Wave will take over gmail someday, although its only in its preview stage right now.
HOWEVER, I applied and was accepted to preview it. they gave me 25 invites. I have 9 left. if you want it, let me know.
"When Christ calls a man, he bids him come and die."
- Dietrich Bonhoeffer
For when we lose our lives, we find them.
I need to return to this truth. do you?
This puts a lot into persepective on:
The amount of people in the world VS the amount of land
The amount of fresh water in the world VS the amount needed per person
The amount of food VS the amount of food needed per person
Check it: here
I've been taught continually that laziness results in sin. For me, TV and video games are the usual culprits that lead me into sluggardly (I made up that word) behavior. I resonated with this passage:
Proverbs 24:30-34
30 I passed by the field of a sluggard,
by the vineyard of a man lacking sense,
31 and behold, it was all overgrown with thorns;
the ground was covered with nettles,
and its stone wall was broken down.
32 Then I saw and considered it;
I looked and received instruction.
33 A little sleep, a little slumber,
a little folding of the hands to rest,
34 and poverty will come upon you like a robber,
and want like an armed man.
There's work to be done!
If you're like me and spend a minimum of 2 hours in your car daily and listen to NPR, you are probably tired of hearing about Obama pushing for Health Care Reform. I hate it because I don't know jack about it and you have to be a scholar or have some kinda specialized degree to understand the shiz.
Well, thanks to Between Two Worlds, I was directed to a VERY informative (and ridiculously long) article on the problems with American Health Care and Health Insurance. I strongly urge you to read the whole article (i'm 1/2 way through) so you can see how much of a problem our current Health Care System is. It opened up my eyes to what kind of a mess we're in.
Here's a little snippet:
How often have you heard a politician say that millions of Americans “have no health care,” when he or she meant they have no health insurance? How has a method of financing health care become synonymous with care itself?
The reason for financing at least some of our health care with an insurance system is obvious. We all worry that a serious illness or an accident might one day require urgent, extensive care, imposing an extreme financial burden on us. In this sense, health-care insurance is just like all other forms of insurance—life, property, liability—where the many who face a risk share the cost incurred by the few who actually suffer a loss.
But health insurance is different from every other type of insurance. Health insurance is the primary payment mechanism not just for expenses that are unexpected and large, but for nearly all health-care expenses. We’ve become so used to health insurance that we don’t realize how absurd that is. We can’t imagine paying for gas with our auto-insurance policy, or for our electric bills with our homeowners insurance, but we all assume that our regular checkups and dental cleanings will be covered at least partially by insurance. Most pregnancies are planned, and deliveries are predictable many months in advance, yet they’re financed the same way we finance fixing a car after a wreck—through an insurance claim.
The whole article can be read HERE.
Yep, Veritas Community Church, where I attend, got a shout out on the Resurgence, Mars Hill's blog.
However, even more ridiculous, Kevin McCarthy helped write the study guide that was posted to download. Yeah, he's one of my best friends.
I know him. We hug sometimes. Man-hug that is...
Check it.
Truth be told, the amount of work that I have to do on my job right now is decreasing rapidly. That being said, my boredom at work is on the rise. So, i'll probably be posting crap on here more frequently and might even update the "books i'm currently reading" section cause it's way out of date.
On a completely unrelated note, I read this quote about how to define ministry success and it tasted my pancakes (trust me, that phrase is spreading rapidly across the nations...especially my homeland of Lithuania. You should use it).
The measure of how ministry is progressing in your church or fellowship, and the way to evaluate whether you are making progress, is not attendance on Sunday, signed up members, people in small groups, or the size of our budget (as important and valuable as all these things are!). The real test is how successfully you are making disciples who make other disciples. Are we seeing people converted from being dead in their transgressions to being alive in Christ? And once converted, are we seeing them followed-up and established as mature disciples of Jesus? And as they become established, are we training them in knowledge, godliness and skills so that they will in turn make disciples of others?
This is the Great Commission—the making of disciples who obey all that Christ has taught, including the command to make disciples. And this is the touchstone of our faithfulness to Christ's mission in the world, and the sign of a healthy church: whether or not it is making genuine disciple-making disciples of Jesus Christ.
Just for the record, I don't hate Obama or anything like that, but these videos are pretty freakin' interesting.
Bottom line: Texting while driving is WORSE than driving drunk.
Here's my footnote: http://www.cnbc.com/id/31545004
This is a letter that Ray Ortland Sr. wrote to his family prior to his death. His son, Ray Ortland Jr., is the pastor of a church in Nashville and runs the blog "Christ is Deeper Still". There is nothing necessarily spectacular in the letter, but it was sobering for me.
Link: http://www.ortlund.org/Portals/0/Ray%20letter.pdf
http://resound.org/
You can download around 8 tracks from Mars Hill worship band's for free for the next 2 days. So hurry up and get her done if you want the goods.
They have guitar chords there too for those of us who rock out on the 6-string.
