Archive for April, 2009
It’s official … I auditioned for America’s Got Talent! I was recommended by the owner of the Comedy Club where I have performed some. I accepted just for fun. I had 90 seconds and was in front of about 6 people! Not sure how I did … difficult to get going in 90 seconds in front of so few people. Plus I get the feel they are looking for a story and mine is just not that intriguing. If I “advance” to the next round, they will contact me in a few weeks. Otherwise – at least I have the sticker.
Weekly Update for 5.03.09
Hanging at the beach and in Disneyland this weekend with the family and some friends. Ty Neal, our Family Ministries Pastor, will be teaching this Sunday at Grace Point. I enjoyed Catalyst and was privileged to be a part of Ron/Danielle Dillon’s wedding on Friday night (a couple who has committed their life to Jesus at GP in the last year). Ron is an incredible musician. I look forward to seeing what God is going to do through him. Glad to have some time away.
Highlights from day one of our staff trip….
- Riding together for several hours and brainstorming
- Santa Monica Pier & Blvd
- PF Chang
- Seeing Gary Busey on the streets (not Nick Nolte)
- Watching a movie together
- Staying in a “less-than-high-quality” hotel
- Getting in a pillow fight with a roach in my room
Roller Coasters … Catalyst … Disneyland … should be a fun few days. I am going with my staff this week to Six Flags Magic Mountain – home of 16 roller coasters before heading over to Mariner’s Church for Catalyst West. I have been to several of the Catalyst Conferences in Atlanta. This is the first one they have put together for the West Coast. Should be a fun time. Great Speakers & Worship with Hillsong United! I then fly home Friday afternoon, perform a wedding Friday night, and leave again on Saturday with my family and some friends for the beach and Disneyland.
I think that many young pastors believe that they would be good stand-up comics. To be honest, I watch stand-up comedy consistently to learn how to communicate more effectively. Stand-up comics can be some of the most engaging communicators out there and I love to learn from any solid communicator so I often find myself watching stand-up comedy to try and learn how to communicate even better. I have often thought I would love to perform stand-up comedy if provided the opportunity. Several weeks ago, I was involved in a conversation with my friend Vince Antonucci and he mentioned that he was considering taking a comedy workshop that was being offered here in Vegas. I decided to check into the workshop thinking it might be something fun and provide a scratch to my frustrated stand-up comedic itch. I signed up for the workshop and have been taking it once a week for 6 weeks.
What I have learned about stand-up comedy is that stage confidence is a large part of being a good stand-up comic. Most people who are starting out in stand-up have little or no experience in public speaking. Most are just class clowns or naturally funny people who have been told they would be a good stand-up comic. Obviously I have spoken publicly thousands of times so I already had an advantage over many of the other comics in that I have zero stage fright. I love being on the stage. For that reason, I was able to spend most of the past 6 weeks just working on my jokes, refining my style, and making my routine as succinct as possible.
For practice, I performed a week or so ago at the comedy club where the workshop is held. There were only a few people there (most of whom were my friends) so it did not give me a true gauge of what the experience is like. However last night we concluded the workshop with a “showcase” that featured all the comedy students (about 8 of us). There was no cover charge and so the place was packed. They had to bring out chairs and there were people standing in the back. About 20 GPers came out.
Because of my experience and confidence on the stage, I was selected to be the first comic to perform. I wasn’t really nervous but it was definitely different for me being on the stage in this role as opposed to my usual role. I have to say that I had a blast. I got a ton of laughs and a lot of people told me that my act was the best of the night (even some non-GPers stopped me and told me that). I don’t know if I was the best or not but I did have a lot of fun performing. I was even interviewed by a couple of newspapers and a TV station and talked to another guy in the entertainment industry in Vegas. They were all very complimentary and encouraging.
Here are some things I have learned during this process:
- Comedy is a different style of communication. Doing stand-up stretched me as a communicator. You are 100% dependent on laughs to feed your energy. That is very different than teaching or preaching.
- The average non-churched person has a distorted perspective of Christians and pastors. To be honest, I did not tell people I was a pastor because I did not want to deal with the dynamic that brings to relational opportunities in that context. I am not sure what Christians as a whole (not to mention pastors) have done to create the negative complex people have about us but it definitely puts things in perspective in those type of social situations. It is sad to me that we have to spend so much time breaking down stereotypes of what it means to be a Jesus follower.
