I got my new Blackberry 8830 yesterday and, rather than the dull silver or black model, I got this fire engine red one. I think if I put an Ohio State Buckeyes sticker on it I’ll be good.
I certainly won’t lose this phone.
Full disclosure: The red one was the only one in stock. I’m usually not that adventuresome.
James 1:27
27 Pure religion and undefiled before God and the Father is this, To visit the fatherless and widows in their affliction, and to keep himself unspotted from the world.
KJV
Before I get along with this post, here’s the standard disclaimer. Please read and be blessed. (A pitfall of working with lawyers).
Okay, now that that’s done, on to business. I was looking at 90&9 this morning and saw this wonderful survey regarding why folks are optimistic and pessimistic about the Apostolic movement. Before I get into my thoughts, let me encourage you to make 90&9 a part of your Monday morning reading (or Tuesday if your Monday was fried like mine). It is awesome, relevant, timely, and all of that.
So here are, in my summation, the most frequent thoughts on each of these:
I could not agree more with both of those things. I am probably more keyed into them as our District Conference is the week and both will likely be on display. First, the things I’m positive about which have been especially in practice in our own church. Never in my lifetime membership in our church have I seen such focus on outreach, evangelism and discipleship. We have three extensions (taking church outside of church) as well as a vibrant new comers (new converts) class. We’re doing open gym which reaches between 40-60 unchurched kids each month. There’s the food bank which serves over 200 families a month. Our outreach revival was an enormous success bringing folks into the church who would not have come through traditional means. With all of this growth have come some growing pains. Kids who have never been to church don’t always know how to act in this environment. Our comfort zone has been obliterated. These are all good things and I believe they are necessary for the church to grow. Remember, the message is sacred, not the method.
On the flip side (and probably because of my district involvement), I see WAAAAY too much pettiness and politics in our fellowship. Folks, our job is to reach out to the world with the love of Christ. Yet, we can fall so love with the past that we become irrelevant today. Allow me to touch the third rail for just a moment. Are we really going to split our fellowship over television? Really? I have talked to folks in and out of church and the ministry and, for the most part, they are aghast that there are those who think that this is the most pressing issue of our time and worthy of a schism. Yet, all you have to do is read any number of chat boards (no link love from me) to see that there are those who are completely exorcised about this. If you don’t want television, don’t use it. But the world is crying out for help while we bicker at each other over an obsolete technology that is available via IPTV and the internet. Game over!
I have been chewing on this for nearly two years, ever since I heard Matt Maddix at Louisiana camp preach on this subject. We are incredibly fond of keeping ourselves unspotted from the world (as we should be) but how about the rest of that verse? How are we stacking up? Are we playing church or do we have pure religion? Points to ponder.
I mention all this because I am feeling challenged in what I am doing for Christ. I don’t want to play church. I want to be the church.
These days, spirituality is in. People want to be spiritual, not religious. Spirituality can mean some sort of oozy transcendence, or mystical experience, or meaningful living. Spirituality can involve Eastern meditation, or happy self-talk, or wearing crystals, or burning incense, or whatever you’d like. Spirituality is rather like a Burger King Whopper: you can have it your way.
For the Christian, spirituality is much more specific than this. It is, quite literally, Spirit-uality. It is life lived in the Holy Spirit. It is living each day by the power of God’s Spirit who dwells within us. It is experiencing God, not in whichever way you choose, but in the God’s way through God’s own Spirit. Genuine spirituality is fellowship with the Holy Spirit. It happens as you read the Spirit-inspired Word, or as you join the Spirit-filled gathering of God’s people, or as you quiet yourself to hear the still, small voice of the Spirit. True spirituality is not merely some private, other-worldly experience. It is also a this-worldly encounter with the Spirit that we share with other believers. It includes, as Pastor John taught last week, ministering to others in the power of the Spirit.
