Okay, picture this situation. You need to get out of the house/office/dorm room and think it’s a good idea to head to the local coffee shop because you still have some stuff to do. Maybe you’re writing a paper, or Christmas shopping online, or tweaking your fantasy football team, or Facebook stalking, or reading blogs, trying to get to Inbox Zero, or whatever.

But as the minutes pass by and you drink more coffee (or tea or Coke Zero) you start to feel the need to go to the restroom. So then you’re faced with the conundrum: What do you do with your laptop?

Assuming you’re there by yourself, do you

1. Close it up and carry it in the restroom with you?
2. Close it, pick up the cord, put it all in the backpack and carry it in the restroom with you?
3. Do you make eye contact with someone and say, “Would you mind watching my stuff?” all the while hoping they don’t run out with your computer as soon as you lock the restroom door?
4. Do you just hope that everyone is as nice as you and would never steal a computer in a coffee shop?

My kids each have a pair of TOMS shoes. They think they’re cool. I had a pair for a few days before I returned the gift to the store. Just didn’t seem my style. I’d rather have a pair of running shoes. Or maybe get some Vibram Five Fingers.

But that said, the concept of TOMS seems pretty cool. Buy a pair of their shoes here in the States and an impoverished child in Africa gets a free pair of shoes. Great system, right? Some think so, but some disagree. Here’s a push back below from David Stupay. He says:

“Of course giving a free pair of shoes to children in the developing world is a good thing, isn’t it? Maybe not.

What people at the bottom of the economic pyramid need is not only free products dumped into their communities, but also low-cost products that are sold to that sustain them and their local economies.

Development is tricky business, and there is always the potential for collateral damage.”

He also left a comment on Dave Ferguson’s blog that said:

“This may not be as great of an idea as it is marketed to be. While they are doing good by putting shoes on the feet of needy children in impoverished countries, this type of aid does more harm than good.

The shoes are distributed in 24 countries, are only made in 3 countries. That means that 21 of the countries where the gifted shoes are delivered receive no economic benefit from the distribution of free shoes, and local shoe merchants and manufacturers (or potential manufacturers) are actually discouraged from doing business in these countries.

It is easiest to see the hit to local merchants that distribute shoes in impoverished countries. As COMMUNITY participated in the Stuff for the Poor shoe drive, you know that used shoes are often shipped from the US and other Western countries to Africa and other parts of the developing world. This is big business for the shippers, brokers, and the local merchants. Local shoe stores in developing countries generate solid cash flow and above average profit margins. When shoes are distributed in communities for free from TOMS and other programs, these local merchants miss out on much needed sales opportunities. While not all the children that receive donated shoes from TOMS could afford to buy shoes from these local merchants, a hit even as low as 10% of their customer base would be enough to put many of these small merchants out of business.

An even greater impact of this type of program is that it discourages manufacturing in developing countries. Manufacturing is the reason that SE Asia has been able to lift so many people out of poverty in a way that Africa has not. Africa has yet to see strong manufacturing based economies emerge, thereby leaving many of their people in extreme poverty. Ideas like this discourage investors and entrepreneurs from competing in this arena, and contribute to the poverty trap in Africa. TOMS is a direct threat to manufacturers that are currently, or are considering in the future, competing in the African shoe market. What developing countries really need are local manufacturing companies that create low cost products for sale in developing countries. This would create assembly, management, distribution, and sales positions for shoes, and would develop an economy that isn’t dependent upon foreign aid.”

So what’s your take? Are the efforts of TOMS shoes that are helping kids to have shoes on their feet and protect them from sores and dangerous parasites a bigger concern than the potential local economic shakeup?

Some of these are from my own experience, and some are from conversations I’ve had with other “experienced” college students or graduates.

