Archive for October, 2007

NBC seems to be coming off as the biggest media whiner around.

First, they pull their shows from the iTunes music service. Most assume this is because Apple’s wildly successful media content delivery service is trumping everyone else’s. NBC just couldn’t stomach the fact that Apple was making some money off their stuff (of course, NBC was too, but just not enough, in their viewpoint). So NBC takes its toys and goes home.

Now, NBC executive Jeff Zucker is claiming that Apple is responsible for “destroying music pricing.” Sounds to me like he’s trying to drag others into his pout-fest about Apple’s success. It’s an age-old trick… I’m not happy with the way things are going, so I’ll try to make others unhappy too.

I don’t know of many consumers who are angry with Apple for forcing the music industry to start thinking competitively. C’mon, who really wants to pay $16.98 for a CD at Wal-Mart when you can get it for $9.99 through iTunes. So the traditional music and media moguls are only making tens of billions instead of hundreds of billions of dollars now. Waaaaah.

One caveat… there’s a bunch of folks that are not thrilled with Apple’s heavy-handed techniques of negotiation. I, for one, am still a little miffed about how Apple initially treated its music and media content. Why should I not be able to put a CD that I’ve bought on the iTunes store on my PSP? I know that there are work-arounds, but Apple was a little archaic in its approach. Perhaps that was one area that they locked down to appease the music folks? Who knows?

Another arena of Apple’s misguided methodology has been its approach to the iPhone and third-party software. Their “fear” of viruses and talk of the potential of harming the cellular network must have been authored and propogated by the same guys that frothed up the Western Hemishpere over Y2K.

At the day’s end, however, it’s not NBC that is known for innovation, technological breakthroughs, and customer satisfaction, however. It’s Apple. I am NOT pleased that I can’t easily get an episode of Heroes onto my iPhone or iPods. I don’t think millions of other media users are either. NBC and Zucker are coming off sounding like kids pitching temper tantrums. And it’s only hurting themselves.

Just to follow up on the Yard Sale… The kids raised $168 at the yard sale, sold their PS2, a Gameboy Advance, an Epson printer and an Apple wireless mouse to come up with enough money for a Wii, and extra controller and a game!  I’ve got to admit that the Wii is one of the most innovative gaming experiences I’ve ever seen… I about threw out my arm trying to bowl a strike last night. 

It’s a known and documented fact that Apple’s customer service continues to outstrip and distance itself from any other computer maker or technology company. Consumer Reports consistently ranks Apple as #1 in customer care.

I’ve had moy own experiences with its radical approach to taking care of its folks. Of course, I know there are folks out there who have had bad experiences; I’m just not one of them. Apple has made good – and oftimes, more than good – on every problem I’ve encountered.

Here are three examples:

1. I purchased Applecare on my iMac 20″ Intel Core Duo and about 11 months after I had the unit (I bought it used off of Ebay), the DVD drive starting acting funny. It would burn inconsistently and give me error messages. So, I did what every Apple-loving person in his right mind would do… 1-800-SOS-APPLE. Yep, that’s the real number.
   After a quick diagnostic series of tests, the tech on the phone announced it was hardware related. “I see you have Applecare on this unit. Where is the closest Apple Store or licensed repair center?” I told him Little Rock and that it was an hour and a half drive. “I see… Well, let’s schedule a technician’s visit….” After a long pause, he said, “Is tomorrow at 2:00 ok?”
   Literally, I had a repair guy come to my house here in rural South Arkansas and replace my DVD drive in less than 15 minutes the next day!
2. My iPhone wouldn’t get loud enough. I called Apple and said I was having troubles hearing it. They asked if I’d turned up the volume… After being slightly peeved about that question, I said that of course, I knew where the volume was. After a few more questions, they said, “We’ll have you a replacement unit in the mail today. You should get it tomorrow.” I shipped my iPhone back in teh provided box and got it back the same week – all the while being able to use a replacement phone (which because of Apple’s sync technology became “my phone” simply by plugging it in: my photos, contacts, calendars… all synced effortlessly to the new phone).
   Incidentally, I got a note back with my phone saying that nothing could be found wrong with the phone. In consternation, I did a quick Google search about iPhone volume only to discover that I had accidentally enabled “Volume Limit” in my Settings! Doh! As soon as I raised the Volume Limit (presumably put there so that idiots won’t blow out their eardrums), I could make the iPhone as loud as I wanted…
   Chalk this  great experience of Apple’s CS up to to “idiot user syndrome.”
3. Finally, just today, I called to see where my iPhone case was. I had ordered it two weeks ago, and the last time I checked, it was supposed to have arrived last week. When today’s mail came and still no case, I called Apple. I was surprised to learn that the order had been cancelled… something about the manufacturer. However, I was never notified. Apple’s solution? They graciously offered – even without a complaint – to overnight me a comparable case, free of charge!

