It’s great to be back! And, I’m very excited about this weekend at Northway Church as we continue our Confessions of a Pastor series. Since I missed last week, I’ve got a lot to confess. So, this weekend will be a two-for-one special!

Do you ever doubt God? Do you ever worry that God won’t come through? I do. Do you ever ignore God? Do you know exactly what He wants you to do, and don’t do it?

This weekend I’ll confess, Sometimes I doubt God. Sometimes I ignore God.

You don’t want to miss this weekend!

This summer, I was so honored and privileged to have one of my friends and mentors from a far, Ed Young, come to Northway Church! It was one of the highlights of my summer, and let me tell you something…Ed and his bride, Lisa, are the real deal! Ed and Lisa are some of the most gracious people you would ever meet! What you see on stage is what you see off stage with the Youngs. They have a marriage that is inspiring…and their kids are amazing! I don’t think I have met anyone their ages with such people skills!

It was so cool to reconnect with them at C3. Not to get weird…but Debbie and I love these guys. I’m going to do a series of posts on friends that have influenced and impacted me and why I appreciate them.

I appreciate and admire Ed and Lisa because of their love and passion for Jesus Christ!

I appreciate and admire Ed and Lisa because of their love for the Local Church!

I appreciate and admire Ed and Lisa because of their love for the unchurched!

I appreciate Ed and Lisa for pouring their lives into other leaders

I appreciate Ed and Lisa Young for modeling marriage.

Here is the cool thing…leaders mark your calendar for Oct 13th this year as Northway will be hosting C3 on tour. Pastors, pastor’s wives, staff, if you are in leadership in the church or out of the church, don’t miss this day…Oct 13th…it will be a day that inspires you and you will be challenged and encouraged to be the leader God has called you to be. It will also be the kick off of Northway Network…more later on that on Cremeans Couch.

How has Ed Young impacted or influenced your life?

Hey bloggers, we are back in business! Thanks to Matt Coates for working the bugs out. Just wanted to let you know that we are all systems go and you can appreciate the conversations that happen on this blog. By the way, if you missed a chance to weigh in on Frank…Northway Family and those that knew him…please share your thoughts and words as  it will be an encouragement to the family as we honor Frank.

Something God has spoken to me recently is…why do we wait til someone has passed to honor them?  Why not create a culture of honoring people while they are living? That’s what I want for Northway Church, and that’s what I want this blog to be, and specifically Cremeans Couch. I’m going to use my next series of posts to honor people and friends that have impacted me.  Let me remind and encourage all of us that life is short…connect with those that matter most, and let’s all speak words of honor and encouragement while they have the opportunity to know how we really feel.

Who do you need to encourage today? Who do you need to honor today? Who do you need to call? Who do you need to blog about? Who do you need to write to?

I just found out that people are having difficulties posting comments on my blog using Internet Explorer 7. Mozilla Firefox seems to work fine however. We have an IT guy working on it and hope to have it fixed, up, and running soon so I can continue to stay in the blogosphere.

I’ll keep you posted!

Update: The problem with posting comments has been resolved, post away!

Last night was one of the BEST services we have had at Northway Church as we honored the life Frank “PIP� Blair. You have heard my take on this incredible man.

How has Frank impacted your life or what did you appreciate about him?

Last night, I had the privilege of meeting Frank’s entire family at the wake. GREAT people! There were a lot of tears and laughs…when you think about it, that’s what living is all about. I’m reminded again about what Jesus said is the greatest thing in this life…relationships! Nothing else matters. At the end of the day…at the end of this life…it’s all about relationships. I’m so thankful and grateful to have known Frank Blair.  I admire the relationships that he had with his family…and I’m forever grateful for the relationship he had with Jesus Christ.

Scripture tells us for those that have a relationship with Jesus…to be absent from this body is to be present with the Lord forevermore.  Please be in prayer for the family…today will be tough at the gravesite. Tonight, will be a different vibe…a celebration of Frank’s life at 6:30 in Malta…you’re invited!

