Bank Fees

Sold our van yesterday. The guy who bought it had the money wired into my account before picking it up. Very smooth transaction. Then today I'm checking out my account on-line when I notice a "miscellaneous fee" of $15. Now, before I tell the rest of the story, realize I've had no quams with my bank. I bank at Wachovia and so far, they've been excellent. Great customer service and an ATM every 2 feet.

So I call up cust serv and get a rep on the phone. The guy explains to me that with all "domestic wires" occurring between Wachovia and another banking institution, a $15 wire fee will be charged. Baffled, I asked for further explanation, saying, "You mean to tell me that when someone wants to put money in MY account...I sold the vehicle, I am the one RECEIVING money, not transferring it out...I have to pay a fee?!?! Are you kidding me?!?!"

Long story short, Wachovia refunded me the fifteen bucks...not because it wasn't a legitimate fee...but b/c the day of the sale I had spoken with someone at a local branch and they "failed to inform" me of the fee.

I'm not going to jump on the hate Wachovia train, but dude, that's absurd. A guy I work with passionately calls Wachovia - "Walk All Over You".

Energizer

definition: a person or thing that energizes

Attention all high school / college kids. I have some relieving news for you. You can now stop over-thinking what you will do with the rest of your life. The systems we have in place often do not help you with career decisions. In fact, they almost always complicate the matter. Hey, take all the "field placement" or "career path" tests you want, knock yourself out. Attend every seminar and listen to every boring speaker that comes to your gymnasium or campus. I guess they couldn't hurt.

Or, wrap your mind around one simple question. One question that can help guide you in making those tough decisions. What energizes you?

That's right, it's that simple. What event/activity/cause energizes you? What thing is it that when you do this one thing you are: a. good at it, b. love it, and c. it turns you into a 2 yr old who's had 5 bowls of sugary cereal!! Now, don't fret if you are still clueless about your passions in life. That'll come soon enough. If nothing else, college is great for that. To me, college was SOOOO much more than receiving a piece of paper (a.k.a. degree). Social skills and...well, just LIFE skills are often sharpened there. And personally for me, it's the environment that God used to radically change my life - showing me what a relationship with Jesus is all about.

Ok, back to point. I was discussing this with a friend the other day. I had finished doing some ministry stuff -- like talking to some people and preparing some stuff for a Sunday morning service -- and it was the most hyper I had been all week. Why? Cause that is what energizes me! I couldn't get enough of it.

I could go on forever, breaking this down...but just know this: Don't overcomplicate it! What gives you energy? What is your energizer?

(i paid money for one of those career placement tests one time...it told me I was destined to be a bus driver.)

1 week away

"Meowing" Could Get You Arrested

LINK

Not sure who's side to take...or if there even is a side. Funny funny story.

FuNnY pRanK in LiBRarY

Best start up sound I've ever heard.

Wrestling For Jesus

WEBSITE

I have found my true calling. Oak Leaf Church, it's been great working with you, but I must move on...the turnbuckles are calling me. All I need is my wrestling name. Any suggestions?

Religion? No Thanks.

HERE is Michael's message from our Grand Opening service. Enjoy our state of the art, premium, enhanced recording device (last minute video camera setup).

Great great great message! It answers why even start another church...and also why Jesus came...and I believe it really hit home with those attending.

Hyperactive

Ok, so maybe I'll just become a video blog. Since I entered this world of blogging, I have come across so much stuff "worthy" of passing on. (Actually, I love watching videos - huge visual person I am.) This one is called Hyperactive. I feel inspired. I'm sure you will too after seeing it.

Click HERE

It's Official: We're Launched!

What a great (and tiring) day! Our grand opening service was superb. Michael did a great job talking about the difference between religion and grace. Our core team of volunteers worked selflessly. Can't wait to see how God uses us to reach this community. For more stats and comments and video (eventually), visit Michaels BLOG. I will comment more over the next week. Thanks again to everyone who has been praying and checking up on us.

Best Video Ever

Click HERE to watch.

This has been hyped up as one of the greatest videos ever. Not so sure about that, but certainly creative.

Fort Benning Silver Wings

Awesome Parachute Video

The video is great...but it was even better seeing it in person. The absolute coolest pregame show I've ever observed. And it's not like these guys were coming down with red flares sparkling out of their shoes. No, they were in sneak attack mode! Cool stuff.

Give the video time to load and if you want to skip their first couple of training jumps, click ahead to the 70% mark and begin watching there. Notice one of the guys had an Auburn flag attached. The UGA fans were not particularly fond of that.

Crash and Burn

I'm slowly recovering from a death in the family. A grandparent? Nope. A cousin? Nadda. A family pet? Don't have one. No, this sudden and tragic death occurred a few days ago to my beloved HP laptop. Lost everything. Gone. No longer in existence. Dust in the wind. Sad? Me? Of course. Distraught? Not really. Kinda weird. I hate that I lost a lot...but in a way, I'm certainly more organized now. I tend to save everything - I had a lot of useless files. No more though. Clutter free.

I will now backup all my files.
Dumb computers...or maybe dumb user.

Dumpster Diving

Passed by a smelly dumpster the other day and noticed this sign. I found it humorous that someone would actually have to post a sign telling everyone to not get in or on (or "occupy") the dumpster. I mean, c'mon, I could barely stand being 10 feet from it. Get in it? Play on it? Yeah right.

(And yes, I'm leading up to a cheesy spiritual application.) Don't you wish sin was like that. All contained in one area, with a big warning label. And super gross. Completely disgusting. But it's not is it? The temptations we all struggle against are not packaged that way. They are deceiving. They have appeal. They seemingly will lead to something better. But in the end, it ends up being junk...worthless...garbage, if you will.