1. Enjoy it! Don’t stress out – It’s a new place with new people with new expectations. But you can pretty much start all over. For most people you can start your reputation over at ground zero (which is good for some, scary for others). But enjoy the next four or five years. Stressing continually about school will only make your grades bad and body unhealthy.
2. Go to Class – This accomplishes a few different things. The professor knows your face (and this counts for something), listening and taking notes helps (even if you don’t study them a ton later), and many classes will drop you a letter grade if you miss too much. Plus you can form study groups and meet that girl/guy you saw sitting up front.
3. Be a part of a campus ministry and local church – If church and following God is already a part of your life, then I urge you to get involved with a campus ministry. It helps you stay grounded in what you believe, you can find friends pretty easily, and you can find people you can to go for talking though issues at school. And I encourage you to find a local church to call your own for the next few years. It’s rewarding to be a part of something bigger than just a “college student ministry”, but you can serve in the life of the Church.
4. Watch what you eat – I know… when you’re 18 you think your metabolism is hyped up enough to handle anything you eat/drink. But believe me, it will catch up to you fast if you’re not careful. You don’t have to have a strict diet, but too much pizza, chips, snacks, and soft drinks will add up before you know it.
5. Go to the cafeteria and union often – They are natural gathering places. You’ll see lots of people and start to recognize them. Talk to them. Make friends. You might think you have a lot of good friends from high school. You don’t. You do have a few good friends from high school though. But the friendships you make in college are so much deeper than your high school relationships. It’s like Jr High < High School < College.
6. Go to the games –  It’s football season. Get excited about your team, whether you’ve been a fan for life or just a week or so. But go, enjoy pregame festivities, cheer in the student section, celebrate or get mad with your fellow fans. Do the same for Basketball and Baseball seasons. Those will be some of the best memories. And even if you’re not a big sports fan you’ll enjoy the camaraderie of the event together. And you’ll probably become a fan.
7. Know who you are and what you believe – There will be plenty of people who try to tell you what to believe or who you should be. Be confident in yourself. Don’t be a people pleaser or you’ll end up being not just two faced, but five or six faced depending on how many groups you run with. But know what you believe and be able to back it up.
8. Enjoy it – There’s lots of partying that goes on at college. My advice is to be responsible. Stick with a good crowd and have fun. But don’t go crazy. Especially with camera phones and facebook in everyone’s pocket. Plus, getting too crazy too often will cause your grades to suffer. Mom and dad won’t like that.
9. Exercise – It helps on multiple levels. It clears your head and relieves stress.  It keeps you healthy. It helps ward off some of those hot wings and pizza from last night. It’s a great way to meet other guys/girls at the gym or running around campus. Each school has its own gym for the students. And there are probably various other gyms in town. Use them. Or just run a lot.
10. Stop by your professors’ offices during their office hours – This will help you out a ton. Ask them to look over a draft of your paper, ask a question you thought of in class, ask why you missed a question on a test or what it was about your paper he didn’t like. This lets them know you care about their class. That makes them remember you and probably like you. They’ll help you write your paper almost if you ask enough questions (not literally, but you know what I mean).
11. Read – Read the syllabus. Twice. Read the course materials. And read your notes. With basic comprehension and retention, you’re already ahead of the game for most courses. Then read/study/read/and bust your tail some more to go for that A. Studying is important. Getting in a study group can be beneficial too.
12. Go to the Library – It’s quieter in there. There are tons of resources there. You can study or get away from the craziness that is often in the dorm or house. And if not the library, find a special place to study that is away from everything.
13. Diversify your social network – If there are kids from your high school at college with you don’t only hang out with them. Don’t hang out with only people in your major or from your dorm or your greek affiliation or your campus ministry or your club/team or your….. you get the point. But have a variety of groups you interact with. It’ll make you much more well rounded.
14. Don’t wait til last minute to study – It will be both tempting and convenient to do that. And it can be destructive as well. Stress you out. And then you order a pizza and gain 15 pounds and make a D on your test… Remember that stuff about reading? Don’t wait til the day before a test to start your reading. Nor wait til the day before a paper or project is due to ask your prof for assistance.
15. Watch your money – It is easy to spend lots of money in a short amount of time if you’re
16. not careful. Then you’re buying a Jr. Bacon Cheeseburger off of the dollar menu the second half of the each day or have debt. Ignore all the credit card applications that will seem to fall like rain on freshmen. You don’t need all that credit.

