FredMcKinnon.Com

Hey Gang,

The blog has been quiet here … VERY QUIET … mainly because I haven’t been posting.  We’ve wrapping up an 8-day whirlwind vacation that stretched the east coast from New York City to Orlando, FL.  I hope to jump back into blogging soon enough but will need a day or so to recover and catch up.  In the meantime, here’s a little recap of our trip for those who may be interested.  (that would be a few friends on Facebook and my family!)

New York City – Andrea Bocelli

I was blessed to receive an opportunity to attend the FREE concert by Andrea Bocelli in Central Park last week in New York City.  I’m a huge fan of Bocelli and thought this would be like a bucket list experience.  One of the world’s greatest singers, with one of the world’s greatest philharmonic orchestras, in one of the world’s greatest cities, in one of the world’s most famous city parks … you know … epic!

Experiencing something like that is even more fun with friends so Joy (my wife) and I flew up to NYC with another couple from St. Simons Island and spent a couple of nights in Times Square.  We left the kids behind and had a few days of “us” time.  Joy had never been to NYC and it was only my second visit.  We did it hard – from Rockefeller Center to the top of the Empire State Building, shopping on 5th Avenue to waving outside the Fox News windows on 6th Ave.  We had Italian one night and some great pizza at Lombardi’s another day.  We did taxis.  We did subways.  We walked a kazillion miles.  The forecast was for rain and the news said that if the concert was rained out, it would be rescheduled for the next night.  This was a big burden for me because we flew out the next morning to meet up with the kids and leave for our family vacation time.

Well, the rain came.  The gates to the Great Lawn at Central Park were to be opened at 3:00 PM.  Because of the rain, people weren’t lining up quite so early so we got there at 3:00 and waited in line for over an hour in the rain.  Thankfully, Joy sported us some $1-store ponchos that we shared with our friends. (Mike/Leisa Dunn)

The rain was nasty and it got pretty chilly with the wind blowing.  The blessing in the rain; however, was that people just didn’t come to get in line.  We were one of the first 50 people in line on the East Side entrance and as a result, when they finally DID open the gates we got the most incredible seats on the Great Lawn possible.  Friends of mine who waited until the rains held off said the lines on both the east and west sides were 30 blocks long and met! We were literally about 30-40 feet away from the stage – and we could’ve gotten even closer but I didn’t want to be so close to the high stage that I couldn’t see the orchestra and choir in the background.

The concert was as magical and epic as I would’ve guessed.  My DroidX camera photos just don’t do it justice.  We were RIGHT THERE center stage.  The people who paid $1,000 for the “VIP” seats didn’t have seats as good as ours.  (Yep, they were there in full force, Donald Trump & Alec Baldwin to name a couple).

Bocelli was joined with the New York Philharmonic and the Westminster Symphonic Choir.  They were amazing.  He was joined with many special guests including Chris Botti (an amazing trumpeter), Bryn Terfel, Andrea Griminelli, Ana Maria Martinez, and Pretty Yende.

Two of my favorite guest moments included Celine Dion singing “The Prayer” and Tony Bennett singing “New York, New York” with Andrea.

(this photo courtesy of BocelliCentralPark.Com)

One incredible moment of worship for me was Andrea’s rendition of “Amazing Grace”.  Lastly, although he did not sing two of my favorite songs I really wanted to hear (“Sogno” and “Besame Mucho”) he did conclude with a finale of my favorite, “Nessun Dorma”.

A quick flight home from NYC and we gathered the kids and took off to Disney World for FIVE days.  Yes, FIVE DAYS.  “The Happiest Place on Earth”.  I will recap that in a separate blog post.

As for Bocelli in Central Park?  It was a whirlwind trip – really crazy to try and fly up there for a concert and back to dump out our suitcase, repack and drive away again for 5 days.  But it was worth it.

As a composer, a  musician, a singer, and a creative person – I was so totally inspired.  It was one of the most awe-inspiring concerts I’ve witnessed and truly was a once-in-a-lifetime event.  I am reminded when I watch some incredible talent and hear such beautiful music how God created us and blessed us with these talents.  Ideally, they are given to us to bring honor and glory to Him.  It inspires me to take my own talents and use them to bring glory to God and inspire others.

Here’s the last few seconds of the grand finale to “Nessun Dorma” – sorry for the jerky camera work, my wife and friends were trying to pack up the blanket we sat on which I was standing on!

Hey Gang,

As you may have heard, I’m hosting a small 3-day (really, more like 2-1/2 days!) retreat here on St. Simons Island, GA in October.  It’s called “Refuge” and it’s more of a sabbatical time of spiritual renewal than it is an equipping-resource event.

One question that I get asked over and over …

“Fred, with all the conferences out there equipping people, why should someone come to Refuge … I mean, can’t they just have their own private sabbatical any time?”

One of my favorite bloggers and leaders, Michael Hyatt, has talked about Sabbatical several times on his blog – you can checkout his posts below:

“Should You Dare to Think About a Sabbatical“?