Is it just me, or does a stretch of green lights in a straightaway, usually located on an overpass, cause excitement to brew? The thought of travelling through multiple consecutive traffic lights without removing my foot from the long pedal is like opening the juice box after a rec-soccer championship victory. It’s like hoisting the trophy and heading to pizza hut to ravage the buffet. It’s good, it’s satisfying, its savory.
Today, the infamous state route 34 overpass traffic lights (of death) over Interstate-64 in Hurricane, WV were conquered not just once-but twice. Here’s the story:
I was travelling southbound on 34 when I came around the bend and saw a sea of green-green lights of course. At this point, the dream was birthed. The first light was a success, but there were 4 lights to go, and I know I hadn’t accomplished crap at this point. HOWEVER, the dream was becoming more and more a reality. Second light, doneski, no problem. Third light, all green, not even a hint of slowing down. 4th, 5th, VICTORY.
After pulling over and catching my breath, wiping my eyes from the tears of joy, and chest bumping several pedestrians, I travelled into the drive thru of “Tudors Biscuit World” (the greatest biscuit sandwiches of all time, despite being criticized by one who will remain nameless [AJ Johns]).
But don’t stop reading; the story doesn’t end here.
Hanging a right out of Tudors, I came to my senses and realized that the gauntlet was in front of me yet again. However, this time I had, what seemed to me (this is subject to interpretation), a message from above—I looked to my right and saw a truck with the words “The Dominator” pasted on its body. Now I don’t want to linger here for too long, but the hope that this brought me is worthy of noting. The decal that reigns supreme over all decals was like a glimmer of light in the shadow of darkness (which the traffic lights of death were casting). I immediately thought: “That decal is LITERALLY the only thing that’s lacking about my Honda Accord.” I would have slowed down and asked the guy what test he had to pass or army he had to destroy in open combat or what nation he had to overthrow, to receive such a title, but the light’s were in view and I didn’t want to show any sign of weakness before “The Dominator.” So I set my sights on the task at hand and ONCE AGAIN, made it through all 5 lights without difficulty.
So that was my Monday morning, seemingly flawless. And it would have been if it wasn’t for a faulty cap on my coffee which resulted in some spillage on my lime green Medallion Country Club polo. It didn’t stain though cause the shirt is amazing, and ridiculously comfortable.
ADVANCE CONFERENCE IN 75 HOURS!
Steve Evans, a superintendent that I work with, brought up the topic of Mushroom Hunting.
I then replied, "what exactly is mushroom hunting?"
His answer, "Mushroom hunting is like bar hopping, but you don't hunt for women, you hunt for mushrooms."
I instantly came to the computer and wrote it here. It is, as i'm sure you agree, undeniably worthy to be posted on this blog.
Dan Brown's America
http://www.nytimes.com/2009/05/19/opinion/19douthat.html?_r=3
This is an article in the New York Times about why so many millions of people love Dan Brown. It is well worth your read and it's certainly okay if you get pissed and throw your computer through a wall.
okay, so maybe you should chill out some and go eat a yogurt or something. but then reassess your hostility and react accordingly.
Just wanted to post an excerpt from a conversation I just had with my girlfriend (Jody).
Jody: i feel like my competition for your heart consists of pastors
me: haha
HAHA!
Jody: kinda strange to say
chandler, driscol, piper...
me: do I have permission to post that on my blog?
Jody: haha
me: seriously.
Jody: yes
If you've ever listened to the revival hymn and had your pancakes tasted up, down, left, and right, then you're going to need to get yoself (that's yourself said w/ a somewhat ghetto accent, not a typo) some sermon jams.
Sorry if you're a big "Last of the Mohecians" fan and refuse to listen to sermon excerpts unless the movies soundtrack is being played as in The Revival Hymn. The jams that these tracks are rocking are full of sick beats and tricked out treble.
They are all about 3-5min long and theres like 40 of em or more. Here's a sample of one that I enjoy:
A Call to Young People
http://trippandtyler.com/
These guys are absolutely hilarious, check out their videos. My favorite is the Q & A with Craig Somethingorother. (thats not actually his last name...but how cool would it be if it was )
http://www.vimeo.com/4316077
this video is sick-nasty. it's sweet like gushers.
I didn't even mind the movie titanic (granted I haven't seen it in years and years), but I read this brief exerpt from a review and it made me laugh out loud:
"Anyway, our hero Jack puts Rose on a lifeboat. Of course, being safe is not enough, so she jumps back onto the sinking ship -- a prime example of great decision-making. After it goes down, Jack is safe on a door of some sort, but he has to give up his spot to save Rose. Now Rose is on the door, and Jack is stuck in the freezing waters. So in a sense she kills Jack in a slow, frigid, painful way -- sort of like the experience I felt while watching this movie."
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A.W. Tozer is a brilliant author who in this book goes through all the attributes of God in an effort to proclaim His excellence. |
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It's a book about the redemtion of sinful man...and it's an English Standard Version. |
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Studies show that this devotional dominates lives. |
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It's a commentary... He comments on things. |
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