That is a quick list. What did I leave out? What advice would you give a college freshman starting school for the first time?

Yesterday in church Pat was teaching and one of the points he was making is that often times we in the church end up relying on “professional Christians” to do most of the “heavy lifting” when it comes to ministry, serving, and missions, but we as a church need to all take up the initiative and both lead/serve with the passions God has equipped us with.

He said that it won’t always be perfect, but we still need to give it a shot. Then he said something like, “Take this for example….” and then you hear a heavy bass line start up over the speakers. Pat grabs a handheld mic and says, “Karaoke is the ultimate example of regular people doing the job of a professional…” Behind him we all recognize “Stand By Me” starting up. “So I’m going to sing a little to show you that we don’t have to be perfect to be effective.” People start to shift expectantly in their chairs to hear Pat melt their ears with some crooning.

But then he bails at the last minute when the lyrics start flashing on the screens. People laugh. And all was good.

At the end of the service I go on stage to announce a few things, remind folks about communion after the service, and tell everyone we love them and look forward to seeing them again next week. But as I’m finishing the last sentence “Stand By Me” starts up again… People again laugh and I can see they’re wondering if I’ll sing or not. They’re looking for a good laugh, apparently. And I actually consider it. But I end up walking off stage after a bit of hesitation.

It made for some funny conversations after church. But I’ll admit on the ride back home as I was in the truck by myself I killed the song. I mean KILLED IT! I tried a few different pitches or intensities. Found my best Ben E. King impersonation. And I’ll admit that there was some regret mixed in. Why didn’t I go for it? Was it risk of embarrassment? Sounding too bad? Or screwing up? Or failure? [can you really fail at Karaoke?] Was it fear of being laughed at instead of laughed with?

It was probably a cocktail of a few of those mixed together. But as I look at my life, both past and present, I see the same thing has held me back from some different ventures/adventures. And I don’t want my life to be marked by that anymore. I want to be able to move forward and take “risks” without fear of failure. Or screwing up. To have confidence of Christ in me (the hope of glory).

Now of course this doesn’t mean I jump at any chance to embarrase myself, which I probably would have done if I’d actually tried to sing yesterday. But to not be scared to push outside of my comfort zone. I think sometimes my comfort zone can become my complacent zone. Does that make sense?

It is a blog for/about Nashville. It has many photos that will surprise you as well as tons and tons of articles about how to help, what you can do, and different insights on the flood. But before and beyond the Nashville Flood, the Nashvillest is a really intriguing site in it’s own right.

Below are some photos from the past few days:

Last weekend Pat made the call to call it a 95% chance that we’d have church today (March 7th) in the new building. And I think that pushed us to get as much done as we could in the next six days. And there were lots of folks in and out of the doors. There was still painting, carpeting, putting together 200 chairs, hanging televisions, putting together children’s ministry furniture, setting lights, running sound system cable, building a stage, changing light fixtures, replacing facia board, getting the Fire Marshall to approve us, getting fire extinguishers, hanging posters, and probably a dozen other things. And all fo that was just this past week.

But there have been many, many people who have put in many hours to get the building to where we are. And today felt good. And one of the coolest things is that now we don’t need to spend near as much time before and after a service setting up things and then taking them right back down. We have had some great volunteers give their time and strength to that. We have been blessed. But now we get to reorient their efforts/focus to other ministry areas.

The new building still needs some more attention. There’s a punch list we’ll still need to knock out (did you see the bathrooms?). But it’s great to be in a building of our own. But we have to be careful that we don’t allow a building to define us. Sure, it opens up many opportunities and should also make other things easier. But it’s not an end all solution. Our heart, as a church, still needs to be focused on Jesus. And our passions need to be the same as His passions.

So while we’re quite excited about the building, we’re more excited about the opportunities it provides for The Orchard to impact Oxford for God’s Kingdom.

[I wish I had a few photos from this morning. Maybe next week.]

