Centrefest 09

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Best Ranked Guitar Blogs

I found this list of the Top 100 Guitar Blogs on the Street Musician blog and thought I would share. Enjoy.

Biden Blunders

Let me remind you, this is the second most powerful man in the United States and perhaps the world. That should make it a little more scary! You can find the full story here.


Here's a list of 14 amusing yet cringe-worthy "Bidenisms" made during the vice president's more recent political career.

-- On March 13, 2009, Biden addressed a former Senate colleague by saying, "An hour late, oh give me a f**king break," after he arrived on Amtrak at Union Station in Washington, D.C. The vice president's expletive was caught on a live microphone.

-- During a Feb. 25, 2009, interview on CBS' "Early Show," Biden encouraged viewers to visit a government-run Web site that tracks stimulus spending. When asked for the site's web address, Biden could not remember the site's "number."

"You know, I'm embarrassed. Do you know the Web site number?" he asked an aide standing out of view. "I should have it in front of me and I don't. I'm actually embarrassed."

-- At a Jan. 30, 2009, swearing-in ceremony of senior White House staff, Biden mocked Chief Justice John Roberts for his presidential oath blunder on Inauguration Day.

"Am I doing this again?" Biden said, after Obama asked him to administer the oath. When Biden was told the swearing-in was for senior staff -- and not cabinet members -- the vice president quipped, "My memory is not as good as Justice Roberts," prompting a stern nudge from Obama.

-- On Inauguration Day, Jan. 20 2009, Biden misspoke when he told a cheering crowd of supporters, "Jill and I had the great honor of standing on that stage, looking across at one of the great justices, Justice Stewart." Justice John Paul Stevens -- not Stewart -- swore Biden in as vice president.

-- When criticizing former GOP nominee John McCain in Athens, Ohio, on Oct. 15, 2008, Biden said, "Look, John's last-minute economic plan does nothing to tackle the number-one job facing the middle class, and it happens to be, as Barack says, a three-letter word: jobs. J-O-B-S, jobs."

-- In a Sept. 22, 2008, CBS interview, Biden misspoke when he said Franklin D. Roosevelt was president when the stock market crashed in 1929.

"When the stock market crashed, Franklin D. Roosevelt got on the television and didn't just talk about the, you know, the princes of greed. He said, 'Look, here's what happened," he said. Herbert Hoover -- not Roosevelt -- was president in 1929, and television had not yet been invented in 1929.

-- During a Sept. 12, 2008, speech in Columbia, Mo., Biden called for Missouri State Sen. Chuck Graham, who is wheelchair-bound, to "stand up."

"Oh, God love ya," Biden said, after realizing his mistake. "What am I talking about?"

-- At a Sept. 10, 2008, town hall meeting in Nashua, N.H., Biden said, "Hillary Clinton is as qualified or more qualified than I am to be vice president of the United States of America. Quite frankly, it might have been a better pick than me."

-- Biden mistakenly referred to Alaska governor Sarah Palin as the "lieutenant governor" of her state during a town hall meeting on Sept. 4, 2008 at George Mason University in Manassas, Va.

"I heard a very, by the way I mean this sincerely, a very strong and a very good political speech from a lieutenant governor of Alaska who I think is going to be very formidable, very formidable not only in the campaign but in the debate," Biden said.

-- Biden said he was running for president -- not vice president -- during a Sept. 1, 2008, roundtable discussion in Scranton, Pa.

"Today is the moment for me as a United States senator running for president to put aside the national politics and focus on what's happening down there," Biden said.

-- Biden referred to John McCain as "George" during his vice presidential acceptance speech on Aug. 27, 2008, at the Democratic National Convention in Denver, Co. "Freudian slip, folks, Freudian slip," he explained.

-- Biden confused army brigades with battalions when speaking about Obama's plan for sending troops to Afghanistan.

"Or should we trust Barack Obama, who more than a year ago called for sending two additional combat brigades to Afghanistan?"

-- During his first campaign rally with Obama as his vice presidential running mate on Aug. 23, 2008, Biden introduced Obama by saying, "A man I'm proud to call my friend. A man who will be the next President of the United States -- Barack America!"

-- On Jan. 31, 2007 -- the day Biden announced his presidential bid -- the Delaware Senator was roundly criticized for calling Obama "the first mainstream African-American who is articulate and bright and clean and a nice-looking guy. I mean, that's a storybook, man."

Obama's Budget Cuts

This puts in perspective!!

Albert Pujols-Role Model

I came across this article today on USA Today.com about Albert Pujols, who plays first base for the St. Louis Cardinals. I have to admit that I'm a bit surprised when I find a professional athlete who isn't afraid to stand up for what he believes in, especially when it comes to his faith. After reading this article I don't dislike the Cardinals quite as much as I used to, I may even pull for them, except when they play the Braves of course. Here is a quote from the article by Pujols:

"I don't judge. Only God can judge," says Pujols, a first baseman. "I've always had the responsibility to God to be a role model, so it's not just now. I play to represent God, something bigger than baseball. This is not about me. I leave everything up to God."

Wow, how refreshing, a professional athlete who accepts his responsibility of being a role model! Those guys are few and far between. Thank God for men who are willing to step up for their beliefs!

Read the entire article here.

Til then,

Adam

I'm Not 20 Anymore!

Two weeks before first church league basketball game...

Friend at church: "Hey man, we need some more guys for church league basketball, you want to play?"

Me: "Yea, I'd love too!"

Excitement builds in my heart as the first game approaches...

Friend at church: "You getting ready. I've been out exercising so I'll be in shape."

Me: "Yeah, I'm ready man"

I begin to get a little sick at my stomach the first time I realize that I'm not really ready...

Gameday...

Friend at church sends email: "It's gameday baby!"

Me: "Crap"

After the game...

Me: "I can't breathe, my chest is burning, my vital organs are functioning at about 50%, I feel like I'm about to vomit...", then I realize, it's ok, I'M NOT 20 ANYMORE, when's the next game!

Do yourself a favor, get out and get active, before you can't!

Til then,

Adam

My Trip to the Dentist

I would rather have a tooth pulled than go to the dentist, no pun intended. I think it's the fact that I have to take time out of my day to do something that has to be done but that I really don't want to do. This trip was a little more interesting than previous trips though. After the excrutiatingly annoying poking and proding with the sharp scraper of death and the "polishing" process which fills your mouth with what feels like sand and the painful stretching of my face and jaws so the teeth cleaning lady can get her entire hand in my mouth to floss my teeth, which by the way is something I can do at home, there came something new. To remove some small stains from my teeth, due to drinking a lot of cokes, the teeth cleaning lady used an instrument that can only be described as a sandblaster for teeth. I should have known something was up when she told me my mouth and gums may be a little sore tomorrow. Now I know why. This instrument of torture uses water, a powder like substance, and a lot of force to "blast" stains off of your teeth in a most uncomfortable, gut wrenching way. I found myself giving the teeth cleaning chair the ole white knuckled grip by the time it was over. I guess the good news out of this process is the dentist took 4.2 seconds to tell me I have healthy teeth, but he wished I would floss more, how dare he! I leave you with this conversation between me and the teeth cleaning lady:

Teeth cleaning lady: "Do you floss?"

Me: "Not like I should."

Teeth cleaning lady: "I was just wandering because I'm getting some bleeding."

Me: "That's because you just stabbed my gums with a sharp, metal object!"


Til then,

Adam

How It's Made

All you Discovery Channel fanatics out there have heard of the show "How It's Made". Well I found these two videos on how guitar amplifiers and guitar strings are made and thought I would share them with everyone. Enjoy.

Online Stomping Ground

Here's what I've been looking at this week.

Here's an article containing videos of a lecture series from independent artist Corey Smith. Corey's music is not of a christian nature, but what he has done in terms of the business side of things over the past few years is pretty amazing.

With the passing of the stimulus bill and the 1.1 trillion dollars, give or take a few dollars, that we are going to have to pay back, I thought you would enjoy this post from the First Things Blog. This will put into perspective just how much money that is.

Third Day's Mark Lee has a great guitar lovers blog going at the Six String Lounge. He has a great series going called The Absolute Beginner, a series that teaches beginners how to play the guitar. He also answers a lot of guitar, gear related questions. Great site for the guitar players out there.

Here's a video entitled What the Stimulus Bill May Do For You. Thank you Mr. President for my extra $13 dollars a week, which won't even buy a pack of diapers.

Here's a video of Coldplay on 60 Minutes that Joel sent me. After watching this, I have to admit I like these guys a little more than I used to.

Max Lowe.net. I found this great blog for independent bands wanting to learn a few ins and outs of how to market your band online. I especially like the posts on social networking and how to use them to your advantage.

