Die On The Mountain? [Part 1]

"As a rock climber, the one thing you learn is that those who panic, die on the mountain. You don't just sit on the mountain. You either go up or go down, but don't just sit and wait to get clobbered."

Jim Collins [author of Built to Last and Good to Great] has made a career out of understanding why organizations [like some rock climbers] succeed. He says the signature of mediocre organizations is not an unwillingness to change, but chronic inconsistency at doing so because the changes they make are inconsistent with their values [whatever they are].

So think about it: What is your organization's values? Are there things you should stop doing chronically inconsistent with your organization's values? Are there things you should start doing that could be more consistent? Or would you rather just die on the mountain?

Edited and adapted from a January 22, 2009 interview of Jim Collins by Jennifer Reingold in FORTUNE magazine. Click pic to read article in its entirety.

Die On The Mountain? [Part 2]

"You have to have the combination of believing that you will prevail, that you will get out of this, but also not be the Pollyanna who ignores the brutal facts."—Jim Collins

In Part 1 of this post, I mentioned how Jim Collins has made a career out of understanding why organizations [like some rock climbers] succeed. He says the signature of mediocre organizations is not an unwillingness to change, but chronic inconsistency at doing so because they make changes inconsistent with their values.

So IF our values [@TF] include: "Growing from the children's divisions up" [instead of appealing primarily to adults convinced by systematic theology] "A Christ centered church" [think Christian Adventist instead of Adventist Christian; click Pollyanna pic for more about that] "Shouting the Gospel with our lives" [such as promoting a lifestyle of evangelism through ordinary outreach opportunities], as contrarian as it sounds in a tanking economy, shouldn't we be doing even more of the few things we value most? If we don't, is it because we don't believe they will help us prevail? Or because we're ignoring some other brutal facts? Do you think an 8 or 88 year old could understand ours?

Click the triangular play button below to hear Jim Collins talk about how to turn crises into opportunities—even in troubled times.

No Mo' Bacon OR Oatmeal?!!

Over 600k people have watched "The Breakfast Song" on YouTube. According to Tom Joyners' website [click pic for details], the people sincerely singing this hilarious song on The Kay Bain Show in May/June of 2004 from NBC affiliate WTVA of Tupelo, Mississippi are Pastor Cleo Clariet and his fiancé Katherine Lane.

Pretty much covering all the breakfast foods including bacon and oatmeal [!!!], Clariet is either longing for the day Jesus returns or eerily singing a song of premonition of his dying before then. Because according to the website above, Clariet passed away from congenital heart disease on Dec. 13, 2004. Lane said he would have been thrilled to know his song is now entertaining so many people. Enjoy!!!

[But stay away from the...Bacon. Sausage. Orange Juice. Coffee. Biscuits. Light bread. Grits. Scrambled eggs. Oatmeal. Pancakes. Sugar and rice. Beef steak. Maple syrup. Strawberry jam. Gravy. Country ham. Captain Crunch. Cinnamin Oats. Lucky Charms. Cheerios. Wheaties. Frosted Flakes. Rice Krispies. Nuts of Grapes. Chicken. Pork Chops. Lipton tea. Soda pop. Donuts. Grapefruit. Apple pie. Mixed fruit. Oatmeal. Corn Flakes. And beef stew LOL!!!]

Knowing And Doing In Part?

Nick Vujicic is 25 years old. He was born December 4th, 1982 in Melbourne, Australia without arms or legs. For years he and his parents [one of whom is a pastor] was angry at God. Neither of them or Nick’s doctors could tell Nick why he was born that way. And according to 1 Corinthinas 13:12, there’s some stuff that we won’t be able to explain either.

But knowing in part doesn't stop Nick from doing his part. And it shouldn’t stop us either! Because God can always make something good out of anything bad. After being sold into slavery, years later Joseph tells his brothers in Genesis 50:20 [NIV], "You intended to harm me, but God intended it for good to accomplish what is now being done, the saving of many lives."

Because God has a purpose and plan for Nick's life, you can be sure God has one for you as well. Click the triangular play button below to hear Nick speak to some of the most hard core prisoners in a Colombian prison in 2008.

What If Paul Was Packing?

An associate pastor at the southern Illinois church where Pastor Fred Winters was shot to death while giving a sermon on March 8, 2009 says the congregation is praying for the alleged gunman Terry Sedlacek and his family. A statement from Winters' widow was read who said her husband "died doing what he loved, communicating the hope found in Jesus Christ."

Tim Schmidt, Owner/Founder of the United States Concealed Carry Association mercifully waited 48 hours before wondering out loud via email if the pastor would still be alive if a member of his congregation had been carrying a concealed weapon or if the pastor himself had been carrying a gun.

