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Well over a decade ago, the Lord spoke to me that He was planning on using our church to influence the sound of worship all over the world. So, as a part of our 2020 vision, we endeavored to start by launching a record label as well as our first national worship project. Our assumption…

The April 2013 Journal of Religion and Health published a study finding that people who believe God to be angry are more likely to suffer from anxiety, paranoia, obsession, and compulsion. The study sought to discover if there were any correlations between how we understand God to be and how we live. And sure enough,…

In the last few years alone, Substance has gotten over 40 of our interns and church leaders into their first full-time ministry positions.  Many of them get nervous about making mistakes; thus, before starting in their new position they often ask me: “What are some of the most common rookie mistakes that new pastors and…

Every year, people ask me: Was Jesus really born on December 25th? Is the Christmas holiday just paganism wrapped up in a pretty bow? Or, my skeptical friends ask me: Is there even any secular historical references to corroborate the Nativity story? Thankfully, there’s a lot of fascinating answers to these questions! And here are…

Well I want to give everyone a heads up!  If you haven’t taken a video tour of Substance’s new 12,000 sq.ft. Facility, we now have the video available online!  www.substancechurch.com/facility I kept getting so many of you telling me: “Can we sneak in sometime for a tour?”  So, Pastor Pete and I decided to shoot…

Can you believe that we’ve gotten this large without even having any real offices? Whenever I tell my pastor friends that we’ve got over 1600 frequent attenders… a solid number of full-time staff, yet no offices, their question is always the same: How are you doing it? And frankly, I really don’t know! We’ve been…

Well, I’m flying back from Florida right now.  I was amidst palm trees this morning; but alas -18 degrees awaits me at home!!!!  (Do you realize how much I love you guys in the Twin Cities!!!!)  Yesterday, my wife and I made a desperate last minute attempt to stay a few more days; but it…

Well last Friday we did another family Christmas tradition. Every year, since we moved up to Minnesota, we take a trip down to Nicollet Ave. in downtown Minneapolis to see the Macy’s exhibit and the Hollidazzle Parade. Of course, ever since the girls were little, for some reason, they always thought that it was the…

Does anyone else go overboard with Christmas decorations? The people who run the Christmas sections at Menards and Target both know me by name all ready! I don’t know why but ever since I was a kid I’ve been obsessed with decorations. There’s nothing like watching How the Grinch Stole Christmas while decorating the tree.…

Did you know… My wife and I smooched for the first time over 17 years ago!  (We were actually only 16 years old! : )    Man, it’s amazing how fast time flies!   But my wife and I have been so busy with the church lately that we’ve almost forgotten to continue our seventeen year…