The Extreme Ironing Dream Team. . . and Oprah

So The Oprah Winfrey Show sent me an email telling me that they had found my Extreme Ironing Facebook group and that they had some questions for me about the sport.  So they asked me to call them back as soon as possible.  So i did.  The lady told me that they were considering doing a segment on Extreme Ironing in the show.  So she asked me some questions and then asked me to send her some of my extreme ironing videos.  She said that they were just in the research stages but that there was a chance they may use the footage if they did indeed end up doing a segment on extreme ironing.  So I put the below video together and sent it to her.  A few days later she thanked me for sending the video and told me it was great but that they had unfortunately changed show topics.  She was a very kind and courteous woman.  It made me want to be her friend.

Anyways, we didn’t get to be on Oprah, but we did have a blast making the video and telling everyone how The Oprah Winfrey Show wanted to see it.  And hey, the producers at The Oprah Winfrey Show now know my name, and they even gave me my own upload folder on their FTP site.  I’d say that’s quite an accomplishment. It’s not every day you get a call from Oprah.  So watch the video below as the Extreme Ironing Dream Team Eagle – (me), Cobra (Josh) and Tiger (Jon)- perform some courageous daring acts of extreme ironing.  It’ll rock your face off.  Enjoy.

And if you care to join the Extreme Ironing Facebook group that started all this here is the link. http://www.facebook.com/reqs.php#/group.php?gid=50047178313

CCM EPKs

I got the privilege of producing the electronic press kits (EPKs) for CCM groups FFH and NewFire, of whom both groups I also tour with. It was a blast getting to produce both videos and both bands have the videos featured on the home pages of their websites. Which you can visit at http://www.FFH.net or http://www.NewFireMusic.com. OR you can just click the play button on the videos below. : ) I hope you enjoy.

And if you watch real close you’ll see me in both videos. Most of the time I was the one behind the camera. But I did manage to find a few ways include myself in both videos. ; ) ha ha.

Across the Miles.

This was a very special weekend for me.  I had a blast playing with FFH, and of course with NewFire as always, as we played two packed out shows.  One in Decatur and another in Paris, IL.  They were both amazing shows.  But not only were the shows fun, but we had a blast just traveling and seeing the sites.  We stopped by Springfield, IL to see President Abraham Lincoln’s home, where we went thru the tour, and then we went to his burial site.  Very neat to see those things.  Then, to top it all off we stopped by Six Flags on the way home and spent the day there.  It was awesome.  Not to mention that I got given a laptop, which was a huge blessing.  And the best part of all is that 20 people responded to the altar call Jeromy gave at the show in Paris.  Who would’ve thought so much awesomeness could’ve been packed into one weekend.  lol.  God is good and His mercies endure forever.

I would like to thank Kellie from “Across the Miles Photography” for taking these photos and sending them to us.  You can visit her site at www.acrossthemilesphotography.com.  Click on the image below to view the photo album of this weekend.  And one last thing, you can read Jeromy’s blog about the trip on the FFH site by clicking here.

DownTown T-town photo shoot

To view the online gallery of these photos click here.  : )

NewFire, FFH, The Harvest Show, and Bible League. These are a few of my favorite things.

Here is a vlog of NewFire on tour including a couple concerts with FFH, “The Harvest Show,” and a visit to Bible League!

Click the image below to watch video.

NewFire concert with FFH!

It was an amazing trip.  I actually got to play drums and bass on this trip.  On a couple of shows that NewFire did with FFH I got to first play drums with NewFire and then play bass with FFH on a few songs!  It was really exciting for me.  Here are a few photos of that.

Playing drums with NewFire.

Playing bass with FFH!

The NewFire boys with FFH.

My purple sparkly bass with bright pink strap. Ha ha.

Jennifer showing hand motions for the song "Daniel."