Five different times the apostle Paul received 39 lashes. Three times he was beaten with rods. Once he was stoned. If Paul was packing a gun, do you think he would have been boasting in 2 Corinthians 11:23-25 about the things that show others how weak he was? Should I carry a concealed gun into the pulpit? Should we arm undercover members of our congregation with guns? I'm curious. What do YOU think pastors and churches should do? Comment below or answer the anonymous poll near the top right of the screen.

Dolphins In The Desert?

Was the ark protected by dolphin leather? That depends on which ark we're talking about! Genesis 6:15 [NLT] says Noah's was 450' long, 75' wide, and 45' high. It was made from cypress [NIV] or gopher wood [KJV] and sealed with tar inside and out [Click here for some pics of Noah's built to half scale by some Dutch guy in Holland]. The Ark of the Covenant [a sacred chest not a boat] 3¾' long and 2¼' wide and 2¼' high was much smaller—though anything compared to Noah's would be!!! Exodus 25:10-22 says it was made from acacia wood [NIV] or shittim wood [KJV—insert joke here] and covered with gold.

But what startled me recently was that Exodus 26:14 says the big tent covering that ark was made of sea cows [NIV]. Which according to Rabbi Dr. Louis Jacobs (1920-2006), a leading writer and thinker within Conservative Judaism before he died, is a word of uncertain meaning often translated "dolphins."

Why would God encourage people already on a quest to undertake another quest to find, capture, kill, skin and eventually tan some dolphins while they're in the middle of the desert? Whether you think they actually did this or not, isn't it a good thing to remember that a mission from God always lead to motion? What quest do you hear God sending you to pursue? If apart from Christ we can do nothing [John 15:5], who should get the credit in any of "our" exploits?

Edited and adapted from posts by Seth Godin and Rabbi Dr. Louis Jacobs. Click either name to read in their entirety.

Heard The Sky Angel Cowboy?

Millions of Americans have heard 13 year old Logan Henderson's phone call to a Christian radio station in Nebraska. If you haven't, click the triangular play button below and grab a tissue.

Beyond Evandalism Recap?

Peter Rollins was the main speaker at the "Beyond Evandalism" conference Jackie and I attended last week in CA. In this 10 minute clip below, Peter recaps his 1st presentation and previews his 3rd. Got any thoughts on his content, delivery, or Irish accent?!! Contact the Hollywood Adventist Church for more info or to purchase DVDs of the entire conference.

Wanna Watch Jesus People?

If you [like me] love NBC's The Office, you'll love Jesus People [click pic for more]!!! Webisodes are available on YouTube. But below is the preview for the full length movie about the development and irony of a Christian music band. Especially cool is it is co-written by Rajeev Sigamoney [shout out!!!] who is a member at the Hollywood Adventist Church and is related to my pastor friend Kumar Dixit [shout out deux!!!] at the New Hope Adventist Church in Maryland. Small world. Big laughs. Enjoy!!!

How Much Do You Love Your Family?

According to his website, Jason Taylor was one of the most feared Defensive Ends on a National Football League field. And because he was, he was rewarded with a contract that would have paid him $9million [!!!] in 2009. But two years ago, he spent his offseason Dancing With the Stars and this season, he was hurt a lot.

So this offseason, though the Redskins offered him an additional $500k to spend 75% of his time with the team in VA working out 39 times between March and May about 3 hours a day any four days a week, he said no. And the Redskins cut him. Leaving behind one dismal season and two draft picks spent in acquiring him.

So let me ask you: How much do you love your family? Would you rather spend time with them 24/7 or spend 3 days/week with them for 3 months making $500k? Edited and adapted from a post by Washington Redskins teammate Chris Cooley. Click pic to read in its entirety.

Say Goodbye to Hollywood?

Jackie and I spent some time last weekend in Corona Del Mar, Huntington and Laguna Beach, and Hollywood, California visiting friends and attending a conference called "Beyond Evandalism" at the Hollywood [literally a block's walk to snap this famous sign] Adventist Church. Peter Rollins [author of How Not to Speak of God and The Orthodox Heretic] was the main speaker emphasizing why living our faith is so much more effective than merely talking about it. While there, mesmerized by the beautiful sun and and surf, I forgot to wear sunscreen. My forehead got so burned it felt like it was on fire!!! Which is where this street preacher was saying people would be burning unless they started turning to Jesus and the Bible. You think this is what Peter was talking about by living one's faith LOL?!!

The Rest of the Story?

According to adherents.com, Paul Harvey was a Seventh-day Adventist who "regularly attends" the Camelback Adventist Church in Arizona. But according to my pastor bud Bobby McGhee, who was pastor at Camelback until 2000, neither Harvey nor his wife Angel were members there. Angel's aunt who raised her was an Adventist and that is why she went to church with her aunt and why Harvey said nice things about Adventists and occasionally attended Camelback when wintering in Scottsdale.

