Wednesday, December 30, 2009

"Hidden under a huge steaming pile of good intentions & blunders is an elegant, expressive programming language." JavaScript Doug Crockford
Top 10 Reasons Your Website Should Go Mobile http://ping.fm/6pJSt
How to Run a Meeting Like Google
No one wastes time searching for a purpose at Marissa Mayer's meetings—http://ping.fm/YGY9X
"The pastor's purpose is not to make Scripture relevant to his people but to enable them to understand doctrine" John MacArthur
"Just as families today are dominated by their children, ... the church's immature believers are among its most influential" John MacArthur
"The true test of your character is your response to the severest times of suffering and persecution." John MacArthur-The Power Of Integrity

Saturday, December 26, 2009

Join me in the mission of spreading a passion for the virgin-born, crucified, risen Lord of the universe Jesus Christ-John Piper http://ping.fm/u4l6U

Friday, December 25, 2009

STRATEGIC: You create multiple ways to do things, anticipate outcomes & quickly pick out relevant issues & patterns-Strengthfinders
INPUT: You always want to know more, crave information, have an active curiosity & find many things very interesting. Strengthfinders
INDIVIDUALIZATION:secret to great teams is casting by individual strengths so that everyone can do alot of what they do well-Strengthfinders
You cannot be anything you want to be - but you can be a lot more of who you already are. Strengthfinder 2.0 by Tom Rath
“In the pursuit of joy through suffering, we magnify the all-satisfying worth of the Source of our joy." John Piper
"He is no fool who gives what he cannot keep to gain what he cannot lose.” Jim Elliot
"The great incentive for throwing our lives into the cause of missions is the 10,000 - percent return on the investment." John Piper
The great hindrance to worship is not that we are pleasure-seeking people but that we are willing to settle for such pitiful pleasures-Piper
Be encouraged that simply finding people interesting and caring about them is a beautiful pathway into their heart. Finally Alive-John Piper
How to help unbelievers be born again? Tell people the good news of Christ from a heart of love & a life of service-Finally Alive-John Piper
Haughty, condescending proclamation of Christ, with no feeling of brokenness or servanthood, contradicts the gospel-Finally Alive-John Piper
Why Christmas? the Son of God became human-to take away sin, that is to destroy the works of the devil, namely sin. Finally Alive-John Piper
Nearly all the wisdom we possess, that is to say, true & sound wisdom consists of two parts: the knowledge of God & of ourselves-John Calvin
"many professing Christians are indeed ... not radically changed, to the conclusion that they are not born again" Finally Alive - John Piper
"Remember that a person's name is to that person the sweetest and most important sound in any language." Dale Carnegie
workers at all levels must become attuned not only to what their customers are saying but equally to what they aren’t-TheStarbucksExperience
"How wonderful it is that nobody need wait a single moment before starting to improve the world." Anne Frank

Thursday, December 24, 2009

Make It Your Own: 5 Ways of Being: Be welcoming, Be genuine, Be considerate, Be knowledgeable & Be involved from The Starbucks Experience
Make it your own, Everything matters, Surprise & delight, Embrace resistance, Leave your mark - 5 Principles from The Starbucks Experience

Wednesday, December 23, 2009

“you will be most successful when you craft your role to play to your signature talents most of the time.” from Now, Discover Your Strengths
Have you chosen the right field for who you are? Are you playing the right role for you? from Now, Discover Your Strengths
live... in such a way that when I die & my Maker asks 'Did you live the life I gave you?' I can honestly answer yes-NowDiscoverYourStrengths
RESPONSIBILITY:obsession for doing things right & impeccable ethics combine to create reputation:utterly dependable-NowDiscoverYourStrengths
RELATOR: "you do derive a great deal of pleasure & strength from being around your close friends." from Now, Discover Your Strengths
MAXIMIZER: "Excellence...Transforming something strong into something superb...compelled to nurture" strengths. Now Discover Your Strengths
LEARNER: "You love to learn... energized by the steady deliberate journey from ignorance to competence." from Now, Discover Your Strengths
ACHIEVER: "you live in pursuit of the perpetual challenge ... I call it my 'divine restlessness.'" from Now, Discover Your Strengths
"Without underlying talent, learning a skill is a survival technique, not a path to glory". Now, Discover Your Strengths
"talents are enduring & unique" & "greatest room for growth is in the areas of his or her greatest strength". Now, Discover Your Strengths
"Identify your most powerful talents, hone them with skills and knowledge, and you will be well on your way..." Now, Discover Your Strengths

