Last Thursday I saw Switchfoot in concert. Now this is a big deal for a few reasons…

1. I love Switchfoot. They are probably my second favorite band behind NeedtoBreathe.
2. I love going to concerts.
3. I haven’t been to a concert in two years. I love going but since kids I don’t go as often as I used to.

Now at the concert I was reminded about the types of people that you see at every concert you go to. It doesn’t matter who is playing I see certain personality types emerge. For example…

• Performing girl- this girl normally comes in groups of two. She stands up during the entire concert…even during slow songs. But it’s not just that she stands, she dances and sings like she is on the stage. This person is fun to watch because they make funny faces when they sing.
• The way too into it fan – this is the person who makes a sign to draw attention to themselves. They also scream throughout the show to try to get the performers attention.
• The Free Bird guy – this idiot fan thinks it’s funny to yell Free Bird. Depending on if the concert is selling beer they will probably yell it more than once.
• The way too tall guy – this person can’t help that they are tall but they sure do make you hate their height during the concert. They could stand in the back and just tower over people to see the stage, but noooooo. They must stand right in front of me so instead of paying way too much money for a a concert you get to pay way too much money to stare at the back of gigantor’s calfs.
• The Recorder - this person records large portions of the concert on their phone or flip camera. I’m not sure when they are going to watch the concert. I’m also not sure why they’d want to. The quality can’t be that great. I’d rather watch the actual show then worry about recording it.  However, this is the type of person who catches things like Beyonce falling down the stairs. So maybe they do it just in case something embarrassing happens to the artist? If that’s the case then that’s not a fan that’s an enemy.
• The Surprising Fan – at almost every concert I go to I see someone and I think…really? Whether it’s the 72 year old at the rock concert with not a single band from the 60′s, the heterosexual guy who went to Justin Bieber concert without a girlfriend/wife/daughter/even a female pet would do, or the thugged out guy at the John Mayer concert there is always someone who surprises me.
• The Over Dressed – some people use concerts to dress up really nice. There’s nothing wrong with this but it surprises me to see girls in really nice dresses at a concert.
• The Mom – almost every concert has a mom who has brought her daughter to the show, but she is enjoying the concert a little too much.
• The make-out couple. This couple is one step away from thinking that the concert is their private bedroom. Their love blinds them to how gross it is for the people around them to experience.

The Rocket Summer Opened The Show.

Switchfoot puts on an amazing show

Rob Shep and the emphamis Terrace Crawford

Holy Plaid Batman

This is one of those fake photos so you don't get caught taking a picture of the 9 ft. tall guy that blocked everyone's view of the world

Despite the look on this guy's face Switchfoot did an awesome job. This guy though stayed stone cold throughout the entire concert. He didn't even smile during "Dare You To Move."

Happy Make-Out Couple was one step away from getting an NC-17 rating

Dillon and Rob featuring their crazy faces

The light show was amazing!

Still making out

Still looking bored.

Jon Foreman in the crowd!

Jon Foreman's in the crowd and they don't care.

Jon Foreman's in the crowd and he's still bored.

It’s official. We opened the doors and Next Level Church is rolling. Here is an update from our first official week.

• Easter was a great experience for us. There was a lot of energy. My prayer is that people felt God’s presence.
• We kicked off the service with this video…
• Next Level Church Opener from David King – KingVideography on Vimeo.
• My friend David King filmed the video and I feel it turned out really well!
• I am so honored that anyone would come. I know that a lot of them were coming just to support me and that was humbling.
• I was blown away by the response and moved to tears at the beginning of my talk. It was a special moment for me.
• Here are some pics of our first public service…
• 

  Our media team running things during the service

  

  Rob during the run through

   

  

  Exiting after the service

  

  The Hospitality team looking very hospitable

  

  Alicia ready to volunteer

  

  Worship was special on opening day

  

  The welcome as done by Ryan Sparks

  

  Our our Tots and Kids volunteers were crazy awesome!

  

  I loved the sense of community as people were hanging out

  

  Kids and Tots Check-In featuring Justin Beaver

  

  A member of our parking team in action!

  

  A couple of our greeters looking friendly

  • Thanks to Jeremy Wall for taking such amazing pics of our first Sunday!
  • The crazy thing is that we have to do it all again tomorrow. Whew! Can’t wait!
  • Another update is that online giving is now an option for us. A lot of people have been asking me about it and we have been working diligently to get it done. It’s here. If you feel led to give or if you are a part of Next Level and you’d like to sign up to give on a regular basis click here.