But what about after McGhee left? So I called the Camelback church and left a voice mail on Pastor Charles White's cellphone [the pastor who took over after Bobby left] and he called me back this morning to say that yes he too knew the Harveys well, did do Angel's funeral in May 2008, and will be flying to Chicago tomorrow to do Paul's graveside service on Monday but that no, neither one ever were members at Camelback. So THAT's the rest of his story.

But other highlights include receiving numerous accolades during his 70 years in radio, including the Presidential Medal of Freedom from President George W. Bush in 2005. His "The Rest of the Story" commentaries made him a mainstay of American radio journalism. Edited and adapted from a blog post by Jared Wright. Click pic to read Wright's post in its entirety or click the triangular play button below to watch one of Harvey's best anecdotes.

Is This Racist?

The New York Post drew accusations of racism for printing this political cartoon that some have said compares President Barack Obama to a mad chimpanzee. The cartoon, which appeared in the Wednesday February 18, 2009 edition of the newspaper, was based on an actual incident involving a chimpanzee that severely mauled a woman and then was shot by police in Connecticut on Monday. What do you think? (courtesy New York Post/AP)

1. This is racist
2. This is not racist
3. This is poor art
   

Who Can Be Against Us?

Ellen DeGeneres is an eleven-time Emmy Award-winning American stand-up comedienne, television hostess and actress. While I don't think God loves her lifestyle [she is gay] anymore than He loves heterosexuals gossiping about it [cf. Romans 1:29], I have no doubt that He loves her like crazy!!! Especially when she went out of her way to love on Gladys—an 88 year old fan in Austin, TX.

If you have 7 minutes to watch something that will leave you laughing all day, click the triangular play button below. And if you don't, could you, like Ellen, at least try to see that which is lovable in all of us? Because God does. Romans 8:31 asks, "If God is for us, who can be against us?"

Should Churches Serve Alcohol?

If it's the kind that goes in gastanks, yes!!! Years ago John Rockefeller conspired with Christians to crush the production of Henry Ford's alcohol fueled [!!!] Model T. But according to David Blume in his book Alcohol Can Be A Gas, anyone can purchase the materials needed to make your own, convert your car, and start giving away gas. Wouldn't it be cool if Christians got it right this time?

Blume's book explains how someone could purchase for $1500 the materials needed to make your own still. And how the government allows you to process and hold up to 5k gallons of it. At less than 50 cents/gallon, we wouldn't have to buy down the price of gas, because it would already be down!!! And if church members purchased converter kits for their own cars [my Chrsyler mini-van and Dodge Calibur can be converted for $784 total], we could all purchase gas from our church fueling [LOL?!!] all our other ordinary outreach activities. What do you think about that?!!

Click pic to buy book

Click here for prices to convert your car to alcohol
Click here to read about how Brazil already did this 25 years ago
Click here to hear how Christians contributed to our oil addiction
Click the triangular play button below to watch a 6 minute interview with David Blume

Is Godlessness A Virtue?

According to Phil Zuckerman, an associate professor of sociology at Pitzer College, it is. In an essay adapted from his book Society Without God he says many people [such as Pat Robertson, Ann Coulter, and William J. Bennet] assume that religion is what keeps people moral, that a society without God would be hell on earth: rampant with immorality, full of evil, and teeming with depravity. But that doesn't seem to be the case for Scandinavians in Denmark and Sweden.

To prove his point, Zuckerman highlights the research of a German think tank Hans-Böckler Stiftung that recently ranked nations in terms of their success at establishing social justice within their societies; Denmark and Sweden, two of the least-religious nations in the world, tied for first.

Zuckerman concludes: "It is a great socioreligious irony — for lack of a better term — that when we consider the fundamental values and moral imperatives contained within the world's great religions, such as caring for the sick, the infirm, the elderly, the poor, the orphaned, the vulnerable; practicing mercy, charity, and goodwill toward one's fellow human beings; and fostering generosity, humility, honesty, and communal concern over individual egotism — those traditionally religious values are most successfully established, institutionalized, and put into practice at the societal level in the most irreligious nations in the world today." Why do YOU think societies not overtly Christian rank so high in issues of social justice while supposedly Christian countries lag so far behind? Click pic to read essay in its entirety.

What's The i5Conference?

David Neff, Editor-in-Chief of Christianity Today, Margaret Feinberg who narrates some of the coolest BlueFishTV vids, and Samir Selmanovic on the latest in FaithHouse, a NYC project combining Jews, Muslims, and Christians living in community are a few of the reasons I can't wait for the 5th Annual National Conference on Innovation in Columbus, Ohio October 4-6, 2009.

