Hills Church wants to be a church with a culture that brings Truth and people together, that brings Jesus and people together with as little noise in between as possible. We are simply human, we make mistakes and have a distorted view of life and the world, but it's all about the journey, it's about reaching and striving to know and live like Jesus.

Church Planters Conference/"I think God is going to be awesome!"

2009-02-25T13:55:00.005-05:00

So this week has been crazy already. Churchplanters.com puts on an annual conference up at Mountain Lake Church in Cumming, GA. I was able to go last year, enjoyed it and looked forward to it this year. Since Chip came down with pneumonia last week, it was up to me and Chance to carry out on our own. So we met at Chick-fil-a Monday morning and had breakfast, then headed to Cumming from the Discover Mills area. To make a long story shorter we missed the road off of Hwy 400 and stopped at a gas station, almost in Dahlonega, for gas and directions. As I looked up directions on my phone, Chance began to start pumping gas. A few seconds later he opens the door and says,

"Hey Brandt, how do I turn on the gas pump?"
"Push the button," I replied without looking up from my phone.
"I don't see it, where?" Chance said frantically.

So I turned around and there is a big white rectangle that says Push Here to Start. There's no need to go any further into that. A picture is worth a thousand words.

So we were on our way back from the conference, Tuesday around lunch time because I have to be back for the newspaper, when we began discussing God and what he is going to be like.

"I see God as a Zeus figure, throwing lightning bolts whenever He does something." Chance said enthusiastically.

[Sound effects included when describing God throwing lightning bolts]
"I hope God is muscular and has facial hair," he added after a moment of reflection.
He ended with this statement, which is a classic quote. " I think God is going to be awesome."

Now, obviously that came out wrong. But it was hilarious, and I began to think about that later last night and came up with this. So many times in my life I think God is "going to" be awesome. Looking ahead of myself wanting God to do something so big, and so great that it's beyond my imagination. I simply forget about what God is doing around me, through me, and through River Hills....I think Chance is awesome.

Set List for 01.04.09

2009-01-08T18:19:00.004-05:00

Sorry if I've gotten slack on posting the set lists, but with a new year comes resolutions about that kind of thing. So here we go... I really feel like the band is starting to come into their own. A lot of hard work is beginning to pay off, and I feel the band is starting to see that.

Awesome is the Lord Most High - Chris Tomlin - See the Morning
Made to Worship - Chris Tomlin - See the Morning
How Great is Our God - Chris Tomlin - Arriving
I Stand Amazed(How Marvelous) - Hymn
Mighty to Save - Hillsong - Mighty to Save

I've been listening to a worship planning seminar from Nelson Searcey at this church and one thing he said caught my attention this week. He said that Excellence isn't perfection, it's giving God your best. This hit home this week as I screwed up the first chord of the song posted below. I guess it was little reassuring that I can still strive to be excellent.

Christmas Service

2008-12-29T20:54:00.003-05:00

I hope everyone has had a great Christmas Holiday. River Hills kicked Christmas off with our Christmas service on Sunday night, December 21. God blew me away in every aspect of the service. We had 140+ people which is our highest attendance yet, and 1 person expressed interest in beginning a relationship with Christ. That was definitely the best part.

Here is "We Celebrate You" from the Christmas Service. God always reminds me that He is in control and in charge. In the morning service we were playing this song and right before the end of the song, we tripped a breaker and lost all power. That's the first time that had happened to us. But instead of getting frustrated or mad, you have to smile and give God recognition that He is in control.

****We are still working on some new original material, writing and getting them recorded. So be on the look out for some type of cd coming hopefully by mid-to-late Summer 2009.

"We Celebrate You" Videocast

2008-12-10T18:45:00.006-05:00

Yep, I'm a slacker

2008-12-09T20:11:00.003-05:00

So, it's been awhile since I've posted...well anything on here. However, there are some cool things in the works right now in the world of Brandt and River Hills. I'm currently working on a new Christmas song(a road I've never traveled before) and also trying to record that. Just the recording part has been a daunting feat in itself. That's a separate post altogether. I plan on attempting to finish up the recording tomorrow, and if I play my cards right, there may be the first video blog for your viewing pleasure.

