Get your geek on

It is amazing how much shifting that is taking place on the internet. And the internet is defintely driving change in our world. The internet

     Breaks down city, state, and country boundaries

     Uncovers information that might normally been kept quiet

     Provides other angles and perspectives that might not usually be heard

     Provides opportunities for discussion that were limited by time and space

     Mashes together opinions and prejudices and forces the conversation

Getting your geek on will help you dive into conversations and discussions and begin to actually hear what is being said instead of writing it off or dismissing it because it is a differing view point.

Tough Sunday

Today was crazy. We had all kinds of video problems and sound problems. It all came off at the last few moments before the service. Yikes. It was tough sledding and it really threw me off my rhythm. Lot’s of people out again today. I know of three families that had illnesses to deal with and a couple other families on vacation.

But I can really tell that our church is becoming more than just me preaching or our worship. It’s turning into community more and more.

I am kind of worn out. I spent a lot of time this week on tweeking church stuff. This next week, I need to focus more on our series on marriage.

I am not the I R S

So a few weeks ago, I posted about the information on the I R S stim u lous check. I spaced these apart because the traffic on that search is ridiculous and it really messed up my blog stats BADLY.

I have received the following questions to date:

1. I have not seen my check yet. Can you tell me where it is.

2. I recently moved. Here is my new address and the last four of my social security number.

3. I was supposed to get $1200. I only got $600. Can you tell me why?

I am amazed people don’t understand where they are writing, who they are posting to, and the information they just leave hanging out there.

SO FOR THE RECORD, I WILL TRACK DOWN YOUR STIM U LOUS CHECK FOR $150 an hour!

Baseball

Went to the Round Rock Express game tonight. Great fun. I enjoyed hanging with friends and sitting with my wife. My wife is seriously the neatest girl I know. She is totally secure in herself.

As always, there is someone at the game you secretly hope gets hit with a foul ball. It rarely happens. And tonight it didn’t happen but there definitely were three candidates.

A church has to be a place for “foul ball candidates.” We have to create an environment where anyone is welcome no matter what they do, what they say, what they mess up, or how they make us feel.

The simple approach

I am finding I need to keep simplifying. I remember in high school or middle school or sometime about reducing a fraction to its lowest number. I think we over-complicate life.

We overcomplicate our emails. We overcomplicate conversations. We overcomplicate relationships. We overcomplicate solutions. Jesus seemed to be a very un-complex individual. Deep yes. Complicated. No. I read once that 75% of all His words were once syllable. Wow. Simple. When He rolled up on a scene to bring peace or correction or order, He really didn’t use a ton of words. When He prayed, He really didn’t use an intense amount of profundity. Deep. Yes. Complicated. No.

My prayer for me is to have the ability to un-complicate things. Help me!

Video

This Sunday we hope to go live via www.ustream.tv. Nothing fancy. One cam. Recorded and broadcast. Testing the thing out. It obviously will have an embedded viewer on the website for easy navigation. I have been pushing for this for quite a while. I am excited. We tentatively decided to stream/record worship once a month and the messages every week. We shall see!

A buy named James

Tonight, I spent two hours with James. He is helping me get our video up and rolling on www.ustream.tv for our Sunday morning services. He is a geek at heart. Fun to hang out with. And really eager to do anything. But that wasn’t James at first.

James showed up at Legacy a few months ago. Pretty skeptical. I am sure he wasn’t sure if he would like the church, the people, me or anything else. And that is normal for anyone. But James felt right at home. He started getting to know people. He started to feel at home. And the next thing you know, James pretty much has taken ownership of the Legacy vision.

His story amazes me. James wasn’t messed up or a drug addict or anything else that I could tell. He was just one of many people who are looking for a church home. And now he found it. And what does he do? He figures out his strength. Listened for an opportunity to use it. And jumped in.

I couldn’t be more impressed and excited about James, his story, and Jesus. I want more stories like that. Because a live touched by Jesus is an impressive life. Way to go James.

Nikon D40

I want to say how much I really love my Nikon D40. It is a phenomenal camera. I have Chad to thank for getting me hooked on it. Here is just on picture I took at the baptism that I love. can’t show em all. But technology can deliver some amazing opportunities.

I kind of think that’s how church should be. The organization should deliver some amazing opportunities. And those opportunities are captured in the minds of our people and treasured.

Validation

Don’t most people want it? People want their opinion and contribution and energy and ideas and all their collective being to be validated. The disciples of Jesus all wanted it. Remember the conversation they had when they wanted Jesus to tell them who was the greatest among them? Have you ever heard someone say they are just not appreciated and everyone takes them for granted? Yeah. We all have heard it and we probably all have said it.

Validation is a tricky thing. We can seek out validation from someone. But that someone may not validate us the way we want. Or, worse yet, they validate us, but it amounts to nothing. And when we don’t get the validation we want, we go find it and usually end up causing problems because it normally comes off as grumbling or whining.

There is but One who can truly validate us and that is the One who made us. Our measurement of success or satisfaction or completeness is only truly worthwhile when God looks at us against the plan He has for us. And our validation, then, comes from the greatest validator of all time. Jesus is the author and finisher of our faith. He then is the only one qualified to validate us. And when He validates us, we won’t be desperately seeking out the approval and validation of others quite so much.

Are you talkin to me?

Invariably, when I blog something, I hear back someone thought I was blogging about them. I try somewhat intently to avoid blogging about people or allow actions by others to set off my blogging unless is overt, intentional and I name names.

Truth be told, I usually am blogging about myself. Like the cheerleading post, that was mostly about me for me. While I may not wrestle today with some of those issues, it helps remind me what I need to be doing.

So if you are sitting there thinking I am blogging about you, sorry to inform you I am not. I am blogging about me or for me so I can become more like Christ.