Inner Workings of a Band, Part 1

First let me say that I am in no way an expert on this subject, I can only tell you what I have experienced during my time as part of a band. I will welcome any and all conversation on the topic. If you think I have missed something, please feel free to leave a comment with your opinions and what nots. Let's remember to please keep it positive.

This is something that I've been wanting to blog about for a while. If you're in a band I'm sure you have, at one point or another, gotten a little frustrated because people, not in bands, make assumptions or pretend to know about being in a band. That's where I found myself not to long ago, so I felt the need to explain a few things in an attempt to be informative to those who have not experienced the band "lifestyle". There are about a 1000 ways this series could go so bear with me as I may be a little sporatic with each post.

I think the best way to start this series of posts is to start at home. The band I play in, Four Days Late, is a Christian worship band and like all bands, in order to do what we spend hours practicing to do, we must hit the road. This sounds easy until you consider what has to happen before said road can be "hit".

Preparing. We spend endless hours preparing to go out and play our music. This doesn't only include practicing, which we do every week. What you don't see is the many hours spent staring at a computer screen to prepare powerpoint presentations so the audience can sing along with us. You don't see the hours spent on the phone booking shows and making contacts. You don't see the individual, private practicing we do when we are not practicing as a band. You don't see the hours spent every week maintaining our website, myspace, and the other 50 social networking sites we are a part of. Needless to say for an independent band, the work load is considerably heavy. Preparation is essential to be successful!

Family. After hours upon hours are spent preparing to play, we hit the road. But this doesn't just happen. We do have families and jobs. Out of the five members of Four Days Late there are 3 wives, 3 children, and 2 girlfriends that are left behind every time we go out to play. This takes an extreme amount of planning. Planning around birthdays, holidays, work hours, and tour dates takes an extreme amount of organization among our individual households. But the planning is the easy part. The hard part is saying goodbye. For the last 4 years we have averaged playing about 75 dates a year. What does that really mean? Seventy five days out of the year we do not get to see our wives, children, and girlfriends. This is the emotional, and bit stressful, side you don't see. To me personally, this is the hardest part of being in a band.

Friends. Not only are our families "left behind", but so are our friends. I've missed a lot of "hangin" time due to playing in a band. Fishing and camping trips take a ride on the back burner along with most of your friends.

Bottom line, playing in a band effects your ENTIRE life. And not only does it affect your life, but also the lives of everyone that is a part of your life.

This is just a small glimpse of what happens before the road is "hit". I don't think I could ever explain in words the emotions, highs and lows, and stress that comes with playing in a band, but I hope I've helped you realize just a little bit of what goes on in our lives pre road hitting. Next time I'll talk about what happens when we are out on the road and what it takes to stay on the road. Don't forget to leave some comments with your thoughts.

Til then,

Adam

Favorite Guitar Sites

As of late I have really gotten into visiting different guitar related sites on a daily basis. It's a great way to stay connected to the guitar "world". So as my daily shredding quest continues, what are some of your favorite guitar sites? Leave me a comment.

Til then,

Adam

Hide Your VCR's

Here's a great post I read entitled "24 Things About to Disappear in America" from Belief Net.

What will one trillion dollars buy?

With the current state of the economy and the stimulus bill that will more than likely pass somewhere around 820 billion dollars, we have to consider that not only will that amount have to be paid back but also the one trillion dollars of interest (and who do you think will end up paying that?!) So I have found a list of exactly what 1 trillion dollars would buy, just to put it into perspective. Check it here. I'll be on the look out for some more lists. I did read that one trillion dollars would buy all of Microsoft, Walmart, Coke, and Pepsi and still have some left over. Wow.

Til then,

Adam

Online Stomping Ground

Here's some stuff I've been looking at this week:

Here's an article by Phil Keaggy on Guitar Jam Daily about his production techniques. I know I have some Keaggy fans that are regular readers.

Here's an article I read on Fretbase about the launch of the new Orange Dual Terror Amp. I've been looking at the Tiny Terror amp for while to run in stereo with my Fender. The Dual Terror is an extension of the Tiny with the offering of a new "fat" channel.

Guitar apps for iphone. Been looking for a list of these for a while.

Review for the Vox amPlug AC30 Headphone Amp from Fretbase. I've been wanting something like this for easy practice at home or even on the van between shows, so here's a great review, I think owning one will only make me want an AC30, so I'll have to be careful.

Fret Feed. There are tons of lessons and such on this blog. Great for any guitar player.

Noise Trade. This is a site to where you can download albums for free. You can either tell 5 friends about the album you are downloading or pay what you want for the album. You probably haven't heard of most of the artists on this site, but there is some really cool music there.

There you go, this will keep any guitar player busy for a while.

Til then,

Adam

Social Networking: A Christian Perspective

There is an ongoing debate between people who use social networking sites and people who think social networking is "stupid". I have found that there is not an in between, you either use these sites or you don't. What I would like to attempt to explain today is why I use these sites and why the Christian band I play in uses these sites.

First of all, I blog, tweet, check status', and friend requests simply because it's fun. I enjoy sharing my beliefs, thoughts, and random nonsense with whoever will read. Secondly, I believe in my message and values and when you believe in something strongly enough you want to share that belief with everyone who will listen and even a few who won't. With these things in mind, I blog.

This raises the question of am I blogging to seek attention or to share my Christian beliefs. This is a question that must be answered by the blogger. I believe the answer has to be a little bit of both. Yes I am seeking attention through a social networking platform so I can share my beliefs, views and opinions. Although, my attention seeking must be focused on the message of the blog and not on myself. A few times in my blogging life, I have had to take a few weeks off from the social networking world to re-focus myself to what I am trying to accomplish. So with these things in mind, I blog.

Now for the part of this blog people will have a problem with. Why does the Christian band I play in use these sites? I think most critics have a problem with Christian bands using social networking sites because they believe these bands are doing this simply to draw attention to themselves and not their message, like they know our hearts and minds. For a band, the time spent on stage is the time where we can sing and talk about Christ in front of the largest number of people. Even Christ himself positioned himself on the side of a mountain (stage) so everyone could see him when he preached. Not that we are like Christ, but we are trying. In order for us to have an "audience" to play in front of to share this message with, we have to promote ourselves. Let me explain. By using social networking sites we allow people to learn about us, about who we are as individuals as well as our goals and beliefs as a band, to make a connection with people we promote ourselves. What we are essentially doing is letting people in to our lives so that they trust us enough to come to their church or event which puts us on the stage and allows us to share the message of Christ. It's a big circle. Using these sites allows us the opportunity to share Christ's message. I am not naive, I know there are some bands under that Christian label who are seeking attention for themselves, but I do not and will not pretend to know their heart. This is starting a whole other blog so I will stop with that thought.

Just as their is a ministry side to playing in a Christian band, there is also a business side. Third Day, Mercy Me, Casting Crowns, Chirs Tomlin, even your local pastor has to get paid. They have to be able to support their families and this is not the bad, terrible thing that people make it out to be. With these things in mind I feel some sort of obligation to correct the incorrect sterotypes that have been placed on Christian bands. Most people make incorrect assumptions because they are either misinformed or do not know how a Christian band works. So consider this the first in a series of posts about the inner workings of a Christian band.

I have some common questions that have been asked of us, so I have a good platform to work from, but if you have any questions related to this topic please feel free to post them in the comments section of this post and I will answer them.

Til them,

Adam

Worship Night @ JSU

Stimulus Bill

Here is a summary I found of the Stimulus Bill being debated in the Senate right now.  This is a little better than the 600 and some odd pages the bill actually is.  

Not the cookies too!

I have to put my foot down when the less than desirable state of our economy causes the girl scout cookie people to make smaller cookies.  This just ain't right.  Read the article here.

Twitter

Check me out on twitter here. If you have no idea what twitter is, visit their website and join up!

Online Stomping Ground

Here's a few sites that I've been kickin' around on the last few weeks. Enjoy.

Wampler Pedals. I just recently purchased the Brent Mason Hot Wired Overdrive pedal and let me just say it's pretty amazing. Extremely warm tone through my Fender Hot Rod Deville 410 amp.

Electro Harmonix. I used to use their Jeckyll and Hyde pedal, which I really liked. I currently use their Route 66 Overdrive/Compression pedal which is a great pedal at a reasonable price.

Six String Lounge. This is Mark Lee's (Third Day) new blog site. He is building more of a community of fans and musicians instead of just blogging about random things. He has just started a Beginning Guitar class that should be pretty good. He also answers questions about gear and technique and such.

Guitar Mastery. This is a good blog to read for guitar players.

Guitar Noize. Also a pretty decent site.

What have you been looking at lately?

Til then,

Adam

Just testing my autopost settings.