Not too long ago Bev and I had a few friends over for supper. You know how that usually goes. Some people are on time. Some are a touch late. But everybody makes it eventually. And then everyone eats at the table or the barstools or standing around in the kitchen. And then the guys end up in a clump while talking about sports or tv shows or how they would probably make up a good Curling team in the next Olympics. And on the other hand the ladies clump up and  talk about their kids or how lame it is that their husbands watch Curling.

So this time Bev wanted to go with a theme for dinner. And for some reason she chose a Wedding Theme. So everyone wore something from their wedding or brought something from their wedding and wedding pictures and all that fun stuff. It was quite fun. But we also played a game. We called it “The Not So Newlywed Game.”

It is played like the classic Bob Eubanks version I guess. But we had five questions each. It provided quite a bit of laughs and insight as we talked through the ten questions. Here’s what they were:

Questions for the Ladies

1. The saying “opposites attract must be true because my husband and I couldn’t be any more different when it comes to _________?
2. Every wedding has something to go wrong. What detail at your wedding didn’t go as planned?
3. Where did you share your first kiss?
4. What is your husband’s most irritating habit?
5. If your husband won $5000, what would he want to spend it on?

Questions for the guys

1. If your wife could have unlimited access to any store, what store would she choose?
2. If your wife could send you to the body shop for a tuneup, which body part of yours would she want worked on?
3. What is your wife’s favorite comfort food?
4. If you could have a second honeymoon, where would your wife want you to take her?
5. If you wife was married to a tv/movie star instead of you, who would she want to be married to?

As I said, it was a great time. And I meant to mention that my wife actually wore her wedding dress from nearly 11 years ago for a while. She’s a trooper!

Last May we moved into one of the local movie theaters to have church. We got in early on Sunday morning, set up, and then took everything down before the Sunday matinees started. But in September the theater closed down. Oxford wasn’t big enough to support two movie theaters it seemed. So we returned to The Powerhouse. And I’ll say up front that the folks with the Arts Council/Powerhouse have been very gracious.

BUT…we’ve found our own place. We don’t “own” it, but we have a two year lease. And we’re tearing out walls and building walls. Ripping out old carpet. Painting things afresh. Making it “ours”. Etc. The building has been a number of things. A night club. A restaurant. And most recently…a funeral home. But our goal is to make it as “un-funeral homey” as possible.

But we look forward to the stability having our that having own place will provide us as a church. And we look forward to being able to use the building as a way to impact the local community for Christ in ways that extend far beyond just a weekly church service.

But below is a video from one of our workdays. We’ve had a few since, and it is already looking way different.

That is a quote from a Nina Simone song. I think I first heard it in a movie, but I’ve heard it now and then since. But it’s a pretty cool song. But the phrase repeated often is, “It’s a new dawn, it’s a new day, it’s a new life for me. And I’m feeling good.”

As we move into 2010 (do you say twenty-ten or two-thousand-ten?) I think there’s reason to be feeling good. I know everyone looks towards the new year as a time to make resolutions and changes and drop big mile markers on their life’s roadmap. I’ve never been big on resolutions. But maybe I can list out some intentions. Maybe that’s a softer way of saying things. But if I’m honest I do realize changes I need and/or want to make in my life.  So here they are, in no particular order:

