Carey and I TiVo’d the Academy Awards and watched them on Monday. It was a significant improvement over previous years. They actually acknowledged that there are viewers who are paying the bills for your event. It was very well done.A question for you TiVo users: Have you ever tried to hit the 8 second rewind button or hit the pause button in a conversation? I have…many times! Also, the M. Night Shyamalan American Express commercial was fantastic! He just rules! I’d watch anything he wrote! By the way, what’s your favorite M. Night film? My vote is on "Unbreakable". I … Read More
Search Inside Elements…
Amazon.com finally added their “Search Inside” feature to my book “elements”. You can now read the first few pages of chapter 1. Check it out here.
Book Review: Out of the Question…Into the Mystery
I just finished “Out of the Question…Into the Mystery” by Leonard Sweet. I enjoyed the book. It wasn’t amazing, although it had flashes of brilliance. The chapter on our relationship with “Things” (i.e. symbols, books, objects, stories) was amazing! His angle on the story of Genesis 22 was very interesting. I don’t know if I agree, but I appreciate the original thinking. All in all, I’d recommend the book, with the disclaimer that the book has a couple of dry spots. I’ve read a few of Leonard’s book and have enjoyed them. I heard him speak at Catalyst last year … Read More
New Resource List!
I’ve just added a new list to left column on my blog. It is the current study resources that I’m reading that’s helping me with my message prep. If it’s helpful, great! If not, then move along, there’s nothing to see here!”
If You’re Thinking about Writing a Book…
Having just put out a book in the last 6 months, I’m learning a few things about writing and marketing your book in general that I thought might be helpful to those that are thinking of doing some writing in the future… #1 – Every person who bought my book at the book signing I did the other night had heard me speak at some point. There comes a point in time when you build a name and get some momentum and that carries you (Can you say, "Purpose Driven Life"?). However, when you are putting out your first book, … Read More
Monsters
This weekend we’re kicking off a series that’s going to take us to the week before Easter. It’s called, “Monsters”. As kids we thought there were monsters living under the bed or in the closet. But we got older and learned that the monsters weren’t behind the furniture, they were inside of us. How do we fight off these monsters that creep into our lives and try to swallow us? How do we get free from these tendencies that seek to devour us? We’re going to be looking at the children of Israel as they travel in the wilderness and … Read More
Random American Idol Thoughts
After watching American Idol this week, I’ve come to the following conclusions: #1 – Simon is always right! – People don’t like what he has to say, but he’s always right! Paula is too nice. Randy is trying to be cool, but Simon tells it like it is! #2 – I think Paula was drunk on Thursday night! – She was acting way weirder than normal. #3 – For a musical competition, why is the theme song so lame? Don’t you think that could do a lot better? #4 – Have you seen Randy’s watch? Major bling! #5 – Sway … Read More
The Stewardship of People
One of the things we have not done well is assimilation. We are seeking to correct that problem. We’re blessed because in spite of our lack of organization in this area, we’ve never had a problem getting to visit or come back. Yet there are still people who fall through the cracks. I used to think of assimilation (We call it integration – assimilation says, “You will become like us.” Integration says, “Adding you will change us.” – Huge difference) as a church growth tool. Today I think of it as the stewardship of people. God leads people (both Christian … Read More
Book Signing
The book signing I was a part of went great! It was great to meet some people who picked up a copy of my book. I was nice to meet some folks who came out who had already read the book and just wanted to tell me how much they enjoyed it. A couple former students of mine at the Bible College I used to run showed up, which was cool to see all that God is doing with them. My favorite part of the night was seeing my niece Sarah and being able to go to dinner with my … Read More
Bookworm…
I just can’t get enough of being in a bookstore. I love it! I used to work in a Christian bookstore and I loved it. I just love being around books. Probably because it makes me feel smarter than I am. But I love finding out about a great author and reading everything he’s read. It was weird going into a bookstore for the first time and seeing my own book on the shelf. I was right next to Gayle Erwin on the shelf. Good company to be in. I like Amazon.com and use them for some stuff, but for … Read More
