I would be completely negligent in my duties if I let this go unmentioned today:

Tonight ... be there. There have been a number of great new songs written by every worship leader. We're more than overdue to have them committed to a recording.

I remember when I picked up a copy of the first Lakewood CD, "We Speak to Nations." The title track was the first song I heard the band lead us in. A few others were among my favorites as well: "I Will Sing" and "All About You" in particular. But there was something about listening to the recording that still struck me as a letdown. It didn't have the mix of the band that I presently enjoyed. That changes starting tonight and concludes when the new CD comes out sometime around my birthday. Not a bad gift if you ask me.

UPDATE 1.0: We've known for a while now that Hurricane Dean wasn't going to be much of a factor for this week, but just to add closure, the weather in Houston looks good. 20% chance of rain later tonight. As far as Houston Augusts go (104-degree high on the "Feels like" reading ... ugh!!!), the weather is fine. As a personal testimony, the AC at Lakewood is incredible, though. No excuses if you're in town ... be there.

UPDATE 2.0: From the comments, Arieshorse adds this: "blue and black!!! that's the color i heard!" I caught that in time to get re-dressed for the day. Ditched the khakis and went with the blue jeans. Sadly, my black jeans weren't available. Otherwise, I'd be ready to blend in.