Posted via SMS from Adam's posterous

Papa John's.com Bowl

A couple of days ago some friends and I went to the Papa John's.com bowl in Birmingham, AL to watch the NC State Wolfpack take on the Rutgers Scarlet Knights. It ended up being a great game. To my disappointment, Rutgers pulled it out in the last few minutes of the game. Oh well, here's a few pics.

One of those little dots on the 50 yard line is Ruben Studdard singing the National Anthem.

One of the four parachuters that landed in the stadium, this was cool to watch.

Opening kickoff.

Question of the Day

Christmas gifts: Better to give or receive?

Leave a comment.

Till then,

Adam

Merry Christmas

Super Mario Brothers

Here's the theme song from Super Mario Brothers like you've never heard it(or maybe you have).

The Flute Made Cool

This guy is Greg Pattillo and he's pretty amazing. I believe the flute has now been made cool.

This Made Me Laugh

Question of the Day

Fill in the blank.

__________ is the best part of the Christmas season.

Leave a comment with your answers.

Till then,

Adam

Auto Bailout

Personally I think the government shot themselves in the foot by bailing out AIG. Now everyone thinks they are going to get a hand out. Well, sorry "Big 3", you got shot down. I guess y'all will have to drive everywhere like the rest of us instead of taking your fancy little airplanes. That is if you can afford the gas after you go bankrupt. Congress gave you a chance to give up a little of your own salary for the greater good of your companies, but being the greedy men you are, you said no, and so did Congress. Now that's funny!
So where does that leave us? Exactly the same. No one has enough money to buy a car anyways, so it doesn't really matter if you're not producing them. I do have a plan though. I have to admit it's not an original plan, but I will share it because it will absolutely, without a doubt work, if Congress will pull there heads out of the sand and pass it. The obvious problem is the "Big 3" have no money because people are not buying cars. So, does it then make since to give the auto companies a billion dollars to make cars that no one will buy seeing as how no one has any money. Solution: Divide the billion dollars between all WORKING citizens who can only use the money to purchase a new automobile. This helps the citizen, salesman make money, dealerships make money and have to order more automobiles from(fanfare music), you guessed it, the "Big 3". Of course there would be a few jerks, like myself, who would buy a Honda, but the idea, given the proper parameters, would work. Why is it that the American citizen can come up with an easy, fast solution and then there are people who actually get paid to come up with solutions that just muck it up for everyone. I will have to give a shout out to Congress for shooting this bailout down, enjoy it, it may be the only one you ever get from me!

What do you think about the bailout? Did Congress make the right decision?

Till then,

Adam

Just Stick to Singing...Please!

I came across this article in the Atlanta Journal Constitution this morning. You have to read it to get the whole picture.

Dixie Chicks singer sued for defamation By CHUCK BARTELS Associated Press Writer

LITTLE ROCK, Ark. — Dixie Chicks singer Natalie Maines is the target of a defamation lawsuit by the stepfather of one of three 8-year-old boys slain in 1993.
Maines spoke out for three people convicted of the slayings and alleged the stepfather was instead involved in the killings.

Terry Hobbs, stepfather of Steve Branch, who was killed in 1993 with Christopher Byers and Michael Moore, filed suit in Pulaski County Circuit Court on Nov. 25. The suit names all three members of the Dixie Chicks, but focuses on Maines.
The suit seeks compensatory and punitive damages. Hobbs claims he suffered loss of income, injury to his reputation and emotional distress.
Maines attended a Dec. 19 rally in Little Rock, where she claimed Jason Baldwin, Damien Echols and Jessie Misskelley — known to sympathizers as the "West Memphis Three" — were innocent and that supposed new evidence pointed to Hobbs. Her comments echoed a Nov. 26, 2007, letter that was still on the Dixie Chicks' Web site on Thursday, in which she claimed that new DNA testing of hair from the crime scene linked Hobbs to the killings and that his behavior after the slayings indicated his guilt.
The lawsuit says the claim is false.
Hobbs told the Arkansas Democrat-Gazette in a Feb. 1 interview that his reputation was in tatters and he wanted to clear his name.
"I want people to know I haven't done nothing wrong," Hobbs said. "I want them to hear it from me."
No lawyer for Maines was listed in court filings and a publicist didn't immediately return a call for comment. Hobbs' attorney, J. Cody Hiland, didn't immediately return a call for comment Thursday.
The lawsuit says Maines' statements were "so extreme in degree as to be beyond the pale of decency and to be regarded as atrocious and utterly intolerable in civilized society."
Assertions similar to those made by Maines were also made by lawyers seeking new trials for the three convicts.
The boys' bodies were found by police a day after they vanished from their quiet, tree-lined neighborhood May 5, 1993. Police arrested the three after a confession by Misskelley in which he described how he watched Baldwin and Echols sexually assault and beat two of the boys as he ran down another trying to escape. A jury gave Misskelley a life-plus-40-year sentence for the killings. A later jury gave Baldwin a life sentence without parole. Echols, then 19, the oldest of the three, received the death penalty.
The Arkansas Supreme Court later upheld the convictions, but a later documentary sparked interest across the Internet, as well as among celebrities, including Maines, who felt the teens were railroaded by police for their interest in heavy metal music and the occult. Supporters say they raised more than $1 million for a legal defense fund for the three, enough to pay for lawyers, new DNA testing and a second federal appeal on behalf of Echols.
A judge has since denied defense motions for a new trial.

I'm not sure I understand why Natalie Maines has involved herself in a case that happened 15 years ago. Those men were convicted of those crimes. One of them even confessed and described what happened, which makes me sick at my stomach to even think about it. Those men are getting what they deserve. Why is it that celebrities think that because they are a celebrity they can involve themselves in whatever they want even if they don't have a clue what they are doing. Am I the only one who has a problem with this? They are raising money in hopes of getting these men freed...convicted felons! I guess with enough power and money you really can do anything. My forefathers are rolling over as I type. This is insanely ridiculous.

Here's my message: HEY CELEBRITIES, YOU GET PAID TO ENTERTAIN ME SO SHUT UP. Of course I'm not saying that celebrities shouldn't have opinions, but it's just that 99% of the time they're wrong. I wish they would all just walk down a red carpet!

Am I way off here, should I even care, does it matter that I do care? What do you think?

Till then,

Adam

It's Not OK!

I was listening to the Rick and Bubba radio show this morning on the way to work and they were talking about the Rosie O'Donnell variety show that aired last week and how terrible it was.  I caught the first song she did with Liza Minelli and immediately turned it.  That was enough for the rest of my life!  But the whole conversation got me thinking about how tolerant our country has become of an immoral lifestyle.  I'll spare you the "these are not the principles our country was founded on" speech because I could talk about it till I was red in the face or type about it till my fingers bleed and it wouldn't make much difference.  Apparently not enough people care to change it.  I'm not writing this post to judge or condemn people who live a lifestyle that I do not agree with but I am writing to say that it's not ok.  It's not ok that we give a gay person her own hour long variety show and celebrate her for it.  It's not ok that Tom Cruise and his clan are leading thousands of people astray with their ridiculus religion.  It's not ok that people are choosing to follow Oprah instead of Jesus Christ, the ONLY way to heaven.  And furthermore, it's not ok that Christians are sitting around and letting this garbage take over our country...I can't resist...THESE ARE NOT THE PRINCIPLES OUR COUNTRY WAS FOUNDED ON.  And what's worse is people are calling it progress.  Are you kidding. Let's be honest with ourselves, it's called tolerance and it's taking the place of the truth.

It's ok if you disagree with me.  If you do I hope you will read this.  I am a Christian and I'm not sorry for it.  The one thing this country needs right now is for Christians to get off the couch, pray and get out into this world and proclaim the name of Christ.  Anything less is not ok.

Till then,

Adam

Iphone Apps

I always like hearing or reading what iphone apps people are using or have discovered, so if anyone cares, here are my favorite free iphone apps, in order of use.

1. Twitterific (way better than Twittelator)
2. Facebook (way cooler than myspace, myspace is dead to me)
3. College FB (live updates)
4. Sports Tap
5. AOL Radio (just discovered this, could possibly replace my XM)
6. Say Who (voice activated dialing with no training, very cool)
7. Cellspin (easy way to post audio blogs on the go, among other things)
8. Myspace (only to keep up with Four Days Late)
9. Tumble (just to keep up with my tumblr account)
10. Mobile News (AP news)
11. Showtimes (any movie listing, in any city, very cool app)
12. Recorder
13. Midomi (like Shazaam, helps you figure out what song is playing)
14. ESPN Cameraman (what's wrong with this picture game)
15. Pop Quiz 2.0 (pop trivia game)

There are others I use, but these are my favorites right now. I'm sure I will discover some new and exciting app later and maybe I'll share it with y'all.