I'm telling you now so YOU can make plans to be there!!! Cost and details coming soon. Click pic for more details, call 740.397.4665 ext.165, or email: information@ohioadventist.org

Isn't That My Seat?

Peggy and Hank go to church and [gasp] a guest is sitting in THEIR seat!!! After church they tell the guest not to sit in their pew anymore but she refuses and tells them that the pew belongs to God. Then they threaten to go to a mega church and that's where this clip continues. Enjoy!!!

What's a Time Bank?

A time bank is a community of people who support each other. Are you great at email and willing to help someone who isn't? Can you help someone with yard work? Are you good at editing or party planning? Earn "Time Dollars" by offering your services to Time Bank! Then, when you need a minor home repair, transportation to a doctor's appointment, or pet care [just for example, there's WAY more options], cash in your "Time Dollars" instead of Googling help, paying someone from the Yellow Pages, or going into debt.

But the coolest thing about Time Bank is entire churches can register as "neighborhoods" online making the people inside them available to each other and to the community. Not only would doing so archive and organize the talents and spiritual gifts of the members of a church, it would also give your church access to people in the community God loves like crazy who actually need something from you!!! You won't have to knock on their doors or wonder what their needs are because they'll log in and actually tell you what they need!!!

That's why we at TF will be joining our local Time Bank, offering all the ordinary things we already do like movie nights, singing bands, potluck lunches, storytelling [think VBS or Kids Church] as ways for others in the community to come spend their time dollars. And we'll also be posting the passions and talents of people in our church [with their permission] willing to "tithe their time" allowing others in the community to join our "neighborhood" long before they belong [if ever] to our "church."

Because we think this is a great idea, we hope you'll consider starting/joining a Time Bank as well. If you contact Time Banks USA, they'll send you a start-up kit. Click the pic for FAQ's about Time Banks. What do you think about Time Banks? Don't you think you and your church could help reweave the community one hour at a time?

Time Banks USA
5500 39th St NW
Washington, DC 20015
www.timebanks.org
(202) 686-5200

Mike Said What?!!

Many of you know I blog on Thursdays. What some of you don't know is I say a lot more on Saturdays. Recently I addressed tithing our time. Last week I wrote about tithing our talents.

Click the pic for short descriptions of each message and for links to longer manuscripts in their entirety most with outlines, introductory video clips, and accompanying PowerPoint that I’ve shared the last two years.

Cut and paste or forward and print for the glory of God. BIG thanks and WTG to Shawn and Dee for making these available online.

Wanna Learn How to Raise Money?

Haven of Hope Toledo Inc. is the name of the non-profit organization we created last winter. Because we're a start-up organization with no full time paid director, we need all kinds of help raising and sustaining funding. Especially in this economically challenging environment. That's why I've invited the good folks from Benevon to come to Toledo and teach us how they do it!!!

They will be here Thursday March 12 from 9-11am. I've already reserved 12 spots for my friends at Haven of Hope, but I was hoping some of you would attend too! Here's why: "The Benevon Model forced us to pay close attention to relationship building and donor recognition. The results have been outstanding—our donors feel valued and connected to our mission."—Laura Tweed, Director of Development, Immanuel Christian School, Springfield, VA

SO please consider this your personal invitation join us! Come learn how to "missionize" your ordinary events. The class [offered in Toledo, Cleveland, Columbus, and Cincinnati] is free, but registration through the Benevon website is required. Click pic above then scroll down to desired class location to register. Or please contact 206-709-9400 or info@benevon.com for more info. Here are all the dates and times.

3/12/2009 - Toledo, OH
Creating Sustainable Funding in Economically Challenging Times
* March 12, 2009
* 9:00 a.m.–11:00 a.m.
* Toledo First Seventh-day Adventist Church
4909 W Sylvania Ave
Toledo, OH 43623
* Cost: No fee to attend

3/11/2009 - Cleveland, OH
Creating Sustainable Funding in Economically Challenging Times
* March 11, 2009
* 3:00 p.m.–5:00 p.m.
* American Red Cross Greater Cleveland Chapter
3747 Euclid Ave
Cleveland, OH 44115
* Cost: No fee to attend

3/11/2009 - Columbus, OH
Creating Sustainable Funding in Economically Challenging Times
* March 11, 2009
* 9:00 a.m.–11:00 a.m.
* YWCA of Columbus
65 S Fourth St
Columbus, OH 43215
* Cost: No fee to attend

March 10, 2009 - Cincinnati, OH
Creating Sustainable Funding in Economically Challenging Times
* March 10, 2009
* 3:00 p.m.–5:00 p.m.
* Location to be determined
Cincinnati, OH area
* Cost: No fee to attend

Your Fave Commercial?

