Archive for Giving
A Season For Giving
Living Water Mission
My dad is leading a team heading to Kenya in February. Their mission is to develop some wells there (themselves) while teaching others how to do the same. You can follow and support their efforts here.
Mother Letters
A buddy of mine is doing a sweet hand-made project for his wife in lieu of buying her something this year. They both are doing it so they can give to people who are really in need. You can easily help him with his project here.
Feedback Desired
My brother from another mother has stepped up his game during worship on Sunday mornings and is doing quite a bit of leading. Check him out here and give him some feedback.
World Hope International
Last night I met with, and listened to, some people doing great work in Zambia creating hope for the hopeless. You can follow and support their efforts here.
Toms Shoes
Earlier this week I received a gift from Toms Shoes—a scarf hand-made in Ethiopia. I am continually impressed with Blakes efforts and business model. Please spread the word and buy some shoes from them here.
Death To Commercialized Christmas
I love that my wife and I are on the same page with this issue. Neither one of us can stand what Christmas has become, and we both are looking for ways to create a better example for our son.
As it stands now Christmas is simply a tradition of the haves buying for the haves. We all assign monetary values on all our friends and family who in turn do the same for us. Parents get $100 worth of loot. Siblings $50. Nieces and Nephews $25 per. The problem is that we all have tons of stuff already. We can buy anything we want already. What about Johnny who doesn’t have a house to stay in on Christmas morning? Or Jenny who hopes she can eat on Christmas Eve?
Neither one of us are scrooges. We like blessing our friends and family, and we love that people think enough about us to sacrifice their time and resources to get us nice things. It’s just we don’t want it to be all about stuff. We want to create an environment for Tanner that teaches him that giving to those without is the most fun you can have, especially around Christmas time. We want to teach him that Christmas isn’t about how much loot you can score, but how much you can bless someone else.
It’s definitely not an easy assignment. There are years and years of tradition to try to break free from, but we’re planting the seeds. And we’re not alone.
Advent Conspiracy
adventconspiracy.org
Last Christmas I mentioned that our church raised ten thousand dollars to go to Africa to dig a well. Well, the team have their tickets in hand, and they are feverishly training (in arctic weather no less) for the big trip in February 2009. Our goal is to foster indigenous well drilling movements, rather than just drill wells for people. At the villiage shop level we want to eventually see craftsman building, selling, and renting drill units.
To find out more about the trip, you can visit their blog at Living Water Mission.
If you’d like to donate towards the project, please use the button below or send a check to:
NewSong Community Church
133 E. Chicago Blvd.
Tecumseh, MI 49286
(Write Living Water Mission in the memo section)
Shaun Groves @ NewSong
If you’re in the neighborhood (Tecumseh, Michigan), why don’t you stop by and see Christian recording artist Shaun Groves as he leads worship at NewSong Community Church on June 8, 2008 @ 10:30am.
“Shaun Groves defies typical expectations and simple labels. He is an insightful songwriter, one who displays such incredible lyrical prowess that his musical peers nominated him for Songwriter of the Year solely on the strength of his 2001 debut.”
Here is a video of Shaun performing his hit Welcome Home.
Here is a video of Shaun talking about the Good News.
You can find out more about Shaun by browsing his blog — www.shlog.com
Or read posts from him and other bloggers that went to Uganda recently with Compassion International — www.compassionbloggers.com
The 50 Hour Challenge
50 nets in the next 50 hours.
By 7pm CST on Friday.
Getrdone.
**UPDATE**
Let’s make it 150!
(via Flowerdust.net)
Monday Meme
(via transitionpete)
What was I doing 10 years ago?
Ten years ago today I was sitting in class at Harding University, wondering if there was going to be a basketball game later that day. I was preparing for my spring break vacation with my friend Mike. We were heading to the Grand Canyon to camp, and to some spring training games in Phoenix, while my soon to be wife was heading home to Michigan to plan our wedding for the following Summer.
Five things on my to-do list today?
1. Wrap up an eNewsletter.
2. Update some NLEA files online.
3. Resize a recent ad I designed for 10 different magazines.
4. Ride bike with my son.
5. Cook some Salmon for the fam.
5 places I have traveled?
