Great friends are hard to find, and once you find them it can be difficult to keep them. I’ve lost so many friends throughout the years. Some left on good terms others on sour terms, and some simply vanished. Moving out here meant I was not gonna be near some of mi amigos. I still hear from many and others not. Some of us were simply not meant to journey together. I am guilty for ruining many friendships as well as creating some great ones. The great ones are the ones that withstand the obstacles and tests. At first friendships are all good until we learn more about each other. Then you find that one thing that annoys you about them, and they find things that annoy them, about you. That is the way it is. It is always hard to make those tough decisions that involve friends. You are left with the choice to tell them yourself or have others tell them instead. That really stinks. I always hated to hear things from other people rather then ( I hate the saying but..) the horse’ mouth. I guess that is the way it has to be in certain circumstances. In jobs for example. You can make friends but at the same time its weird. I have experienced this in the past. You wanna be friends with certain people, but eventually they may have to make a decision on behalf of the company that terminates you, and usually terminates a friendship. It has always been sort of the opposite for me. The friends that were up front with me, and gave me the real deal are the friendships that have continued. Its gotta be tough being on the other side of the table having to make a tough decision. Usually sending someone makes it easier cause it isn’t you, but that’s just it, its not you.

A few years back some changes were being made in a group I was part of. The decision was I should move on to something else. It was tough to swallow, but it was awesome hearing it from the main dude. It’s funny but after that decision it seemed as if our friendship got stronger and things opened up for me in other areas beyond belief. . As years past we realized that the whole time we were working together we never really talked. We were part of the same vision yet so disconnected. But after a tough decision was made a friendship born. Its an awesome thing. So here I am rambling at the airport waiting for a friend to arrive from Chi-town. On the whole drive here I was thinking about this, figured why not blog it. Anybody feel me? Any friends out there?

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Too many people settle? Settle for what seems stable and comfortable. We let dreams drift away cause they don’t seem stable enough and seem uncomfortable to achieve. It is never too late to change the ife you’ve made for yourself. It seems that the things we are passionate about won’t pay, so we get the 9-5 to pay for it, until then. Our dreams and passions are then placed in the back burner until _________________ fill in the blank. But that is a trap. You then become locked into a comfort zone. You have money, you have things, life seems stable, bills are getting payed, but your heart, mind and soul are half full, because the things that fill are the passions specifically implanted and wired into your DNA. Deep inside we all say “if I could only do this, do that”. We are afraid to take a chance, take a risk, and possibly lose it all, but gain life in the end. There is nothing more filling then doing the one thing you love. We are all wired for success. We’ve been created to be great, to dream big and live out those dreams now. So many people live their dreams through others or even their children. There is no better lesson for a son or daughter to see a single mom, single dad, or even a married couple to strive for the dream no matter how old they may be nor the odds against them. You’re heart, mind and soul will never be at rest until you have given in to the passion you have within. That dream no one understands. The dream that seems too big to accomplish. But In going for it we find God, we find our destiny, we find purpose and we find the life of our dreams…All because you left the comfort zone and you took a chance.

paz

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More facts you didn’t know about me…I wonder how long this blog series can go?

-I broke into my own car 3 times during college, because I locked my keys inside…

-I chopped my Mohawk off cause the Hair-cuttery ruined it…All I wanted was a trim.

-I ate lunch at the same table with Vince Vaughn and Jennifer Anistan on the set of the break up.

-I fell asleep on my way to pick Reina up while in college. I ended up on the grass off my exit…my heart was racing…and so embarrassing.

-When Alex was a toddler I stuck my thumb in his mouth cause his mouth was open. He bit down and crushed my thumb…I screamed with no sound so nobody would hear me…LOL.

-as a kid we climbed into a cardboard box and threw ourselves down 20 concrete stairs…”young and dumb”.

-I flipped off my chair at Olive Garden, right when the waitress asked for my order…I was sitting head of the table…dang…we had a party of 15.