Again sorry for my slackness, but I think it will be well worth the wait...hopefully.

Set List for 11.16.08

2008-11-17T22:10:00.004-05:00

Hey guys here is the set list for this past Sunday. Looking forward to this upcoming Sunday, we'll be partaking in communion, always a great worship experience.

Rejoice - Chris Tomlin
Nothing but the Blood - Brandt Farmer arrangment
Sing to the King - Billy Foote
He is Exalted - Twila Paris
Not to Us - Chris Tomlin

Full Band this coming week...it's going to be good...be there.

Windmill-kick to the face

2008-11-16T15:58:00.010-05:00

So, it took a little convincing, but I finally talked Megan(the most amazing Fiance ever) to watch Kung-Fu Panda. I'm kind of a kid at heart, especially with animated movies. Lately, I like to sit and find the humor that completely surpasses the heads of all the little kids who watch them, some movies are worse than others. Just to set it up a little(if you haven't seen it yet, stop reading, go watch it, then continue reading) Po, the panda, is chosen as the Dragon Warrior who will be the savior of the town and/or China. Shifu is assigned to train Po in the art of Kung-Fu. He sends word to a prison to double the guards and protection around the bad guy, Tai Lung. The wise old master, Oogway who happens to be a tortoise, drops a bomb of wisdom on Shifu and the audience.

"One often meets his destiny on the road he takes to avoid it," says Oogway. Say What?!? I had to stop the movie and rewind it. Here I am looking for adult humor in a childrens' animated movie, and I get windmill kicked in the face with this. Ouch. Maybe it hurt so much, because I've been there, done that kind of thing. Have you ever done something to avoid you're calling or destiny? I'm sure I've tried, but sovereignty always gets the best of me.

I was, however, instantly reminded of a classic bible story about a man that gets eaten by a fish, then vomited out of said fish. You can get the whole story here, but below is a little teaser for now.

Jonah 1:1-3
1)The word of the LORD came to Jonah son of Amittai: 2)"Go to the great city of Nineveh and preach against it, because its wickedness has come up before me." 3)But Jonah ran away from the LORD and headed for Tarshish. He went down to Joppa, where he found a ship bound for that port. After paying the fare, he went aboard and sailed for Tarshish to flee from the LORD.

Jonah tried to run/avoid God's will for his life, but it didn't work. He ended up in the belly of a fish, and through that God gave him a second chance to complete the objective. Interesting...I'd love to hear your thoughts.

*I found this picture through Google Images, The artist is Keith Tucker, I don't know anything about him so I don't endorse anything on his site, but this is a very cool painting. Clicking on the picture will take you to his website.

Set List for 11.09.08

2008-11-10T21:45:00.008-05:00

Hey guys, sorry it seems like all this blog is is set lists. But here is yet another set list. We started our Change One series this week. We talked about how one way to change lives is to value others. If you want to read some reflections on that click here.

All Things New - Elevation Worship
Salvation is Here - Hillsong United - Look to You
Center - Charlie Hall - Flying into Daybreak
Till I See You - Hillsong United - Look to You
Let God Arise - Chris Tomlin - See the Morning

Here is a little taste of what happened. Everybody except the guy singing are complete studs.

Set List for 11.02.08

2008-11-03T13:44:00.002-05:00

So we decided to shake things up a bit this week. I don't know if it made a big difference or not, but it was a cool feeling of unity among the body this week in worship. Next week is full band and I'm always excited about those weeks. I kept the set simple:

Holy is the Lord - Chris Tomlin - Arriving
Made to Worship - Chris Tomlin - See the Morning
Prepare the Way - Charlie Hall - Our Love is Loud
You Alone - David Crowder - Lime EP
Joyful, Joyful(We Adore Thee) - Charlie Hall - Passion: Hymns Ancient & Modern

Set List for 10.26.08

2008-10-27T23:54:00.000-04:00

Wow, I can't believe last Sunday was the last Sunday in October. Man, time is flying by. The set this week was simple. I ran into a couple of problems when the batteries in my guitar decided to die right before the first song. So I cut one song that I intended to include in the set. The set was as follows.