Here are three of my fave Super Bowl XLIII commercials. Which is yours? [BTW, a BIG thank you and WTG to the 60+ of you who came out last Sunday night and watched the game on the 25' big screen at church and supported Souper Bowl of Caring 2009. We stocked our church food pantry, raised $175 in additional offerings, and had plenty left over to donate to North Monroe Street Church of God after a fire set by arsonists destroyed their food closet on January 22, 2009. Click link for more info.]

Stop Child Prostitution?

Ward 83 of Kolkata [Calcutta], one of the oldest and most notorious red light districts in India, is where social worker Urmi Basu opened a shelter for the children of prostitutes called New Light. Later she established through her non-profit organization of the same name [click pic for more info] a home for teen girls who would otherwise be forced to follow the grim trades of their mothers. Now Urmi wants to stop teen boys from becoming pimps or drug dealers by building a bakery and vocational training center and we're going to help her help them!!!

So save the date!!! And your money!!! Don't buy your sweetheart chocolate or flowers or a $100 candlelight fondue dinner at The Melting Pot. Instead, bring them to Valentines for India @ 6:15pm on February 14, 2009 for an experience at Toledo First that will mess with their heads and their hearts. Tickets cost $10/person and include lovely decor with a delicious full Indian meal, a surprise take home souvenir, and a presentation from Pastor Rachel about her good friend Urmi Basu of New Light. Seating is limited and pre-registration is required at 419.882.6200.

[If you can't attend but want to contribute, please write "Valentines for India" on the memo line of your checks and make them payable to: Toledo First Adventist Church. The address is 4909 W Sylvania Ave, Toledo OH, 43623. Your gifts large or small are tax deductible and you will receive a receipt. Thank you in advance for helping us stop child prostitution!!!]

What's MailChimp?

MailChimp is an award winning HTML Email Marketing company that some of the world's largest companies use including GM, Firefox, and Intel. But it is also available [at a 15% discount] to smaller non-profit organizations [like churches] to help those leading them send professional emails and communicate important developments in culture and the community. Some day all Toledo First correspondence, invitations, and announcements will be delivered electronically saving us money and trees. MailChimp will help us get there.

BIG thank you and WTG to Julie Cajigas for telling me about MailChimp, designing the new Fortune Cookies format, and syncing it with the 450+ people who currently subscribe. If you currently receive my weekly blog blast, you don't have to do anything to continue doing so—now in beautiful HTML graphics and color.

If you have friends or family that YOU think would appreciate a weekly serving of Fortune Cookies, please explain to them that THEY must sign up voluntarily by clicking the pic above or the fortune cookie button on the top right of the screen. Thank you for helping increase the readership of Fortune Cookies so more and more people will know that God loves them like crazy!!!

With All His Heart?

Adam Bender, 8, was one of several kids who played baseball in Kentucky's Southeastern’s rookie league at Veterans Park last year. But what makes Adam stand out is he plays one of the toughest positions on the field, catcher, with only one leg. Because of cancer, he had his left leg amputated when he was one. But he doesn’t use a prosthesis and only uses crutches when he reaches base for the Astros. Click the pic to read his story. Or the triangular play button below to see him playing with all his heart.
UPDATE: Since the story of 8-year old cancer survivor Adam Bender was published in the Lexington Herald-Leader, and on www.kentucky.com, on June 1, 2008, the one-legged catcher has been invited to throw out first pitches at a Chicago White Sox game, a Cincinnati Reds game, a Houston Astros game, and has been invited to a Garth Brooks benefit in Las Vegas. He is also being profiled for a story that will air on ESPN. On Sunday June 6, 2008, Adam threw out the ceremonial first pitch to Adam Dunn of the Reds. Edited and adapted from articles by Mike Fields and Charles Bertram.

Hot Pockets?

My neighbor Dave introduced me to Jim Gaffigan's "Beyond the Pale" DVD a few years ago. His 5 minute bit on Hot Pockets always makes me laugh. Gaffigan is the source of my "Awwwkard..." response to many things. Enjoy!!!

Who Cares About the Souper Bowl?

We do!!! At TF, it’s not just a game. It’s never been just a game. It’s an opportunity to invite someone in your world to your church for a seriously non-threatening social event. And this year, it’s even more. Because we’re collecting cans of soup to give to the needy!!!

So if you can, bring TWO cans of soup [or more] AND a friend. If you forget, we'll have cans you can buy there...You’ll both enjoy bowls of free chili, plenty of Gino's pizza, and pop and [hopefully] a great game on a ginormous 25' screen between the Arizona Cardinals [go Kurt Warner!!!] and the Pittsburgh Steelers. Click the triangular play button below if you want to see a clever ad about the Souper Bowl of Caring.

