European Tour & Misc. End of February Update

You can find all tour date info. via http://www.glennkaiser.de

It’s a German-language site but the details are all clear enough for
those interested.

Roy and one of his daughters and myself fly to Zurich tomorrow (Feb.
29) and return to Chicago Mon. March 19. Ed has an even crazier
schedule in that he does a show with my daughter Ami Moss and her band
The Unfortunate in Green Bay at a private party (Lambeau Field no
less!) Weds.. So we get in a day early, sleep and the next night do a
show… Ed will fly over Thurs., arrives Fri. and does a show that
night!!

Thanks for your prayers- 15 shows in 17 days and 2 travel days… lots
of coffee and hopefully web connections so I can at least skim emails
and mainly, chat with my Wendi and keep up with family and JPUSA and
Project 12 here in Chicago while I’m touring.

Just fyi, I do very little talking between shows, a bit of whispering,
lots of reading, writing and sleeping, try to exercise and eat healthy
and just focus on giving my best in each set.

There are interviews along the way, meeting old friends and making new
ones… it’s mostly good… but whew, 3 weeks is so long away from our
wives, kids and JPUSA!! Again, thanks for prayers.

This past weekend I joined Ami and her band on a few songs up in
Shawno, Wisconsin at a club, then we did a show in Green Bay and a
service in Sturgeon Bay, Wisconsin. All very good and really had a
great time.

Now it’s laundry, cleaning, last-minute phone calls and webwork,
trying to get to sleep early and give time to family prior to leaving.

A few other things to say here: I finally got all my pictures from the
Ocala P12 trip (rainbow gathering) and have finished writing a blog
post but must choose from all the pics, then I can post that… I may
get that done before flying overseas but if not, I’ll just have to do
it from there.

Jon Trott snapped the pic I’ve just loaded here for my header photo…
that’s a 3 string found object slide guitar. The body is a chain-sawed
and hollowed-out small log (thanks Mike!!) from the Ocala rainbow
gathering. I built it sitting there by the fire at our camp. Sounded
fairly good I think 🙂

Also- from now until about mid-summer things begin to get thick in
terms of my time… lots of touring, individual shows, the schedule
just gets loaded. This year Wendi and I celebrate our 40th anniversary
(June 1) and will take a couple weeks off alone together.We have a
full Cornerstone Festival schedule also. All this to say my email
truly piles sky-high. I DO read it all -honestly, I DO pray for those
asking for various help, and when I cannot respond or am not your best
answer for specifics I link people with others who can -when- I can.
But the point is that I simply cannot reply to each and every email,
Facebook or Twitter request. My heart says Yes but the reality is that
schedules, family, pastoral and other concerns make it impossible.

I do Facebook live chat on occasion- but sometimes am chatting with
family or friends and just cannot reply to all who want to chat.
Frankly, I only Skype people I know very, very well so I rarely grant
Skype requests. If I have 15 minutes and then must leave for a show I
want to talk with my wife of course… thanks for your understanding.

Please know I love and like most of those who write, truly!! But
thanks for your understanding at the workload 🙂

OK, now I think I may sound like I’m whining… so anyhow, back to
other work for me and then off to beautiful Switzerland tomorrow.

Thanks for stopping by!

Love and Hugs, -Glenn

A Couple Weeks in My Life

I’m often asked what an average week is like in my life. Well, no such
thing as average around here but…

Many know me as a musician, perhaps as a pastor or speaker, of course
I’m a husband, father, grampy and do various sorts of things.

So here’s the recent past, present and immediate future of what I’m up
to for those who wonder. And if you don’t, no worries, I really don’t
think I’m anybody special but I know and serve THE most Special (and
only) God… and care deeply about people Jesus is relentless about
reaching.

Last week I took turns driving a maxi van, trailer and large group of
our Project 12 students and staff to Florida (from our home in Chicago
at JPUSA).

Once there we set up camp in Ocala National Forest and served food,
prayer, listened to and shared with rainbow family people. You can
google them if you want to know what they’re about. I simply want to
say they, like all, need Jesus and a credible witness from authentic
Christ-followers.

After five days in the woods, a wonderful local pastor picked me up
early morning, I was blessed with a shower at his house, then we went
to Orlando airport where I caught a cheap flight to Chicago.

Happy to see my wife, kids and grandkids, and also to do my/our
laundry 🙂 I then rehearsed with GKB (3 piece blues/rock group) and
the next day Ed, Roy and I headed for Menomonie, Wisconsin to do a set
with the kind Blind Munchies folks. Sweet church, coffeehouse and a
really fun evening. I also did an interview for their radio station
and played an acoustic song for their YouTube channel series.