Everlasting God - Brenton Brown
Unchanging - Chris Tomlin
Glory to God - Steve Fee(I think this one is fairly new, I heard it for the first time at Catalyst Conference '08, you can find a video of it here.)
There is No One - Jason Morant

*There is No One is probably one of my all time favorite worship songs. It's all about giving all that we have in worship to Jesus. I think that means more than just singing on Sunday mornings, but infiltrates our entire lives. "With all that I am, with all that I have, I will worship You, Jesus, alone" I love it. I'm convicted every time I sing it and lead it, because I never give that much of me to the glory of Jesus Christ. If I did there's no telling what would happen. So as I step up to do this, please join me. We all can use the company on the journey.

Comfortable Food

2008-10-23T19:14:00.001-04:00

Chicken Stew
Probably the greatest thing ever invented. I think everyone has that meal/food where if that was the only thing they could eat for the rest of their life, they'd be fine with it. Well, Chicken Stew, is my ultimate comfort food. I could never tire of it's chickeny goodness. This is what I would beg my mom to make. Some kids want pizza, some mac & cheese, but I mostly wanted Chicken Stew. It's awesome when you are or are about to be under the weather. It soothes the soul.

It's not really a traditional stew. When I think of stew I think of beef, carrots, potatoes, and things of that nature. But for the most part, this is just chicken and milk. So simple, yet so delicious.

When I was in school during the winter, I would make this Sunday afternoon when I got home from church. Then I would eat off it for several days. I think it's kind of a normal thing around here in Georgia, especially around the country. I guess in a way it's like a poor man's supper. But since I love this soup so much, I've decided not to be stingy and to share the recipe with the world. So here goes, and don't worry you can't mess it up. I have a set way I make it, but when my grandmother makes it it's different every time.

Chicken Stew:(I'd better get credit if you make this for people.)
1 (9-10 oz.) can of white meat chicken breast
2 (14 oz.) cans of chicken broth
1 (12 oz.) can of evaporated milk
1 pint of heavy whipping cream
About 3/4 of a 1/2 gallon of 2% milk. (no idea how much that really is, I have an art degree)
salt, pepper, paprika, butter

So I start by getting a pot and dumping the chicken in, breaking it up a little. You can use more chicken, like two cans, or a big can and a little can, or what ever floats your boat. Or you can even use fresh chicken and pull it off the bone, it's really up to how much you want to work for this. I pour both cans of broth in, and bring it almost up to a boil. I'm pretty sure my mom said if the soup boils it's going to ruin it. So try not to let that happen. Next just add the evaporated milk, then the whipping cream. I'll add salt, pepper, and paprika(which I think is just for looks, I've added a little and an uber amount, and there's not much difference). Next add about a tablespoon of butter, more or less again your boat. Then I just pour the 2% milk in. It depends on how much you want to make, and how big your pot is. I've kind of learned how much to use by the pot I'm used to using. But you'll use most of a 1/2 gallon of milk. Just let it get hot and enjoy. Mom always dipped it out with a measuring cup, so that's what I do. Ladles are for losers and rich people.

Serve with saltine crackers and your favorite beverage. Coca-Cola is my preference. One more thing, put some ketchup in with the soup and stir before you crumble crackers in it...gives it a little tang. Don't scrunch your nose at me, don't think just do. If you're really brave, use hot sauce...one more time, it's your boat. But for the record, I use ketchup.

Set List for 10.19.08

2008-10-23T13:36:00.000-04:00

Sorry for my slackness this week. I've been getting settled into the new place in Bethlehem. I'll try and post some pictures of the new pad soon. But last Sunday was great. We did play the first original song, as soon as I can get a polished version of it recorded I'll post it somewhere, either here or here. I'll put the lyrics under the set list. That's a big vision of mine is to write, record, and incorporate those/theses songs into the worship here at River Hills.