What is Cremeans Couch? CC is a Monday morning video interview segment on my blog that will feature a wide variety of inspirational leaders that have a passion for leadership and for the future of the church. My desire for CC is to bring the “behind the scenes stuff� about leadership that you don’t hear at conferences to the blogging world. Why? Starting Northway Church 5 years ago in upstate New York, I know far too well that so many pastors and leaders are isolated and insulated, starving and craving this information. CC offers to bridge the gap by bringing access to all. More later this week…

Some of my upcoming guests on CC are…Perry Noble, Lisa Young, Mac Richard, Bil Cornelius, Craig Groeschel, and Steve Furtick…

Everybody can think they have the best team…but I really do…PERIOD. Catching up today…I’m learning as Paul Harvey says…the rest of the story.

Friday, Eva Foxhoven, one of my assistants, Linda Marsicano, who anchors our front desk, and her daughter, Samantha, heard the vacuum running but hadn’t seen Frank, who takes care of maintenance, for a while. They went looking for him and found the vacuum running and Frank on the floor with no pulse. Eva, Linda and Samantha ALL sprang into action, calling 911 and giving CPR.

I have been in the ministry for a while and in and out of hospitals, but I have never been through what these ladies have been through. Eva shared with me today…Buddy it seemed that time stood still. Eva, Linda and Samantha, I’m so sorry you had to go through this, but you need to know how PROUD I am of you…you couldn’t have handled it better.

Chad Clem, our Connections Group Pastor, and Kevin Brustle, our Worship Pastor…sprang into action on their day off and headed immediately to the Hospital. Jim Ether, who works a full time job and heads up all of our facilities at Northway, took the rest of the day off from his full time job, checked in on everyone, and then cleaned the church! Walt Sinclair, who heads up counseling and serves with our Care Ministry, left work as well and headed to help.

Fast forward…Saturday not even 24 hours later, and I’m calling Chad and telling him he was on to speak Saturday night because our planes were canceled. I’m sure I will hear more later…but that’s it for now. Jesus told us, if someone ask you to go 1 mile…go 2…in other words…over deliver. Thank you, team, for over delivering. This is the Church being the Church!

Wow! Not sure I have ever had this dynamic before…my head and heart are spinning on so many things. I’m still reeling from the elation of Dad’s healing. I talked to him today though and he’s in agony from his surgery. Then traveling to Texas last week for C3…I have never been so challenged and motivated before in leadership! Best conference ever! I saw a lot of old friends and made a lot of new ones!

Then to hear the news of Frank going home to Heaven.

Flights were canceled and some of my team couldn’t get home. Then Saturday my bro’s flight was canceled, and he couldn’t get to Northway to speak…yikes! My team has never been more tested and challenged and has never has never stepped UP more. Phenomenal! Thank you…your metal was tested…and it’s strong. Thank you Chad…sorry to wake you up with a nightmare curve ball. Thank you, Sam, for leading the way in production. Thank you, Jason and Luke for your execution. Thank you, Kevin M, for bringing it in Colonie. Thank you, Nicole, Tammy, and Jeremy in CP. Thanks to Kevin B. in Malta. Thank you to Eva and Linda for holding the fort down on day to day operations…and on. I probably will forget somebody…bottom line is thank you to all of our VIPs and team at Northway. I love you guys, and I never been more proud of you.

Saturday, we drove to Oklahoma City to visit with Craig and his team. These guys are so gracious: Craig Groeschel and Bobby Gruenewald, Lance, Terry, and Trevor. We went to 3 Life Church campuses and learned a ton. God also parted the waters last week and allowed me to sit down with some of the greatest leaders in the church today for Cremeans Couch. Wow, God is all over this, and I can’t wait to launch it. I’m out of breath…I’ll go into more detail in future posts and break it down. I’m just trying to catch up. Peace out.

P. S. Can’t wait to preach my head off this weekend at Northway. There is no place like home.

Just got back in town last night around 12:00…my head and heart are spinning. I’ll catch you up on everything later. Thank you for your prayers for Frank’s family. They are amazing people, and I’m looking forward to seeing them soon. As I mentioned, here are the details on Frank Blair’s services:

• Tues. – viewing from 4pm-8pm at McNulty Funeral Parlor-Green Island
• Wed. – 10am service at McNulty’s. Then to St. Joseph’s cemetery-Waterford
• Wed. – 6:30pm Memorial service at the Malta Campus

Everyone is invited even if you didn’t know Frank personally. I would encourage you to attend the Wednesday night service in Malta…and let me tell you something, you will experience a celebration as we honor Frank’s life together and his Lord.