So what apps are you using right now?

Til then,

Adam

The Best Christian Albums of 2008

Christianity Today compiled this list of their 12 best christian albums of 2008. I would have to say that I disagree with most of this list, but it is very interesting to me to see where christian music is heading. I was very surprised to see some of the artist that made the list. This is a far cry from the way it might have read 10 years ago. The times they are a changing. Do you think it's a good list? Anybody missing that should be there?

Til then,

Adam

Legendary Drummers

Here's a list of the ten most legendary rock drummers of all time compiled by Rob O'Connor. I honestly don't know enough about drummers to say whether or not this is a good list. I have heard of all of them and they are good drummers but I'm sure someone was left off that should be considered legendary. What do you think? Anyone left off the list that should be there? What about Joel Stapleton of Four Days Late?

Til then,

Adam

Shotgun Rules

I've heard that there is a mystical, mysterious list of rules when calling shotgun but have never thought to search for them till now. Well I found them here. So you no longer have to argue over the rules of shotgun. They are right here to use for all of your shotgun calling needs. My favorite is "the balk".

Til then,

Adam

A Great View

My friend Reid Ward has a great perspective on the recent election.

Well, it took me all morning to work up to posting about yesterday's election. I must say that I had a peace about it most fo the day yesterday. I got up and met with one of the young men I mentor and then went to do my civic duty. After I voted, I resolved not to listen to all of the pundits all day and to not even check the news on line.
I was encouraged by the status of a friend on facebook who simply said "It is such a priviledge to vote on principle." That assured me that I had done the right thing and the only thing I could do. I had prayed for 40 days for reveival and renewal in this country and I had presented truth to all with whom I had interacted with on the subject. So, I had a peace.
By the time I went to bed last night, the outcome was clear. i admit I had a few moments of angst as I tried to get to sleep. Then a confident assurance came over me. God is in control. He raises up empires and appoints their leaders.
This morning, I felt quite meloncholoy. I wondered what the future might hold, not just for me, but for my children and grandchildren. I resolved (in the shower) to just keep doing what I have always done; love the Lord with all my heart, soul, mind and strength, teach my children the truth of God's word, humbly serve the kingdom of God and give my life away for His glory, love my country, and pray for my new president.

You can read the rest of the post at Reid's Blog.

Catch Up Pics

Here's a few pics from the past month.  We've been pretty busy.  Our first stop was the zoo.  I have to admit I was disappointed  in the animals, they just laid there.  I even think a couple of them were dead, but the kids loved it, they dragged us around all day.  It was a lot of fun.

Can you feel the excitement?

Looking at fish.

Stupid kangaroos wouldn't get up.  Lazy animals.

Definitely the coolest guy we saw all day.

To My Faithful Readers...

...all four of you. I guess you noticed I haven't blogged in quite some time, I've honestly had nothing to say. I think it's pointless to write if you have nothing to write about. Plus I've been pretty busy over that past month of October. I'll post a photo blog later so you can see what all I've been up to.

I have, up until this point, been silent about the election. I will say I'm glad it's over. All the political commercials and party finger pointing have become unbearably annoying. So here we are, Barak Hussein Obama is going to be the next president of the United States of America. So be it. I did not vote for Obama but he is now my president, and yours. I'd be lying if I said I wasn't a little afraid of what's to come, but whinning and belly-aching about it is going to do anything but give me an ulcer. I just pray this decision doesn't bite the collective nation on our collective butt. I have made up my mind what I'm going to do: pray! Our country and our new president are going to need it. Please pray for our nation and support our new president.

Till then,

Adam

A Night at the Fair

There's nothing like a night of overpriced food and games, add in some very questionable rides and it makes for great family fun!

This is $8 worth of Scooby.  How do these people sleep at night?

A little fair fishing, winner, winner chicken dinner.

It's not a roller coaster baby.

My son and his receding hair line.

Group picture.

I don't even know where this thing is anymore.

This was the fastest merry-go-round ever.

Happy Talk Like A Pirate Day

My principal at the school where I work has this goofy calendar with all the goofy holidays on it and you guessed it, today is national talk like a pirtae day. So in honor of this very important day I would like to know your pirate name. If you do not know your pirate name you can take a very short quiz here to find out. Let me know what your name is.

Til then,

Dirty Jack Cash

Quoting My Kids

This past summer we discovered that my son, Mark, is allergic to cashews. So in an attempt to keep him from eating cashews we have told him that he is allergic to all nuts just to be safe. For a three year old he is very intuitive and understands completely that he is not to eat nuts. One of Mark's favorite pastimes is putting together puzzles. He has recently fallen in love with a puzzle of the United States. Yes, my three year old can put together a puzzle of the U.S. with no help and knows most of the names of the states that comprise the SEC.

While putting together his U.S. puzzle he always works in the same pattern. He always puts Texas in first and then works west to east while working south to north. I think this is the beginning stages of OCD (he gets it honest). Each state on his puzzle has a picture of something well known about the state, Georgia happens to have a picture of some peanuts. When he got to Alabama, of course knowing this is where he is from, he gave a big Roll Tide. When he put in Georgia he told my wife, "This state is Georgia, it's right beside Alabama, that's where daddy works, but I can't go to Georgia because they have peanuts and I'm allergic to peanuts."

It's absolutely amazing what a child can remember and how much they pick up on. Be careful what you say around a child, it WILL have a lasting impression.

Til then,


Adam

The Bullfighter

Gay High School

The headline reads, "High school for gay students proposed in Chicago". Let me preface this post with the fact that I am a Christian and as a Christian I try to follow Jesus' example of love. From reading the Bible I know that God hates sin but He loves people and so that is how I try to approach people as well. I do not always succeed, I am a sinner saved by grace. I wanted to make that point so it doesn't seem as though I'm writing a gay bashing post or condemning gay people, but instead sharing my beliefs based on the Bible. So here goes.

Homosexuality is wrong. There is no gray area. There are absolute truths in this world even though the world's view may be "what's right for one may not be right for another" and vice versa. I think we would all agree that murder is wrong for all, not just wrong for some. In the same way homosexuality is wrong for all, not just some according to the Bible. We know this because God demonstrated his hatred of homosexuality (notice I did not say hatred of homosexuals, He loves people) by destroying entire cities because of this immoral act. This does not mean that gay people should be shunned and ridiculed and made fun of, or even seperated but instead loved as Christ loves. God changes lives. I would end the Christian aspect of this arguement by saying that Christians need to do a better job of showing Christ's love and practice loving people instead of shunning those who believe differently than we do.

Now for the social aspect. What moron thought it would be a good idea to build a school that, while being open to everyone, would target homosexuals as potential attendees. This is a great way to teach students to interact with one social group for four years so when they get out in the real world it will be incredibly easy to adjust (I hope you're catching the sarcasm because I'm laying it on pretty thick). I mean if they are going to do this they might as well put all the "rich kids" in one school, "middle class" in another, and "poor" in yet another. That idea seems pretty absurd after going back and reading it, but is that not what's going on here, seperation of social groups? I think this is a huge mistake!

I struggled for about a week with how to approach this post.  I wanted to state my beliefs and opinions but wanted to make sure to do it out of love.  Then I got an email today from Robby with a link to an article about christian music artist Ray Boltz coming out of the closet.  That was kind of the push I needed to go ahead and post this.  

What do you think?

Til then,

Adam

Social Networking II

In light of my recent post on social networking, I found this post to further prove my point of how much blogging and the like is not only growing at a tremendous rate but can also be a useful tool in many aspects of life if done in a healthy way.  Don't give up flesh and blood for a keyboard.

Til then,

Adam

Social Networking

For the last couple of days I have been participating in an online discussion about social networking tools such as twitter and the like. The conversation was started by Dan Edelen in a post he wrote on his blog entitled The "Please, Someone Notice Me!" Generation. I will let you read most of his post for yourself, and it is worth reading. The general idea behind the post is that social networking tools, texting, IM, email, blogging, etc. takes away the necessity of human, flesh and blood interaction and that the reason in using such tools is that of gaining attention for ones self.

Dan writes:
One of those new-to-Facebook friends sent me a screen capture of all the accumulated friends who posted on his Facebook page what they were doing or thinking (à la Twitter, sort of negating the point of Twitter, at least as I see it). The more I looked at those comments, the more I thought that we have become a generation of people who are dying for someone to notice that we exist. And we’ve taken that into the most impersonal venue possible, the Internet.