-Mark Roberts, Senior Director and Scholar in Residence, Laity Lodge
(With apologies to Mark Pryor for stealing his format)
The New York Times had an interesting article yesterday suggesting that the iPhone was on the cusp of becoming the new corporate productivity tool and would unseat the Blackberry as the default communication/ email device. Here is one Apple-o-phile’s thoughts on the the matter. Allow me to offer mine:
It’s not going to happen.
Here’s why- despite Apple users’ messianic devotion to all things Steve Jobs (you know who you are), he is decidedly a control freak. This is why Apple will remain a niche product which is unfortunate because they make really cool stuff. The reason the battle for OS/PC supremacy was lost by Apple was their decision to not license their software to outside developers. Think Betamax. This relegated them to only the hardcore Apple devotee and disenfranchised (I love that word) folks who wanted to get software/apps from a variety of sources/developers. Game over. Enjoy your 5-8 percent of the market.
Along comes the iPhone, a potential game changer due to its sleek design and uber functional browser. However, there is no good integration with Exchange (a must for the business market) and the touch keyboard is dicey, although you can get used to it. The Exchange issue is now being addressed (one year hence) yet, due to control issues, service is only available on AT&T’s (very shaky) network. Not interested. This is why there is a massive market for unlocked iPhones which happen to become bricks when you combine “unauthorized apps” with official software upgrades. Way to hate your customers.
This is why I am a devoted Blackberry user and am long RIMM. I’m also long AAPL because of their cool stuff. They’re just not going to replace the Blackberry any time soon.
I was planning on doing this particular post and Becky beat me to the punch. It was seven years ago today that I lost my mother to breast cancer. I am sporting a pink ribbon today in her memory. This picture was taken on our last Christmas together. The cast of characters are (from left) Charity, me, Becky, my dad, my mom (holding Michael), my sister Julie, and my brother Mike.
There is a saying that time heals all wounds and I think that’s true, at least in part. The pain of the loss is pretty much gone although I do miss her. She was especially good at providing advice and counsel as well as just fun to be around. I would love to have gotten her take on some of the stuff over the last couple of years. She likely would have provided insight that escapes me. Candidly, I can’t believe it’s been seven years. At times it seems like it’s been 100 years and at others, like it was last week. Emotions are fickle things.
Let me close this post with a piece of advice. Hold close to those you love. And for goodness sake, tell them you love them. If I would have know when I graduated from high school that my time with my mom was more than half over I would have done some things differently. Since you and I don’t know when our numbers are up, make the most of the time you have. And if your mom’s around, give her a hug for me.
Originally uploaded by bbworld.info
Today, Mr. Postman delivered me some wonderful joy, the Blackberry 8830 World Edition. I am in the midst of mastering the track ball but other than that, I likey very much.
I liked my 8730 with the click wheel (last model to have one) but it was starting to have issues. I think I dropped it one too many times. The timing is excellent because I just beat Charity’s record at Brick Breaker- Always go out on top.
It doesn’t take much to make me happy anymore. Really, it doesn’t.
I came across this via something (I really don’t know where I got it). Anyhow, Jelly is a collaberative meeting of folks who work from home. One downside of living in the sticks is nothing like this exists here. Maybe there’s one in Columbus.
On a side note, I finally found a use for Al Gore- Current TV.
Originally uploaded by ryaninmtv
My schedule has been a little goofy the last few weeks so, at my son’s suggestion, I took most of this morning off and we walked downtown to the Pink Cupcake Bakery for coffee and goodies. Side note, the Pink Cupcake is every bit as good as Magnolia Bakery in NYC and about half the price (plus I don’t have to fly there). I went with a lemon poppy muffin and the kids went with slightly sweeter alternatively. We also brought back some fresh cannolis for after dinner tonight. As you can see from the picture, their selection is pretty incredible.
The walk down and back is about a mile so I like to think things balanced out. We may need to make this a habit as the weather has changed for the better.
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