• Read more. Now it starts with me being in The Word more. I really have no excuse. And You Version now has over 20 reading plans that I can download and print, read online, or read right on the iPhone. No excuse, right? But I know it should be my base in life. But I also want to read to my kids more; both the Bible and other stuff. Addie is a voracious reader on her own, but she really likes for me to read with her too. Ella is still putting together how to read, but has grown in her interest lately. And little Rowan, not yet 2, will go get a book and crawl up on the couch and call you over to him. So all of our kids like books.
• But I want to read for fun too. Good fiction books can really carry me away sometimes. But not only fiction but non fiction too. I want to learn more though books, and from that learning put that knowledge into life experiences.
• I intend to blog more. I always miss blogging. And I’ve not done it much at all lately. But I always mean too. And then I’ll go back and read some of my older stuff and really get the big again. Especially if I go back a few years. I need to figure out how to get my way older stuff imported into here. I think I have to juggle some old mysql databases and all. We’ll see. But in blogging more also comes more interactions with other blogs.
• I want to take more pictures. Whenever we look back at old pictures we always wish we had taken more pictures more often. I got a nice camera a year or so ago, but I’ve been hamstrung with out getting a good lens to go with it. Time to eliminate that excuse.
• I intend to eat cleaner. I don’t know exactly what that means, but I think I’ve probably got enough toxicity in my body right now that eating “clean” would benefit me in a whole host of ways.
• With eating better also comes exercise. I don’t want to try to be on any magazine cover. But to gain some cardiovascular endurance, a little muscle, and a lot of flexibility is where I want to go. I’ve got three small kids. I want to be around for their kids…and not just watch them from the recliner either. Without a doubt I need to work on core strength and flexibility.
• See growth and depth occur in the body of The Orchard. It’s been a great two years, but I think now that we’ve found a place (building) to call our own, we’re about to see lots of potential become realized. It’s going to take work and effort and prayer. But it’s exciting.
• Serve more. We’ve talked about it as a family, but we want to teach our kids what it means to serve and give of ourselves.  There are many opportunities around Oxford for serving too.
• Put some work into MissSportsTalk.com. It’s a good site, but it has lots of potential to be a great site. I’ve even considered starting up a podcast for it. I think there are plenty of people who would be willing to help out. And there’s a base of people already there who would listen I think. But articles and interviews for the site as well.
• Have real conversations with more people. Reconnect with old friends. But use the phone or the email or the coffee shop or whatever to connect with more people.
• Take my wife on a vacation: just the two of us.
• Take my kids on dates, just one of them and me, from time to time.

So there’s a quick mind dump. I know I wasn’t very specific with some of them. Instead of “exercise more” I could have said, “Run a half marathon in 2010″, but I didn’t.  Like I said, these are just some intentions. But hopefully they become reality.

But either way, it’s a new dawn…it’s a new day…it’s a new life for me.

The lead singer of the band and now worship pastor at Austin Stone is a guy by the name of Aaron Ivey. I first heard of him through Bush’s blog because of pictures Bush took of Aaron’s family. As I looked as his and his wife Jamie‘s blogs I saw they too had a heart for adoption and missions. And as a country they have a heart for Haiti specifically.

So, when I take time to peruse a blog here and there, I’d looked at these guys’ blogs, showed a few pics or stories or videos to my wife or shared them with friends.

But then yesterday Bev shows me the DM and asked if I knew anything about this: there was an add saying that Aaron Ivey was playing a concert that night. In Oxford. At….(get this)…Chick-fil-A. What? How did I miss that? And why did they plan it or the same night I had Community Group?

So the concert starts at 6pm. Group starts at 6:30. But it was a casual night of just soup and hanging out with another group. So I’d miss a little at the front of group and get to see the concert and meet the guys. I sent Steven and Aaron a msg on twitter and said I’d be looking for them.

I make it to Chick-fil-A thinking I’m going to be late, they’ll be starting up and not able to talk, and then I’ll have to leave and basically miss out. But they were behind schedule because of some weather issues. I was able to talk to Bush just a bit before sound check. I saw Aaron setting sound under the tent. Something he doesn’t usually do. He was stressing. I said hey, but could tell his mind was in about 47 other places and had no time for any talk, small or big.

I stuck around for a few songs, but had to get to the Heckel’s house for some good soup with some good people. We talked Friday Night Lights, and football, and website hosting, and mission trips. We talked of Haiti a bit because of the video from Austin Stone I sent out to our group. We talked of maybe trying to plan a trip soon that was similar.

I felt torn. I was enjoying the conversations with everyone, but wanted to catch the guys after the show, so close to 8pm I headed back up to Chick-fil-A. The stage area was being torn down, equipment packed up, and the band was being treated to free chicken and a tour of the inner sanctum that is the Chick-fil-A kitchen.

I got to sit down and talk with them as they enjoyed their free chicken (a friend of mine calls Chick-fil-A the Gospel Bird!). But this post is getting long enough. I’ll continue w/ the rest tomorrow.

