In 1981, Oakland A’s owner Charlie Finley had open-heart surgery. Here’s what one of his pitchers, Steve McCatty, said about it: "When Charlie Finley had his heart operation it took eight hours. Seven just to find his heart." How hard is it for folks to find your heart? More importantly, how hard is it for God to find your heart?
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My first experience with what would become the Internet was in the early 1990's. My first ISP (Internet service provider) was Net something -- I can't actually remember. I used FIDO net to communicate with other users and didn't have a "graphical" web experience until signing up with AOL in 1992 or 1993. My first modem was a 2400 baud and I can remember the excitement I felt each time I upgraded to "faster" speeds (4800, 9600, 15400!). So, it is with great interest and nostalgia that I pass along this article: "The 10 Founding Fathers of the Internet." The truly geeky and nerdy among us may recognize 7 or 8 of the 10; if you recognize all 10, you're the winner!
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During our July 4th weekend services, we gave the audience the ability to text their vote regarding song selection (our band had learned three special songs and were ready to play whichever one won). Each service had a different winner. We also used a fun pre-service poll to greet people as they arrived. We asked them to vote for their answer to this question: Which would you rather have? George Washington's hair Abraham Lincoln's beard Martin Van Buren's sideburns It was a simple and fun way to engage the crowd, especially the kids. The technology behind text voting is simple and pretty straightforward. Our IT guy created an iPhone app to toggle between the questions on the fly. The results also updated on the big screens immediately. For those who are wondering: More people preferred Martin Van Buren's sideburns over George's hair and Abe's beard.
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As a communicator, one of my goals each time I speak is to create at least one "talking point." It could be a memorable phrase, story, or unexpected moment that then grows legs and gets talked about during the week. It doesn't have to be sensational, just memorable. And being memorable is often a matter of being meaningful. A meaningful phrase, story, or moment is one that connected with the heart of the listener. The idea may have originated in the head, but it has to travel to the heart to become truly memorable. Since my main arena as a communicator is at church, that means my task is to give careful thought to what I hope will stick long after the message is finished and the parking lot has emptied. What I've discovered is that the best talking points are word pictures. It's a turn of phrase that creates…
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We had a fun 4th of July weekend at Mountainview. Our worship services were "family" style, which means the kiddos come into worship with their parents. We started the service giving the audience the chance to vote for the song they wanted our band to play at the end. They could text their vote for one of three songs: Born in the USA R.O.C.K. in the USA God bless the USA Saturday night's crowd picked R.O.C.K. in the USA and Sunday's crowd chose Bruce Springsteen. It was fun watching the crowd respond to both the voting and having the band play the song. Our band did a fantastic job, too. I spoke on the idea that true freedom is found only in Christ. To begin my message, I showed a series of pictures of myself as a kid -- making the comment with each one that I was "free to…
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