So to say the least, I disagree. There are all kinds of obvious reasons to use such tools as twitter and email that have nothing to do with drawing attention to ones self. Staying in touch with friends or business associates, finding people I have lost contact with over the years, sharing informative information, just to name a few. It is literally impossible to stay connected to all the people in my life through phone calls and handwritten letters, I would be writing and calling all day. But I can shoot my friend an email to see how he's doing since he lives two hours away and I'm at work so I can't call. Don't get me wrong I do not believe these social tools should take the place of human interaction, but human interaction isn't possible all the time. I am a firm believer in a phone call over a text, but text messages serve as a quick way for me to tell someone a bit of information when a phone call isn't possible. I follow someone on twitter and the only information he posts is weather alerts, now tell me he's trying to get attention. An old high school friend found me on myspace the other day and wrote to tell me she had become a christian and was attending a great church, tell me she's trying to get attention. That made my day because I tried witnessing to her many times and it was a joy to know that she had made that decision. Without myspace she may have never found me.

I know some people out there use these tools to try to gain attention for themselves and some even use these tools as a means to avoid human interaction(which could be caused by many different things and it is unfair to just say they are being introverts), but it is completely unfair to group all social networkers together. Some people have genuine motives for using these social tools and I believe Dan is one of those people. The bottom line is that human interaction should come first, but if that isn't possible, these online tools can be of great use.

Read the post. Dan has recently added this post as a follow up to the original. This where I have been leaving comments. Again, I urge you to read these posts so you can see Dan's point of view before you make your own decisions. Then come back and let me know what you think.

Are social networking tools useless and attention seeking or do they have a place in our 21st century world?

Til then,

Adam

John McCain

I wasn't completely sure, until last night, that either of the presidential candidates were actually genuine in what they are offering our country and its citizens. But now I'm sure. Don't get me wrong, I'm not trying to put McCain on a pedastal and exalt him above all others, but for a man to go through what he went through and still have the strength and character to serve his country is beyond me. Most men in his situation would, unfortunately, have broken a long time ago. I'm not trying to persuade you to vote one way or another, but I'm voting for John McCain. For the first time ever, I actually believe that he and Governor Palin could actually bring the change that I've often prayed for for this country. Everyone has faults and he will not be perfect while president, but I do believe he has a genuine agenda for this country that will not lift himself, but instead lift the people of this country. We, as Americans, deserve someone who will stand up for us for a change, someone with experience, someone who suffered and bled for his country, John McCain.

Here are a few quotes from last night's speech:

“I’m very proud to have introduced our next Vice President to the
country. But I can’t wait until I introduce her to Washington. And let
me offer an advance warning to the old, big spending, do nothing, me
first, country second Washington crowd: change is coming.”

“The constant partisan rancor that stops us from solving these problems
isn’t a cause, it’s a symptom. It’s what happens when people go to
Washington to work for themselves and not you.
Again and again, I’ve worked with members of both parties to fix what
needs to be fixed. That’s how I will govern as President. I will reach
out my hand to anyone to help me get this country moving again. I have
that record and the scars to prove it. Senator Obama does not. ”

“I fell in love with my country when I was a prisoner in someone else’s.
I loved it not just for the many comforts of life here. I loved it for
its decency; for its faith in the wisdom, justice and goodness of its
people. I loved it because it was not just a place, but an idea, a
cause worth fighting for. I was never the same again. I wasn’t my own
man anymore. I was my country’s.”

Til then,

Adam

Ch, Ch, Ch, Changes

Joel posted a blog about this article and I thought I would share it also. I, personally, am getting tired of hearing Obama's "changes" speeches. Is there anything he, or anyone, can really do to change our situation. Jobs can be created, taxes cut, blah, blah, blah, but I realized something the other day, our country will forever be in debt. Stop telling me you're going to cut the debt, that goes for Obama and McCain. When the debt reaches the trillions mark, it's pretty much a lost cause, big deal if you cut a billion off here and a million there. Please stop talking about changing things you can't change and focus on the things that you can change.

Idiotic Statement of the Year

The headline reads, "Study links genetics to marital fidelity". You've got to be kidding me. This is potentially the dumbest thing I've ever read. This is one more way America is justifying adultery. That is after all what we are talking about. Men cheating on their wives. I can't believe we have sank so low to blame infidelity on our genes. I guess genes are also the reason we make bad finicial decisions or choose a cheeseburger over a hot dog. Did you catch the key word, decision. These are choice decisions we are talking about. Whether or not you cheat on your wife is a choice you have to make. I'm not a scientist but I'm going to go out on a limb as a christian and say that it has absoulutly nothing to do with your genes. God gave us a very powerful gift called free will. This enables humans to make their own decisions, like we're responsible enough to do that. God did this because he wants us to choose to love and follow Him. If he made us follow Him, which He could, He would be no better than Adolf Hitler or Joseph Stalin. God gave us the ultimate gift when He sacrificed His only son as payment for our screw ups, all we have to do is accept it, it's a choice, our choice. We are sinners in need of forgivness and no matter how many decisions you justify to this world it will never be enough to cover it up or make it go away. There is only one way your sin can be forgiven once and for all and that way is Jesus. Don't be trapped by justification, just make better decisions, I know someone who can help.

Til then,

Adam

Front Row Tickets for Casting Crowns & FDL

Kickbacks and the Least of These

Shaun Groves recently wrote this blog. I'll let you read the question that was posed and his answer. Here's my answer to this person: 34 "Then the King will say to those on his right, 'Come, you who are blessed by my Father; take your inheritance, the kingdom prepared for you since the creation of the world. 35 For I was hungry and you gave me something to eat, I was thirsty and you gave me something to drink, I was a stranger and you invited me in, 36 I needed clothes and you clothed me, I was sick and you looked after me, I was in prison and you came to visit me.' 37 "Then the righteous will answer him, 'Lord, when did we see you hungry and feed you, or thirsty and give you something to drink? 38 When did we see you a stranger and invite you in, or needing clothes and clothe you? 39 When did we see you sick or in prison and go to visit you?' 40 "The King will reply, 'I tell you the truth, whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers of mine, you did for me.' Matthew 25: 34-40. 

A New Team?

While I only got to see the second half of the Alabama/Clemson game, it looks like Alabama football may be on the way back up. I think this team has bought in to Saban's philosophy. I know this will probably not be a phenomenal year, but I do think Tide football is back. I was very impressed with what I saw especially out of our freshman class. I don't think Clemson was as good as the pre-season pole said they were, but it was an impressive win nontheless. This brings me to my question: Do you think pre-season poles are worth the paper they are printed on?

Spirituality and Exercise

Michael Kelly had some good thoughts on the relationship between spirituality and exercise in this post. Exercising is a discipline that goes quickly once you're married and it's completely gone once the children arrive. When do I have time to exercise? Oh well I'll do it tomorrow. Heard that before? I've been saying that for 10 years. Getting older just means you have to work harder. Shouldn't it be the other way around?

Til then,

Adam

Senioritis

I just read this blog by one of my best friends, Erik. I think he has high school seniors pegged. How do you make a high school student understand life after high school. This question has perplexed many teachers for many years. If you figure it out, let me know. In the meantime, enjoy Erik's take on things.

Til then,

Adam

A Letter From Michael Guglielmucci's Father

This letter was read by Michael's father to his congregation describing his son's actions. This is a truly sad situation,but I believe the song "Healer" is more powerful now than it was before, even though it was written out of a lie. Michael did need healing from God, not a physical healing, but a sin healing. I'm sure it will be a long road for Michael. He needs our prayers for healing.

Four Days Late To Open For Casting Crowns

Hello everyone! We have been waiting for some time to make this announcement…We will be playing on September 20 in Dalton, GA at the Northwest Georgia Trade and Convention Center as the opener for Grammy award winning, Casting Crowns. The concert is a benefit for Global Youth Ministry (www.globalyouthministry.org) and will begin at 7:00 pm with doors opening at 6:00. We are so excited about this event and would love for you guys to be there with us. Click the picture below for ticket info! Thanks so much for your support, we hope to see you there!!

On Our Way To KY

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Fischer Michael and Five Guys

Our friends, Bryan and Erin, finally had their first born today.  It was a long, hard road for them because Erin suffers from Type II Diabetes, but mom and baby are doing great.  We went to visit them tonight but were unable to see Fischer because he has had trouble eating so they've had to put a feeding tube in for a while.  Your prayers will be appreciated.

After leaving the hospital (which has a Starbucks in it) we went to eat at a burger joint called Five Guys Burgers and Fries.  This was my first experience at Five Guys and I must say I thoroughly enjoyed it.  By far the best "fast food" burger ever!  You gotta go.

A Father's Love

This man's son ask him to join the Ironman Triathlon with him.  If you're not familiar, the Ironman begins with a 2.4 mile ocean swim, then on to a 112 mile bike ride, then finishes with a marathon (26.2 miles).  Of course the father said yes.  Here's their video.