Tuesday, December 22, 2009

Monday, December 21, 2009

Each person's talents are enduring & unique & greatest room for growth is in the area of greatest strength-Now, Discover Your Strengths
"the longer an employee stays ... the less likely he is to strongly agree that he is playing to his strengths". Now, Discover Your Strengths
Once we know about how the mind works-& about the strengths & weaknesses of human judgement-it is our responsibility to act-Malcolm Gladwell
sensed an enormous frustration with the unexpected costs of knowing too much-We have come to confuse information with understanding-Gladwell
"Blink ... is an attempt to understand this magical and mysterious thing called judgement". Blink by Malcolm Gladwell

Sunday, December 20, 2009

Training is personal & relational, & it takes time. It involves sharing not just skills, but also knowledge & character-The Vine&the Trellis
"The goal of all Christian ministry, in all its forms, is disciple-making". The Trellis and the Vine
"The essence of 'vine work' is the powerful, Spirit-backed speaking of the message of the Bible by one person to another" TheTrellis&theVine
Pastor as trainer-His task is to teach&train his congregation by his word&life to become disciple-making disciples of Christ-Trellis&theVine
We see people not as cogs in our wheel...but...each at their own stage of gospel growth..& our goal is that they advance-TheTrellis&theVine
"we must be willing to lose people from our congregation if that is better for the growth of the gospel." The Trellis and the Vine
"the growth of the gospel happens in the lives of people, not in the structures of my church" The Trellis and the Vine

Saturday, December 19, 2009

calling on the trainee to adopt not only his teaching, but also the way of life that necessarily flows from that teaching-TheTrellis&theVine
The heart of training is not to impart a skill, but to impart sound doctrine...biblical training results in a godly life-TheTrellis&theVine
In the New Testament training is much more about Christian thinking & living than about particular skills or competencies-TheTrellis&theVine

Friday, December 18, 2009

I am now jealous of Don Dodge's Google Phone. "It is night and day from my Motorola Q phone". http://ping.fm/qWYNI
"The gospel itself demands that we stand with our leaders and preachers in profound unity, teamwork and solidarity" The Trellis and the Vine
would someone observing from the outside say: "there is someone who has abandoned his life to Jesus Christ"? The Trellis and the Vine
"the growth God is looking for in our world is growth in people...That's vine work. Everything else is trellis." The Trellis and the Vine

Thursday, December 17, 2009

Ahold’s Giant-Carlisle Division agrees to acquire Ukrop’s stores http://ping.fm/blsc7

Wednesday, December 16, 2009

most churches need to make a conscious shift-away from erecting & maintaining structures & towards growing people-The Trellis & The Vine
Great commission makes disciple-making the normal agenda & priority of every church & every Christian disciple-The Trellis & The Vine
“Preaching recently I noticed the crowd was too busy tweeting to verbally respond. Click clack is the new amen.” – Pastor Steven Furtick
“the way I was doing the work of God was destroying the work of God in my life.” Craig Groeschel
"I loved Jesus, but his church was wearing me out." Craig Groeschel
"Don’t get older; get better: Live realistically. Give generously. Adapt willingly. Trust fearlessly. Rejoice daily." Charles Swindoll
Do you run to something that only covers up your pain? Something that allows you to hide in it?
Or do you run to God? Anne Jackson

Tuesday, December 15, 2009

"Anne, your dreams are just too big for our church. Maybe it's time you found somewhere else you can dream." Anne Jackson-Mad Church Disease
Music Matters By Andy Stanley with free download of “It Is Well” from Awake http://ping.fm/RSJ5x
How could church work interfere with my relationship with my Father? so wrapped up in doing, I had forgotten how to simply be. Anne Jackson

Monday, December 14, 2009

The ornaments of grace are to do justice, love kindness & walk humbly with God. Sparky Pritchard Micah 6:8

Sunday, December 13, 2009

He was going to give me a way to help bring unity to the church....purpose in life had just been defined. Anne Jackson-Mad Church Disease
“The way I was doing the work of God was destroying the work of God in me.” Bill Hybels
hoping for something-anything-that would relieve the pain I felt so deeply. I loved Jesus, but His church was wearing me out-Craig Groeschel

