[Note: Facebook peeps click here to watch the video. Facebook doesn't include videos when automatically importing these notes from my blog.]

Mike, you aren’t alone!  I do this all the time!  Anyone else out there as guilty of this as I am?  

This is good stuff!  Thanks for tuning in…

[Note: Facebook users click here to watch the video. Facebook doesn't not embed videos when automatically importing these notes from my blog.]

So what about YOU? Do you find yourself wasting time?  Or do you make every moment count?  I know for me, it’s sometimes easy to get sucked into my computer and end up spending TONS of time online, whether on Twitter, Facebook, or just watching videos on YouTube.  Am I alone?

This morning, my assistant Beth got the following email in her inbox from Ben Birdsong, the Station Manager. It was completely unsolicited, and 100% unexpected:  

“Harris was amazing! Not only did he adjust his program to meet our needs, he was so easy to work with as a performer.  If more artists were this easy to work with, we would do a lot more events.”

What??  I’ll come back to that in a moment…

Ben went on with an endorsement saying, “You can’t go wrong with inviting him to your station’s event. I highly recommend him to you as aboth a highly skilled and polished performer that will amazing your audience, but also a compelling speaker who will challenge them in their walk with God.”

I genuinely appreciate not only Ben’s willingness to partner with us, but also for his great testimonial.  We have tons of feedback like this on our website, from all kinds of people.  Author John Maxwell, to Mac Powell from Third Day, to North Point, Andy’s Stanley’s church in Atlanta, have all said stuff like this about what we do.  It’s humbling, and a huge honor.  But that isn’t the point of this post.

“If all artists were this easy to work with, we would do a lot more events.” That shocked me.  I mean, I know there are artists, even some who claim to follow Jesus, who are highly demanding and incredibly difficult to work with.  But are there really so many of you out there that there are great people, who already share your same vision, that won’t partner with you because you’re “too hard to work with?”

Clearly, the answer is yes.  So to all of you other performers out there, take note! Get over yourselves, and recognize who’s hiring who.  You aren’t showing up to be served, you’re showing up to serve.  And unless you’re writing checks and paying the people who book you, try to show some gratitude, and be flexible along the way.

Honestly, we go out of our way to be over-the-top easy to work with.  If there’s something I can provide and carry with us on the road, so that an event host doesn’t have to provide it for us, we do it.  If I can design my material so that it can be performed in a wider variety of environments, I do it.  Me, and everyone who works for me, makes every attempt to be as professional and service-oriented as possible.  It’s why we’re here…to serve.

Do we have contract riders and lists of requests?  Of course.  But each one is designed with the intention of being as simple as possible.  And it’s not about our comfort, but about what we could use in order to serve hosts better.  The bottom line is that their event’s success is the driving force behind everything we ask for.

If you aren’t attaching my God or his name to your stuff, then so be it.  Do whatever you want.  (Though I bet this concept would revolutionize your business regardless.)  But if you’re saying it’s about Jesus, that means it supposedly isn’t about you.  So please stop with the side-show.

This isn’t about you.  Or me.  And even if you’re making it that way, I hate to be the bearer of the news, but your approach isn’t working out too well.  It turns out, your attitudes and lack of flexibility are costing you and everyone else not only opportunities, but their platforms.  If you change, “they’ll do a lot more events,” and you might get to be a part of them.

If you’ve seen me perform live, you may have heard me talk about how easy it is to be deceived, and one of the ways it happens is how the world attempts to define what true beauty is.  Every day you drive by billboards, see ads on TV, and look at pictures as you flip through magazines, and it’s everything inside of you to feel pretty.  Does the world and it’s blurred messages of self-image impact how you see yourself in the mirror?  

Eating disorders, thoughts about ideal weight, affording the right clothes, and questions of how to feel beautiful are asked every single day by millions of people who live in a photoshopped world.

Imagine the pressure felt by three sisters who signed a major record deal with Hollywood Records, toured with national acts like Miley Cyrus, the Jonas Brothers, and the Cheetah Girls.  Glitz, make-up, lights, photo shoots, (and a massive machine called Disney), certainly has high standards to say the least, and I could imagine it’d be hard to deal with the constant pressure to look a certain way, weigh a certain amount, and fit certain expectations, all while being teenagers.