Mighty to Save - Hillsong - Mighty to Save
All We Need - Charlie Hall - Flying into Daybreak
Beautiful Jesus - Kristian Stanfill - Passion: God of this City
My King - Brandt Farmer
I Surrender All - Hymn

My King
Verse 1:
Speak over us, words of truth and love
Breathe life on us, a grace that saved us all

Pre-Chorus/Bridge:
I am found in Your saving grace
Overwhelmed that You took my place

Chorus:
My life, I give to You
My heart sings praises to the King
Jesus, You're my King

Verse 2:
Teach us Your will, we'll follow and obey
Lead us O God, we will walk in love

Set List for 10.12.08

2008-10-13T20:42:00.000-04:00

Hey guys here is the set list for last Sunday. I added a new one in, Hosanna, it's a good one. Here we go:

Hosanna - Brenton Brown - Everlasting God
Here is Our King - David Crowder - A Collision
O Praise Him - David Crowder - Illuminate
Before the Throne - Shane & Shane - Pages
How Great is Our God - Chris Tomlin - Arriving

Catalyst Confernce

2008-10-12T14:25:00.001-04:00

I had the awesome opportunity to spend last Wednesday, Thursday, and Friday at Catalyst Conference here in Atlanta. It was a great time to be revitalized, and overwhelmed with information at the same time. My mind hasn't stopped spinning since. A lot of great speakers were there, a few of my favorites(in no particular order) were: Steven Furtick, Andy Stanley, Seth Godin, Matt Chandler, Craig Groeschel, and none other than Dave Ramsey. So I tried to narrow that list down, but those were most of the main speakers. Here's a few things I've been mulling over in my mind.

One thing Steven Furtick said that stuck in my mind was "God is preparing you for what He is preparing for you." He was talking about being faithful in the process between the promise God makes us and the payoff of that promise. It seems easy to get discouraged in the ministry of church planting. One week there's a lot of people, the next there is a handful of people. This was very encouraging to me. I found myself becoming discouraged and doubting myself as a leader early last summer.

Dave Ramsey talked about unity. He listed five enemies that keep a staff from building unity. One which I found intriguing is "Sanctioning Incompetency." This is very important as a staff that we hold each other accountable and not put up with incompetent actions/things. I have also been turning this inward on myself. How have I allowed myself to become slack or unproductive in certain areas of my life.

Lastly, a session that I went to on Wednesday night mentioned this. The guy talked about the summit, or penacle of what you are trying to reach, is a state of mind because when you get there, there is always another summit to obtain. It's like dreaming of reaching a certain attendance number on Sunday mornings. When we reach that goal, it will be a bigger dream/goal. His advice was to enjoy the journey.

Lastly, I thought this was random. Friday, I saw a real elephant, Jeff Foxworthy, and Franklin Graham all within like a 4-5 hour window. So random...I'm still not over that.

Set List for 10.05.08

2008-10-06T13:09:00.001-04:00

Hey guys here is the set list for this past Sunday. It was a crazy weekend with the golf tournament all day Saturday, we had about an hour in between finishing the tournament then going to set up for Sunday morning. All of the band members played in the tournament, and I couldn't be more appreciative of their commitment to the band and this church. So here's the set:

Salvation is Here - Hillsong United - Look to You
Marvelous Light - Charlie Hall - Flying into Daybreak
How Great Thou Art - Charlie Hall - Passion: Hymns Ancient & Modern
From the Inside Out - Hillsong United - United We Stand
You are God - Charlie Hall - The Bright Sadness

81

2008-10-06T12:53:00.002-04:00

Team Awesome scored an 81 last Saturday at the River Hills Golf Tournament. I have to say I'm proud of that score. That's 9 strokes over par. I don't think that's bad for four guys who haven't played in awhile.

However, that was the very last place. It was still loads of fun, and I think we raised a good bit of money for the church's building fund. So now matter what this guy says, or what kind of junk he talks, because I know it's coming, just know I'm dang proud....