Julio Jones

Football is right around the corner and this is time when everyone starts talking about how their team is the best and their team has this recruit and their team is going all the way this year. Most of these people are full of it. I am a die hard Crimson Tide fan but I am also a realist. While I want Bama to go undefeated this year, it ain't happening. This is due to the fact that they play in the most competitive conference, the SEC. So while trying to be somewhat objective in my blogging (somewhat meaning I give my opinion after stating the facts) I give you Julio Jones. Yes he is a freshman, no he has never played college football, and he might suck it up real bad, but dude can jump. Check these out.

While we're talking about Alabama football, check out this salary calculator that compares your salary to Nick Saban's salary, pretty funny.

Blog 50

Well I finally made it to my 50th blog. Of course I've posted many more than 50, but my goal was to do 50 in a row on consecutive days. Yea, that didn't happen. I didn't account for vacations, sickness, and just not wanting to blog somedays. I guess the important thing is....oh cinammon rolls, gotta go.

Til then,

Adam

Blog 49: It is Well With My Soul

I love hearing the stories behind why songs were written. What I have found is that a great many songs were written out of tragedy. I was listening to Phil Wickham’s “Sing-a-Long” this morning on the way to work (by the way you can download this album for free here) and noticed that he does a lot of hymns mixed in with his own music. Personally, I like hymns, I grew up singing hymns, then went through a phase where I hated hymns, but now realize how powerful and important they are to Christians. On his album he does the song “It is Well With My Soul”. I’ve sang this song a million times but never took the time to actually read the lyrics or find out why this song was even written. You can learn a lot about a song after hearing the story behind it. This is what I found and what a tragic story it is.

Words: Ho­ra­tio G. Spaf­fford, 1873.

Music: Ville du Havre, Phil­ip P. Bliss, 1876. The tune is named af­ter the ship on which Spaf­ford’s child­ren per­ished, the S.S. Ville de Havre. Iron­ic­al­ly, Bliss him­self died in a tra­gic train wreck short­ly af­ter writ­ing this mu­sic.

This hymn was writ­ten af­ter two ma­jor trau­mas in Spaf­ford’s life. The first was the great Chi­ca­go Fire of Oc­to­ber 1871, which ru­ined him fi­nan­cial­ly (he had been a weal­thy bus­i­ness­man). Short­ly af­ter, while cross­ing the At­lan­tic, all four of Spaf­ford’s daugh­ters died in a col­li­sion with an­o­ther ship. Spaf­ford’s wife Anna sur­vived and sent him the now fa­mous tel­e­gram, “Saved alone.” Sev­er­al weeks lat­er, as Spaf­ford’s own ship passed near the spot where his daugh­ters died, the Ho­ly Spir­it in­spired these words. They speak to the eter­nal hope that all be­liev­ers have, no mat­ter what pain and grief be­fall them on earth.

This is an incredibly strong person to even have the strength to pen these words even if they were spirit led. Here are the lyrics for the entire song.

When peace, like a river, attendeth my way,When sorrows like sea billows roll;Whatever my lot, Thou has taught me to say,It is well, it is well, with my soul.

Refrain
It is well, with my soul,It is well, with my soul,It is well, it is well, with my soul.

Though Satan should buffet, though trials should come,Let this blest assurance control,That Christ has regarded my helpless estate,And hath shed His own blood for my soul.
Refrain

My sin, oh, the bliss of this glorious thought!My sin, not in part but the whole,Is nailed to the cross, and I bear it no more,Praise the Lord, praise the Lord, O my soul!
Refrain

For me, be it Christ, be it Christ hence to live:If Jordan above me shall roll,No pang shall be mine, for in death as in lifeThou wilt whisper Thy peace to my soul.
Refrain

But, Lord, ‘tis for Thee, for Thy coming we wait,The sky, not the grave, is our goal;Oh trump of the angel! Oh voice of the Lord!Blessèd hope, blessèd rest of my soul!
Refrain

And Lord, haste the day when my faith shall be sight,The clouds be rolled back as a scroll;The trump shall resound, and the Lord shall descend,Even so, it is well with my soul.
Refrain

My favorite is the third verse. “My sin, not in part but the whole, is nailed to the cross, and I bear it know more”, man it can’t be said any better than that. This song comes from a healing that could only come from God himself. This is a song about hope and comfort. I’ve heard it said many times, there is nothing you can experience on this earth that God, through Jesus, hasn’t already experienced. It kind of brings a whole new meaning to the term “Wonderful Counselor”.

I hope this gives some new perspective on how to approach a song. Songs come in all shapes and sizes that we may not understand until we find out why the song was even written. Take time to read lyrics and not just mindlessly sing them.

I think I’ll make this a regular thing. So look for more of these “behind the music” type blogs coming soon.

Til then,

Adam

Blog 48: Marshall Amp For Sale

I have a Marshall MG100HDFX head and a MG412 cabinet for sale. They are in great shape. The cabinet has one small tear on it. Includes the power cable, speaker cable and footswitch. Also includes ATA case for the head, valued at $190. All for $600. Leave a comment if you're interested.

Blog 47: Free Downloads

Found this site that has some free downloads, thought I would share.

Blog 46: Healer Writer Faked Terminal Illness

I absolutely can not believe this. I hope this is all a huge mistake and retractions are printed but it's not looking like that's the case. Apparently Pastor Michael Guglielmucci, writer of the song "Healer" which is being made popular by Hillsong, faked having cancer. I guess to promote his song? The video of Michael singing the song with Hillsong, while wearing an oxygen tube, was taken off of youtube last night. This goes to show you that even pastors can be misleading. The bible warns us to be watchful of "false prophets". Be careful. Your trust should lie in God, not people. Please pray for Michael. Also pray that God continues to use this song in powerful ways and that the world doesn't judge Christians based on one person's actions.

Here's the article.

Til then,

Adam

Posted on 18 Aug 2008 at 23:03 UTC

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Blog 45: Must Reads

A must read for student ministers and parents!

A must read for worship leaders!

Blog 44: Dude, Settle Down

Prodigal Jon wrote this blog a while back about guys who play guitar. I was almost offended until I read Shaun Grove's response to Prodigal Jon's blog. Thanks Shaun for standing up for us guitar players.

Artist Who Should Quit

Joel posted this on his blog a few days ago and I thought I would weigh in as well.

This little article was posted on the msn.com music page of 10 artists they think should give it up and stop making music (in no particular order)…my opinion is also included:

1. Madonna - 100% agree
2. The Black Crowes - disagree even though they look like they've seen better days
3. The Who - disagree
4. Ray Davies - I have no idea who this is, so whatever
5. Joni Mitchell - agree
6. Bryan Adams - I'm a fan, but it may be time
7. The Rolling Stones - disagree, keep pumping the botox
8. Elton John - not a fan at all, so it wouldn't hurt my feelings
9. Carly Simon - again not a fan, so I don't care
10. Def Leppard - disagree, there's a small part of me that still digs this style of music

In the spirit of this blog I will pose this question: Should Motley Crue be making a comeback?

Blog 43: August Online Special

Blog 42: Steamboat and Superfly

I found this really cool trivia website called Mental Floss.  In my searches I found a quiz on a topic that is very popular among the FDL crew, wrestling. See if you can guess who these wrestlers are from their action figures.  Check it out here.

Announcements in Church: Good or Bad?

I came across this blog about announcements during a worship service today.  I must say I have never thought about it this way.  I have always been of the opinion that announcements should either be made before the service starts or not at all, but this is a great way to tie in the announcements where they are actually meaningful and not just a waste of breath that no one listens to anyways.  

Jordan from worhsiptrench.com writes:

I am FOR announcements in a worship service! There, I said what very few WL’s would. Some people have suggested we not do them as it isn’t worship. I 100% disagree.

Announcements should be an opportunity for the congregation to carry out what they have heard in a message, the who, what, when, why, how and where of Isaiah’s “Here Am I, Send Me.” Stop thinking of them as announcements and begin thinking of them as “obedience opportunities.” One way to reinforce this is to place most announcements at the end of the service after the message so they better match the Isaiah 6 pattern of response. Hit them with the Word and then give a related obedience opportunity by matching announced opportunities to the sermon as real steps of obedience worshipers can take. For example, if the message was on stewardship, announce the launch of Crown Teams or systematic online giving as the first announcement afterwards. A message communal connection? Announce the launch of new small groups and challenge people to connect. A message on living outside of your comfort zones? A trip to Vietnam to expand your boundaries.

So stop making announcements in your worship services and begin making “obedience opportunities” and you’ll find out you adore announcements, too.

Blog 41: Satellite Radio

Just saw an article about XM and Sirius radio merging.  Wouldn't that be a monopoly on satellite radio?  Read the article here.

