At breakfast this morning the subject turned to Google Earth, a nifty little piece of software if there ever was one. So ... I decided to download it to my laptop since I already had it on my desktop. If you haven't downloaded it yet, do it now. It's fun to play and you can travel the world for free. Some of the areas I wanted to look at -- like my hometown -- didn't have really good satellite pictures but most metropolitan areas do. And you can find places to rent a movie or grab a cup of coffee. Interestingly enough, it also lumps together "Churches/Cemeteries." Ironic or not.

I've decided to tackle video editing software and have been playing around with two different programs: Adobe Premier and Sony Vegas. I've used Adobe Photoshop for years (through several versions and upgrades) and thought I'd be able to pick up Premier fairly quickly. Wrong. It looks like the type of program that requires locking myself away for three or four days of straight experimentation. Granted, there are times that is a very appealing concept but not right now.Now on to Sony Vegas. On the surface, it appears to be easy-bake software but has surprised me with how robust it may actually be. Thanks to several online tutorials, I was able to figure out panning still images (commonly referred to as the "Ken Burns" effect). It has a healthy amount of effects, transitions, etc.Where will I land eventually? For now, it appears to be Sony Vegas though everyone tells me Premier…

Eight guys met this morning to eat, talk, and get to know one another. We had a great time learning more about each other ... where we come from, what we do, and what we have in common. There may even be the beginnings of a little flag football action ...

This just in ... I just picked up a new LifePoint a-frame sign from Sign-A-Rama in Clairemont Mesa. It looks really good. I may be forced to go back and order more. We also ordered a vertical banner as well. Haven't unrolled it yet but it's the same design as the a-frame.On another note, I had a good lunch with Scott Julian, the lead planter at SeaPointe Christian Church in San Clemente. It was the first chance we've had to meet in person. If you're in south Orange County, go straight to SeaPointe this Sunday.

One of the things that attracted me to planting a church through Stadia is their approach to planter care. A key part of this strategy is that I'm assigned a coach. We meet once a month to discuss the nuts and bolts of starting new churches ... plus he is available by phone or email anytime I have a question or idea. In addition, I know he is going to ask me tough questions about how things are going and what I can do better.I've come to believe that every pastor should have a coach and someone they are coaching. In established churches it's very rare for a pastor to have a coach/mentor that they meet with on a regular basis. It's just not the way things have been done. Having been one of those pastors for a number of years, I know that most of them try to offset…