- Most churches who claim to be reaching “non-churched people” are not really reaching non-churched people. Most of the people who step foot in our doors (regardless of how many times they have been in church) have some type of connection or interest in the church (even if it is just an invitation from a friend). There is some connection point already in place. The true unchurched person is the type of people I have been around for the last 6 weeks in this workshop. Church is not even on their radar (and probably not on the radar of anyone in their sphere of influence). The true unchurched person is the one who thinks of religion and God as nothing more than the punchline of a joke. How do Christ-followers make a difference in the lives of those type people because that is the majority (at least in the Las Vegas post-Christian culture). These are real people with real needs. How do we “be Jesus” to them? How do we create connection points to the gospel with them? Tough questions to answer.
- A lot of comedy is directed toward sex and religion. I understand why – they are easy targets. I have no real insight on that reality. I just know you have to know that reality coming in and not get offended by jokes directed at the easy targets. As I tell the people at GP all the time, don’t expect non-Christian people to act, behave, or talk like Christ-followers.
- It is easy to live life in the Christian bubble and not invest in the lives of those outside our Christian circles. This workshop stretched me to get outside my comfort zone and be a part of something totally outside my normal Christian circle. It was good for me in that regard.
- Some people think I am funny!!! It was a bit refreshing to know at least some people in the world get my sense of humor. I have no idea if I am a “good” stand-up comic but at least a few people think I can be funny!
Where does it go from here? I honestly don’t know. I think it is just a good fix for an entrepreneurial person like me who is always looking for something new and fresh. I have been invited by the comedy instructor to come down to the comedy club and perform on occasion at open mic nights or as an intro act for some of their headliners. I plan to do it on occasion just to have some fun. Obviously I have no desire to do stand-up comedy at any level other than just as a fun hobby.
A lot of my life has been marked by doing some things that are outside the norm and are a bit of a challenge: becoming a pastor at 24, trying to transition 2 traditional style churches in my late 20s and early 30s, finishing 2 Masters and a PhD, starting a church from scratch in Las Vegas, and many other “under-the-radar” efforts that very few people know about. I think stand-up comedy is just another one of those things: a challenge that started as something I thought would be fun. I did it. I liked it. And now I am sure I will find something else that will create an interest that will not be satisfied until I at least try it. Who knows what that will be?
Do something to stretch you! In the meantime, did you hear the one about….
During our Houdini series, we were able to work with Magician Lance Burton to get some incredible videos for the series. For the final week of the series we decided to do some comedic street magic just for fun. I would perform a stupid and obvious trick and pretend it was the greatest street magic ever. It was hilarious to watch the responses. Here is some of the footage…
Devini The Great from Wojo on Vimeo.
Randomness from the weekend…
- Beautiful weather in Vegas right now which meant … a round of golf & some yard work (weed pulling)
- Hung out with friends Friday & Saturday nights
- Sunday was a solid day.
- Obviously attendance was not what it was Easter.
- Finished our Houdini series on Sunday talking about what it means to live life as a person who is “dead to sin” and “alive to God.”
- Taught from Romans 6. Love that text.
- Our electric guitar player, Ron Dillon, was off the hook on Sunday. It was his last Sunday playing as a single man.
- We seem to be clicking on several cylinders right now.
- Good afternoon nap.
- I performed at a Comedy Club on Sunday night. It was an official showcase featuring several amateur “comedians” from Vegas. It was packed and several GPers came out. It was a blast. I will try and blog about the experience later.
- The GP staff is headed to Catalyst West Coast this week. Really looking forward to it. Catalyst always brings out the best.
- We are leaving a day early to hang out at Six Flags Magic Mountain for a day. Should be fun.
- Taking our kids to Disneyland the next week with some friends.
Got a lot to do before we leave tomorrow.
This video will only be appreciated by those of us who “think” we are so cool by using all the latest social networking stuff out there … Twitter, Facebook, etc. I often ask myself “where does it stop?” & do people really care? Anyway – for all you Twitterers – enjoy the latest:
Weekly Update for 4.19.09