You go, Apple!

A new friend + a new toy + two determined kids = Saturday morning garage sale + Ebay and Amazon.com listings

Some great friends of ours have moved to Monticello from Arkadelphia, and their son was the recent recipient of a Nintendo Wii. It was a parental gift to ease the transition to a new town, I suppose. Sam and Adelyn both have been invited over to play the Wii, and it’s even been brought over to our house for an afternoon and evening.

I must admit that I was rather engaged in watching them play! It’s completely interactive, and just watching someone swing their controller like a baseball bat or a tennis racket and seeing the result on the screen is amazing!

Needless to say, Sam and Adelyn were hooked. Sam, of course, is my gaming buddy, but Adelyn has never gotten into gaming that much. However, she was totally enthralled with the Wii. In addition, Nintendo has always had great game selection for kids and adults.

The kids were told that if they could come up with the money, they could buy their own Wii.

So… all this week, they’ve been piling up junk in the hallway for this weekend’s yard sale! It’s been rather funny. I actually think they’re going to make quite a haul. Sam’s Playstation 2 (the fat one) has already sold for $110 on Ebay (with several games and three controllers); both of their Nintendo Gameboy Advance SPs are listed on Amazon. When you throw in my 19″ Sears TV that my dad bought me during my senior year in college, a very nice inkjet printer and a bunch of other junk, I think they’re going to surpass their goal.

The Glorious Church

by Watchman Nee

I’ve heard about Watchman Nee off and on over the years but have never taken the time to read something of his. He was a Chinese pastor, for almost 30 years. Imprisoned in 1952 for his faith, he died there in 1972.

I have immense respect for anyone who has laid it all on the line for the Lord in such a way; however, this book – which was the product of some of his early sermons – just couldn’t hold my attention, unfortunately.

In particular, I was also bothered by some of his conclusions:

…even if we have saved all the souls in the whole world, we have not yet accomplished God’s work or satisfied God’s requirement.

For starters, we don’t save anyone; God does. Second, this line of thinking is elaborated on later in the first chapter, and I just don’t think Nee reaches the right conclusions.

He tries to argue that since at creation, God gave man authority of the earth to rule and subdue it, that man’s chief goal is to do just that. However, now man must contend for the authority of the earth against Satan. That much, I can see where he is going.

However, when he says…

If all our work is just preaching the gospel and saving souls, we are not causing Satan to suffer fatal loss. If man has not restored the earth from the hand of Satan, he has not achieved God’s purpose in creating him. Saving souls is only for the welfare of man, but dealing with Satan is for the benefit of God.

…I think he obscures the broader point that God has already defeated Satan at the cross. He is not in heaven, wringing His holy hands, hoping that man gets his act together so that Satan will be cast out.

Furthermore, God is not “benefitted” by any action of ours. He is completely sufficient and joyful – without need – in and of Himself. With Him, there is no lack.

Nee says, “God needs an authority in His creation, and He has chosen man to be that authority.”

Again, God doesn’t “need” us. He did create Adam with the intention of mankind ruling, but when he chose to sin, he abdicated that rule. God finally restored the dominion of man in Jesus Christ. In Matthew 28.18, Jesus said, “All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me.” (italics mine)

Christ has chosen to give His Spirit to the church so that it can announce His kingdom on earth through His provided power. But at no time does man have any authority except what he has been given by grace through Christ.

Granted, I stopped reading after the first chapter, so I would welcome some interaction with those who might better explain what Nee is saying. However, I for one, will simply continue to respect His witness while shying away from His teachings.

See more about The Glorious Church

A team from our church is heading to Denver the weekend after Thanksgiving to donate their time and labor to packing boxes for Operation Christmas Child! There are two different fundraisers to help them on their way this weekend…

How did a small, church plant in Oklahoma go national in the past ten years? Such is the story of Life Church, now known as LifeChurch.tv. From its beginnings in Edmond, Oklahoma, Life Church now has twelve different campuses across the nation (including Arizona, Texas, Tennesse, Florida and New York.

Admittedly, not all of these campuses are new church starts. Several of them involve existing churches coming into the LifeChurch.tv network.

However, this year Lifechurch.tv launched what it calls “Second Life,” which is a fully interactive, online church. Yep. You can do church online… Hooboy.