According to some dead people the world is ending in 2012. We are four months in and I see signs of this coming apocalypse everywhere I look. What? You don’t see them? After this post I think you will…

• Tebow-mania, Linsanity, and a golfer named Bubba. Tim Tebow took the football world by fire. ESPN would invent stories just so they could talk about him on a daily basis. Jeremy Lin had a shorter stint of public gushy-ness when he came out of no where and took over the NBA.  For a few months everything was Linsanity.  In golf it seems as if the only story is always Tiger Woods. That is until Bubba Watson started dominating. What do all these guys have in common? Jesus. They all are outspoken about their faith.  Never before has a trifecta of athletes talked so much about Jesus. That to me is a sign of the end of the world.
• Hunger Games is dominating at the movies. Hunger Games is about the world in a post apocalypse. It’s a look into our future and I think people aren’t watching this movie they are studying it. Why else would people go see it so many times at the theaters? People are training for when this apocalypse goes down.
• CBS is the number 1 network. Do you watch or know anyone that watches shows on CBS? Shows like NCIS, which is the number 1 rated show. Shows like Three In A Half Men, which is the number 1 rated comedy. I looked last week at the ratings and even CSI was in the top ten. Doesn’t that show star Ted Danson from Cheers now? Who watches that? Almost everyone I know watches Parks and Rec and the Office and yet those shows don’t crack the top 20. This is a clear sign of the apocalypse.
• Yogurt shops are everywhere. I have a theory, that I just invented at this very second, that during the end of the world yogurt will be our currency. What else explains why there are three yogurt shops within walking distance on every block in America?
• Stephen Haggerty’s beard. If you are not reading Stephen’s blog then you are missing out on some high quality www. Stephen rocks a serious beard and if for no other reason then to prepare himself for life during the apocolypse.
• 
• I am training for a half marathon. I felt led to do this. I thought it would be nice to be the fattest guy to ever run a half marathon. Then my friend Steven Smark sent me the following Tweet, “I’m sorry to break it to  you @robshep…
• Kelly Gneiting is a 6 ft, 400 lb man who set a world record for being the fattest man to ever run a marathon. Curse you Kelly! That was my goal. Now I either have to gain a bunch more weight of find another way to get my name into Guinness Book of World Records. Now the question is why are fat people running such long distances? Maybe it’s because we have a sixth sense that the world is about to end. The apocalypse is like being chased by a bear. When it happens your whole goal in life is to be faster than the slowest person. Nothing else explains why people who weigh over 200 lbs would run marathons.
  

  Now this is one way to prevent joggers nipples

• My beloved Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles are getting a reboot and coming to the movies once again. This time Michael “ruin my childhood” Bay is at the helm. First thing that has come out is that the Turtles are of alien descent. If that doesn’t scream the end of the world I don’t know what does.
• All my friends own guns and many of them taught their wives how to shoot. Most of my friends live in the burbs. I’m talking suburbs. I’m talking we don’t hear gunfire. I’m talking we don’t need to sleep with a gun under our pillow.  I’m talking we don’t need to own multiple guns. Unless…unless the world is about to end and my friends are just prepping to take care of me and my gun-less family.
• The Walking Dead and ZombieLand. Both of these future documentaries show what the world will be during the zombie-pocalypse. I don’t know if the Mayans could foresee the future. I don’t know if their predictions included zombies. What I do know is that zombies are everywhere and it might be God’s way of prepping us for the apocalypse. Just saying.

The truth is that this is supposed to be all in fun. I don’t worry about the end of the world because God has it under control. When it does happen I hope to be signing REM’s “It’s The End Of The World As We Know It” and I feel fine.

What are some other signs of the apocalypse? Do you own a gun and or have camping skills? Both will come in handy during the end of the world.

I love the video game Mario Kart. I got it for the Wii and if I do say so myself I got pretty good at it. One thing that I’ve found in life is that video game skills don’t = real life skills. If they did I’d be an amazing basketball player, I could snipe some people in war, and I would come in first place in go kart racing.

Last night my friend Ryan let me tag along to American Indoor Karting in VA Beach. He won a chance to race for NASCAR tickets by being caller number 6. He was able to bring a friend and that lucky person was me. Now here’s how the competition went down. He had to finish in the top five in the first race to qualify for the second race. In the second race he had to finish in the top three to score some NASCAR ticks.

Ryan did amazing. He came in third in the first race and second in the second race. He won some tickets from 106.1. After his race they let the tagalong friends race the DJs. I came in fifth out of seven. If it was Mario Kart I would have hit the flashing box that gives you super powers and zoomed to first. But this was real life and I didn’t have that option. Oh well. It was still fun.

Here are some pics of my real life Mario Kart Adventure…

Snack room before the big race

Ryan getting ready, set...

Luke, I am your father...or a racecar driver

Slow and steady wins 5th place

I don't listen to country and you can't see the dj's when you listen to the radio so I don't have a fat clue who these people are

What’s your favorite video game? Do you like country music?

I believe that when you think something nice you should say it spray it Tweet it, Facebook it, text it, Blog it, and or put it on a banner and fly it behind an airplane.

It’s funny to me that we often think twice about saying something nice to someone but we don’t think twice about tearing someone down. If you think something nice SAY IT!

