• 5:06 PM tonymorganlive - Jud pastors a great church in Vegas.
• 5:07 PM tonymorganlive - “What do you see when you look in the mirror?”
• 5:12 PM tonymorganlive - Words Jud has wrestled with: guilty, ugly, small, alone, failure, not enough
• 5:12 PM tonymorganlive - “Until we settle the identify issue in our lives, it’ll never be enough.”
• 5:13 PM tonymorganlive - “In ministry, there is no ‘there’ there.”
• 5:17 PM tonymorganlive - “Do you believe that God really loves you?”
• 5:18 PM tonymorganlive - “Many Christian leaders are truly the worst when it comes to understanding God’s love in our lives.”
• 5:19 PM tonymorganlive - “We should talk to ourselves more than we listen to ourselves.” (Using God’s Word.)
• 5:20 PM tonymorganlive - “Our failures don’t ruin us forever.”
• 5:21 PM tonymorganlive - “Start celebrating the victories of others.”
• 5:22 PM tonymorganlive - “At Central, I’m not the most gifted leader on the church staff. And I love that.”
• 5:27 PM tonymorganlive - “God said, ‘I want you to serve me.’ Be faithful to that calling in your life.”
• 5:33 PM tonymorganlive - “What kind of difference can you make if you just decide to let God use you?”
• 5:34 PM tonymorganlive - “In Christ.”

• 3:13 PM tonymorganlive - Guy Kawasaki is opening his session by taking some shots at Microsoft.
• 3:14 PM tonymorganlive - Guy has permission to use “suck” and “crappy” in this talk.
• 3:15 PM tonymorganlive - “I’m running God’s operating system.”
• 3:15 PM tonymorganlive - “Make meaning.”
• 3:15 PM tonymorganlive - “Make the world a better place.”
• 3:18 PM tonymorganlive - “Make a mantra.”
• 3:20 PM tonymorganlive - Guy is making fun of how we develop our mission statements.
• 3:23 PM tonymorganlive - “Are there two or three words that can define your church?”
• 3:23 PM tonymorganlive - “Jump to the next curve.”
• 3:25 PM tonymorganlive - “Most organizations define what they do by what they do.”
• 3:25 PM tonymorganlive - “If you define your organization by what you currently do, you’ll miss the next curve.”
• 3:26 PM tonymorganlive - “Roll the dicee.”
• 3:30 PM tonymorganlive - DICEE = Deep, Intelligent, Complete, Elegant, Emotive
• 3:30 PM tonymorganlive - “Don’t worry, be crappy.”
• 3:31 PM tonymorganlive - “If we would have waited for everything, we whould have never shipped.”
• 3:31 PM tonymorganlive - “In technology, we ship and then we test.”
• 3:31 PM tonymorganlive - “Don’t wait for the perfect world.”
• 3:32 PM tonymorganlive - “Polarize people.”
• 3:32 PM tonymorganlive - “If you try to create something that appeals to everyone, you will end up with mediocrity.”
• 3:34 PM tonymorganlive - “Let 100 flowers blossom.”
• 3:35 PM tonymorganlive - “You may find that people who are not your intended audience end up loving your church.”
• 3:36 PM tonymorganlive - “Desktop publishing saved Apple Macintosh.”
• 3:36 PM tonymorganlive - “One of the reasons I believe in God is that there’s no other explanation of Apple’s survival.”
• 3:37 PM tonymorganlive - “If people don’t get it in the first 15 minutes, they’ll never get it.”
• 3:37 PM tonymorganlive - “Churn baby, churn.”
• 3:38 PM tonymorganlive - “Once you ship, you have to listen again.”
• 3:38 PM tonymorganlive - “Niche thyself.”
• 3:44 PM tonymorganlive - “How is your church unique and adding value?”
• 3:44 PM tonymorganlive - “Follow the 10-20-30 rule.”
• 3:44 PM tonymorganlive - “You need to learn how to pitch.”
• 3:44 PM tonymorganlive - “Life is a pitch.”
• 3:47 PM tonymorganlive - “10 slides. 20 minutes. 30 point font.”
• 3:48 PM tonymorganlive - “Don’t let the bozos grind you down.”
• 3:56 PM tonymorganlive - “I picked my family over money.”
• 3:57 PM tonymorganlive - Check out church.alltop.com.
• 3:57 PM tonymorganlive - Twayer = Twitter + Prayer
• 3:58 PM tonymorganlive - “Dear God: Thank you for this opportunity to serve. Let your innovation shine & make the world a better place for all people. Amen! #catwest”