According to their website, “Currently LifeChurch.tv is hosting nearly 20,000 people every weekend across all its campuses during 47 worship experiences.”

Life Church is a part of the Evangelical Covenant Church denomination, and it has a well-expressed, though abbreviated, set of core beliefs:

• The Bible is God’s message to us (2 Timothy 3:162 Timothy 3:16
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  16 Every writing inspired by God literally, God-breathed is profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, and for instruction which is in righteousness,
  
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• Jesus Christ changes lives (John 3:3, 14:6John 3:3, 14:6
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  3 Jesus answered him, “Most assuredly, I tell you, unless one is born anew, The word translated “anew” here and in also means “again” and “from above”. he can’t see the Kingdom of God.” ¹⁴ As Moses lifted up the serpent in the wilderness, even so must the Son of Man be lifted up,
  
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• The church is a spiritual family (1 Corinthians 12:12-131 Corinthians 12:12-13
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  12 For as the body is one, and has many members, and all the members of the body, being many, are one body; so also is Christ. ¹³ For in one Spirit we were all baptized into one body, whether Jews or Greeks, whether bond or free; and were all given to drink into one Spirit.
  
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• A Holy Spirit empowers us to live for God (Galatians 5:25Galatians 5:25
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  25 If we live by the Spirit, let’s also walk by the Spirit.
  
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• Freedom comes from Jesus Christ (John 8:31-32John 8:31-32
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  31 Jesus therefore said to those Jews who had believed him, “If you remain in my word, then you are truly my disciples. ³² You will know the truth, and the truth will make you free.”
  
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  5 ¹ Stand firm therefore in the liberty by which Christ has made us free, and don’t be entangled again with a yoke of bondage.
  
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I’ll admit… there’s enough there to intrigue me and want to know more about Life Church. Do you realize that there’s not an Evangelical Covenant Church in Arkansas? Neither is there a Life Church here… yet.

It’s fast becoming one of the most popular productivity-enhancement websites out there. After reading this article at Engadget, I thought I’d open up an account and give it a try… I’ll let you know in a few weeks what I think…

The Acts of the Holy Spirit: Tracing His Work in the Early Church, Discerning His Life-Giving Presence Today

by Arthur T. Pierson

For such a short little book, I was struck by Pierson’s writing eloquence and ability to say in such a brief span volumes more than many contemporary authors do in longer books.

A.T. Pierson was a Presbyterian minister who lived from 19371837-1911. He edited The Missionary Review of the World for many years and apparently was a prolific writer. I most assuredly will be reading more by Pierson because of this book.

There may not be a more contentious subject in the contemporary American church today than the role of the Holy Spirit. Entire denominations have been created due to the negligence or over-emphasis on Him.

Pierson takes the book of Acts, and in short, succinct chapters, describes the role and ministry of the Holy Spirit for the corporate church and individual believers in Jesus Christ. He does so in a way that is enlightening and challenging.

As a pedigreed Southern Baptist, I have to admit that for years, my tribe has simply tried to work around the Spirit. Most Baptist preachers, teachers, evangelists and professors that I’ve known are big on the Father and Son but a little intimidated by the Spirit.

In fact, in my own life, it’s rather disconcerting to realize that I have not taught and equipped those under my care to recognize and know how to “walk in the Spirit.” It will be a renewed commitment, I can assure you.

Pierson states at one point, “Satan’s activity is always increased when disciples bestir themselves anew.” I can heartily agree to the accuracy of that statement after some personal experiences of the last few months. It crystallized in my mind, once again, the unseen reality of spiritual warfare.

No one attribute is more needful today for Christ’s witnesses than Holy Spirit boldness due to Holy Spirit fullness.

Pierson shares at length about the dangers of a church or Christian organization being led and guided by logic, by secular principles or organizational procedures without first being led by the Holy Spirit.

All in all, it’s a fantastic little book that would be a great foundation to start learning more about the role of the Holy Spirit in the lives of Christians.

See more about The Acts of the Holy Spirit: Tracing His Work in the Early Church, Discerning His Life-Giving Presence Today

I get asked frequently how I incorporate calendars and event lists into some of the websites that I design. It’s really pretty simple after you’ve worked through the process once. I use CalendarHub for event lists (it’s free!), I was using Trumba for MonticelloLive’s community calendar (a paid service, but full of features). Recently, I’ve been using Airset for several projects, especially for coordinating a calendar with lots of folks. It works great for church use, but its learning curve for the casual user is steep. It’s not very intuitive (aka, very un-Maclike).