Well, now those girls have grown up a bit, (and their music and sound has matured), and they’re speaking up about one of the issues almost all women face.  It seems like the issue doesn’t go away, regardless of how old you are.  Find out what my friends and recording artists, Everlife, have to say about what it means to feel beautiful, and hear their brand-new song, “What’s Beautiful.”  If you really listen to the lyrics of this song, I think you’ll be as blown away as I was!  And I’m not even a girl!  ;-)

After you check out this video and hear the song, you’ll want to do 3 things:

1. Buy “What’s Beautiful” on iTunes, and enjoy the positive message…you need it!

2. Come see the girls play live on my tour, “Sens de Vie“ in a city near you this Spring!

3. Spread the word!  You and I both know that you know someone who needs to hear this song! Forward a link to this post to your friends, girlfriends, and daughters, encouraging them to watch the interview, start following Everlife by checking out their website, and getting the song.

Enjoy!  This is one of the world’s first chances to see a recording of this song played live…

[Facebook Note readers, click here to watch the video.  Facebook doesn't embed the video here when automatically importing these notes from my blog.]

Remember, buy the song, and spread the word!

Do YOU feel beautiful?  If not, remind yourself that God created you in his image, and in his eyes, you are perfectly beautiful and wonderfully made.

How do you fight the temptation each day to tune out the lies around you that scream you have to look a certain way in order to feel pretty? Share your comments, questions, frustrations, experiences, whatever.  Others might need to hear them, or you might just need to hear from them…

We spent all day yesterday (Sunday) doing church, then celebrating Thanksgiving with vocational missionaries from all over the world.  Ha.  Missionary.  Don’t let that word fool you.  Forget about all the stereotypes of what you think of when you hear that word.  These guys are doctors, teachers, community leaders, pastors, and business people. They’re amazing.

Most people need their perceptions of what it means to be a “missionary” totally shattered.  And “most people” likely includes you.  

You want to be a teacher?  I have a new question for you: Where?

I know that your natural reaction is to immediately dismiss that concept. But don’t. Seriously. Do you really think you were gifted with the talents you have, and that the desires of your heart were put there just so you could do it in the same country you grew up in?  Maybe.  It’s possible.  But really??

You want to be a business man?  Okay, where? My friend, (who needs to remain nameless), lived in the middle east for 8 years as a business man. Then he got kicked out, and now lives in Thailand. He does project management for an international ministry, and one of his many jobs is doing consulting for an organization called Nightlight.  This past weekend, he helped oversee the process of covertly helping a lady in the sex-trafficking business escape her owner because she wanted out. Now they’re helping her get back to her home country and start a new life.  Turns out, that’s something she’ll actually be able to do, because along the way, she decided to follow Christ.  Why?  Because my friend isn’t just a business man.  He happens to be a missionary. Something you maybe haven’t considered being, or if you did, decided you didn’t want to be. But chances are pretty good, he has cooler stories than you do.  Because it turns out, being a missionary is pretty cool after all.

You want to be a musician? Cool. Where? I know of a guy who just moved to Paris and gets to live in an amazing flat over looking the city. He hangs out with local artists all day, building relationships and teaching music classes.  How amazing is that?? He’s an artist. And he’s a “missionary.”

It doesn’t matter what you want to do with your life. Whatever it is, your story may have been written with a country other than America in mind.  It doesn’t take much international travel to recognize the intense need for people to serve internationally. The need is overwhelming. That means that the issue is not that God isn’t asking people to go. It’s that they just aren’t listening.

Don’t make assumptions and settle, just because it’s what is easy and convenient.  Why settle for the fake version of the life you were really meant to live?  What is it that you really want to do?  It doesn’t matter what the answer is.  Go ahead.  Get crazy. Use your imaginations, and let loose…

I want to be a ___________.

Ahh, so that’s what you want to do with your life. That’s awesome! Next question: Where?

Joining me will be my good friend and world champion circus performer, DonB!, as well as my new friends Everlife, 3 sisters who became Hollywood Records recording artists, toured with Miley Cyrus, and just opened for the Jonas Brothers.  With that kind of resume, as you could expect, these girls are incredibly gifted, and you’ll be blown away by their moments throughout the show. They’ve been given a big platform in today’s culture, and they utilize it with courage and humility.

Three years ago I started telling people, “I’m going to create a production that reaches the kind of people who aren’t interested in going to church on Sunday. And I’m going to do the shows in the kind of places they’re already going to experience entertainment. And, I’m going to charge people to get in.”  A few said, “That sounds amazing! Go for it!” But most just laughed and said, “It won’t work.”

