Category: General (page 38 of 121)

UPDATED UPDATE…VERY IMPORTANT INFORMATION!!!
I just noticed that the Conference is going to be held at The Arena at Gwinnett , NOT North Point Church, as I said earlier! Whew! Glad I saw that!

UPDATE, Monday, 10.03.05…I just made my reservation -for FREE! – for the Catalyst Conference. It is true…if you’re a Georgia pastor, they’re waiting for you to call. I called 888.473.3979, and I think I pressed Option #3. I didn’t speak to “Mack,” but a very nice woman named Melissa Kruse helped me out and fixed me up. I’m waiting for aI just got my confirmation e-mail, and I’ll pick up my FREE tickets at the “will call” place at the conference on Thursday morning! Cool, huh?

My buddy, Tony McCollum, gave me a heads-up today about the upcoming Catalyst Conference at North Point Church here in Atlanta. Seems the “rumor” TMc was talking about was that the Catalyst folks are offering a free registration to Georgia pastors. I called – 888.473.3979 – and inquired about this tremendous opportunity. Sure enough, the guy I talked to said it was true, and he gave the name of the other guy who’s handling those free registrations. It was almost quittin’ time, so I left my information on the guy’s voice mail, and I’m expecting a call back from him first thing Monday.

Now, I don’t know how long this deal is going to last – I assume up until the time of the conference. But if you’re a pastor in Georgia, it may be worth your while to give MackMelissa Kruse a call at 888.473.3979, and ask to be signed up.

I went to the very first Catalyst back in 2000, and it was without a doubt, one of the best and most productive conferences I’ve ever been to. I learned a lot, but it was the atmosphere – breathing the same air as some of the best (cough cough) younger leaders around.

So again, if you’re a pastor in Georgia, and you can free up next Thursday and Friday, October 6-7, it might worth your investment in your ministry to call MackMelissa Kruse at 888.473.3979. You can’t beat the conference – or the price!

The other day, I posted about having – and subsequently eating – tickets to see The Phantom of the Opera at the Phabulous Phox theater in Atlanta.

This morning, I’ve got the Phantom on my mind again, but I’m pheeding the phetish with something different.

Right now, blasting – and I mean blasting! – phrom my speakers, is the Santa Clara Vanguard’s 1988 phield show, pheaturing, natch, the Phantom of the Opera. Coming up next…Santa Clara’s 1989 phield show, also pheaturing excerpts phrom Phantom, and one of the most emotional drum corps moments ever – the phantastic phinale pheaturing the photogenic Christine and the phleeing Phantom.

My message today was “Building a Better Marriage” in a series called “Upside Down Living.” I used Jesus’s words about “leaving and cleaving” from Mark 10. To illustrate the point, I gave everyone in attendance a green paper heart, a blue paper heart, and a glue stick.

At the beginning of the message, I asked them to paste the paper hearts together. The finished product looked something like this:

I talked about leaving your past and being joined together as one flesh with your spouse in intimate unity. Then, at the conclusion of the message, I asked everyone to separate the blue heart from the green heart. The results were something like this:

We noticed right away that there was no longer a blue heart and a green heart. Instead, the hearts had really become part of each other, and you separated them only with great ripping and damage.

Cheesy? Probably. Did our folks get the point? I think so…

A little different mood tonight. Josh Groban both unwinds and inspires me. What do I mean by that?

You raise me up, so I can stand on mountains
You raise me up, to walk on stormy seas
I am strong, when I am on your shoulders
You raise me up… to more than I can be.

Nuf said?

I check Phil Gerbyshak’s blog every day to see how I can stop having a nice day. Phil wants us to stop settling for “nice”days, and make every day a great day! Check his 4 Rs for Recharging Your Batteries.

Thanks, Phil!

Ted reminds us to be careful what we say – on or off the blog!

…45 looooong years ago…

• The Yankees won their 14th straight, beating the Red Sox, 3�1.
• Future Hall of Famer Billy Williams hit his first major league homer, as the Cubs beat the Dodgers, 10�8.
• Oh, the Braves lost to the Pirates 7-3 in Pittsburgh.
• Chubby Checker’s “The Twist” was the number one song in the nation for the fourth straight week.
• Nigeria and Cyprus gained their independence from Great Britian.
• The Beatles performed at the Indra Club, Grosse Freiheit, Hamburg, West Germany.
• Miles Davis performed at the Astoria Theatre, Finsbury, London.
• Atlas ICBM Missiles were first deployed.
• The Cartwrights tried to end a disabled rancher’s dependence on his corrupt hired hand on Bonanza.
• Rose, the former housekeeper, got married, Opie was unhappy at her departure, Aunt Bee came to live with Andy and Opie, and Opie was not exactly thrilled with her, as the best TV show ever debuted.

And on this day, in other years, these people made their debuts…

• Jay Underwood
• Mark McGwire
• Randy Quaid
• Donny Hathaway
• Stella Stevens
• Julie Andrews
• Sir Richard Harris
• George Peppard
• Rod Carew
• John Glenn
• Tom Bosley
• Jimmy Carter
• James Whitmore
• Walter Matthau
• Vladimir Horowitz

The first list? I don’t remember a single one of those events!

The second list? Pretty good bunch of folks, eh?

The last word on time and such for right now (part three…”slippin’, slippin’, slippin'”…get it?)…

The good folks over at Creating Passionate Users remind us that we need to think young – so we can keep our own minds sharp and so we can better meet the needs of those we’re trying to reach. Four really good posts from over there grabbed me this week. I’ll just drop ’em in here like the infamous random links – you can need to check ’em out…

• Think young
• Dignity is deadly
• If you’re over 35, do you have a clue?
• Blow your own mind

Patrick Rhone guest-blogged over at To-Done about making the best use of one’s time. He wrote in the context of meeting a client’s ever-changing specs, but his quote is well-suited to all of us in whatever endeavor we’re currently undertaking…

Time not spent on the front end of a project is usually spent on the back end. Sometimes, it is even multiplied. Therefore, it will take the same amount of time, if not more, no matter what.

…into the future…

I’ve been thinking – obsessing, really – about time lately. About days that slip away. About weeks that are not effectively used. About years you can’t ever get back, once they’re gone.

This week, I’ve been challenged by some things that others are saying about these kinds of issues.

Tony Morgan, one of the Simply Strategic guys, has been posting notes from the Innovative Church conference at Granger. The stuff from Mark Beeson’s opening session smacked me right between the eyes and left a permanent mark (no pun intended). He asks three foundational questions that ought to change our perspective and give us a sense of real urgency about how we use our time and energy…

• Do you really believe people need the church?
• Do you really believe your days are numbered?
• Do you really believe God is working and you are doing God’s work?

It was the second question that turned my crank. Here’s how Mark filled that one out…

I don�t have time to play church. My days are numbered. Life is brief. Then I tell people, �Your life is precious. You don�t have time to play church. You need to make your life count.