Here’s an excellent article on dozens of other online calendar options out there.

Here’s an article related to this that I wrote a while back.

Word out on the street is that Apple’s market share is growing steadily! Recent estimates put Mac users at 8.1% (or is it 6.3%?). That means that the number of loser-PC-users is steadily shrinking! Hooray!!!

Hang on, says Steve Jobs, until February of next year for fully supported apps for the iPhone… Apparently Apple has heard and is trying to respond to the ire and frustration of iPhone users everywhere. But why February? The possibilities and capability is here NOW.

Over at MMI, Todd summarizes a recent Rick Warren article that lists six worldviews that are most prevalent in our culture today. They must be faced and addressed in order to expose the falsehood and emptiness that they represent.

1. The ones with the most toys wins.
2. Me first.
3. Do what makes you happy (or what feels good).
4. If it works for you, it must be ok.
5. There is no God.
6. You are God.

Which of these do you confront the most in your own surroundings? Which have you fallen victim to before?

In the spring of 1995, Carolyn was still receiving treatment for Hodgkin’s Disease. We had settled into a strange, surreal routine by that time after months of treatment. On the days she would receive treatment, we could basically count on her being sick and lethargic for a few days after that.

Members of our church and friends from Carolyn’s work were incredibly gracious as they arranged to have our meals taken care of on those hard days. Caro would basically crash on the couch or bed as her tired body recuperated from the harsh doses of chemo. I did all I could to keep a steady barrage of light-heartedness around the house during those days.

We prayed a lot together, and I believe those days laid a spiritual foundation in our lives that helped us learn to depend completely on God and His strength and joy. Our own was too often exhausted. Even today when Caro and I sit down together to pray, I sometimes reflect on those days in which we prayed diligently for healing and help.

That spring was my last semester in seminary. It had been a four-year ordeal for me. I had expected an experience at seminary similar to the one I’d had at Ouachita, but instead, I found that I simply did not enjoy seminary. Don’t get me wrong; I loved learning. However, what I saw at seminary – in some of the students and some of the professors and in the theological educational system as a whole – greatly disturbed me. It’s another post for another day.

I couldn’t wait to get out.

Our church was in the process of planing for a dynamic family life center, and I had become the minister to singles and young adults in late 1992, early 1993. We loved working with this new ministry segment in the church, and it was exciting to see it grow and new families and singles getting involved almost on a weekly basis.

However, as I’d mentioned earlier, a pastoral change at the church also brought a significant change in leadership style – one that I was deeply uncomfortable with. My restlessness grew, and I found it harder to keep my frustration to myself.

I was at seminary one day and noticed that there would representatives from the “Arkansas Baptist State Convention” on campus. This was pretty common, as I remember. It was a wonderful gesture as denominational leaders from your home state arrived on campus and often hosted a dinner for students from that state. It was pretty smart as well, as they would discover potential pastors and church leaders in order to recommend them to churches who might be looking.

Since we lived in Garland, which was an hour away from the seminary, I never really experienced “campus life” and never attended one of those dinners. However, on that particular day, I simply felt drawn to visit with someone.

I found the rooms where some of the denominational leaders were interviewing candidates for different positions, and happened to find a man named David James just finishing up an interview. I introduced myself and explained that I wasn’t looking for a “job” or a change but had just wanted to “meet the folks from Arkansas.”

David has an incredible ability to get anyone sharing within moments. Before I realized what was going on, we were deep into conversation, knee to knee, with me pouring out my heart and my hurts and my frustrations to him. I don’t know what happened. The gates of my soul seemed to have come unhinged.

He smiled and nodded and empathized with me in a genuine, Christ-like way. I literally felt like a massive semi-truck load of burden lifted from me as I shared. I told him about Caro and her cancer. About my hopes and dreams for doing relational ministry. About our church leadership transition and frustrations associated with it. I shared until I was empty.

Then he prayed for me and Carolyn as if he’d known us all our lives.

As we departed, he got my phone number and thanked me for the visit. I thanked him profusely for his time and listening ear. As I drove home, I was a little unnerved by how I’d unpacked my entire life onto this stranger. What was that all about? I wondered.

I told Carolyn about it at home and slipped back into routine for the next few days.

I can’t remember how many days later it was, but one afternoon, I received a phone call. It was David James.

“I’d like to talk to you about coming to Arkansas to be a campus minister,” he said.  “Would you be willing to visit more about this?”

I was shocked to hear myself answer, “Yes.”

To be continued… 

Hmmm. I guess this means it won’t be critically acclaimed.

I was hoping for at least a PG-13….