I usually have a full post about LifeLight but, really, there is only one band that I really want to talk about. And that's [Reilly][].

We were sitting around on campsite on Saturday morning and, while looking at the schedule, there was a band that was playing on the something like "alt-rock anthems with violins". Well, that sounded at least interesting. I said I was going to go. Gina, Leah, and our sister-in-law said they would come along, and a couple more people said they would come in a little while.

We got their early, so we sat and watched them to their sound checks, etc. We heard them sing and play the violin and our eyes got wide. Gina and I looked at each other and one of us said, "Um, these guys are going to be good." We looked over at our sister-in-law (who also had wide eyes ) and we said, "Call the other two and tell them to get over here!"

And then they started -- and Reilly didn't disappoint. In fact, they exceeded our expectations even from the warm-up. Not only were their songs full of great lyrics, they are fantastic musicians and had a wonderful stage presence. This is not what you expect first thing on Saturday morning on the third stage! For a taste of what we saw, [see this video on their blog.][]

At the end of the show, they reminded us they were playing on Sunday at 6pm and said that they were going to add a couple songs and that they hoped they would be there. Our group all agreed that we wouldn't miss it. And that this was probably the best show we had ever seen in our years of coming to LifeLight.

One thing that's cool about a music festival is that you can bump into some of the musicians. I talked to Matthew at the booth when we were buying a CD (which we never do at LifeLight but we wanted to show our support). I also ran into John randomly by the restrooms and saw Noele at another band's performance later that night. I made a point to tell all three the same thing -- they were fantastic and, yes, I was going to seen them again.

Sometime during the festival, my brother-in-law and I were talking about a band we were listening to on the main stage and we were both liking them. I asked him, "Do you think it's better than Reilly?" He said, "You can't be better than the best." And that pretty much sums it up.

For the Sunday night performance, I went early to squat on some seats, figuring that word got out. And it was a good decision. The first show had around 500 to maybe 1000 people there. Gina and I estimated there were around 3,000 people at this show and at least 20 people deep along the edge of the tent. I could tell the band was a bit nervous when they started, but the crowd was ready to explode. Heck, we even clapped during their warm-ups! But when they started play, they fed off the energy of the crowd and had a better show than the first one! Sure it was mostly the same songs, but they put more heart and soul into the music. One of the songs they added was the most worshipful yet rocking version of "[Nothing But The Blood Of Jesus"][]I've ever heard -- or sang. So now that was the best show we had ever seen at LifeLight!

Apparently they filled in for another band on the Coffeehouse Stage between their first and last performance. Not catching that scheduled performance is one regret I have of the whole festival.

So, yes, see [Reilly][]and by their music. If they are scheduled to be close to you, go! You won't be disappointed.

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[Bart on his latest mission:][]

we get to make things up as we go along, and take chances on people that nobody else would take chances on, and hold our breath together. And we get to do all that with the almost giddy confidence that all the love in the world is on our side.

You may not always agree with him, but he genuinely loves the people he has promised to serve.

[I participated in theCDP's mix-tape trade][] (okay, they were all CD's -- mine was cut from iTunes, probably like many others). The mix was supposed to be in by Feb 14 and theCDP said that the theme was supposed to about love -- you know, let's-get-in-the-mood stuff. I decided to refrain from that and do something a little different.

Here is the track listing as I sent it:

Eros is Tempoary
1. You Don't Know My Name - Alicia Keys
2. Crush - Dave Matthews & Tim Reynolds
3. Then I Kissed Her - The Beach Boys
4. Moondance - Van Morrison
5. Cold Song - Jewel
6. The One I Love - David Gray
7. Leaving On A Jet Plane - Chantal Kreviazuk
8. Somebody's Crying - Chris Isaak

Agape is Forever
9. He - Jars Of Clay
10. This Is A Call - Thousand Foot Krutch
11. Lost The Plot - Newsboys
12. A New Law - Derek Webb
13. Of Minor Prophets & Their Prostitute Wives - Pedro The Lion
14. Christmas Song - Dave Matthews & Tim Reynolds
15. Untitled Hymn - Chris Rice
16. Jesus Loves Me - Go Fish
17. I'll Fly Away - Alison Kraus & Gillian Welch
18. 40 - U2

Tracks 1-8 were about a romantic relationship -- from the first meeting to a sad breakup. Track 9-18 was modeled after the Reformed Order of Worship -- celebration of God, confession of sin, assurance of pardon, and the joy of life in Christ. Interestingly enough, both movements ended in songs of lament -- one about someone missing their loved one and the other asking how much longer will our sin entangle us. It was an accident in my design, but it left it -- it seemed to make great sense to close both of them like that.

My brother-in-law [Rick][]was lamenting the state of holiday church services. While there is nothing wrong with Christmas Eve or Easter Services in general, he said that they lacked what he called "grit" -- realness, authenticity, and transparency. To give an example, Rick was asked to pick a version of the Christmas story from the Bible and he picked[Revelation 12,][]which is probably the most accurate version from the spiritual perspective.

Rick explained that many people come to church only twice a year -- on the holidays -- and they don't sense they have any real problems so they don't come back. If the service was about real problems, maybe they could identify better. Later Rick stated that blogs have become a good source of grit -- where people let their problems and their struggles out for everyone to see.

I couldn't agree more. Lately I've been reading some blogs that have had their share of grit, and to them, I salute you.

• [Linda][], who is glad God is more patient than she is.
• [Jayne][], who's husband is still struggling with brain cancer.
• [Dave][], who lost his job and sees that as approaching a new horizon.

We had another Faith and Work lunch today. The topic was "Are We Working Too Much?" We were given an article that refuted the claim that we work too much and gave some good evidence to the contrary. But the article was written in 1993 and work has changed a lot since then -- we now have Blackberries and remote desktop so we can work anywhere.

One thing that I thought of that I didn't mention is that it isn't just work. It's church, it's school events, it's sports practice, it's music lessons, etc. None of those are bad by themselves, but we can't do all of them. In fact, we have to work harder to get more money to afford to do more things, yet we have less time to do them.

How does that madness end?

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