Third Day

Here's a good article about Third Day from the AJC.

Blog 40: First Day Back

Today was my first day back at school, it went well, very busy.  I don't think I stopped from 8:30 till 4:00.  The first day back is pretty overwhelming no matter how many times you've done. There's always a ton of forms to fill out and new procedures to learn and of course being OCD as I am I had to clean my room, it still smells a little from last year.  I think it's going to be a good year.  All prayers for a good and safe year will be appreciated.  I guess this means summer is over!

Til then,

Adam

Wal-Mart

Here's Wal-Mart's quest for world domination since 1962.  This map displays the opening of Wal-Mart stores over time.  It's pretty cool.  

Blog 39: Lawnmower Mishap

I have felt like doing this before.

Angry man shoots lawn mower for not starting

Check out the full story here.

Drummers and Athletes

I could definitely see how this is possible. Check out this article that likens a drummer in a rock band to an olympic athlete.

Blog 38: Movie Review Thursday

21 is a must see. I actually read the book this movie was based on several years ago and remember thinking what a great movie it would make and I was right. Kevin Spacey was great as usual. Go rent this one. This is potentially a buyer and definitely a multiple view movie.



Shutter was just okay for me. It was your basic "dead people are haunting me" movie. I was surprised a couple of times, so it wasn't a complete waste. It's a renter and a one view for me.

Blog 37: 40 Day Fast

Our drummer, Joel, is a part of the 40 Day Fast which is 40 people fasting for one day each and on the day of their fast they blog about an area of need in our world. Joel chose to blog about a ministry we had the opportunity to work with a few years ago based in Atlanta, GA called Church on the Streets. He goes into a lot of detail about the ministry on his blog. You can read it here.

Blog 36: Nothing to Say

I usually have something to say about something, but for the last few days I have just had nothing to say. So because of this I have posted no blogs. Nothing has changed, I still have nothing to say at the moment, but I thought I would let you know that I had nothing to say. Eventually I will have something to say again and that will lead to new and awesome blogs, but as it stands right now, I have nothing to say. So to review, I have nothing to say.

Til then,

Adam

New Video

Check out our brand new music video.

Blog 35: What A Day!

So, apparently my son is allergic to cashews.  He had one half of a cashew last night and started swelling up and turning red.  This is probably the most scared I've been since becoming a parent. We rushed him to the hospital where we had to spend the night.  Thank goodness it was just an "outer" reaction so he had no problems breathing.  Needless to say there will be no more nuts of any kind in our home.

On a lighter note, the British Open starts in the morning at 6 am on TNT.  I'm there.

Til then,

Adam

For Worship Leaders

I came across this article by Mike Raiter the other day and I was encouraged that someone put my thoughts into words.  Not that I had anything to do with this article, but at some point or another all worship leaders have looked out into the congregation and realized no one is singing. Why?  I believe there could be a hundred different reasons.  Some of these were addressed by Mr. Raiter in his article, but I would like to add my own.  Most of which are aesthetic, which is very important and I'll explain why.

Let's start with something simple, sound.  Ever been to a concert and when you left you were a little deaf?  How about that concert where you couldn't understand anything the singer was singing?  The sound is important.  The people in the audience need (and sometimes, want) to be led.  If they can't understand you it is hindering them from their worship experience.  If they can't hear you or you are too loud you are being a distraction.  This is why sound checks are important.  This is why experienced sound technicians are important.  It is a big pet peeve of mine to look back in the sound booth and see 5, 6, 7 people crowded around a mixer and all of them doing something different and most of the time they are under the age of 18.  Not that teenagers can't run sound but an experienced sound tech is hard to beat.  The sound tech can kill a moment with one wrong move.  Several times when Robby, our lead singer,  has gone to start a slow worship song with just his acoustic, he begins strumming and nothing, the sound tech didn't unmute the channel.  He can't stop so the acoustic blasts through on top of the vocal ruining the moment.  Before you decide you want to run sound, consider the pressure.  Pay attention to the sound.  If done wrong it can cost someone time with God through their worship.

Along the same lines, the person running the program that projects the words on the screen can be just as distracting.  We travel with a jump drive with our words on it in powerpoint so all we have to do is plug it in.  Also, we have set it up where the person running it only has to hit the forward button and that's it.  For lack of a better phrase, it's dummy proof.  It's only done this way because we understand that while it is important for people to know the words to sing, it can also be distracting if the person running it is behind or goes too fast or gets lost.  I can't leave this topic and not tell this story.  I was sitting in church one Sunday and noticed that the words up on the screen started going crazy.  When I looked back I realized what the problem was.  The person running the powerpoint had a child sitting in her lap.  While she had her head turned talking to one of the teenage sound guys, I hope your getting the idea, the child proceeded to beat the keyboard into submission.  The song was ruined because no one knew the words.  The person running the powerpoint is part of the service, pay attention!

Have you ever been in a worship service where the sound is perfect?  The powerpoint person is doing a great job.  No distractions.  Your hands are raised.  You are focused on God.  You are woshipping.  Then it happens.  "Now we will have announcements" or how about this one, "Now we will take up the offering, will the ushers come forward".  Are you kidding.  Do all of this at the beginning so there are no interruptions during worship and it flows smoothly into the preaching. 

Keep it fresh.  Don't do the same songs every Sunday.  Mix it up.  A good mixture of hymns and, what I will call contemporary worship music(CWM),  is good.  I will also say that while the old CWM songs are good, they are also outdated.  Being vintage isn't always a good thing.  If you lead worship on a weekly basis you have to be constantly learning new songs to keep things new and fresh.  You can't rely on just a few songs, the audience will lose interest and then you've lost your connection.

Get in to what you're doing.  You're leading God's people in songs of worship to Him.  Be happy. Smile.  Move around a little.  Be excited.  You can't expect the audience to clap and get in to if you're not.  Remember they need to be led.

And the last thing I will say is don't forget the Word.  The music is great.  But it is leading to something bigger and better, God's Word.  Allow me to talk about one group for a minute, students.  More and more I see students being lured to church through the promise of video games or inflatable toys or pizza and coke, and once there, that's all there is.  Student ministers have succeeded in getting them there but forgot to give them some substance,  the Word.  What a waste.  We've played shows with 300 youth there and while we are playing they are playing basketball and eating.  300 lives there to minister to and all they did was play basketball and eat.  The word was not even preached.  They were accountable to no one.  Church is not a numbers game!  You might lose some numbers, but there are much greater rewards for offering these students the Word.  Of course this isn't every church and of course there is a place for having fun, but don't forget the Word.

While these "aesthetic" things can be distractions, we as worship leaders can also be distracting, I like how Mr. Raiter closes his article.  He writes:

It's time for congregations to sensitively but firmly rise up and reclaim congregational singing. We must remind song leaders (or, perhaps, teach them in the first place) the purpose of their ministry. Putting a microphone in the hands of someone who can sing no more makes her a song leader than, as the old proverb goes, sticking someone in a garage makes him a car. All the microphone does is make someone a very loud singer. The ministry of the song leader is, surely, to guide and lead the people of God in singing. The role of the song leader is to help us to sing, and they will know if they have fulfilled that ministry when they can hardly be heard because of the praises of the congregation filling the room.

I liken the ministry of song leaders to that of John the Baptist. They must decrease as the people of God increase (John 3:30). When the song begins, we may hear the voices of the leaders and the sounds of the instruments, but by the end of the song, it is the voices of the people of God that should dominate.

But sadly, in most churches, the very opposite is happening: John the Baptist won't leave the stage. John the Baptist has forgotten why he's come. As I travel around visiting churches, I've noticed again and again that, for all their good intentions (and the vast majority are, I believe, well-intentioned), the music teams are killing congregational singing. I know that sounds harsh, but I see it in case after case. I enjoy the sound of an electric piano, the beat of the drums, the rhythm of the guitars, and the backing of the saxes and flutes, but my favourite instrument is the human voice. Nothing lifts my soul like being a part of 50— 100—300 saints in full voice, singing the praises of God and the glories of the gospel. Unfortunately that's a disappointingly rare experience.

PURPOSE

Finally, singing reminds us of our raison d'être. The reason God made us, redeemed us and sanctified us, and the reason he will glorify us is so that we might live to the praise of his glory. That's something we express with our lives, our minds, our wills, our hearts and our voices. Singing is indispensable in expressing that. That's why the New Testament's picture of heaven is not a celestial Bible study or an eschatological morning tea, but a heavenly choir forever lost in wonder, love and praise. I long here and now for more glimpses and foretastes of that. Don't you?

Let me end by saying that I am not an expert by any means.  I have been doing this a while and have seen a lot while on the road.  I want all of God's people to be able to worship without distractions that we can prevent.  That was the purpose of this post.  I would love to know what you think, so be sure to leave a comment.