Golf Tourney

2008-10-02T13:55:00.000-04:00

So for those of you who may not know, there's a River Hills Golf Tournament this Saturday. If you're not involved, you should be. It's going to be a blast. And since it's been...oh, about 2 years since I've touched a golf club, it's my priority to cram as much practice as I possibly can into the next 48 hours. So hopefully by Saturday morning around 11 a.m. I should look something like this:

OK, so that's a little extreme, but anything is possible. I don't really care to win the whole thing. I just want to beat this guy's team, and I will be content. There's still one slot left on Team Awesome(my unofficial team name)...I wonder what Tiger is doing Saturday...I'll have my people look into it.

Moral of this blog...All the cool people will be at the 1st Ever River Hills Church Golf Tournament, go here or email that guy for more info, but hurry, I mean the party goes down Saturday!

Set List for 09.28.08

2008-09-29T16:53:00.000-04:00

For those of you who may not know, we have a full band every other week. The off weeks for the band leave just me and my acoustic guitar. Although I try to have set list planned several months in advance I always find myself changing things up at the last minute when I lead worship by myself. Don't ask me why. It's probably divine intervention.

09.28.08
How Can I Keep From Singing - Chris Tomlin - See the Morning
Indescribable - Chris Tomlin - Arriving
Nothing but the Blood *with added Bridge
Desperation - not sure who wrote this one, I picked it up from a friend
Consuming Fire - Tim Hughes

Nothing But The Blood

Set List for 09.21.08

2008-09-22T13:53:00.000-04:00

I'm going to start posting our Set Lists here every week. I'm going to include the artist and an album so that if you're interested you can find a version of the song. Please feel free to let me know which ones you like and maybe why you like it or how God spoke to you through it. I think our band is doing a tremendous job. They put a lot of hard work into practicing and setting up.

09.21.08
Walk This World - Charlie Hall - The Bright Sadness
Everlasting God - Brenton Brown
Awesome is the Lord Most High - Chris Tomlin - See the Morning
All Creatures - David Crowder - Passion: Hymns Ancient and Modern
I Stand Amazed(How Marvelous) - Chris Tomlin - Passion: Everything Glorious

5 a.m. already?

2008-09-17T11:42:00.000-04:00

So it's been a little while since the last time I seriously wrote a song. Last night I got home from work at the newspaper around 11:30 p.m. or so. A couple of days ago I started working on lyrics for a new song, but I had that feeling that if I waited on it any longer I was going to lose it. So it took probably 30 minutes or so to hunt down my equipment and get everything set up. Seriously, it's been awhile, atleast a year since a solid song was born through my futile attempts.

It's amazing how a song comes together, if you've ever ventured into the songwriting realm you know what I mean. It's a simple song. Super simple, I've already described it as a little cheesy, but I'll take what I can get. The song is called You Are God. Usually when I write a song, it's some revelation I've had, or there's something I want to change about myself (mainly my attitude toward something). This song is all about God being my source of whatever I need at the moment. His ability to be everything to me shows that He is God.

This is kind of funny but I think this spurred on my mindset of being overwhelmed that God is God. This past Sunday at River Hills, I had the privileged of watching the kids during our New Membership Class. Basically, we watched The Prince of Egypt, which made me feel old because none of the kids in that room were alive when it came out (except a couple of youth, and they were like 3). Anyways I digress, I haven't watched that movie probably since it came out. But I was really taken aback by the burning bush scene. It's a cool depiction of God being The Great I Am. He simply is. I get lost in that thought. It's still more than I can comprehend. But cool, and I was able to scrounge up a song out of it. I'll post it on my Facebook page and my Myspace, bare with me it's a little rough around the edges, what would you expect it was 5 a.m.!

Lyrics:
Verse:
You give me hope
beyond all imagination
You give me peace
beyond every situation
You are my strength
Over all of my frustrations
You are my King
Lord, You are everything

Chorus:
We praise the Father and the Son
Holy Spirit, Three in One
Jesus Christ, Beloved Son
Bring Your love, Your kingdom come

Bridge:
You are God