With that being said there are few people that I would like to give a Wednesday shout out to…

• Jesus C – I’m so in awe of you!
• Barb S – Barb is amazing. First off she took out an add on my blog. That’s huge! It brings in about $8 bucks a month but every bit helps. Second off Barb is amazing with the camera and babies. She took some amazing pics of our kids. I have had a sneak peak and I can’t wait to share them with you.
• Genea S – Genea contacted me and asked if she could provide cupcakes for our grand opening. She brought 200 cupcakes and an even made time to make Monica and me our own box. They looked as good as they tasted. Amazing! If you are looking for cake or cupcakes and you live in the 757 contact her at geneasheavenlycakes@yahoo.com.
• Larry @ Deuceology – Larry has become a great friend of the blog. He leaves comments, interacts on Twitter, and he is a great blogger himself. I appreciate getting to know him through the world wide web.
• Donald M – Donald is a great author! I loved his book Blue Like Jazz which has a movie inspired by the book coming out this Friday. But the real reason I want to give him a shout is because of his book A Million Miles In A Thousand Years. It’s been a great read so far. One thing that has really stuck out to me is how when people don’t have a good story to live they will often seek out something. Sometimes their new story stinks but it’s better than the one being offered at home. I want to create a great story with my life!
• Joan P- Joan organized for a group of us to serve food at a local homeless shelter. I love that she took the initiative to do this on her own. It was a lot of fun and a great way to make a practical difference.
• Kevin H – Kevin is in the process of getting this stupid Babylon virus off my computer. He offered to take my computer and fix it for me. He also sent me detailed instructions on some things I should try. Kevin is a great blogger and one really nice guy.
• Ricky A – Mr. Anderson would be my best friend if it was possible to have best friends that you have never met in person. His blog is ha-larious. He’s down to earth and a really nice guy. Oh and he also sent me info on how to get rid of that stupid Babylon virus.
• Everyone who played a part in launching Next Level Church – it took a lot of people to pull off our first service. I praise God for everyone who was involved!
• Monica – Monica has been so supportive of me. She’s a great encourager. She went above and beyond this year with my Easter basket. Mon, you are amazing! I love you!

Who would you like to give a shout out to this week?

Jesus is risen.

And the same God that raised His son from the dead lives in Christians today.

Jesus is risen.

He overcame death.

Jesus is risen.

What else do we need?

Happy Easter!

Well it’s finally here. Next Level Church’s Grand Opening on Easter!

• Our service is at 6:00 PM at 28 Harpersville, Rd, Newport News, and in the great state of VA.
• Last week was a really special time for our start team. We prayed together, took communion, and then practiced so that we’d be ready for Easter.
• Seeing everything set up and our volunteer teams in place was a surreal moment.
• The only thing that I can compare it to is when my wife gave birth to our twins. Okay it wasn’t a messy but stick with me on this one.
• For the last 8 weeks we have been planning and getting ready to open our doors. Last September I felt like God was leading me to start a church. So in my mind this thing has been brewing for some time. When Monica was pregnant it felt real but it didn’t really sink in until our twins were actually born. It was like all theory and planning and dreaming. That’s how I felt on Sunday. Seeing all the theories, planning, and dreaming come to life was a special moment for me.
• I don’t know who to expect to see on Sunday but I’m praying that everyone leaves changed by God.
• Our website has had some changes to it recently. We’ve added Tots and Kids information. There is more to come real soon.
• We are going to do small groups but I don’t think they will start until after the summer. May through August are not great times to start groups and I want to make sure our leaders are trained before we unleash our groups.
• We will kick groups off with Starting Point. It’s a foundations of the faith small group environment that North Point Community Church produces.
• The name Next Level comes from a desire to help people get to the Next Level. Part of that is starting with the basics. Our three levels are Rookies, Veterans, and Coaches. The idea is that when someone becomes a pro, it doesn’t matter what their age is, they are a rookie. That’s not a bad thing. I want spiritual rookies to have a safe place to check out the Bible and grow in their relationship with God. But rookies don’t stay rookies forever. They eventually become veterans. Veterans will have different discussion than rookies. But I don’t want people staying as veterans forever. The final level is to become a coach. A coach helps the next generation become better and at Next Level Church a coach will help model the way for Christians.
• I am praying for God to move all over the world tomorrow.  What if all the people that went to an Easter service fell passionately in love with Jesus? Our world would be a different place over night.
• I hope that if you read this you will pray for Next Level Church. Pray that God’s Spirit will move. Pray that everyone who attends will have soft hearts and open ears. Pray that we will truly love Jesus, love people, and make a difference.

What are your plans for Easter?

I love getting to know the readers of robshep.com.  With 5 Random Facts I share 5 Random things about myself and ask for you to share at least 1 Random Fact about yourself. Let’s go.

1. Fact: I have an awful sense of direction. A literal nightmare that I had this week was being in New York City by myself. I was running around the subways and I didn’t know how to get home. It was scary.
2. Fact: I love soda, but I haven’t drank it in over three weeks. Monica quit drinking it so I joined her. I miss Mtn. Dew and Mtn. Dew Whiteout.
3. Fact: I had a sore throat last week and my mom suggested that I take liquid silver. It’s the weirdest thing ever but it worked.
4. Fact: My favorite breakfast food at McDonald’s is the 99 cent breakfast burrito.
5. Fact: As a college student I was asked to preach at my wife’s college Baccalaureate. It was a huge honor.
6. Bonus Fact: I had to Google how to spell Baccalaureate.

Now it’s your turn. See you in the comments.