Til then,

Adam

Blog 34: What?

At first I was a little angry at the stupidity of this particular individual, but after reading the article I find it mildly amusing.  The headline reads:

 Florida Man Trades Right to Name His Baby for $100 Gas Card.

 

Check out the entire article here. 

Good to know!

My question is: "should it have ever been on there to begin with?!"

Dog meat off the menu during Beijing Olympics

Here's the article from the AP courtesy of the AJC.

Manifestations of Humility

Here's the flip side of the previous post.  How do you stack up?

From Conner Marshall's blog:

Again, this is taken from Stuart Scott's booklet From Pride to Humility:

A humble person lives differently than a proud one. How does your life measure up in the area of humility? Here is a sample list to help you evaluate how humble you are.

1. Recognizing and trusting God's character.
2. Seeing yourself as having no right to question or judge an Almighty and Perfect God.
3. Focusing on Christ.
4. Biblical praying and a great deal of it.
5. Being overwhelmed with God's undeserved grace and goodness.
6. Being thankful and grateful in general toward others.
7. Being gentle and patient.
8. Seeing yourself as no better than others.
   
9. Having an accurate view of your gifts and abilities.
10. Being a good listener.
11. Talking about others only if it is good or for their good.
12. Being gladly submissive and obedient to those in authority.
13. Preferring others over yourself.
14. Being thankful for criticism or reproof.
15. Having a teachable spirit.
    
16. Seeking always to build up others.
17. Serving.
18. A quickness in admitting when you are wrong.
19. A quickness in granting and asking for forgiveness.
20. Repenting of sin as a way of life.
21. Minimizing other's sins or shortcomings in comparison to your own.
22. Being genuinely glad for others.
23. Being honest and open about who they are and areas in which they need grown. 
    
24. Possessing close relationships.

Manifestations of Pride

Wow, this was a huge slap in the face for me. I didn't even realize I was doing some of these until I thought about it. Very humbling!

Conner Marshall writes:

I am reading through a booklet that Pastor/Elder Shaan Sloan of Heritage Christian Fellowship gave me a couple years ago by Stuart Scott called From Pride to Humility and thought I would post his list of manifestations of pride--prepare to be humbled (or as my brother Steve says, "Humble yourself or be humbled."):

Complaining against or passing judgment on God.
A lack of gratitude in general.
Anger.
Seeing yourself as better than others.
Having an inflated view of your importance, gifts and abilities.
Being focused on the lack of your gifts and abilities.
Perfectionism.
Talking too much.
Talking too much about yourself.
Seeking independence or control.
Being consumed with what others think.
Being devastated or angered by criticism.
Being unteachable.
Being sarcastic, hurtful, or degrading.
A lack of service.
A lack of compassion.
Being defensive or blame-shifting.
A lack of admitting when you are wrong.
A lack of asking for forgiveness.
A lack of biblical prayer.
Resisting authority or being disrespectful.
Voicing preferences or opinions when not asked.
Minimizing your own sin and shortcomings.
Maximizing others' sin and shortcomings.
Being impatient or irritable with others.
Being jealous or envious.
Using others.
Being deceitful by covering up sins, faults, and mistakes.
Using attention-getting tactics.
Not having close relationships.

When I first read through this list, I was amazed at what I did that was prideful which at the time I thought was so innocent. Scott says that this is a sample list that can clear away the smoke of any self-righteousness.

 
His definition of the mindset of self is also too good not to post.
The mindset of self (a master's mindset rather than that of a servant): a focus on self and the service of self, a pursuit of self-recognition and self-exaltation, and a desire to control and use all things for self.

Blog 33: Very Interesting

I found this video on this blog I read pretty often and thought it was really cool.  Kind of long, but interesting.

Blog 32: Play Day

Thank goodness for indoor playgrounds on hot summer days!

Bart and Lisa Simpson were there today.

Laminin?

This is kind of a long video, but definitely a must see.

Blog 31: Repentance

This is one of the best explanations of repentance I've ever heard. 

Michael Kelley writes:

The word “repent” is a misunderstood one I think. It has a mad, negative connotation toward it. It’s a word that belongs on the sandwich board of the crazy guy on the street corner who threatens the vengeance of God.

We basically interpret it to mean, “Stop.” Whatever that thing is you’re doing, grit your teeth and quit doing it. But that’s not what it means at all, and with that interpretation we miss the love associated with repentance. To repent is to turn, not to stop.

Turning is different than stopping. It’s bigger than stopping. You can stop and still be facing the same direction, sitting motionless. But repenting isn’t just about stopping. It’s not enough to stop. Repentance is about turning, choosing something better than the action you’re doing. It’s about choosing life with Christ over life with anything else. So repentance isn’t about stopping what you’re doing; it’s about valuing Jesus more than what you’re doing. That’s why we turn; not just because old ways are self-destructive, wrong, or immoral; repentance is about how much we value Christ. And how much we believe He’s better than anything else.

In fact, I guess in the right context, any sort of repentance should be Christ-focused; we turn from something to something. That’s why it’s not anger in the voice of God that says “Repent.” It’s love. It’s a voice that says, “You are settling. Don’t you want something better?”

So real repentance requires us to recognize the love of God, but it also requires more faith than will. See, I typically try to repent of something by just deciding not to do it any more. And I try. And then I fail. So I try harder next time. But what I really need to do is exercise the faith it takes to believe that Jesus is actually better than anything else. We choose to believe Jesus is more—that Jesus is better. So we turn. God, grant me the grace to not just turn from something, but turn to something. Let me see the goodness of Christ and believe.

Wow

We can take any mundane activity and turn it into a sport in the US!  Spitting?

Blog 30: I'm Back...Again

Well, my computer is home from the doctor complete with a little green line down the right side of the screen, but it's home nontheless. I must say I enjoyed a couple of weeks with no computer and I will also say that I didn't miss it near as bad as I thought I would, but it's good to be back in the blogoshpere. Not a whole lot happened since I was "offline". Mainly just playing with the kids. Four Days Late played a few shows and as always had a great time. Here's a few pics from the last couple of weeks.  

My son's new Spider Man costume, he hasn't taken it off in 3 days, 4 hours, 33 minutes and 12 seconds. 

My food of choice while on the road with FDL.

This was a mistake. If you weigh over 200 pounds, getting on a tricycle with a 50 pound weight limit is not a good idea.

The little white blur on the left is me out for a jog. The little yellow blur on the right is my son. He's three and ran an entire lap, what!

Blog 29: ?!&@

So due to a recent computer accident that has placed our computer in the shop, I will not be blogging for a few days. I will continue my tweeting, so keep an eye on that.

Till then,

Adam

Blog 28: Miscellaneous

Today was my great grandmother's 98th birthday, so the family went to a little birthday party for her. My wife asked me if I could imagine being 98 and I told her no I can't even imagine being 30 yet. I think my grandmother is going to outlive us all. We left her party and headed down to the hospital where my grandmother (mom's side) was complaining of chest pains, but it turned out that everything is perfect and that she's more healthy than all of us. Did I mention that my dad is grilling filet mignon's as I speak, they smell so good.

Well that was my day. Head over to my tumblr and check out the newest four days late video featuring yours truly. You can listen to me gab about my gear for 9 minutes and learn a few of my tricks. That's all folks.

Til then,

Adam

One Hundred Push-Up Update

I've finally gotten around to starting this and I must say it feels really good and really bad all at the same time. I just finished my initial test and managed to eek out 26, I think I might have gotten a couple more but my wife made me laugh. I'll post an update after the first week.

Til then,

Adam

Blog 27: Humans and Insects

I really like this post on the Stand to Reason Blog I frequent called Too Limited to Know God.  This has been one of the best posts I've read on this blog (but they are all good). This goes to show that people in high positions can be misleading, on purpose or not I don't know. This is why is so important to check what men say against what God says. And sometimes we should just use the common sense and logic that God has blessed us with.

Movie Review Thursday

The Eye was pretty good. It takes a lot to entertain me with a suspenseful, horror type flick anymore since we're in the age of M. Night Shaymalan (I have no idea how to spell his name). But it was alright. It's a renter not a buyer. Probably a one watcher.

27 Dresses was a chick flick. It was pretty good. Renter not a buyer. One watcher.

AFI's Top Ten Genre Movie List

Let me just say 90% of this list is no good, it's no good, it's just not good, but here it is.

Blog 26: Parenting Tips

I came across a blog called Buzzard Blog today and found this blog reviewing Tedd Tripp's book, Sheparding a Child's Heart. Taylor Buzzard wrote about the top ten points he took from this book. I'm going to have to read the whole book now, but here are his 10 points.