Hit the hotel, showered, slept, did a little rehearsing and email,
etc., then Ed headed home while Roy and I were picked up by some fine
friends who drove us up to Michigan’s Upper Peninsula and the city of
Iron River.

He-brews is another great church and they are looking to go further
into Christian community. So after enjoying a great opening bro.
(wonderful acoustic finger-style guitarist and songwriter) I brought
an acoustic set (Roy did his usual fine job of mixing the sound) and
spoke the next morning as well as leading worship with Josh (pastor)
and Seth (wonderful worship leader and in leadership there also), we
all ate lunch and talked about some of the realities of close-quarters
Christian community living.

Our new friends then drove Roy and I back to Chicago (about 9 hours or
so) and it was sleep-time.

Today I showered, am writing this, will do an interview with
journalist working in France who is doing stories on Christian
communities in the U.S.. Then after some prep., I link up with others
on the Willow Creek Cook County Jail ministry team and help lead
worship as well as bring the message to the men in the “drug” division
at CCJ tonight.

Tomorrow I rise at 5:30 and head to JPUSA’s Lakefront Roofing Supply
to work in the metal shop. I’ll likely get home about an hour before
supper, take a nap, eat dinner with Wendi, then do laundry (including
that load I left bagged up in the trailer with P12 in Florida!).

Wednesday, GKB rehearses for Europe. Thursday I take my Wendi to her
doctor’s appointment, that evening I speak to JPUSA’s DM (Discipleship
Ministries) on the meaning of the Lord’s Supper.

Saturday- my daughter Ami’s band (The Unfortunate) and myself and a
couple others head to Green Bay for a show at Cup O’ Joy coffeehouse,
rise early and drive up to Sturgeon Bay Community Church in Door
County, lead worship and the pastor will interview me (in place of a
sermon) on what community-evangelism might best look like in our
present time.

Sunday night we’re home to family and JPUSA… GKB rehearses for
Europe on Monday, Tuesday we focus fully on our families, attending a
JPUSA community gathering, then packing for the GKB 3 week European
tour, Wednesday we fly overseas.

I’ll share as many meals and moments with my wife, kids and grandkids
as I can this week, I’ll sure enough miss them for those 3 weeks, so I
do thank God for the internet, Skype and such!!

Anyhow, that’s how things look for my rather passive, do-little life… HA!

Thanks for stopping by and for your prayers.

Oh, one more thing: I will post a full account and some of my personal
thoughts about our Project 12 mission trip with pics in the next few
days.

His, yours,

-Glenn

Video Clips from Florida Outreach

Some friends came by the Jesus Kitchen at the Ocala Rainbow Gathering
and apparently caught some video.

By the way, that’s real dirt and soot on me in the daytime clip!
Pastor Mark is a genuine bro. from a nearby church… and his guitar
is a sweet one too.

So, here’s a little taste from our Project 12 outreach in the forest,
central Florida…

Wisconsin and Upper Michigan Shows & Misc. GK/P12 Update

GKB is doing blues/rock: Friday, February 17 @ 7:00 pm
@ Jesus Fellowship of Believers Church, 621 Wilson Ave., Menomonie WI
Contact 715.505.4977 or booking.munchies@sbcglobal.net for more info.
www.jfbelievers.com

I’m doing a solo blues set Sat. and Sun. service: Saturday, February 18
(and service Sun. Feb. 19) @ 7:00 pm @ He-Brews Cafe, 121 5th Ave.,
Iron River MI
Contact seth.waters.music@gmail.com or 906.284.9305 for more info.

Now a quick update as to why I’ve been mostly offline recently-

I spent the past week on the road with the Project 12ers sharing in
our annual P12mission trip.

Today they are on the road to Hebron to visit our dear friends at
Hebron Center near Bloomington, Indiana. Alan and crew run the finest
Christian drug rehab work I know of and it’s always an excellent
learning experience for the P12 students and staff to interact with
the men there. I flew home early in order to do the weekend concerts
and service as per above.

But this past week we linked with friends near Ocala, Florida, some
whom I’ve not seen for many years. A great and kind welcome, great
fellowship, then into the local national forest with Jesus Kitchen
folks- Ben, Theresa and Debbie, who serve the Rainbow Gatherings with
food, prayer, and the love of Jesus. We were so blessed to serve with
them at that particular regional Rainbow Gathering.

So many lost, lonely and spiritually searching people, travellers,
those with long and often sad stories who are looking for community, a
group of people who they can somehow call family show up… and showed
up for all we could offer.

It was a great week of sharing around the campfire, creativity and
more. I will write more on this later as I’ve got too much to do
today, but I’ll simply add a couple pictures here.