So, just a word of encouragement - next time you think about giving in to that struggle (we all have them), remember the foul smell of a big parking lot dumpster that has been baking in the 100 degree heat. Don't go dumpster diving.

Important Email!!!!

Well, I finally gave in - I actually spent time reading one of those forwards you're always getting from friends. I often just don't have time to read junk mail, but some of these are actually kinda funny when you stop and think about it.

Only in America....
do drugstores make the sick walk all the way to the back of the store to get their prescriptions while healthy people can buy cigarettes at the front.
do people order double cheeseburgers, large fries, and a diet coke!
do banks leave both doors open and then chain the pens to the counters.
do we leave cars worth thousands of dollars in the driveway and put our useless junk in the garage.
do we buy hot dogs in packages of ten & buns in packages of eight.
do we use the word 'politics' to describe the process so well: 'Poli' in Latin meaning 'many' and 'tics' meaning 'bloodsucking creatures'.
do they have drive-up ATM machines with Braille lettering.

EVER WONDER .....
Why the sun lightens our hair, but darkens our skin?
Why women can't put on mascara with their mouth closed?
Why don't you ever see the headline "Psychic Wins Lottery"?
Why is "abbreviated" such a long word?
Why is it that doctors call what they do "practice"?
Why is lemon juice made with artificial flavor, and dishwashing liquid made with real lemons?
Why is the man who invests all your money called a "broker"?
Why is the time of day with the slowest traffic called rush hour?
Why isn't there mouse-flavored cat food?
Why didn't Noah swat those two mosquitoes?
Why do they sterilize the needle for lethal injections?
You know that indestructible black box that is used on airplanes? Why don't they make the whole plane out of that stuff?!
Why don't sheep shrink when it rains?
Why are they called apartments when they are all stuck together?
If flying is so safe, why do they call the airport the terminal?
If con is the opposite of pro, is Congress the opposite of progress?

Now Serving

We attended our last service at Westridge this morning. This is the church that is planting our church in C'ville, Oak Leaf.

Brian, the lead pastor, talked about swapping a life of self for a life of service. It was a great message...something I needed to be reminded of. He said a lot of great things, but one quote stuck in my head:
"Life is like a game of volleyball, if you're always serving, you can never lose."

Good word.

No Politics Please

My buddy Michael just posted something that I believe many many people in ministry can relate to. Check it out: MODEL CHURCH

AUsome Time - Part 2

Another reason to love this time of year...observing hilarious things from rival teams and laughing hysterically at them.

Without further ado, I give you the Ramp Lady:

UA RAMP LADY

AUsome time of year

Ahhh....exactly 1 month away.

HERE is a cool video to hold everyone over for 30 more days. The quality is not that great...but it includes the pre-game flight of Tiger, a sideline shot of Bo Jackson, and the complete domination over Bammer in last year's Iron Bowl.

Enjoy. More videos to come.

Help Us Help You

When churches put on community events, it seems the motive can fall on one of two sides. (Realize I'm talking about block parties, a booth at a town function, music on the square, etc. I'm not speaking of community service...like a canned food drive or teaming up with a battered women's shelter or picking up trash along the highway. The motive is obvious there.) First, you have the "here's a cool event we are putting on for you and we think you will like it and we are doing this because we think you will like it...and, that's about it, enjoy!" event. Yeah, I know, try fitting that on your signs around town. But seriously, this motive is a no strings attached approach. Sure, in the big picture of things, the church probably has a bigger reason than just doing an event. I'm sure it's thought out and strategic to their goals of outreach. But, it's ok to just provide a night of fun for kids or something cool for adults or whatever...and let them know you did it b/c you care and just want them to know you are - HERE - you're their neighbor and you just wanted to say hello.

(Warning, plug coming) And that's kind of what we are doing with Laugh Cartersville. It's a way to say hi. And a great way at that. We are bringing in a great (seriously) comedian. And, of course, he's a clean comedian. Just doing a quick event in downtown. Just doing something that we don't see a whole lot of in our small town...providing good, cheap entertainment for families who get tired of driving to ATL for stuff like this. (And for those tempted to shout at me, "Well, that's not the mission of the church...to entertain"...I know it's not, so relax...not trying to say it is.)

And then, well, you have motive number 2. I've seen this kind of community event quite a bit lately. And right off the bat let me say this is not a bad reason to hold an event. Just saying I'm not sure it is serving your purposes best. What is it? Well, it's what I call the "Help Us Help You" campaign. It's when churches do community events and somewhere you see a disclaimer that reads, "All proceeds go toward helping us build our new building." Once again, that's OK. Believe me, being part a church plant, I know about having no money. But something just doesn't sit with me well when I see that. To me, it somewhat devalues the very thing you are there to do. In fact, to take it one step further, maybe churches should never charge for any event they ever put on. If you can't do it free, then don't do it. Yeah, I know, dream world. I just think it's way cooler when you can give something for free and say you are doing it to just see a kid smile or offer something relevant to a family, etc. In my brain (scary place), I compute the disclaimer as, "Give me 10 bucks so I can build a gym that will be ready in 2.5 years from now and if you get our flyer in the mail about our new gym, come check it out." Believe me, I know this is stretching it. But maybe I'm so hesitate to ever take this road b/c I know what unchurched people say about churches always asking for money. Well, for that matter, what churched people say about churches always asking for money. They say they're always asking! (Not going to touch this right now though, different post for different time.)

So, conclusion. I think motive one is better. Just has a better ring to it. A better feel to it. Genuine. (Or maybe I should find out how much cash some of these churches made from their events!) Just kidding. (Or maybe I should start helpushelpyou.com.....all man, just checked, it's taken...argh.) Obviously just kidding.

Whatcha think? Ever had this observation before?