• Going to Orange Beach was a blast for vacation. That’s when the blog break began. But I might have a story or two to bring back from that trip.
• I participated in some osteoporosis study at Ole Miss. The were studying bones and such. I barely made it into the age range but had a bone scan done. Turns out I have the hips and spine of a 20 year old. But at least that lets me know that something else is wrong instead of just my bone hardness. I think it’s flexibility. But I credit my eating ice cream and lasagna for my strong bones.
• The test also told me my body fat percentage and Body Mass Index. It was no surprise. Not overweight, but not ideal weight either.
• I’ve been meaning to exercise more. Run around my neighborhood some. Maybe join a gym. I realized I’ve not lifted a weight in a gym since I started working here in Oxford. Only a few pushups now and then. That needs to change.
• I heard about CrossFit from Matt Chandler. Then after reading up some and watching some videos, I’m intrigued. It looks both easy and really hard at the same time. It’s aim is for total body fitness instead of any specification. I might give some of it a whirl. But I’m (currently) inexperienced in any Olympic style lifts.
• Pat and I started a new podcast. It’s called Everything and Nothing. Catchy title, huh? You can listen at the blog or download it from iTunes. And if you tell all your friends about it you’ll feel good about yourself.
• I’m still digging the iphone.
• The Orchard had a news piece done on it last weekend. Here’s the video.
• Speaking of The Orchard, we might just start having two morning services soon.

But then the 3Gs was announced: more features and still low(?) price. Could it get any better? Turns out Pat was somehow eligible for the upgrade even though he was the first in line for the 3G at the Oxford AT&T Store last summer. So though we didn’t make a “released date purchase” last Friday, we scoured the local AT&T stores after the release weekend for an iphone. There were none w/in 75 miles it seemed.

But yesterday The Wife and I went to the Apple Store in Memphis to grab one. [Pat had succumbed to ordering from the Apple.com store and having it shipped to his house.] I’ve always liked going into an Apple Store, but this was my first purchase in one. It was a good experience.

I was worried at first because I was wondering if they would have any in or not. I’d called a few times since they’d opened and it was only a recording saying they were closed. But as I walked up there were lots of others walking up too. And I walk in and the place was crowded. I tell the guy in the orange shirt what I’m here for and he (I’ll call him Mr. Soul Patch) instructed me where to wait after I told him I had checked my eligibility and was good to go.

I only waited about 8 minutes (give or take) until a Specialist in a blue shirt came to assist me (I’ll call him Mr. Weekend Worker). We didn’t go to a desk or to a chair, we just stood in the software aisle as he took my info, put it in a handheld device, checked my stuff, swiped my card, and then said, “Let’s go activate your phone.” Wow, simple procedure.

The first thing that happened after my phone was activated was to receive a text from Pat: “I just canceled my order.” He knew I was at the Apple Store. So I was going to try to get him a phone as well. Turned out it worked after some initial hesitation. So I left the Apple Store with two 16gig 3Gs iphones (one black, one white).

So I’m pumped. So we celebrate by going for a visit to Target (wouldn’t you?) So The Wife looks as things wives look at. I look at the books and electronics. I make a call or two. And decide the phone sounds “muffled“. But maybe it’s just me. So as we leave I hand it to my wife and call it with her phone. She agrees. So….I take it back not knowing how long this will take.

So I walk back into the Apple Store and wait at the front counter where there are orange shirted folks there. I’m not really sure of the color coding, but I figured I’d just wait here first. But a blue shirted girl walks up (I’ll call her Miss Pessimistic/Confusing). I tell her I just bought this like two hours ago and it sounds muffled, so can I swap it? She gets a screwy face and says, “Um, you probably need to make an appointment with a Genius (they’re in the very back. Must be smarter than specialists and orange shirts) and they can determine what to do. She told me we couldn’t do an exchange, but the Genius folks could swap it out.” Wait, huh?

