At a workshop I was teaching a few years ago, a participant dragged a man forward to meet me at the conclusion.  I hadn’t noticed him that day.  She introduced him as her pastor and told me that she had called him half-way through the day and said, “You HAVE to come see this!”  And so began a wonderful relationship with the folks of First Presbyterian Church of Scottsbluff, Nebraska.  Other team members came to Tahoe to study with me and earlier this year I got a wonderful update from Brad, the pastor, about what has transpired in the last couple of years.  I reprint it here as a testimony–not so much to my teaching–but to the transformation that can happen when a church begins to spend quality time learning, dreaming and planning for meaningful and memorable worship.  There are lessons to be learned throughout Brad’s letter.  Read it as inspiration to take stock in the new year of where you’ve been and where you hope to go in 2012.  And also download my New Year 2012 newsletter below as well!

“Our music and worship efforts in the past three years have borne fruit as a result of doing three sequential things…”