So- hope to see some of you in Menomonie or Iron River this weekend!

Thanks for stopping by! -Glenn

Ice & Grace

At Cornerstone Farm where our fellowship (JPUSA Chicago) presents the
annual Cornerstone Festival, is a fair bit of water.

Below and to the side of the old mainstage bowl (a natural
amphitheatre) is a stream that flows from a spillway coming from the
dam in our 125 acre lake.

Lake Wildwood Haven is a man-made. It, along with along with five
ponds on the property, is quite beautiful- especially at sunrise and
even moreso at sunset.

Two of the ponds contain a great many fish and the lake is absolutely
loaded with them.

Ducks, geese and other wildlife flock to the surrounding corn and bean
fields, eventually coming to the ponds and lake to drink.

On a recent trip to the property we enjoyed seeing a herd of deer
feeding on a hillside above the water.

I love shooting photos out there and got the one you see here from a
view of the west end of the lake. There, as with several inlet areas,
geese flock and deer often cross.

These are often the spots where the shallows are.

As you can see, they freeze hard-solid. They are also the places to
freeze first in cold weather.

Such is a metaphor for many Christians who have become cold in their faith.

Shallow in their prayers, Bible study, slack and rebellious against
listening to the wisdom of more mature Christ-followers, caught out in
tough weather, they are the first to stiffen.

Such iced-over spots are also the last to thaw.

It is most interesting how the sun shines so very brightly in
winter… and though the middle of certain lakes and ponds will have
not frozen over, or perhaps are half-liquid and only part ice, those
closest to shore in the most shallow places are thick, hard and
slippery.

How wonderful if this were never true of our relationship and walk
with Jesus! Sadly, it’s sometimes an all-too accurate snapshot of our
spiritual condition.

Unlike ice, we have free will and can choose to avoid talking with and
listening to the Lord, blow off searching and memorizing (much less
applying) His Word and we may only fellowship around shared social
tastes and nothing more. Such is the stuff of the spiritually shallow
and cold.

Ahhh but by the grace of God there are four seasons. The Spirit knows
how to promote thaw!

The wind (which Jesus said, “blows where He wills”) moves over such
lakes, the sun heats the ice, the weather changes and the grace of God
begins to change our hearts. As the wind changes direction, perhaps
our direction can also change? Yes. Absolutely yes!

May we be receptive and pliable as He moves.

Thanks for stopping by. -Glenn

Hope: Ev. Cov. MidWinter Meetings

This morning I’m thinking of the old hymn (1777) that opens “Blessed
be the ties that bind, our hearts in Christian love”.

Many of you know I”m an ordained minister and JPUSA (inner-city
Chicago Christian community where I serve with 8 other co-pastors) is
a congregation in the ECC. We, with their partnership staff and
operate a 480 bed homeless shelter, a Seniors housing facility among
many other outreaches.

The Evangelical Covenant Church MidWinter meetings this past week were
nothing short of wonderful.

The fellowship, teaching, music and peer-to-peer learning, workshops,
really the whole experience was just amazing and sweet.

I’ve attended quite a few MidWinter meetings over the years but on all
levels this one was best.

And no, it wasn’t because I was able to bring a blues concert or share
in teaching a worship segment with my deep and gracious friend Geoff
Twigg, though those were both highlights for me.

To hear, see and interact with so many good people who care deeply,
who love Jesus and desire to grow spiritually and live faithfully it’s
always a lift to know others both share your struggles as well as
recognize God’s hand in our lives and ministries.

Hope, at least one aspect of it, comes for me when I witness others in
the act of loving Jesus and one another openly.

Any of us can become cynical, calloused, jaded by so much thin
showmanship, sort of the “reality tv” stuff in the Church and
sometimes church.

I personally experienced very little of that at our MidWinter gathering.

As I participated in so many edifying moments, three especially come
to mind: the Weds. night worship and small-group prayer sessions-
circles of deeply honest ministers openly sharing, crying, praying in
faith and continuing to sit, laugh and interact with one another…
and the amazing band/choir and message last night (Thurs.) on loving
our enemies (wow… Amen and Mercy Lord!!)… followed by so many
brilliant, gifted Ev. Cov. songwriters sharing a late night open mic
event.

If anyone needs to discover whether there’s any hope for the church…
I’ve just experienced a full week of it.

Oh, and if you’d like to learn more about the ECC:

http://www.covchurch.org/

http://www.covchurch.org/blogs/

Heartfelt thanks and Kudos to the leadership and all involved this
MidWinter… it was AWEsome!

Today I’m thanking Jesus for being able to be a part.
-Glenn