• 1:22 PM tonymorganlive - Thanks to TetherBerry, I’m live. We’ll see how this works. Just saw Hillsong United lead worship.
• 1:26 PM tonymorganlive - Jud Wilhite form Central Christian in Vegas is hosting. Good guy.
• 1:27 PM tonymorganlive - Watching the fun and games portion of the program.
• 1:29 PM tonymorganlive - Andy is about ready to take the platform.
• 1:31 PM tonymorganlive - “My favorite thing in life is to speak to church leaders.”
• 1:38 PM tonymorganlive - “The higher up in the organization, the greater the complexity and the more uncertainty there is.”
• 1:38 PM tonymorganlive - “Uncertainty is why we need leaders.”
• 1:39 PM tonymorganlive - “As long as there are unanswered questions, this organization needs me.”
• 1:39 PM tonymorganlive - “God created the gift of leadership. He gave it to certain people. Not everyone has it.”
• 1:40 PM tonymorganlive - “God is not uncertain.”
• 1:41 PM tonymorganlive - “Uncertainty is the arena in which good leadership is identified.”
• 1:41 PM tonymorganlive - “I will always be uncertain. I’m certain of it.”
• 1:43 PM tonymorganlive - “A story without uncertainty isn’t a very interesting story.”
• 1:45 PM tonymorganlive - (I hate hearing Andy Stanley speak, because it just fuels the drive and the passion of everything inside me.)
• 1:45 PM tonymorganlive - “You don’t learn anything when everything is going well.”
• 1:48 PM tonymorganlive - “Instill in me a deeper passion for leading your people”
• 1:49 PM tonymorganlive - “Clarity. Flexibility.”
• 1:49 PM tonymorganlive - “As a leader, it is okay to be uncertain but it’s not okay to be unclear.”
• 1:50 PM tonymorganlive - “Pull back to that thing that God called you to do in the beginning.”
• 1:51 PM tonymorganlive - “Clarity will trump uncertainty.”
• 1:55 PM tonymorganlive - “We’re going to trust God to take care of the part we don’t know about.”
• 1:56 PM tonymorganlive - “You can be clear even when you’re uncertain.”
• 1:59 PM tonymorganlive - “Retreat to the vision.”
• 1:59 PM tonymorganlive - “What can you do proactively around what God called you to do?”
• 2:00 PM tonymorganlive - “What has God called you to do?”
• 2:01 PM tonymorganlive - “Plans change. Vision remains the same.”
• 2:04 PM tonymorganlive - “Don’t confuse the plan with the vision.”
• 2:05 PM tonymorganlive - “In times of uncertainty, plans change a lot.”
• 2:05 PM tonymorganlive - “We fall in love with our plans. And we make the mistake of saying ‘God told me…’”
• 2:07 PM tonymorganlive - “In times of uncertainty, there is no better time to change plans.”
• 2:07 PM tonymorganlive - “Where is the vision conflicting with the plan? Sacrifice the plan for the vision.”
• 2:08 PM tonymorganlive - “No decision is ever sacred, but the vision never changes.”
• 2:09 PM tonymorganlive - “Blame it on the economy and change it baby.” (Smile)
• 2:10 PM tonymorganlive - “You need to learn how to confidently express your uncertainty.”
• 2:12 PM tonymorganlive - “Leadership is not about making decisions on your own. It’s about owning the decisions once they are made.”
• 2:12 PM tonymorganlive - “You have to pray like crazy for God’s wisdom and direction.”
• 2:13 PM tonymorganlive - “God, please show me your will for my life.”
• 2:13 PM tonymorganlive - (I needed this session today. Good stuff.)
• 2:16 PM tonymorganlive - “As a leader, I need grace.”
• 2:18 PM tonymorganlive - “God’s calling on my life is sure.”

