Another Reason I'm a MAC

The following is from the blog by Seth Godin

It's no wonder they don't trust us

I just set up a friend's PC. I haven't done that in a while.

Wow.

Apparently, a computer is now not a computer, it's an opportunity to upsell you.

First, the setup insisted (for my own safety) that I sign up for an eternal subscription to Norton. Then it defaulted (opt out) to sending me promotional emails. Then there were the dozens (at least it felt like dozens) of buttons and searches I had to endure to switch the search box from Bing to Google. And the icons on the desktop that had been paid for by various partners and the this-comes-with-that of just about everything.

The digital world, even the high end brands, has become a sleazy carnival, complete with hawkers, barkers and a bearded lady. By the time someone actually gets to your site, they've been conned, popped up, popped under and upsold so many times they really have no choice but to be skeptical.

Basically, it's a race to the bottom, with so many people spamming trackbacks, planning popups and scheming to trick the surfer with this or that that we've bullied people into a corner of believing no one.

You can play along, or you can be so clean and so straightforward that people are stunned into loyalty. You know, as in, "do it for the user," and "offer stuff that just works" and "this is what you get and that's all you get and you won't have to wonder about the fine print."

Rare and refreshing. An opportunity, in fact.


And that is why I'm a Mac!  I don't have all the "partners" buying a part of my computer hoping to get my business and slow down my computer.  Long live MAC!  :)

You Need To Grow!

Signet is a cooperative journey of leadership development. Signet employs reading, communication, and a cycle of goal setting to encourage leadership growth. Only a small number of people will be accepted to Signet annually. Applications will be received through the end of the year.


Signet Values
Hunger - the desire to grow
Humility - Jesus first, others second, you come in third
Excellence - attention to detail, planning, deadlines, preparation, raising the bar

If these sound like you:
Learn more about Signet
I’ll be accepting applications through the end of the year.

Visit the official Signet page

SDAG MOMENTUM Retreat

2010 Notes: If you are a youth leader in South Dakota you are invited to be a part of MOMENTUM, our annual youth leaders retreat held in January. Join other youth pastors and spouses for three days designed to help you relax, refresh, and renew.

Details
Location: Comfort Inn (Mitchell, South Dakota)
Register by January 4
Download Information Sheet
Begins: January-14, 2010
Ends: January-16, 2010
Registration Deadline: January 4, 2010 - Bring your payment with you when you arrive
Cost: $95 Single/$145 Couple (plus lodging) - Includes all meals and sessions (if you are unable to attend because of financial limitations only, please let me know)
Kids: We will set up a "nursery" in our room nearby the meeting space for infants. We recommend toddlers and older stay with a friend or family member during the weekend. If childcare is requested we can assist you in contacting someone.

Need More Info?

STL: Pick Up Your Socks!

Topic: Maximize Opportunity
Title: Pick Up Your Socks!
Text: Exodus 36:3-5
Theme: People continued to bring free-will offerings

Read the Text: They received from Moses all the offerings the Israelites had brought to carry out the work of constructing the sanctuary. And the people continued to bring freewill offerings morning after morning.

Illustrate: Prior to the arrival of your students get some laundry or items from the lost and found and lay it around the room. Make it difficult for the students to be in the room without having to come in contact with the items and move them out of the way. The laundry should be placed on chairs, on the stage, and other places where the students like to spend time.

In the offering sermon talk about how as a child you struggled with keeping your room clean all of the time, how a parent would REMIND you to pick up your socks, hang up your towel, and put your shoes away.

Draw the comparison to the laundry you left around the room - it just got in the way. My laziness with laundry meant I needed to be REMINDED to pick it up.

Challenge/Connection: In the verses we read, Moses instructed the people to bring an offering, which they did. But they were so moved by the work and the cause that they CONTINUED to give “freewill offerings morning after morning.”

Speed the Light should be the same way. We receive a weekly offering, but how often do you REMEMBER the other days of the week to save, budget, pray, and give?

Just like your mom would appreciate if you cleaned your room with the reminder, so to the missionaries appreciate it when we give on a regular basis.

Receive Offering: Pray and Receive Offering

Summer Missions Opportunities

Every teenager should have an overseas missions experience before they graduate from High School.

We provide opportunities each summer for our teenagers to experience missions. Why are these trips so important? In addition to being a part of fulfilling the great commission, the will also grow in their faith, become more grateful and humble, and see God work in ways they may have never seen before.

Check out the options you have to minister along side teens from South Dakota in the following locations:

South Africa
England
El Salvador
Central America
SD Indian Reservations
Alaska (possibility)

Find more information and requirements.

Revolutionaries: by Matt Brown

Throughout history great men and women have walked this earth cutting a trail through the thick brush of religious and secular culture that allows for the pathway of ministry we have today. "Revolutionaries" is a record of may of those individuals.

It's easy to take for granted the life we live today and go on our way ignorant of the work and effort of those who have gone before us. But not any more. "Revolutionaries" compiles and tells the stories of incredible world-changers found throughout history.

While some books will inspire and others will instruct, "Revolutionaries" successfully accomplishes both. Readers will find themselves cheering for the revolutionary as their eyes are opened to their story and at the same time wondering, "1,000 years from now will someone be including my name to the end of this book? Will I become a revolutionary that makes a difference?

Some of my favorite revolutionaries from this book include: Charles Wesley, Martin Luther, Francis Asbury, and Smith Wigglesworth.

This book is a must read for leaders of all ages and experiences. It should be mandatory that we understand the depth of the roots of our heritage in the body of Christ.

Thank you Matt for undertaking the research and for telling the lost stories of those in every century who revolutionized their world for Christ!

Overflow Experience: Webcast

Bring the OverflowExperience LIVE to your youth ministry!