1. Caribbean
2. Las Vegas, Phoenix, Cincinatti, Pittsburgh (vacations)
3. Germany (lived there 4 years)
4. New York, Chicago, Washington (for work)
5. Arkansas, Florida, South Dakota, Michigan (lived in these states)
5 snacks or treats I enjoy?
1. Coke Classic
2. Crab cakes & Shrimps
3. Dunkin Donuts Coffee w/ French Vanilla Creamer
4. Cheeseburgers
5. Peanut M&M’s
What would I do if I were a billionaire?
1. Quit my job
2. Build NewSong a building
3. Travel
4. Find a billion ways to give it all away.
5 of my bad habits?
1. Procrastination
2. Eating Unhealthy
3. Nose picking
4. Thinking more than I act
5. Avoiding necessary conflict
Places I have lived?
See above.
Jobs I’ve had?
1. Maintenance at Funeral Home
2. Bindery and Pre-press at Print Shop
3. Assistant for Chimney Sweep
4. Sandwich artist at Arby’s
5. Graphic Designer / Marketing (current)
Feel free to fill in your own answers in the comments.
American Idol Gets Religion
I’d be remiss if I didn’t acknowledge the finale of American Idol Gives Back special last night. After performances or appearances by the likes of Robin Williams, Bono, Brad Pitt, Miley Cyrus (my personal favorite), Mariah Carey, Fergie, Chris Daughtry, Annie Lennox, and Snoop Dogg, the remaining contestants dawned some pure white outfits and belted out a great rendition of Shout to the Lord.
The problem is you can’t please everybody. There are Christians jumping for joy in the streets. There are Christians calling American Idol the devil for changing the word Jesus to Shepherd. There are non-religious folks who are up in arms that they did the song period.
What’s your take?
(Other conversations going on here, here, and here.)
**UPDATE**
I’m sure you’ve heard by now, but they opened with the same song last night—only this time with the original version of the lyrics.
New question posed by SWEJ in the comments: Would you be offended had they sung “My Mohammed” instead?
The Ordinary Radical
I just heard this quote from one of my new favorite people, Shane Claiborne. It’s out of his book, Irresistible Revolution. His latest book, Jesus For President, is very high on my to-read list.
“When the church becomes a place of brokerage rather than an organic community, she ceases to be alive. She ceases to be something we are, the living bride of Christ. The church becomes a distribution center, a place where the poor come to get stuff and the rich come to dump stuff. Both go away satisfied (the rich feel good, the poor get clothed and fed), but no one leaves transformed.”
I highly recommend you listen to the talk he gave at Mars Hill Bible Church, entitled Finding Your Calcutta. Download mp3 here.
Compassion Updates
Ragamuffin Video Update #5
Ragamuffin Video Update #6
Ragamuffin Video Update #7
Theresa Nakiyinji
Meet Theresa Nakiyinji.
Theresa was born in 1999 and lives with her parents, 2 brothers, and 5 sisters in Uganda, Africa. Theresa and her family live in a community severely affected by the HIV/AIDS crisis.
Our family has been blessed to support Theresa through World Vision for the past few years. To be brutally honest I haven’t done much other than send the monthly support, but her picture is on the front of our refrigerator so every single day I remember that there is a world outside of my own that needs not only food and shelter, but love and hope. Seeing stories like these come to life through these 16 bloggers has moved me to take it up a notch.
I encourage you to search within your soul and consider sponsoring a child like Theresa. Both their lives and yours will be changed forever.
» Sponsor a child through World Vision.
» Sponsor a child through Compassion International.
Blogging For Compassion
If you aren’t following all of the posts from these bloggers, you are truly missing out. Please click through and look at the pictures, watch the videos, and read the stories. Lives are being altered. Yours can be too.
And if you can, sponsor a child.
The Bloggers:
Evangelical Outpost
Family Research Counsil
BeliefNet – J-Walking
Ethos
Chris Elrod
Ragamuffin Soul
Whittaker Woman
Rocks In My Dryer
BooMama
Flowerdust
Heartlight Magazine
HM – The Hard Music Magazine
Shlog
Spence Smith
Brian Seay
Keely Scott
**UPDATE**
Ragamuffin Video Update #4
