Song of the Week: "Promise" by Spoken

God speaks to me through music. If that sounds freaky to you, then God probably doesn't speak to you in music. If He does, then you know exactly what I'm talking about.

It has been a VERY difficult week for me with all the typical duties of a husband and father of three plus the added stress of getting ready to start a new school year. This song came on the radio at one of my lowest points this week. I know God is trying to cheer me up and wants me to lay my worries on Him. These lyrics have definitely been speaking to me:

Yet another day seems like it’s wasted
You don’t feel you’re any closer to the prize
A dead end job where there’s no future
Praying that tomorrow things won’t be this way

Things will get better this I promise you
And I know that you won’t feel this way forever
Things will get better this I promise you
And I know loneliness won’t last forever

Yet another day, another tired morning
You’re catching up to your intentions
You’re thinking life has to be easier than this
Maybe tomorrow things won’t be this way

Things will get better this I promise you
and I know it wont feel this way forever
Things will get better this I promise you
and I know we can find a way to make it better
things will get better this I promise you
And I know loneliness won't last forever

I got a chance to go see these guys about two years ago with a good friend of mine. The stage presence and energy these guys have live is astounding. Check them out on PureVolume. "Promise" is the last song on their playlist. They also have the video on their MySpace page.

Meeting Ron Clark

Wow! All I have is one word for this guy: PASSIONATE!

Our beginning of the school year kickoff featured award winning educator Ron Clark as the keynote speaker. What a treat. I was definitely not feeling school this year. In fact, I remember just telling Nell that this was the most unenthusiastic I have ever been about starting school. That is definitely not the case anymore. This was exactly what I needed.

Ron has been a personal teaching hero of mine for years and it was a pleasure to hear him talk. His passion for teaching is a marvel. The guy is a dynamo. And although he did not talk much abut it, he is a believer in balance, which is so important to me. He is also the "real deal" as he continues to teach and spend his time in front of a classroom full of kids each year. This gives him incredible street cred as a presenter. I feel very privileged to have met him and definitely feel ready to roll for this year!

You can check him out here at the Ron Clark Academy.

Messed Up by Grace

I started listening to some sermons from Perry Noble at NewSpring Chruch in Anderson, South Carolina. I saw him at C3 this year and loved his controversial no-nonsense presentation style. His latest series is answering the top questions that were voted on by people online. The one I just listened to is called "Can I Loose My Salvation?"

Anytime I hear and really think about stuff like this, it really messes me up. It is just hard to accept because the performance plan makes us feel better- "At least I'm better than that guy..." We want to feel like we are actually doing something to contribute to our salvation, or at least the keeping of it. I think it gives us a sense of control and pride. The bible says that "Whoever believes in the Son has eternal life; whoever does not obey the Son shall not see life, but the wrath of God remains on him." (John 3:36) But once we cross over that line of faith, it is humbling to know that nothing we do can make God love us any more or any less. We do absolutely nothing and Jesus does absolutely everything.

Check out the message (it starts about 30 min. into it) and let me know what you think.

Apples, Berries, and Tootsie Pops

Remember these as a kid? I always liked the dark red ones, and was always on the lookout for that Indian shooting the star.

I had a different thought about this sweet treat though. What if we used it to compare the iPhone and the BlackBerry? C'mon, it will be fun.

Okay, I think the iPhone is like the outer candy shell. They are both bright, slick, shiny, and nice to look at. The media features and browsing are top notch. The sugar rush is there. They are sweet at first, but ultimately let you down with limited functionality and customizability.

The BlackBerry, on the other hand, is more like the actual tootsie roll. It is not quite as nice to look at. Some of the features are burried a bit and require some chewing. But once you dig in and really start to chew, you will be left satisfied with a hearty piece of technology that fills you up.

What's your take?

01100-01001-10110-00101

Believe it or not, there was a time in my life in which I actually owned a pager and I wasn't even in the business of trafficking drugs. When my wife was pregnant with our first child, she wanted a way to get ahold of me immediately if need be. I was okay with this, but I was NOT going to have a cell phone. I can remember feeling so strongly about this. I was completely against having a cell phone. I used to think they were ridiculous and pretentious. So I decided to fight the establishment and I got a pager instead.

I have to think back and laugh at this. #1 for my hard head about embracing new technology (especially if you knew how much I love my BlackBerry now) and how silly the idea of a pager sounds today. But I know people still buy them. I saw a store advertising PAGERS! PAGERS! while driving through a hillbilly-ish town on vacation a few weeks ago.

Technology has come a long way in the last few years hasn't it? I was just laughing the other day at the thought of a dial up internet connection- do you remember that noise? I apologize if you heard that noise to actually get here... Mobile phones used to be bricks strapped to our belts or dead weights bogging down purses. And the thought of a car phone conjures up images of cave paintings and hunter- gatherers.

I have been very guilty this summer of bordering on technology overload. I have signed up for 19 different web services, installed over 15 various apps on my phone, got a new email address, overhauled my iGoogle page, created a Facebook account, designed a website for school, upgraded my BlackBerry's OS, and figured out how to make and save .png images with transparent backgrounds. I'm also wearing suspenders and a pocket protector now.

I have had so much fun this summer discovering all the crazy stuff out there on the web. It truly is amaizing. Lately though I feel it is getting to be a bit much. Behind all the 1's and 0's of binary code there are actual, physical people. And that's what all this stuff is for, right? It's all about relationships. This is supposed to keep us connected. As the new school year begins to get rolling, I know I need to start putting all of this into perspective. Granted, it is a lot of fun, but it is all a means. I need to learn to log on without tuning out.

By the way, the title of this post says "Live" in binary code.