Where Your Heart Is?

If it's true where your treasure is, your heart will be also [Matthew 6:19-21], shouldn't the reverse should also be true? Where your heart is, there your treasure will be also. But what's your treasure? In the past, I've been taught that my "treasure" is money and the "storehouse" of Malachi 3:10 is the organized church's headquarters. But to be honest, I don't think that's what the prophet Malachi had in mind when he wrote what he did 2500 years before the Adventist Church existed!

So in the coming weeks at TF, we'll be talking about what else Malachi meant. And how badly Jesus wants to be Lord of all our time, talents, and treasure. With the economy tanking and anticipated giving trends changing, we all need to be proactive and take more ownership and responsibility for the ministry and outreach opportunities Toledo First provides. Not from a spirit of fear, but of faith [2 Timothy 1:7]. So what can you do?

• Pick up the invitation cards at the back of church and share them with your friends and family
• Plan to attend/read/watch the entire series January 24 - February 21, 2009
• Pray for me as I prepare to share!
• Email me [mike4tune@gmail.com] your helpful YouTube vids, illustrations, cartoons, or anecdotes about any kind of giving
• Tell me your story. How has God blessed you when you sincerely give and live for Him?

Who Needs Batman?

I don't. Because I married Batgirl!!! Before Christmas, Jackie captured a bat in our house with an oatmeal container. We don't know if it was the same one we saw flying through our living room one evening a few weeks earlier. But from the look on her face when she saw him, I knew she wanted him gone.

So being the brave man that I'm not, I ushered the kids into their bedrooms and shut their doors. Then I went to my office to call a pest control guy. But before I could hang up, Jackie informed me she had captured the intruder, read him his rights, and was about to drive him miles away from our house to a park. Since then, every nook and cranny of the inside of our home has been screened, caulked, and sealed. And if there are any more in here, we're told they will leave in the spring through the small opening under the eaves in the front of the house they used to get in. Then that opening will be screened, caulked, and sealed as well.

Which is good I guess. But even if it weren't, I'd have nothing to be afraid of. Since my wife is not afraid of bats or the needles the following injections would require to ward off rabies. Shortly after this heart warming episode, I was browsing Despair's website and found this T-shirt I had to buy. Click the graphic for more.

What’s Your Dream?

Take Charge?

Bills rolling in from Christmas spending? Ready for some changes? Want to have a little money left at the end of the month?

Taking Charge Community Finance classes are for you!!! We’ll be offering the classes on two Wednesday nights, January 21 and January 28 @ 7 PM. It’s free!!! So invite everyone you can and plan to fill a space at the table. Our good friend and Financial Advisor, Shanyn Stewart, will walk us through what we can do to Take Charge! At the conclusion to each class, a representative from FirstMerit Bank in Sylvania will be there to give away to one lucky guest a Visa gift card!!!

Securities offered through NEXT Financial Group, Inc. Member FINRA/SIPC, 3040 Consear Rd, Lambertville, MI 48144.
Leach Stewart & Associates is not an affiliate of NEXT Fiancial Group, Inc.

Sponsored by FirstMerit Bank Sylvania Branch 7530 King's Pointe Road
Liz Farley, Personal Banker 419-843-9680

Family Movie Night?

Remember Sunday nights when you were a kid [or an adult] and you couldn’t wait to watch The Wonderful World of Disney? Want to see a fun family movie, one for kids of all ages? Then come to TF on January 17 @ 7 PM for a night of laughs!

Toledo Junior Academy will again be hosting Family Movie Night in the fellowship hall! If you came last time, you’ll remember what fun we had!

We’ll provide the popcorn free of charge. Drinks and other movie snacks will be available for purchase. We’re inviting all our friends and families from Toledo Junior Academy and James Meade Learning Center—why don’t you invite yours too! Special thanks to the Home and School Association for this info.

Where's JFK's Plane?

His VC-137C Boeing 707, known as "Air Force One" when the president was on board, is in Dayton, Ohio at the best "air and space" museum outside of Washington DC. Pastor Rachel and her brothers joined Joshua, Lydia, and me and the Jessops for this little field trip during winter break. If you have never toured this museum, you really should [click pics for more info]. Admission is free, but get there early to sign in for the bus tour to the Presidential Hangar and the Cold War Gallery to see the Blackbird SR-71 and the only one of two Valkyrie XB-70's ever built. Special thanks to Leonard, Julie, and Andrew Jessop for their excellent guided tour!!! I LOVE airplanes!!!

Is Torture A Moral Issue?