She explained that again, but it still made no sense. So I told her I was from out of town, drove here for the express purpose of buying an iPhone going to Target, but I didn’t have time to make an appointment. So she said to wait on the orange shirt girl next to her. So I finally get to talk to her (I say finally, it’s been 3 minutes). So I tell my new orange shirt friend (I’ll call her Miss Multiple Piercings But In A Cute Way) my issue. She asks for the phone and it’s number. So she dials my number, hands me a desk phone and says, “Talk!” So I say, “Hey, Orange Shirted Friend, it’s hot outside. It’s supposed to be the hottest day of the summer. So swap my phone quickly and we’ll both be happy and then I’ll go sit in my air conditioned minivan. But don’t let it fool you. I’m still a cool guy.”

She acts like she’s still not to sure about it all. Then she says, “The thing is…we’re all out of 16gig Black” I say, okay, I’ll take a white one if I can walk out here with it and get in my cool minivan with my wife and kid.” So she says, “okay”, meet me over by the iMac. So I do, she brings it, we activate it, and I leave happy. But me ending up with a white iphone (and Pat choosing one) makes me laugh because of this.

So, what have I learned in my first 24 hours of iPhone ownership:

• It eats battery like no tomorrow. My SE phone could hold a charge for over 2 days sometimes.
• There are more apps than I know what to do with. But it looks like some cool games for me my kids too.
• It seems there’s an unspoken fraternity of iphone owners.
• Little kids like iphones too. My girls weren’t with us when we got it, but they immediately thought it was their new toy.
• I get nervous when my 4yo plays it. But she’s only played “Memory” so far.
• My 8yo will be a wiz at it soon.
• My goal is to keep it out of my 1yo’s mouth. He’ll slobber in the speaker and ruin it otherwise. Like he did two previous phones.
• I have to get a case soon. I’m too nervous about it getting busted. And it might help me be a little more comfortable w/ the kids holding it.
• The Wife scoffs at it right now, but she’ll be acclimated before long. I have a feeling.

Got any apps to recommend?

But for the next year and a half I was a part of The Orchard meeting at The Powerhouse. It’s a great place. And sometimes you never know what to expect when you get there early on a Sunday morning to set up for church. Especially if there was a huge wedding reception or a wine tasting or a ghetto booty dance contest there just a matter of hours before we got there.

But for all the great character and variables that came with The Powerhouse we needed a little more space. Specifically childrens space and parking space and a few more chairs would be nice as well. We’d been praying and keeping our eyes open for a while. And a property we’d inquired about before became available. And it was in a movie theater!

I have kept up with a few churches that have met in theaters, but never been to a service in a theater. Most noteable is National Community Church (who’s domain name is TheaterChurch.com interestingly enough). But now that we’ve been meeting at The Amp for a month, I think we’ve settled in. The children’s space is much better for our kids and teachers, people don’t have to park far away and cross busy roads to get to church, the lobby space is fantastic, and there’s not much risk of having to clean up stacks dinner plates or vomit or who knows what else on a Sunday morning.

So…we’re one of those theater churches now. It comes with it’s own challenges too, of course. And sometimes we miss a few things about The Powerhouse. And the people were good to us there. Fantastic peole.

But as we’ve grown from those small worship meetings we had at the beginning, we want to remain genuine and true to our calling to serve Oxford, to be a place where people can taste and see that the Lord is good, and to truly be a place of faith, hope, and love.

And then this one is just for free. But it’s Cars meets Talladega Nights.

I guess sometimes when you have a quick thought in your head that would eventually morph into a blog post…if you zip that thought out to twitter through a text message or Tweetdeck, then you feel “done” with that thought. Or at least you look for conversation about that thought through twitter or Facebook (my tweets update my Facebook status…so feedback is there as well).

And this new twitter attention has taken some of the time away from regular blog reading too! But a couple of nights ago when the house was all quiet I looked back through some of my favorite blogs…and realized what I’d been missing. Yes, I like a 140 character glance into what someone is thinking/doing. I mean, who doesn’t want to know that Pat’s power is out again or that Will thinks that love for a Pizza Hut buffet knows no age boudaries. And it’s always interesting to know that Emily has a cold and is going to be early or that Shaq is sending a message to Brett Farve. I like those things. I really do.