“Six Ways to Take a Micro-Sabbatical”

Let me ask you some questions:

1.  If left to yourself, without structured help, will you really take the time to stop your merry-go-round and get off for a few days to focus?
2.  Is there value in community, and gathering with other like-minded creatives that will inspire you?
3.  Is there worth in being equipped spiritually, physically, and emotionally?
4.  Can a person who has been recharged in their inner-man return to their routine with a renewed passion, more focus, clarity, and vision?

To be totally honest, those are rhetorical questions.  Of course, the answer to all of those questions is a resounding YES!

So what we have brewing for this “Refuge” event is a real intimate time where you can:

* draw near to God, in personal solitude AND in corporate worship and teaching
* be challenged and inspired in fresh ways to make your daily walk with Christ authentic, real, and personal again
* have a safe place with licensed counselors to vent, confess, and pray
* relax and have a LOT of fun, fellowship, and let the tension and stress of leadership melt away

Someone recently told me how badly they wanted to come, but things would just be too busy.  I almost started laughing – I wanted to say EXACTLY — that’s why you NEED THIS SO BADLY.

A few things you can count on:
1.  Life will keep you busy.
2.  The disciplines of rest, prayer, worship – essentially, Sabbatical, will yield HUGE DIVIDENDS in your personal growth, leadership, and creativity.

That being said, if you’ve been on the fence about this event, I hope you’ll take that step of faith and join us.
Details at:  www.refugessi.com

Hey Gang,

Joel Klampert (visionary behind the Forge Conference) and myself (visionary behind the Refuge retreat) teamed up through the wonders of Skype to interview each other about our events.

Enjoy the details – but best of all – you can WIN a registration.  Just comment on this post, or Joel’s post (or both!) and let us know which event you’d like to attend.  (Free registration prize does not include travel or lodging).

A Joint Conference Interview from Joel Klampert on Vimeo.

Hey Gang,

For those who may already be following our blog and twitter updates (Blog:  www.RefugeSSI.Com | Twitter:  @refugessi) this may be old news.  But it’s still exciting news and I am thrilled to post it here.

We’ve just secured Ian Morgan Cron (web | twitter) as our primary speaker and “guide” for the Refuge retreat that we’re hosting here October 23-26.  Ian is a gifted speaker, spiritual advisor, he’s an ordained priest, worship leader, songwriter, and an accomplished author.  His brand new book, “Jesus, My Father, the CIA” was just featured by Barnes & Noble, noting Ian as one of their “Discover Great New Writers” program.

My first encounter with Ian was at the re:create conference in Franklin, TN a couple of years ago.  He was there as a spiritual guide and counselor and led us through some incredibly powerful times of worship.  His sensitive way of leading us through the Eucharist was amazing and inspiring.

Ian will be speaking in several of our sessions, along with others.  Since the “Refuge” retreat is designed to be small and intimate, it’s a huge treat to be able to spend some time with him.

Here’s a short video excerpt on prayer from a recent interview Ian did:  (more videos at IanCron.Com)

I assure you, this will be time well spent.  Do you need to unwind, recharge, pull away, and hear from God?  Of course you do!  Early-bird registration is only $99 (ending June 30th!).  Checkout the “Refuge” site and register today, and bring your spouse, your staff, friends.  It will be a powerful time of rest, renewal, and restoration.

Early Bird:  $99
Dates:  October 23 (Sunday night Meet & Greet) – Wednesday, October 26th

REGISTER TODAY!

Well, the cat is out of the bag — officially.  I posted on Monday about our event, “Refuge” to be hosted here on St. Simons Island in October.  I’m so thrilled to hear and see the positive response to this idea of gathering for 3 days of sabbatical – leaving our stress and face-paced schedules behind to worship, pray, hear God’s voice, and yes … have a lot of fun!

I’ve spent a good bit of time casting vision for the retreat on the site at RefugeSSI.Com.  Today, I wanted to list 4 things that “Refuge” is NOT:

1.  “Refuge” is not an equipping, how-to seminar.  You won’t learn how to build a better praise team, preach a better sermon, lead a better business, or create a dynamic flow in a worship service.  The only how-to we’ll focus on is “how to care for your soul and spiritual state”.

2.  “Refuge” is not an exhaustive series of sessions.  The point of “Refuge” is to give you some space and time – we have just as much unstructured, “unhurried” time as we do sessions.  See our schedule.

3.  “Refuge” is not a budget-breaker.  $99/person does not come close to covering our actual expenses.  Through Worship International, our nonprofit, we will be buffering the budget through donations and sponsorships so that attending is accessible.

4.  “Refuge” is not a parade of Christian celebrity.  We may have a well-known guest or artist pop in … you never know.  But, our intention is not to attempt to draw people in with a big list of speakers and artists that are famous.  (Here me now – I have nothing against them, and have absolutely no issue with conferences that do have a huge lineup of celebrity-level bands and speakers – I quite enjoy hearing and seeing them, and most have been elevated to that level of influence for a good reason) … Refuge is really a vision I had to provide a space in a beautiful location for spiritual awakening.  The vision has been shared by many here in our South Georgia tribe … folks you know from twitter and blogville, like Russ Hutto, Mandy Thompson, Shannon Lewis, Chris Moncus, and Travis Paulding.

Pray for us as we endeavor to kick off our first event.  Consider joining us.  Follow the event on Twitter @refugessi and the event hashtag at #refugessi
Thanks for your support!