Saturday, December 12, 2009

Faith is especially nurtured when we just wait in God's presence, taking the time to love him & listen for His voice-Jim Cymbala-Fresh Faith
millions of churchgoers cheer wildly & unashamedly for their favorite sports teams, but are silent...when it comes to praising God! #Cymbala
If incompetence is the disease of the novice, over-competence the disease of the expert. Leaders need to be humble more than good. #Gladwell
When people talk about what they know well & do well it is always interesting. Malcolm Gladwell http://ping.fm/DKsG2

Thursday, December 10, 2009

the greatest battle... not been fought on the Normandy beaches or on Iwo Jima... Rather, it has raged inside your heart & mine. Jim Cymbala
Do we believe what our feelings and circumstances tell us, or do we believe what God has promised to do? Jim Cymbala http://ping.fm/X6fUm
"The hardest part of faith is often simply to wait". Jim Cymbala http://ping.fm/JqVRY
The great battle of our spiritual lives is, "Will you believe?" It is not, "Will you try harder?" Jim Cymbala http://ping.fm/qmf31

Wednesday, December 09, 2009

Tuesday, December 08, 2009

Wesley was ready for the name Methodist to be buried & Spurgeon looked forward to when there would not be a Baptist living. Jim Cymbala
Tony Dungy sharing about Michael Vick http://ping.fm/WTrRR

Sunday, December 06, 2009

Kids are children under your roof, or males that breath - Sparky Pritchard

Saturday, December 05, 2009

Jack Earls' early career is proof that Sam Phillips and Sun Records had a much deeper and wider talent pool than "just" Elvis Presley, Carl Perkins, Johnny Cash. and Jerry Lee Lewis to draw on. His sides, all but two unreleased, are as good as anything the label ever issued and Jack Earls' later career is proof that there is occasionally justice in the cosmos -- 25 years after Elvis Presley was put in the ground, Earls was playing Las Vegas. One of Sun Records' first wave of rockabilly artists, Earls was there when Elvis Presley was writing the book on how to meld hillbilly music with rock roll, though his own impact on the music was more subtle. In contrast to Elvis, Earls only lasted at Sun for one single, "Slow Down," though that record did do well. By most accounts, he was also present in the studio the day that Elvis cut "Mystery Train," and ran home to get his copy of the single so that the Hillbilly Cat could learn the words.

Earls was born on August 23, 1932, in Woodbury, TN. One of seven children, he spent most of his childhood living on a farm in Manchester. He developed a taste for country music and a desire to make his own music, listening to the two owners of the farm play their instruments and sing. Already encouraged by his mother to sing, at 16 he also took up the guitar and by 17 he was living in Memphis. As early as 1949, he formed his first band, but pursuing music full-time had to wait behind other of life's considerations -- he was married in 1950 and by the mid-'50s already had a growing family to feed. Still, he loved country music and thought he could make a living at it and in 1954, Earls formed a group that included Johnny Black, brother of music legend Bill Black, on guitar. This was a country band that played local bars and roadhouses, doing hillbilly music, one of hundreds in the Memphis area. The band's decision to spend ten dollars to cut a demo at Sam Phillips' Memphis Recording Services during the summer of 1955 put Earls into Phillips' orbit -- the producer liked the song, an original by Earls called "A Fool For Lovin' You," and enjoyed Earls' singing, but told him he'd need a new band if they were to record anything.

Earls and Johnny Black stayed together, Black switching from guitar to upright bass, while Warren Gregory joined on lead guitar and Danny Wahlquist came in on drums. Their first recording session yielded a finished version of "Lovin' You" but also introduced a new original, called "Hey Jim," that Phillips liked even better for the A-side. Then Earls brought in yet another original song that Phillips liked even better than "Hey Jim" for his debut. "Slow Down" reportedly had the legendary producer jumping up and down with excitement when it was cut at Sun, and it became the A-side even though Phillips had already renamed Earls' band the Jimbos to capitalize on the expected popularity of "Hey Jim." "Slow Down" sold somewhere between 40,000 and 50,000 copies without ever charting, getting enough exposure in and around Memphis to perform respectably as a local and regional release. It might've done better but for the fact that Earls, who held down a job at a bakery to feed his family, couldn't really tour and stuck to playing venues close to Memphis. "Slow Down" elicited interest from DJs from as far away as Texas, who played the record on their air and would happily have put Earls the Jimbos on live, had they made the trip to the Lone Star State.