-During a worship service as a teen, I smacked myself with the stick in the face.. Tears were flowing from my eye… People were like, “spirit was moving, Jesse was crying”.

-When I met Reina my hair was long and Red.

-My brother Albert knocked me out with a left hook. We would put the gloves on and box on the weekends…Left hook slipped a little too hard. All I remember is waking up.

-In 8th grade to impress the girls in our class my buddy and I stripped into our boxers and lay in the snow…”if i could go back I’d slap myself”.

-I tried to cut my hair with a razor as a young teen.

-Almost gave Chris Martin from Coldplay my TSP demo…

-My name is Jesus santoyo.

-I used to secretly give my dog bubble gum…he loved it.

The journey begins with a thought…a word…a dream…to make a difference…in this broken world…

-Arrived at 7:15a

-God answered my prayers. I had two monitors on stage, I could hear myself. Travis turned them off during first service, and I forget to re-connect them…Either way today sounded great.

-I met Robert today, an amazing young guitarist. He goes by the name “epic”. He should be jamming with us soon.

-We had a full crew today. It sounded so rich today and Full of energy. I really enjoy Phil on bass. I think we’re building a a great rock’n chemistry. I just hope his work schedule changes. Hey someone give this guy a Mon-Friday gig!!!! lol. Rebecca has done amazing on keys! Alex is getting better on guitar, and Ritz is definitely improving the on the drums. I love sharing the stage with my amazing wife!

-Video was funny this morning, I will have it on youtube tomorrow.

-I gave Paul my best introduction as he took the stage, hey why not he does a great job right?, but he threw me under the bus by calling me “a midget Carlos Santana trying to sound like Bono.” Ouch!”. I see COG over seer written all over that man!!

-Both services were rock’n. The crew has been totally stepping up. We can’t get to the next level doing what got us here! You’ve taken that to heart and to action.

Travis called our saviour JeZeus?

-Travis threw down on the Funk in Anxiety. Listen to it here. I guess some of the exec rubbed off on him to. He threw mi little bro under a different bus.

-The youth are getting ready for camp. For some youth this experience will change their life forever…glad to be part of it.

-All in all it was a great Sunday. You gotta dream big and go for it! People like us have no home, just like Jesus. God takes us from glory to glory, when we least expect it. BOOYAH!

-Big things are coming people…big things…

OK, so here is a late late version of Life with the Santoyo’s. We weren’t gonna air this week’s episode.   But all the faithful viewers have been requesting it. So here you go, enjoy a night full of ants at the Santoyo’s place. Funniest thing my mother-in law  said tonight, “you are so full of________ your eyes are brown”.

[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XvQfolzLYf0]

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So I was up at 2:45am yesterday. I took a shower, got dressed and drove myself to Fort Lauderdale airport. Only this time I didn’t miss my flight. I was exhausted…I gotta say Spirit Air is pretty uncomfortable and the service was terrible. But hey you get what you pay for right? It got me there and back and that’s all that matters. Well I had breakfast at some local diner then head off to my session at the Journey. I ran into Nelson on the way into the office. I never met the guy, but he seems cool but a little intimidating. I will attach my notes below this blog for you to read. New York was crowded like usual and hot. I was sweating like a roasting pig on a stick… After the session I head over to H&M to get Diego was gifts. I bought him some really cool jeans and a few T’s. Only to accidently leave the bag on the train…That totally sucked!! I was so upset but more hurt then anything. I just hope some orphan child found the clothes instead of some hustler trying to make some dough. My flight was delayed by like 45 min and everyone rushed to the door when it was open. It was chaos. It was a smooth flight back. I did some reading, some thinking and dreaming… I am half way done with McManus‘ new book. It is a great read so far. So at 7am I was in New York and back in Miami by 11pm..Sort of like the jumper only alot slower.