Whether you voted for Obama or McCain, approved of the bailouts for Wall Street or Detroit, or are Christian or Muslim or Jew, please take 60 seconds to watch this clip and consider signing the petition to end "advanced interrogation techniques" in the USA like I did.

YOU have a voice. Use it!!! Because Isaiah 59:15-16 NLT says, "The Lord looked and was displeased to find there was no justice. He was amazed to see that no one intervened to help the oppressed."
Click the "Help Obama End Torture" link to the right for more info.

What If Starbucks Marketed Like A Church?

This is religious satire people. Enjoy!!!

Merry Christmas 2008?

What Would Jesus Buy?

Wanna watch an entertaining but thought provoking DVD with your family this Christmas? I highly recommend Morgan Spurlock's latest and greatest documentary What Would Jesus Buy? Click pic for more info or the triangular play button below for the dead serious LOL preview.

Is the $hop-ocalypse Upon Us?

Americans spend $450 billion/year on Christmas every year. That’s right people. $450 billion with a “B”. But just think, if Christians in America spent less at Christmas, WE could have bailed out Chrysler, General Motors, and Ford all by ourselves! And as this video clip I'm showing in church this week reveals, we would still have money left over to provide clean drinking water for the entire planet!

But instead, more and more Americans are losing their jobs. And more and more people around the world, 25k/day to be specific, die each day of preventable hunger and water related illnesses while Christians continue to spend, spend, spend. Is the $hop-ocalypse upon us?

Merry Christmas Card 2008?

It’s that time of year again to take the Fortune Family Christmas Card Quiz. There's only 10 super easy questions no one can fail so enjoy!!! And for those of you who fought the traffic at the post office and snail mailed us a year in review letter or beautiful Christmas Card, BIG thanks and WTG to you!!! We do enjoy hearing from you!!! [I snapped the pic above through falling sleet while touring Zoo Lights with 13 other loony tunes from TF last SAT nite]

1.) In 2008, who didn’t spend some time in Toledo, Ohio?
a. Mike, Jackie, Joshua, Lydia [and Barkley]
b. Barack Obama
c. Joe the Plumber
d. Plaxico Burress

2.) This year for Christmas Lydia wants:
a. The Chicken Pox
b. An “American Girl” doll
c. Her two front teeth
d. Both B and C

3.) Which never happened?
a. Joshua Skyped his sponsored brother, Golu, in India
b. Joshua built a bridge across the creek in our back yard
c. Joshua and daddy’s pinewood derby car won all its races
d. Both A and C

4.) Why was Mike on the news?
a. Because Mike’s church prayed at the stump
b. Because Mike’s church prayed at the dump
c. Because Mike’s church prayed at the pump
d. Mike wasn’t on the news

5.) What was one of Joshua and Lydia’s favorite movies this year?
a. What Would Jesus Buy?
b. The Devil & Daniel Webster
c. Sicko
d. Kung Fu Panda

6.) Joshua [9 years old] and Lydia [6½ years old] are learning how to:
a. Load the dishwasher
b. Fold clothes
c. Play piano
d. All of the above

7.) Joshua [in 3rd grade] loves:
a. Playing coach pitch baseball for the YMCA Red Sox
b. Marie Calendar’s “Razzleberry Pie”
c. Sledding
d. All of the above


8.) Lydia [in 1st Grade] loves:
a. Gymnastics at the YMCA on Thursdays
b. Cleaning her room on Fridays
c. Reading to daddy any day
d. Both A and C

9.) Jackie still loves:
a. Driving around Toledo taking care of babies 2-3 days/week
b. Country music
c. Mike
d. All of the above

10.) Mike’s fave books in 2008 include:
a. Searching for the God of Grace
by Stuart Tyner
b. Searching for God Knows What
by Donald Miller
c. Just Courage by Gary Haugen
d. All of the above

Answers: 1D; 2D; 3D; 4C; 5D; 6D; 7D; 8D; 9D; 10D


>9 Very Fortunate—Samuel Morse couldn't have telegraphed it better.

>7 Fortunate—Judging by the old saying, "What you don't know can't hurt you," you’re practically invulnerable.

>5 Unfortunate—Any friend of yours...is a friend of yours.

>3 A misfortune—Jesus still loves you.

Pump Patrol?

On Tuesday night NBC 24 wanted my thoughts on gas prices and the economy. I spoke about Advent and Immanuel and how God is always with us, in good times and bad, just as He was with Hezekiah in 2 Kings 20:10-11 when God miraculously healed him and proved it by sending the sundial backwards ten steps. Unfortunately, much of that was edited out. Here's what wasn't:

David Custer [DC], NBC 24 11pm News Anchor: "Well, just a few months ago gas prices were topping off at over four bucks a gallon. They’ve fallen dramatically and some Toledoans are thanking a higher power. NBC 24's Arielle Berlin [AB] explains."