Let me share some big news from my world. Yesterday, Perry and I mutually agreed that I should leave the staff team at NewSpring Church. I can assure you it was a decision that wasn’t entered into lightly. Both Perry and I have had this weighing on us for some time. Perry and I share a lot of commonalities in ministry and leadership, but, if you know Perry and me very well, you know that we also approach both a little differently – differently enough that I was not fulfilled in my role.

Just to set the record straight here, we’re talking about differences that would be non-essentials if I was just attending NewSpring (which I plan to continue doing), but the differences weren’t healthy for the church or for me in the leadership role Perry needed me to fill.

Now, before you start reading into this more than you should, hear me out:

• I still love Perry and the ministry of NewSpring Church.
• I’m still 100% behind the vision God has given Perry.
• You are a fool if you don’t think God is using NewSpring to help people meet Jesus and experience new life.
• Perry promised he’d still be my friend. (But I’m still not going to let him hug me.)

Where does that leave me? I have no idea. I’m not at all sure what the future holds. I’m scared, but I’m not worried, if that makes sense. I’m questioning God, but I trust God completely.

I have a huge passion for the local church and reaching people for Jesus, but I’m not at all sure how God will use that in the future. I’m waiting on God to provide clear direction. And, frankly, after more than 10 years of nonstop ministry, this unexpected sabbatical may be God-ordained.

With that, really, I could use your wisdom. If you want to teach me, encourage me, challenge me, slap some sense into me or anything else, I’m ready for that.

In the mean time, please pray for Perry, the NewSpring family and my family. I’m confident the best is yet to come for all of us.

Check out Perry’s blog for his take on all of this.

A couple of weeks ago, I was interviewed by Rev magazine about what’s happening at NewSpring. They asked about all the people who have received Jesus in recent months (1,124 people in less than 4 months). They also asked about what’s unique at NewSpring that might explain what’s happening. Among other things I shared:

“I know in my life, when I accepted Christ and experienced life change, I didn’t keep that to myself—I wanted to tell others about it. I think that’s what we’re seeing here. People are experiencing life change. We’re seeing practical things like healed marriages, winning freedom from addictions, freedom from financial challenges. Because once God gets hold of your life He brings order to it. When that starts to happen, people tell their friends about it.

“I sometimes get frustrated when people talk about our church being too big. I ask, ‘What do you want us to do? Do you want us to tell people that they can’t tell their friends about us any more?’”

You can visit Rev magazine’s website to read the rest of the article.

Today, Perry continued his teaching through the Sermon on the Mount that began in January and will run through May. This portion of that journey is part of “The Gospel” series that started last weekend. Here are some highlights from today’s message:

• “I have a good friend up in Charlotte, Pastor Steven Furtick, and over 700 people accepted Christ up there last week.”
• “I’ve been to the Anderson Mall.”
• Some malls have valet parking. “In Anderson, someone will take your car, but you’ll never get it back.”
• “Today, I just want to preach the Gospel to religious people.”
• “Haven’t we made salvation all about appearance in the South?”
• “In the South, our ‘best’ becomes the clothes we wear and not the life we live.”
• “There are some people here today that are working hard to prove themselves to God.”
• “When Jesus paid for our sins, he paid for every sin.”
• “If you don’t let your past die, it won’t let you live.”
• “In the Church, we suck at letting people get past their past.”
• “We can’t meet Jesus and stay the same.”
• “When our sin collides with His grace, He always wins.”
• “I know I met Jesus? How about you?”

