Passion 2012 in Atlanta began yesterday at the Georgia Dome with more that 44,000 college students and young adults expectant and ready for God to do something massive in their lives.

There are a few ways you can get involved. First and foremost, pray for an awakening and a surrender in the lives and hearts of these students. Second, you can experience each main session online. Finally, you can join Do Something Now and give towards the goal of raising $1 million for the Freedom of more than 27 million people enslaved around the world.

The Worship Together crew will be out at the National Worship Leader Conference this week in Kansas City. Stay tuned in to our Facebook page and Twitter feed for updates, photos and maybe even a couple of videos. If you'll be there make sure to come by our booth and say hello.

Our friends at Passion City Church are excited to announce LIFT- a worship leader collective for songwriters and musicians. The first of these gatherings will take in place in Atlanta, GA on February 18/19, 2011. The gathering will include two nights and one full day of teaching, inspiration and challenge for worship leaders. Hosted by Louie Giglio and Chris Tomlin, contributors will also include Matt Redman + Nathan and Christy Nockels. As a highlight, Matt Redman's new album will be recorded LIVE during these days.

We'll be there. Will you? Click here to learn more and register now!

Join us next Tuesday evening at 8pm (CST) for a special new year message from Louie Giglio.

The Worship Together crew is excited to be down in Altanta, GA this week for Passion 2011! The conference kicked off this evening with a powerful time of worship and a challenging message from Louie Giglio.

You can watch the main sessions live at 10:45 am (EST) and 7:00 pm (EST) through Tuesday morning. Each session will also be available to stream on demand for 24 hours after they are posted, which should be about 4 hours after each session has ended.

Join us next Tuesday evening at WorshipTogether.com as we host a conversation with Reuben Morgan, Ben Fielding and Annie Garratt live from Hillsong Church in Australia. They'll be talking about songwriting, playing songs from the new Hillsong Chapel album and talking about the purpose behind these fresh new arrangements. You won't want to miss it!

Be sure to tune into WORSHIPTOGETHER.COM/LIVE this coming Tuesday evening, 11/2, at 7 PM CST!

I've spent the last two days at the ECHO Church Media Conference in Dallas, TX. The guys from RT Creative Group, which includes Igniter Media and WorshipHouseMedia.com, put this conference on, and they do a great job of supporting the creativity of the Church as we continue to seek innovative and authentic ways to deliver the good news of the Gospel.  It's been a blessing to learn and worship here, and I would encourage anyone involved with media/communications to consider being a part of this event.  The sessions are practical and inspirational; you are sure to leave with more ideas and know-how to get things done.  Most important, though, you'll be reminded why we all do what we do, to glorify God and share His love with others.           

Here are some things I learned while attending the Worship Central training event in Costa Mesa last weekend:

1. The church is where great worship songs are born: I love the fact that Tim Hughes, Al Gordon, Ben Cantelon and Michael Gungor are all engaged in leading weekly in the local church. This is reflected in the songs they write.  This also gives them a hands-on look at what works (and doesn't work) in churches.

2. Ben Cantelon's "Savior of the World" is going to be a huge song for the church: This is probably the best new undiscovered worship song right now. Check it out here http://tinyurl.com/2fstfpu. 

3. The local church is alive and well: It was so encouraging to be with 600 worship leaders from area churches. It was also exciting to see so many young people. 

4. Gungor is a ninja artist: I've seen Gungor no less than 5 times live and they bring me to tears almost every time. If Chuck Norris were a worship leader, he would be like Gungor! Check out his latest CD "Beautiful Things".