Jeromy and Jennifer Deibler of FFH

Also on this trip we got to do an interview and performance on Lesea Broadcasting’s “The Harvest Show.”  The shows signal goes to nearly 80% of the world’s population covering the globe.  That’s a potential viewing audience of 25 million homes through out the US and over 4 billion (with a b) people internationally.  Here are a couple photos of that. You’ll also see it in the video above.

NewFire interview on "The Harvest Show."

Jon performing on "The Harvest Show."

The whole band played on the show, i just unfortunately don’t have any photos of that.  Not only did we get to perform at some awesome places, but we also got to do a little sight seeing!  We got to hang out in Chicago and while we were there went to the Museum of Science and Industry.  It was way awesome.  We got to tour through a real submarine. Here are some photos of our exploring.

That's Lake Michigan and the Chicago City skyline behind me.

A train in the Museum of Science and Industry.

The famous Navy Pier in Chicago.

We found the weinermobile!

Plus, NewFire is now artist partners with Bible League.  Bible League provides millions of Bibles to locations where they are desperately needed around the world.  Not only do they provide Bibles but they also raise up churches, lead millions through Bible studies, raise up church leaders, and provide the new Churches with Bible study materials.  You’ll see a few shots of Bible League in the video posted at the top of this post.  Here are some of Bible League’s 2008 stats.  And in 2009 Bible League will do even more!  And NewFire is now a part of it all!  Praise God!

Scriptures Placed	18,332,538
Churches Established	3,905
Church Members	479,758
Church Planters Trained	3,368
Bible Study Groups	210,882
Bible Study Graduates	3,246,228
Bible Study Leaders Trained	279,544

Also watch this video about Bible League!

For more info on Bible League visit www.BibleLeague.net.  Please check it out!

Extreme Ironing

Watch this video to learn more.

http://www.tangle.com/view_video.php?viewkey=14ff5905a82ec26ceed0

Bizarre and intriguing Extreme Ironing combines the thrills of an extreme sport with the satisfaction of a well pressed shirt. From its humble beginnings in the English city of Leicester in 1997, Extreme Ironing is now a global phenomenon with hundreds of ironists from around the world taking ironing to the edge. Extreme Ironists iron in the most remote, unusual, dangerous, and sometimes plain stupid places. Who said ironing had to be a mundane chore?

Iron on. . .

Basically, i discovered extreme ironing via a calendar (which you will see in the video) that i received as a gift. It was amazing and inspiring, thus a facebook group was born.

My room mate Josh and I have recently joined the Extreme Ironing sport. It’s pretty hardcore. Basically, we will be taking a portable Iron with us on tour as we travel, and will snap our extreme ironing photos when opportune moments present themselves. Then we will go back to the FB group and upload them to the group. It will be fun. Then with all the photos we shoot and collect via the goup, we will compile a 2010 calendar. A-mazing. You don’t want to miss your opportunity to get in on the ground level of this. We are going global baby. YEAH! . . . Don’t take this to seriously.

To view the group go here. http://www.facebook.com/home.php?#/group.php?gid=50047178313

CCM Magazine article and updates from the road.

Newfire was featured in an article on the front page of “News & Views” section in CCM Magazine!  Where you get  “the week’s most “it” stories in Christian music.”  The article is entitled “Double Dose Of Newfire News.”  Read the article on CCM Magazines website here.  And just in case it has been removed before you get a chance to read it there, i’ll post it here as well.  It says,

DOUBLE DOSE OF NEWFIRE NEWS

“Not only is Oklahoma-bred pop duo NewFire joining FFH on tour in 2009, but co-leader Jonathan Firey just joined FFH as a permanent member. It will indeed be double duty for the blossoming star, but given his impressive vocals, it’s truly a match made in harmony heaven.”

Ever since CCM Mag called Jonathan a “blossoming star” we’ve been teasing him about it, and making lots of comments about his “impressive vocals.”  Ha ha.

Last week we were in . . . the cities had really weird names so i don’t actually remember the names of the places.  Except for Joplin, MO.  I remember that one.  BUT, we ate at this really . . . creepy (in my opinion) restaurant that was featured on the food network on “Drive ins, diners, and dives.”  Here is a picture of Allison with the poster singed by Guy.