But in my return to reading some blogs, I realized there’s so much more to read than just 140 characters. And I want to return to it. [But of course follow me on twitter as well: @statedog.]

Basically Daily Mug Shot is where you can go once a day (and only once a day) to use your computers webcam (or you can import pictures) to take a picture of your face (your mug). After you do this daily for a while it will then loop all the pictures in a stream (or like a flip book) to where it can be pretty cool looking and funny.

Here is a link to Lanny’s. [Lanny is the guy behind BigStuf Camps and lots of other stuff that's pretty cool. BigStuf impacted my life a lot. And a lot of kids I took to BigStuf camps too! You should go. Seriously.]

But I’ve got a ways to go before mine has enough pics to be worth looking at. But you should do it too.

Yesterday was a church day. Full of it. We got the Grace Church for the first service. Sat through the production meeting to see them run through a few details. When the service started we didn’t go in though. Instead we went to the Fifth and Sixth grade ministry called Fusion. Watched about 73 kids worship and then as teaching began we had to leave. Because as soon as Matt Williams finished the sermon in the 9am service he was leaving in a get away car (or 4 Runner) to rush to a different campus downtown to preach.

So we meet him at the back of the church, jump in the 4 Runner and to go to The Handlebar downtown. We get there as people are still coming in and see the opening worship set and the sermon. And the we repeat the cycle by rushing back to the Pelham road campus for the 11am service there. He gets to the church just in time to get on stage and preach there too.

But again we don’t hear the sermon because we go check out the Seventh & Eighth grade ministry. So we hang, watch for a bit, and see some of the teaching. But then we go back to the main worship service and hear part of the sermon and then the closing worship set. So…that was three main worship services and two children/youth services.

So we go eat at Five Guys and then drive to Clemson and catch part of a baseball game.

Then back to Greenville and go to the satellite campus of Newspring Community Church. A much, much different feel than Grace. And I don’t know if it was because it was the 6pm service or not, but it was a very young crowd. Like over half teenagers probably. The youth ministry meeting was afterward too, so maybe that contributed. But I’ll say that Perry Noble‘s sermon was easily the best sermon I’ve ever heard about marriage and relationships. And..it was the 3rd one of the series. So I have to go and listen to the previous ones.  I’ve read Perry’s blog a bit here and there. And it’s obvious the dude pulls no punches. And he didn’t in this sermon either. I’ll be sure to get a link up for it when it’s ready.

And then a trip back to Grace’s campus to meet with two staff members to go to supper. And that was a full day.

Today has been meeting in really small settings with different staff members of Grace Church. We started around 9am and went through til about 4:30 or 5. I’ve been amazed with the openness and accessibility of the staff. They have gone out of their way to be available for conversation, questions, observation and whatever else we asked of them.

Tomorrow I’ll go through a few things that I learned or caught my attention this weekend. But maybe not til I get some rest. There has been a dare of staying up all night long before the flight. We’ll see.

Right now I’m sitting at Spill The Beans in Greenville, SC. Flew up here today for a weekend of meeting with the staff of Grace Church and seeing how their staff is structured. We’d met Matt Williams, the Teaching Pastor and planter of Grace Church a few months ago. He was intriguing as was his story about his church. So @willrambo and @rickpike and I are going to be experiencing their weekend worship service, their “new member” class, and some one on one time with various staff members to look behind the curtain and ask some probing questions.

I’m looking forward to seeing how their church leadership strategy is structured and also how their small group ministry is structured. And a peek at their youth ministry events is going to happen too.

So…Greenville, SC. Here we are.

But my daughters were staying with my mom for a few days. And they were asking lots of questions about the baby and if she’d be born yet. My mom was looking on Pat’s blog to see if there was any update there. Alas, he’d not updated there yet eschewing for the other technologies of Twitter and Facebook. But my mom did find this picture on Pat’s TwitPic page. My mom called the girls over and said, “Look, this must be Pat & Sarah’s new baby…”

Ella, my four year old, stared at it for about two minutes. Looking hard at the picture. Then she said, “It doesn’t look much like Sarah, but it’s a cute baby I guess.”