AB: ‘We’ll have lower gas prices...’ That was the call to prayer just six months ago.
Me: We asked God not to allow gas prices to go any higher.
AB: And since that prayer at the pump vigil in June, gas prices have fallen. A lot.
Me: We think God did that. That He lowered them and they stayed low for quite a while now.

AB: The Toledo First Seventh-day Adventist Church is taking partial responsibility for the drop in prices at the pump. But issue the reminder that we’re all in this together.
Me: We have to pray for God’s wisdom and that our government’s leaders will make wise decisions and that the church will not drop the ball.
AB: There is of course speculation. Why would God let us get into this mess in the first place? Did God abandon us?
Me: Why on earth would we come to the conclusion that He’s not with us now? That’s insane.

AB: This past weekend a church in Detroit prayed for help for the big three [automakers]. Churches in California, Florida, and right here in Ohio have prayed for the economy to turn around.
Me: Prayer is a normal thing. This is not a last resort. This is something ordinary Christians do constantly all the time.

AB: Back in June the Adventists had faith their prayers would be answered. And today, they say they were. Now after seeing the church in Detroit pray fro the big three, the Toledo First Seventh-day Adventist Church say that may be their next move. With the industry effecting so many people in Toledo they say it couldn’t hurt to ask God for a little holy help.

DC: I guess this means you should never under estimate the power of prayer.
AB: That’s true.

Hot As A Pistol?

Jason McElway is his basketball team's manager. For the past couple of years, he's been fetching water and toweling off other people's sweat. Because he is autistic, Jason says he's used to feeling different. But never this different. Never this wonderful. Click the triangular play to see why Jason was hot as a pistol.

The Death of Grace?

One day after an F-18 Hornet fighter jet fell from the sky and crashed into his house, 37 year old husband and father Dong Yun Yoon returned home and reminded us that grace isn't dead. Rescue workers sifting through the debris had found the bodies of his Yoon's wife, Young Mi, 37; his nearly 2-month-old daughter, Rachel [in pic on right]; and mother-in-law, Suk Im Kim, 60 on Monday. The body of his 15-month-old daughter, Grace [in pic on left] was recovered Tuesday.

Though little was left of his house except a charred garage wall and piles of blackened beams, Yoon said he bore no ill will toward the Marine Corps pilot who ejected safely before the jet he was flying on a training mission experienced engine failure and plunged into Yoon's neighborhood two miles west of the runway at Marine Corps Air Station Miramar. "I pray for him not to suffer for this action," Yoon said. "I know he's one of our treasures for our country."

How a grieving father speaking to a mob of reporters could say anything coherent much less do so sharing words of forgiveness and encouragement remind us that though his family died, grace didn’t. The Advent Birth of the Christ child is obviously alive and well in this young father's heart. Proving that even amidst unspeakable tragedy, Jesus can grow in yours as well. Grace is not dead. Click pic above for more from the LA Times article I read and the triangular play button below to hear Yoon in his own words.

They Kept Shopping?

The throng of Wal-Mart shoppers had been building all night. Suddenly, witnesses and the police said, the doors shattered, and the shrieking mob of 2,000 surged through in a blind rush for holiday bargains. One worker, Jdimytai Damour, 34, was thrown back onto the black linoleum tiles and trampled in the stampede. “When they were saying they had to leave, that an employee got killed, people were yelling, ‘I’ve been in line since yesterday morning,’ ” one eyewitness told The Associated Press. “They kept shopping.” [click pic for more].

Our English word Advent comes from the Latin adventus and is the translation of the Greek word parousia commonly used in references to the second coming of Jesus. Christians believe that the season of Advent serves as a dual reminder of the original waiting that was done by believers for the birth of their Messiah as well as the waiting that Christians today endure as they await the second coming of Christ.

How sad that not even the death of a 34 year old man in Wal-mart can remind some how eternally significant it is to know the 33 year old man who also died on a Black Friday. Do you care more about saving a few hundred bucks on a TV than anticipating the birth and return of Jesus? Do your kids? How can you tell? Mute the playlist on the right and click the triangular play button for more.

What's So Amazing About Grace?

This rendition of Amazing Grace by Il Divo might be my fave all time...Mute the playlist to the right and click the triangular play button to hear what's so amazing about grace.

Hip Hop Parable?

The prodigal son Jesus talked about in Luke 15 rebelliously chose to get lost, but his father ran to meet him upon his return home. In the video below, Adrian Monk gives Jesus' most powerful parable a hip hop flava. Mute the playlist to the right and click the triangular play button to enjoy [or just tolerate!!! LOL!!!].