It was an interesting experience to say the least.  And then this past weekend we were in Abilene and San Angelo Texas.  It was a lot of fun.  Here are a few pictures from that trip.

(Above) This is Jon and Alli with Mark (the host of the morning show on KCRN).  Sandy is the one in the corner of the pic that you can’t see.  I’m obviously the one taking the picture, and Josh slept in so he wasn’t even there. . . lol.  The studio was really cool because it was up high and the big windows overlooked the city.

(Above) This is Sandy and I in another one of the KCRN studios.  Sandy is another one of the DJs for KCRN.

I think this one is pretty self explanatory

Ok, let me explain this part below.  I got hired to do a poster for some upcoming shows.  You’ll see below the version that was finally approved by FFH’s management.  But underneath that one you’ll see how I thought the poster should’ve looked.  Personally, I think the second design would have drawn a bigger crowd.  But you know, whatever.

Now here is my favorite version, and the one i designed first.  For some reason it didn’t get approved.  Go figure.

Allison sent this version to Jeromy saying, “Hmm, maybe it wasn’t the best idea to have our drummer design the flyer.”

NewFire opening for FFH!

Well, if you head on over to www.FFH.net.  You will see that FFH (Far From Home) has announced that they will be starting a touring schedule again in 2009 after a two year break!  Well, one little fact that I am particularly excited about is that NewFire will be getting the opportunity to open for FFH on the tour!  I have been an FFH fan for quite a while now and so getting the opportunity to open for them is very exciting for me.  Actually, Jonathan (frontman for NewFire) got me backstage passes once while he was playing guitar for FFH a few years ago.  It was a really neat experience for me and now getting this opportunity is wiggin me out a little.  Lol.  FFH has had 7 #1 radio singles as well as 15 top ten singles and have sold over 1.5 million records.  I’m really excited about this opportunity.

NewFire Tour Vlog Series Episode 7 (sort of)

Okay, this isn’t really a vlog. . . . but it would have been had i not forgot the video camera on our last trip. But as it is it will just have to be a blog. Lots of cool things to tell you about tho.

For NewFire’s last trip of the 08 year we went to North Dakota . . . in November . . . lots of snow. . . . lots and lots of snow. When we left Tulsa it was like 65 degrees outside. When our plane landed in ND it was freezing and there was piles of snow that were piled higher than the cars in the parking lot. It was quite a shock.

The ND trip was both the best and worst trip that I have had with NewFire so far. It was the worst because I was bad sick and running fever for nearly all the trip, and it is miserable to try and ride in airplanes and vans, play shows, and hang out with people when you barely have the strength to sit up. But it was the best for several reasons. And I’ll share some of those now.

Our first show there was on the night of the day we arrived. It was for the ND Teen Challenge program. (A Christian program helping drug and alcohol addicts get free from their addictions) Both the women, men, and their children. This show was actually my favorite show I have ever done with NewFire. It wasn’t one of our bigger shows, there were no fancy light systems, no big name artists, and there was only maybe a 120 of us there total. . . BUT, the Lord was there and His presence was more tangible in this show than i have ever experienced in another NewFire show. We started playing concert style. . . it wasn’t really working so Jonathan decided to transition into worship. When we did the Spirit of the Lord really moved into the place. All some of the men and women in the audience could do was cry. They were lifting their hands, singing to the Lord, and just sincerely enjoying the presence of the Lord. These people were so genuine in their worship it was very moving. In fact, i missed a cue in the set because i had stood up and started worshiping the Lord myself and didn’t realize Jon was trying to cue me. . . oops. Then Jonathan and Allison decided to give every Teen Challenge student something free from off the table, whether it be a CD, t-shirt, necklace, or anything else they wanted. They were really blessed. And it blessed me to get to feel like i was actually making an impact into these peoples lives.

