I’ve been doing an annual “By The Numbers” blogpost since 2009 when my first book was published. Since that time, there have been missions trips from Rome to Manila, speaking engagements from Seattle to Orlando, worship leading in Wichita to playing in a jazz club in Vancouver. It’s been a wild ride, and I’ve been blessed with the opportunity to speak with unapologetic passion on worship and the arts and play music for the glory of God.
Without further ado, here’s my latest introspective look at the last year’s adventures in faith and art.
Number of Podcast Interviews: 7
This is the current trend these days. Less speaking engagements, but more podcast interviews. I’ve had the opportunity to be involved in some insightful (or perhaps incite-ful) podcast interviews this year from some extremely thought-provoking interviewers. Worship interviews include Matthew Brough’s Spirituality for Ordinary People, David Santistevan’s Beyond Sunday Worship, and Jon Nicol’s Worship Team Coach. Faith & Art interviews include Kent Sander’s Born to Create, and Lara Pilcher’s Artists House International. Grab your earbuds and check them out!
Number of Speaking Engagements: 7
From the National Worship Leader Conference in Nashville to the Sacramento Worship Songwriter’s Workshop to our annual Intersections: Arts & Faith conference, I’ve had only a few but important events to speak and teach at in 2019. I’ve had to limit this number due to increasing demands with the WalkaBout Drum. Speaking of which…
Number of Awards: 1
One of this year’s absolute highlights with our company, INNOVA Music, is that the WalkaBout Drum won Best In Show at the 2019 Summer NAMM Show. Considering that this award includes all the players—like Fender, Pearl, Gibson, Yamaha, et al—this is a pretty prestigious honor, made all the more significant since the WalkaBout Drum has only been public for a little over two years. We’re looking forward to an exciting year with the WalkaBout Drum, including releasing a new model and new accessories, and continuing to build the company and the brand. More here.
Number of Missions Trips: 1
In July of this year, I participated in my fourth trip to Legazpi, Philippines, in support of the Bicol Center for Christian Leadership (BCCL). While there, I taught a worship theology class as a part of their two-year certification program, led some worship, and also preached. This also marked my tenth short-term overseas missions trip (makes me wonder how many of these I have left). This trip was deliberately more slow-paced and I was able to bring a small team with me, so it was very much a successful time of teaching, preaching, fellowship, eating, and of course, worship. If you’re interested in how it went, check out my 2019 Trip Reports here.
Number of Services: 100
Most of these services were at my home church, Oak Hills, and this brings the total number of services I’ve been a part of to well over 4,700 in 29 odd years of ministry. Unfortunately, a number of these gatherings were memorial services, as I’ve seen this number continue to increase as I’ve gotten older. I had an epiphany about this in this last year—a good part of my job is to encourage people to live their lives well, and then another part of my job is to celebrate a life well-lived when they pass. It’s a sobering thought, but I take seriously the privilege of honoring my friends and fellow Christ followers in the lives they led.
Seeing 2020…
As this year continues to shape up, I’m considering starting a band and releasing another album. I hope to go on another missions trip in 2020, perhaps to Europe. With the WalkaBout Drum, we’ll continue to make appearances at NAMM Show in Anaheim and Nashville as well as other trade shows around the country, continue to build the company and the brand, and we’re excited to be signing more endorsing artists like We The Kingdom.
Personally, I have some milestones upcoming. There’s a birthday with a zero at the end of it. Also, my wife and I will officially become empty nesters, so we’re also looking to downscale our home and lifestyle. So there’s all that to contextualize.
Please contact me if you’re interested in having me at your speaking engagement, music venue, podcast interview, and other bookings in 2020. God bless you all in 2020!
Adventures in Faith & Art 