We spoke a bit about stewardship at our coaching network and I think it was great. It is totally challenging to be a great steward of what God has given us. How will he give us more when we can’t even handle what we have. It’s a challenge I want take as a leader, a father and follower of Christ. This morning I got up and head over to the Cure wash and yard sale. I gotta hand it to my little bro. He’s been stepping up like I have never seen before. He is being a great steward with the role he has been handed. It’s great to see how excited these young kids are about going to camp. I’ve been asked to speak at the camp and look forward to it. A few people have taken on themselves to sponsor a child for camp and i think that is great. That is amazing stewardship. God gives us, so we can give others. As a leader that is a tough thing to swallow. Cause when I get, I wanna keep, but bottom line its a blessing and I wanna learn to bless others. We can’t lead others to a place we’ve never been. I will be donating my time and dinero for the Cure this week cause I believe in these young people. Am I getting anything out of it? Yes, inspiration in seeing this young kids get motivated to make this world a better place. So that’s that. See you tomorrow morning.

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Notes:

The Provision Challenge
• Throwing money at a situation doesn’t necessarily mean it will fix it.

Investing into our services
• Wish lists: In ear monitor system, guitar amp and pedals, full rack out board gear.
•
-Always buy for this season and the next.
• -Always be thinking for the future.
• -balancing the equation
• – don’t buy way too low, don’t buy way to high
• 2 Corinthians 9:6

-Invest in people not in stuff
• we want to reach people and not impress them
• how can we can invest into what will reach and empower people.
• We can’t invest all into the service and forget about the people
• There is a great reward when you invest into people
•
-Never buy what your volunteers can’t operate
•
-Be careful and aware of gifts and the giver
• many people want to give
• many people use it as their leverage into the church.
• Alot of givers are giving out of a different motivation

-Remember that God is the provider of all we need
•
• Psalm 31:19
•
-Celebrate everything
• the things God is doing
• the things God gives us and provides us with
Stewardship: Is an issue in the church
• Not just an issue of obedience, but this is God’s plan for furthering the kingdom on earth.
• Through our resources this becomes possible
• Our lives and or wallets are a lot more connected than we think
•
Worship arts Ministry: Understanding the value of stewardship
• Our greatest areas of care are discovered by the areas we invest in.
• Giving is an act of obedience.
• We need to help our artists understand the stewardship of
o Time
• Its not a cost, but an investment into eternity
• Psalm 90:12
o Talent
• It was given to us to honor God, and not self gratification and praise
• How we use it.
 Psalm 33:3
• Don’t focus and point out the negative, but thank those who are doing positive. Ex: “if people are late, don’t point them out, but rather thank those that are early”.
o Treasure

• How do you teach your artists to give in a God honoring way
o Systematically: when we get paid
o Proportionately: Biblical starting point is the tenth…not necessarily the end.
o Sacrificially: Encourage to give sacrificially.
o
o –this identifies where their hearts are.
We must lead by example by giving myself.
• My leadership determines the rise and fall of my team
• Potential leaders must be giving before taking official leadership roles in the Church.
• On going spot-checking on artists giving.
•
New Season orientation
Raise the value of stewardship on Sunday’s
Don’t be afraid to have conversations about giving with your team and artists.
“our role is to not be afraid to confront these issues.. We wouldn’t turn our back on people who are being disobedience in certain areas in their lives, drug abuse, etc… this includes giving.

In 1999 I wrote the word “time” on a piece of paper. What that meant? Wasn’t sure. Sometime in 2000 I began writing some lyrics that weren’t the norm for me. After being in a “Christian” folk rock band since 1998, I decided to change lanes. I wrote some songs and decided to take them to the clubs and bars of Chicago. Everyone told me I was crazy. So for a few years we hit the scene singing and rocking on the weekends. Alex wasn’t even old enough to get it. We had to find ways of sneaking him into the clubs to perform. We always had some great musicians on piano, but never one that stuck around long enough, or passionate enough to rock the scene. I came home one evening, checked my bank account and made the greatest investment yet. I bought a cheap 300.00 Casio and figured out how to play it. I revisited the word “time” that i wrote in a notebook and wrote a song to it. I was upset and hurt by the fact that people were walking away from the dream we had. Not enough people believed. If i could only go back and fix things. But I couldn’t. “All the things you thought I lost, I left behind, to be with you”.