Thankfully, I didn’t listen. But the truth is, most of them were right.  It’s hard. After all, it’s less expensive to host a show in a church’s building.  And it’s safer to book a band whose songs are on the radio, because then you can usually plan on a lot of christians showing up.  And charge people? Maybe, but how could you put a dollar amount on a message about the true meaning of life?

First of all, I’m not. I’m putting a value on the level of quality of experience that audience members can expect.  When those people show up, they listen to my message more intently and effectively than those who come for free.  For some reason, “Free” & “Church” attract a completely different crowd than “$10″ and “Theater.”  Ironically, I was created to reach the latter group of people.  Sure, I could play it safe and create events that I know will appeal to the massive church world, book easily, and rest in the fact that my mortgage will always get paid. But what’s the point? If that’s all I do, but not what I was created for, I might as well change my message to “the meaninglessness of life.”

Most of the time, to be honest, I feel like Peter, sitting safely in a boat but seeing Jesus out on the water.  I think, “Hey, I’ve got an idea. I’m gonna walk on the water.” But everyone around me is thinking, “Are you nuts?! That’s impossible! You’ll fail, and you’ll look like an idiot.”  Well, I decided to get out of the boat anyway. Is my fall tour a huge “success.” In the eyes of some, probably not. There could be more shows and a fuller schedule. And if I were willing to compromise a little on my vision, it could have been different. But I didn’t, and God is honoring the vision, and I am SO excited about this year’s tour!

Our first stop this fall is in Tuscaloosa, AL, only 17 days from today!  We’ll be performing at the Bama Theater, an awesome 1,500 seat venue in town.  We got word about a month ago that a matinee show had been added, because the evening show had sold out all 1,500 seats more than two months away from the day of the show.  I just got word today that the matinee is almost completely sold out also, still over two weeks away!

Every day my team and I work hard to convince great promoters to partner with us and bring in the events we produce, and every day we hear responses like “That’s too risky,” or “That’s a little too out of the box for us,” or my favorite, “Well, I’m a concert promoter, and you don’t have any songs on the radio, so how do I know that people will show up?”

I thank God for people like Luke Stephens at Way Radio in GA & FL, who realized that his listeners actually wanted to come to an event that wasn’t a music concert.  He believed in us, and took a chance, and the event was a huge success. And guys like Steve McCranie at New Life 91.9 in Charlotte, who knows that it doesn’t matter that I’m not a band or musician and don’t have songs on the radio, because he has larger crowds at events like ours than most of the major concerts he does throughout the year.  And even the ministry leaders and pastors just like Heath Cooper in Tuscaloosa, AL who have stepped up, caught the vision, and taken the risk.  It’s unbelievably exciting to see God honor the efforts of those few who live courageously, and not live in the boring cycle of comfort, safety, and the doing of things a certain way because that’s just “the way it has always been done.”  I think God gets excited when we’re actually willing to get out of the boat, and try something that others label impossible.

I’m not bragging, nor am I against the music industry.  Many of my closest friends are musicians.  But I spent much of my life paralyzed by fear, because I wanted to stay comfortable and play things safe.  Yet every day, churches, promoters, and organizations are hosting the same kinds of events, over and over, because it just seems like the safe thing to do.  And other entertainers and performing artists like me are falling into the trap of creating not what God inspires them to create, but what they know is marketable and easy to book.  Now that I’ve embraced a life that requires courage and is filled with mystery, others are slowly jumping in, partnering with us, and joining me on the journey. It’s thrilling and scary, but you’ve gotta admit, walking on water is pretty dang cool.

Because I am open about my faith, and often incorporate it into my show so that my art has substance, I am most certainly a different kind of illusionist.  Who I am affects what I do. What I believe affects my work. And my Creator is involved in the experiences I create.  Like me, who you are affects how you do what you do…whether you’re aware of it or not.

Because I’ve discovered over and over again that labels ultimately fail, and because it got piles of conversations going 4 years ago, and then again when reposted 2 years later, here’s the original post yet again. Enjoy, comment, and pass it along…

The word “Christian”: Is it a Noun or Adjective?

I think it’s a great noun and a really poor adjective. But I haven’t always thought this way.

