Things I saw / heard this Sunday:

·         So excited about having Mark on staff full time!  He has done an incredible job in the last few months and we are glad to have him.

·         As usual, the music was incredible.

·         Great response to the sermon during the invitation…if you were in the second service you know what I’m talking about.

·         Can’t wait for October 19, we are having Sujo John speak.  He is a world trade center survivor that has left the business world and gone into full-time ministry.  He has an incredible story to share.

·         Big push to invite friends who DON’T GO TO CHURCH for that Sunday…can’t wait!

·         Begin praying about those 3 people who you are going to invite…I’ve got 2 so far.

·         Josh called pastor at halftime of the UGA / Alabama game and asked for a pay increase…it was 31-0…great timing for Josh…he did not get it, but worth a try!

·         If Alabama wins the national championship this year we might build a new building.

·         The sign is almost done!!!…long time coming…now we can get into the argument with other churches “my sign is better than your sign.”

·         We have been planning Southwide conference…it’s going to be a blast.

This Sunday we’ll be making a BIG announcement!  

And I’ve got a hunch that you’ll be very happy about it.

No hints on this one.  You’re going to have to show up and find out yourself.

See you Sunday!! 

If you haven’t noticed, we are finally getting a sign on our campus.  And not just one, but three.  

These signs are rapidly going up and from all I can tell, they are going to look amazing!  

I thought I would post a few shots for you to see what they look like as of a few minutes ago.

And in case you were wondering, behind this second picture of the sign, there will be a beautiful fountain.  Oh, and just so you know, this will not be a pond like some of our staff members are calling it.  This will be a fountain. There will be no fish in it!!

Anyway, I can’t wait to see the finished product!

Occasionally, we create a video for Fusion that is so funny that I feel the need to share it with others, and such is the case with the following one.

Every week, before Fusion starts, we have what we call the “Fusion Pre-Party”, and in this time, we try and get everyone excited about what’s about to happen in Fusion.  

Specifically in this video, our new Children’s Pastor, Drew Cook, shows off some of his amazing moves as the one and only Darth Vader.  

I hope you enjoy it and it brings a little joy on this Monday.

A few things I saw / heard this morning:

·         Mark wore a tie again while leading worship…it was a stumbling block during worship for me.

·         We sang “God of this City”…just love that song!

·         Besides how well it sounded, it was especially meaningful hearing Anisa singing “He’s God” after the events of this week in their family.

·         Today we gave out our Servant of the Year Awards…I wish I could take time to really tell you how invested and effective the recipients are.

·         Volunteers make Southside a special place…and those this morning give their all for us.

·         In the second service we honored Barbara Willeby.  She has been a member since day 1 at Southside – 50 years…simply amazing.

·         In the typical church world mentality that says “don’t change things or I’ll leave and go elsewhere” Barbara has witnessed more changes than I can begin to think about.  And guess what…she is still here…why??? Because of words like loyalty, faithfulness, surrender, and the unique ability to possess a mindset that says “it’s not about me.”

·         I’ve come to realize that Monday staff meetings go so much better when Alabama wins on Saturday.

·         Did you see that we are building a church sign?  It will have a fountain…wonder how long it takes before someone puts fish in it?

·         FYI - Big news coming soon…

I’m sitting here thinking about some of the things that make me happy.  None of these are especially spiritual (maybe I’ll post a spiritual edition of this later!)  Anyway, for now, in no particular order, here are some things that make me happy.

1. My amazing wife
2. Alabama football
3. Ghiradelli Chocolate Chip Cookies
4. Disney World
5. My MacBook
6. Fusion 
7. The Coolest Small Group in the World
8. Fantasy Football  
9. Star Wars/Spider Man stuff
10. My crazy kids

 So, what makes you happy?