After that it got a little easier to write songs on the keyboard, and not knowing any theory what so ever. We kept on and charged forward. Musicians came and went, Alex and I knew we had to keep going. We’ve been doing music for over 12 yrs now, and close to 8 as the saturn project. They say most bands don’t get passed the decade. We were constantly reminded by many that we didn’t have what it takes to make it. We’d never get a record deal. Did it stop us? Heck nah. In 2006 we were nominated by the Chicago Music awards for ‘best rock entertainer”, thanks to all the faithful supporters who would come out to our shows. Our sound has evolved so much, my writing has changed drastically, we have become better musicians, most importantly we aren’t driven by stardom, deals, $$, fancy cars and magazines anymore. So the question is, after all these years of hard work, and now being away from the city that made us, is it over, is TSP breaking up? Yes! We’ve been broken off the pieces that have held us back all these years, and we are stronger than ever. Relocating to Miami put us in contact with an old friend, that would become TSP’s guitarrist, the missing piece!  Something is in the making and I can’t wait to get it out there and let you guys know what we are up to…But TSP is here, and here to stay. Thanks to all the Chicago support, you know who you are. We’re aren’t done yet… and to our Miami peeps, just wait…You haven’t seen anything yet! To everyone that writes to us from all over the globe, thanks. We are especially grateful to those who constantly remind us we don’t have what it takes…You are the fuel that keeps us going! thanks friends

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Anthems for a broken world…coming soon…What if? music could change the world..

ok, so here are more facts you didn’t know…a day late…sorry.

-I used to do graffiti, my tagging name was “Phaze 4″

-I worked in landscaping with my Dad for 1.5 days…I quit. I couldn’t handle it.

-My pastor told me to be quiet in church while he was giving his sermon. Me and a friend were chatting away in the back of the church while he preached. The Pastor called us out in front of 300+ people. We were embarrassed.

-About 10yrs ago, I took first place in the first round of Guitar Centers Drum Off in Chicago. Round 2, I came in second place…I lost to a jazz drummer.

-The first movie I ever saw in the theater was Karate Kid part II. Had to keep it a secret. Back then it was a sin to go to the movies. As far as I knew that night, I was going straight to hell in my pastors eyes.

-During an acoustic performance with my first band, My guitar strap snapped, and the guitar flew off the stage…the room was silent…after that…

-I got my first tattoo in St. Thomas, it cost me $40.00

-While in elementary school, maybe 6th grade. I was goofing off in the back of the line, the Principle(nun) Kneed me to the front of the line…My back and butt cheeks hurt all day long

-I cried as i watched “dumb and dumber“…hilarious flick.

-My Dad told my teachers and nuns of the school to use any measure necessary of disciplining me when necessary…they sure did…thanks Dad.

-If we goofed off during class, Our gym coach would roll the dice and the number rolled was the number of paddles!!!

-My first job was for a Chinese restaurant called “Shanghai”. We’d walk down 3 blocks and placed flyer’s on everyones door, while the obese owner didn’t bother getting out of his van. After 20-something blocks of flyer passing he’d invite us to his restaurant to eat…it was great, until we got the bill. The money we made passing out flyers gone…What a Jerk…

-As a kid I got lost at a Kmart. When they found me, my dad spanked me…sheesh…”welcome back son”…

-I waited in line to my own rockshow…they didn’t believe I was with the band…”good times”.

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So Travis briefly gave a teaser of something in the making this fall. This is a project in the making for years. We’ve been trying to make__________________ for about 6 yrs now. It took relocating across the country for this to have true meaning and destiny. I am excited like never before. The sounds are amazing, the lyrics…more genuine that they ever been. Its gonna be something amazing, something beyond words… I would’ve ever imagined…Wanna get involved? I am tempted to give the full scoop but, I won’t…peace…

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