The 2,500 that Earls received for the sales that "Slow Down" did enjoy would have to suffice in lieu of a recording career, especially when Phillips declined to issue any further records -- he was around the studio enough, including the date when Elvis was trying to cut "Mystery Train," and he cut enough sides to make a full LP, but Sun never issued any of them, possibly a result of Phillips' awareness that Earls couldn't do much to support their release with more than a few local gigs. It would have taken a truly exceptional record to overcome that handicap and Phillips evidently just never heard it in any of the sides that the man cut. Listening to those sides 40-plus years later, one's jaw drops at the stuff that was left on the shelf. Loose, hot rocking versions of "Crawdad Hole" that ought to have had teenagers bouncing off the walls and slow romantic laments like "If You Don't Mind" that were perfect for slow dancing and would've won over country listeners as well; ballads such as "A Fool for Lovin' You," frenetic rhythm numbers like "Let's Bop" that...well, the title tells it; and Warren Gregory's lead guitar underlines the key points with the kind of dexterity you usually got from the likes of Karl Farr, exceeded only by Earls' frantic vocal vamping. "Sign on the Dotted Line," a slow, burning country rocker sounds like Gene Vincent on a trip through rural Tennessee; "When I Dream," a slowie with elegant guitar and drum accompiment that could've been part of Elvis' repertory and ought to have gotten a try from Tony Bennett or maybe Bobby Darin; the ominous, raw "Take Me to That Place," based on Earls' observation of the inmates at an institution for the insane he used to drive by in his truck while making deliveries, that ought to have found its way into the repertory of the Stray Cats 30 years later. And finally, the minimalist "My Gal Mary Ann," where the hottest guitar and drum work is all muted behind Earls' frantic, powerful countrified tenor, sounding like Carl Perkins with some loco-weed in his feed. They were all originals and one would've thought the publishing alone might amount to something serious for all concerned -- the man was a natural musician and songwriter and deserved a lot more recognition than he got.

By January of 1957, Earls' contract with Sun was over and so was his recording career, despite offers from Meteor Records and King Records. He kept performing as his time and energy allowed until 1963, when he moved to Detroit. For the next few decades, he made his living exclusively on an assembly line at Chrysler, raising his family and living the life of a responsible middle-class citizen, while Elvis Presley's star rose, fell, and rose again, Jerry Lee Lewis and Carl Perkins got in and out of dire straits, and Johnny Cash became the musical conscience of the working man. He made a few attempts at recording in the 1970s, resulting in singles of "Take Me to That Place" b/w "Mississippi Man," "She Sure Can Rock Me" b/w "Crawdad Hole," and "Flip Flop and Fly" b/w "Rock Bop."

Finally, in the 1990s, after 40 years of pursuing music in his spare time, Earls began to realize some of the glory that might've been due him. The burgeoning interest in American rock roll and rockabilly music in Europe in general and England in particular drew Earls over to Great Britain, where he was greeted like a superstar. His Sun sides were compiled, first on LP by Bear Family Records and later in the 1990s on a CD from Charly Records entitled Hey Slim, Let's Bop, which is only slightly less essential listening than Elvis Presley's Sun recordings. In the years since, Jack Earls has played concerts in America as well played Las Vegas in tandem with Janis Martin and other survivors from rockabilly's first generation.

- Bruce Eder, All Music Guide
from http://ping.fm/Trx22

Friday, December 04, 2009

Great New Blog: Reflections On My Life - Don Crane's Reflections on Life as a Missionary in Europe. http://ping.fm/WWsRd
The energy we will save...by the end of 2009 & annually after that--could power more than 4,000 avg American homes for a year. Michael Dell
Dell Names Ross Perot Jr. To Board Of Directors http://ping.fm/JzTEr
Who killed #twitter?
Setting Priorities in a Sluggish Economy, Michael Dell talks http://ping.fm/5Adkx

Thursday, December 03, 2009

Navy SEALs Face Assault Charges for Capturing Most-Wanted Terrorist http://ping.fm/3hWTL
This Christmas (Joy To The World) by TobyMac http://ping.fm/cvZza
Please pray for my mom. She had to go to the hospital today. http://ping.fm/Qkzdp
Enjoying 64F in shorts today, but I don't see anything above 55F in the 10 day forecast :-(