By the way, the band went a little retro funk with a cover of “Truth’ll Set You Free” from the 70s band Mother’s Finest. You’ll want to check out the video when it’s available on www.NewSpring.cc later this week. It’ll make you want to dance.

I think this will be interesting. We may discover something new. I’m curious to know the impact of Easter services across the country, but I’d like to consider it from a unique perspective. I’m curious to know how Easter influenced what happened after Easter.

If you’d like to participate, please complete this quick survey. For this analysis, I’m going to compare the weekend before Easter and the weekend after Easter. Don’t worry, I won’t share the specific data from your church. I would, however, like your contact information in case I have follow up questions about what happened at your church.

Want to join the fun? Fill out the form below:

Please forward this to your friends in ministry, so we can get as much participation as possible. I’ll compile the results and then share the summary later this week.

People have been very kind in recent weeks about reading and reviewing Killing Cockroaches. There have been a handful, though, that have come from some special friends who I really respect. Here’s just a sample from recent days:

• Craig Groeschel
• Gary Lamb
• Kem Meyer
• Dino Rizzo
• Penelope Trunk
• Rick Warren

First of all, you’d be wise to begin following each one of them. That’s a sharp group. Secondly, they all have books or conferences or other stuff that can make you smart. You may want to check out their resources as well.

I love my virtual friends! If you visit their sites, tell them I said hello.

Good news! Thanks to my friends at faithHighway, I’m able to invite about 50 more people to join me for lunch at the Catalyst West Coast event next week. If you are registered for the conference, you can participate in the lunch for no additional charge. Here’s what you’ll get:

• Free lunch from Chick-fil-A
• Free Killing Cockroaches book
• Free time with me

Here’s what you probably won’t get:

• A song and dance
• The opportunity to meet Andy Stanley
• Beef
• A hug

If you are already registered for Catalyst West Coast, you may request an invite to the lunch by completing this onlive form.

Act quickly. Seating is limited.

UPDATE: Sorry folks. The rest of the openings were filled. Hope to still see you at Catalyst West Coast. And thanks, again, to faithHighway for making this possible!

There must be some traditionalists in the audience because one of the most frequently asked questions in recent days is: “Where can I find your book?” Since people are asking that question, I’m assuming Amazon isn’t an option for them. That being the case, here are the options for real bookstores with real people that will help you find the real book.

• Books-A-Million is likely your best bet at this point. They are 2-for-2 on visits I’ve made in recent weeks. Here’s the picture to prove it.
• LifeWay Christian Stores will be featuring the book in the coming months…though it appears they’re currently out of stock online. (Someone twitter Thom Rainer and see if we can fix that.)
• Barnes & Noble might have it. Ask if you don’t see it. The more folks that ask, the more likely that they’ll carry it.
• Borders is questionable. But, again, it doesn’t hurt to try. Let me know if you see it.
• Your local Christian bookstore. It’s probably located next to the Chick-fil-A.

And, just to make things interesting, here’s what I’m going to do. On May 14, my lovely assistant will draw 100 names out of the hat. Those 100 people will win a FREE copy of the book for a friend of their choice. To enter the drawing, all you have to do is:

1. Email me with “Free Book” in the subject line.
2. Attach a copy of your store receipt. (Online purchases won’t count for this giveaway.)
3. Include the name and address of the person you’d like to receive the book.

I promise. I won’t use your info or that of your friend for anything but to ship them the free book if their name is drawn. And, if you really want me to, I’ll even sign it for your friend. (Trust me – that’s almost as hard for me to do as giving someone a hug.)

There you go. 100 free copies of Killing Cockroaches just waiting for your friends. All you have to do is visit your local bookstore and pick up a copy of the book.

On your marks. Get set. Go.