The next day we played for a fund raiser dinner at the North Dakota State University Research Center. . . or something like that. I got to eat and meet some cool people. It was fun. It was a bit more formal environment. Then the next day we did two Sunday AM services at the promoters church and the services were broadcast on the radio. It was really neat to get to worship with another denomination than what I’m used to. It helps remind me that we are all in this together and worshiping and serving the same Lord. I love the unity of it. I didn’t really know how to handle some of the traditions and such cuz I’ve never really been in that environment, but nobody seemed to mind. And some really sweet ladies gave us prayer shawls and dedicated to pray for us. I love it when people dedicate to pray for me. : )

Then that night we had a concert at a Baptist church. It was a lot of fun. They had a “get together” i guess it would be a “Pot-luck” (i don’t know if I actually spelled that right) where they fed us and hung out with us. It was great. All great churches, all great people.

Then in the midst of all this there was a man named Dave and his wife. An amazing couple with an amazing testimony. Both of them were quite an inspiration to us, we talked about them a lot on our way back home. Dave had been the promoter for the trip and all the shows (and he did a great job) and he also was quite an encouragement to us in our Christian walk. He told us the story of how he got hooked on meth, cheated on his wife in the double digits of times, in multiple ways. Prostitution, topless bars, you name it. How he was a pathological liar, how they separated for THREE years, and yet God restored their marriage and their relationship with Christ. You would just have to hear the story for yourself, but it is very moving and motivational. Now Dave is one of the most honest and sincere guys you will ever meet. Very real and honest with the struggles he faces, and with His relationship with the Lord. He truly loves Jesus. And his wife . . . WOW, amazing what God has given her the grace to do. It’s very rare to meet someone that loves as genuinely and as deeply as she has learned to do. Both amazingly awesome people. They had us over to their house once. It was cool. I hope to see them again someday. It was truly inspiring to see what their lives had become. It gave me hope for every broken relationship and broken person.

I’m back home now for the holidays. Have been for about a week now. We’ll go back out on the road again in January, I’m sure there will be many more NewFire stories to come. Merry Christmas every one!! God bless, and remember there is ALWAYS hope no matter how hopeless a situation may seem.

NewFire Tour Vlog Series Episode 6 (NewFire and By The Tree)

This was an extremely fun trip. We had a lot more free time on this trip than we do on most, so we played cards, went thrift store shopping, hung out around downtown, found the good places to eat, and just generally had a lot of fun.

And I was personally very encouraged on this trip. If you keep up with this blog than you probably saw my post entitled, “Get Real! Confessions of a local church.” It is the post most viewed on this blog. In it I challenge readers to quit pretending and just be real with who they are and what they struggle with so that they can find true freedom. Well, at the 08 Extraordinary Youth Convention that NewFire played at on Friday the speaker encouraged the youth to “Get Real” and preached a sermon basically about confession. At the end during the altar call students began to stand up as the Spirit of the Lord moved on them and publicly confess their sins to the entire congregation.

The very first guy that stood up shouted that he was addicted to pornography and wanted to be free and that he wanted to quit cheating on his girlfriend. Keep in mind that he was not asked by the speaker to publicly confess his sins, he made the decision to do that on his own. Then a girl stood up and confessed to self mutilation, then a girl stood and confessed to living a double life. This continued for about 10-15 minutes with student after student standing and confessing and crying out to God for redemption. By the time the service was over it had turned into a massive celebration as so many students where experiencing a new freedom never previously experienced as a result of the Holy Spirit moving on them to publicly confess and experience complete freedom from guilt and shame. There was dancing, singing, and most importantly Jesus. He was most definitely there. It was very refreshing for me and I was able to get my worship on. It was great. Oh, and By The Tree was there too, they led the worship. They are pure hearted guys and very humble and kind. Go buy a CD of theirs or something.

Then we moved on to First Christian Church in Washington, MO where we . . . well, why don’t you just watch the video. It will speak for itself.

Here’s the vid.

http://www.godtube.com/view_video.php?viewkey=80781ae01bf8ad43dc30