The person that opened my eyes was Rob Bell, the pastor of Mars Hill Church up in Grand Rapids, MI. You may also know him from the highly popular Nooma films. While I don’t always fully agree 100% with everything he does or teaches, he does have some good things to say, and I respect him for the questions he asks, and the discussions he prompts. For example…

For years, I billed myself as a “Christian Illusionist,” because that’s what I thought I was supposed to do. There were “Christian Musicians,” “Christian Bands,” “Christian Comedians.” I thought, “I’m an illusionist, and a Christian, therefore I guess I’m supposed to be called a “Christian Illusionist.”

If the guy that works on my truck when it breaks down is a Christian, why isn’t he called a “Christian Mechanic?”

Something didn’t make sense. My thinking was flawed.

I share the opinion of Rob Bell in at least this area: Part of what it means to be Christian is to do whatever it is that you do with great passion and devotion. Rob says in his book, Velvet Elvis, “We throw ourselves into our work because everything is sacred.”

In Colossians, Paul says, “Whatever you do, whether in word or deed, do it all in the name of the Lord Jesus.” He’s teaching people to live as Christians…to BE Christians. Then, whatever they do will be sacred, holy work.

Christian. Great noun, poor adjective.

So what about music and magic and comedy and mechanics?

Well, for just one example, music was really created by God. Therefore, it’s already sacred. God created it, and it doesn’t need a label to make it sacred or acceptable or blessed. (BTW: Is the same true for the food we eat? Is it already blessed, or do we need to “bless” it?)

So if all this is true, it’d pretty much be impossible for a Christian to have a “secular” job. As Bell says, “If you follow Jesus and are doing what you do in his name, then it is no longer secular work; it’s sacred. You are there; God is there. The difference is our awareness.” (That’s an important word – Awareness. Another future post…)

He goes onto to say later that, “The goal isn’t to bring everyone’s work into the church; the goal is for the church to be these unique kinds of people who are transforming the places they live and work and play because they understand the whole earth is filled with the kavod of God. God isn’t in one building only. Doing things for God happens all the time, everywhere. If you are an actor, the goal isn’t for you to do your work in a church building in a church service. Please go wherever it is in the world that people act and do it well. Really well. Throw yourself into it and give it everything you have.”

So ultimately, the labels somehow fail. No matter how useful they seem to be from time to time, they just don’t work because the life of Jesus is just that…a life that is lived by people who have oriented their entire lives about Him and His teachings.

One of the things I stress over and over again in a lot of our live events is to test everything. As Christians, we’re to be alert and engaged, and not let everyone else do the thinking for us. If we do that, we’ll make assumptions and be easily deceived. One of the dangers of labeling things “Christian” is because of that reason. It can lead to us blindly accepting things and consuming them as truth. And why do we do it? Because we assume that if it’s labeled “Christian,” then it must be safe and acceptable. Unfortunately, it just doesn’t work out that way. All the “Christian Stuff” in our culture isn’t completely safe and acceptable. Something can be labeled “Christian” and not be true or good.

I can’t tell you the amount of times that I’ve experienced this. It’s happened at conferences, churches, on TV, in bookstores, and on and on and on. And don’t get me wrong. I’m not an authority on truth. God is. I’m not referring to the books and speakers and churches that push the envelope on what most of us may refer to as “gray areas.” I’m referring to blatant deception that becomes accepted simply because of it’s label.

Let’s wrap this up. Take a look at one more paragraph out of Rob’s book…

“This happens in all sorts of areas. It is possible for music to be labeled Christian and be terrible music. It could lack creativity and inspiration. The lyrics could be recycled cliches. That “Christian” band could actually be giving Jesus a bad name because they aren’t a great band. It is possible for a movie to be a “Christian” movie and to be a terrible movie. It may actually desecrate the art form in its quality and storytelling and craft. Just because it is a Christian book by a Christian author and it was purchased in a Christian bookstore doesn’t mean it is all true or good or beautiful. A Christian political group puts me in an awkward position: What if I disagree with them? Am I less of a Christian? What if I am convinced the “Christian” thing to do is to vote the exact opposite?”

I could echo Rob’s words on my own art form! It applies to every vocation.

Again, we have to test everything.

In the meantime, I’m not a “Christian Illusionist.” Not because I’m leaving ministry and my role in the local church has changed. My purpose hasn’t changed. My label has. I’ve always hated labels anyway…

I’m an illusionist.

And, I’m a Christian.

It’s an awesome noun, but a really poor adjective.