Archive
Bucking Bronco (Sort Of)
We’re have a ton of fun this week at Vacation Bible School with our kids. Our theme this year is Cactus Canyon which has a Western motif. Check out this video I shot of our Children’s Minister, “Cowboy Craig”, ridding a Wild……..
Poor Man’s Portrait
- Borrow a friends Digital SLR Camera
- Make sure it is set to the Highest Image Quality and on “dummy” mode.
- Have your wife dress your kid in whatever she wants.
- Early morning or late afternoon go to a park, campus, or a friend’s home.
- Take a ton of pics of your kid(s) doing different things.
- Upload to a photo site and have a canvas printed ($20-$50)
- Have in framed ($50-$100) locally.
- Hang it on the wall.
- Save a ton.
(This is the one we picked for Ally. Actually we weren’t happy with the print we ordered and are in the process of having it reprinted.)
The 4-Hour Workweek Review
I just finished the 4-Hour Workweek (Thanks for the book RR) and it was a very interesting read. My motives in reading the book were not to create automated income (though that would be nice), but to explore Timothy Ferriss’ ideas on Lifestyle Design (LD). Basically his thesis is that there is a segment of the population that is emerging as the New Rich (NR). Because of technology the NR can create/find jobs that allow them to work from anywhere in the world and require less of their time than a traditional job. While the book is not distinctly Christian, his insights into prioritizing life can be useful for anyone who desires a mid-course correction.
In one section of the book, he exposes how most of us get into a Work-4-Work sake mentality. When we get into this mode (most Americans) we fall to engage in the things that are most meaningful to us. I really enjoyed this quote below,
John I’d love to talk about the gaping void I feel in m life, the hopelessness that hits me like a punch in the eye ever time I start my computer in the mornings, but I have so much work to do! I’ve got at least three ours of unimportant e-mail to reply to before calling the prospects who said ‘no’ yesterday. Gotta run!”
I also love his ideas concerning a low-information diet (now if I could just implement them). This book will motivate you to look away from the 1000 trivial distractions that come at you every day, and look to the things that will mean the most to you at the end of your days. Check out his blog here.
The Future of the SBC
The SBC refers to the Southern Baptist Convention and those who are a part of the SBC. The SBC is the largest protestant denomination in the United States and the World. The SBC has more than 16.6 million members in 44,000 churches in the US. The local church, of which I am a member and serve, is an SBC church.
There have been many questions around the declining membership of SBC churches. I could go on hear and rant about why I feel this is happening, but for now I’m not going to say anything.
A few weeks ago the church delegation meet in Indianapolis and selected a new President. This president is not like the Pope or say the President in the Mormon Church, the SBC president doesn’t issue edicts or moral rulings. He simply represents the denomination and uses his influence to move us forward toward God’s agenda for His church and His world.
All this to say that last week Johnny Hunt, of FBC Woodstock, GA was elected as the president of the SBC. You can read more about it here. While celebrating the election, Johnny Hunt ran into a friend of mind, whose car had “blown up” on the way to Indianapolis. Johnny told him that he had heard that his car had broken down and he told him he would pick up the tab. So I don’t know what the future holds for the SBC, but that’s the kind of leader I want to follow.
Had a Great Weekend
Took the girls to see Kung Fu Panda. Po (the Panda) reminds me of Hurley from lost. Any way my favorite quote from the move was from the wise old turtle, Master Oogway. Speaking of Po he said, “One meets his destiny often in the road he takes to avoid it.”
Saturday I worked with a group of volunteers to install siding on a house that’s being built by R3SM for a needy family.
Yesterday we had a great day at church with Tony preaching about Adoption. We left and went to Champion Lanes for Lunch& Bowl. By the way I beat all my kids in bowling.
The Father
To know God as Father, we must come to him as a child.
Jesus said, “I tell you the truth, unless you change and become like little children, you will never enter the kingdom of heaven.
4 Therefore, whoever humbles himself like this child is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven. Matt 18:3-4 (NIV)
But you and I have a problem. The longer we live the more we develop an Adult mind-set toward life. After all we have jobs, and bills, and kids of our own. It’s difficult to maintain a “childlike” heart when we are trying to micro-manage our lives. God grows small in our view and our problems; they get really BIG. From this perspective it APPEARS that all we’re dealing with is SO important, and we know that He can help us, but He SEEMS so distant and small.
What we all desperately need is a return to “child-like” dependence on him. Childlike faith trusts the Father to take care ALL of life’s needs. Children can enjoy life and not have to worry about what is around the next corner. All of their basics needs are provided for. So it is with Our Father in Heaven. He is the source and provider of all of our physical and spiritual needs.
On this Father’s Day we need to return to the arms of the one who made us, the one who has a plan for us, the one who is able to calm us and rescue us from our pain. From Jesus words above, we can’t come to Him any other way.
Changed Lives is What It’s All About
Jesus Christ is still in the life changing business. Don’t belive me, watch this!
My ScanCafe Experience
Check out ScanCafe.com. This is NOT a website for you to upload photos and have them printed out. This company allows you to box up all of your old 35mm photos and they’ll convert (scan) them to digital images for you. In 2000, before the birth of our first daughter, we purchased a 35mm Cannon Rebel camera. So from 2000-2004 we took a ton of pictures on 35mm film. We decided to try the service and it works pretty well. We boxed up all of our old negatives, which is the cheapest for them to scan at .19 per pic, and shipped them off.
Their website notified me when the photos were ready for me to view online. After selecting the pictures I wanted scan (You have to pay for at least half of what they scan), they shipped me back my original negatives along with a DVD that contain all of my photos in high quality. I’ve included one of them (sunflowers & Lizzy) above. The only expectation I need to set with you using this service is that of TIME. It took a little over 2 months from the time I shipped them off, until the time they had them all scan in, but for around $100 I got 400-500 photos scanned in at high quality.
Around the Horn
This guy, an avid reader of trenidydavis.com J, just accepted an assistance baseball coach position at Mississippi State. Here is the story from the local newspaper. I had to correct the story, see post from TouchDown89.
- The Bakery, one of the coolest buildings around, made it on the Dwell blog. Check out Rodney “Cat” Richardson’s comments and photos here.
- If you haven’t seen this video about Louis Mulkey, you have to see it. If you are not moved in some way by this story, you have a huge stone in your chest.
- I’m working out at the Payne Center this summer. I always enjoy being on campus. It makes me feel young for some reason.
LifeBibleStudy.com
Last week our church started using LifeBibleStudy.com for both the content and delivery system for our Adult Bible Fellowship (Sunday school) classes. For a guy who has been putting studies together every week for over a year, this tool has made my life much easier. Each week you can go in and customize your lesson plans by selecting activities that best helps you (as the teacher) to connect with the class, explore the scriptures, and finally lead them toward life transformation. A tool like this is long over-due for Adult Bible Studies. We are currently doing the Christos series which is a 48 week chronological study through the life of Christ. Go to the website and check out the videos (powerful) and try out some of the free lessons.
