Michigan Football Redux

I wrote about the Big 10 needing a strong Michigan Football Team back in 2010. I still think that is a necessity.

Finally one of the Major networks has come to the same conclusion.

Below are the links to my post and the link to the ESPN post by Adam Rittenberg.

 

Go Blue! – 9/25/10

https://www.blogger.com/blogger.g?blogID=6567044349123011145#editor/target=post;postID=7894826995862863062;onPublishedMenu=posts;onClosedMenu=posts;postNum=2;src=postname

 

Paging U-M: Big Ten needs you! - 8/22/14

http://espn.go.com/college-football/story/_/id/11386760/big-ten-needs-michigan-wolverines-now-more-ever

 

Church Accountability

Accountability is as necessary in the church world as it is in the business world. Especially so in the area of finances because the church attenders tend to have more trust in the church staff even though they do not receive regular reports detailing the finances and spending of donated funds by the staff.

The following piece by Dan Busby, president of the Evangelical Council for Financial Accountability, calls out areas that need to be looked at in all churches.

I think in many cases there are non-financial (behavioral) signs or actions that are precursors to financial problems.  

Read this piece and think about how your church would handle these things.

Three Questions to Ask About Your Church's Financial Management

http://www.churchlawandtax.com/web/2014/july/three-questions-to-ask-about-your-churchs-financial-managem.html

 

 

5 Things to Remember When It Comes to Church Size

Making growth (or big) synonymous with good is a recipe for disaster because it prevents good from being a higher value than growth. 

Imagine if you gauged the goodness of your family on numbers – number of family members or size of bank account or some other metric.

The same is true for a church – numbers are second and third level concerns, not primary goals with inherent goodness.

5 Things to Remember When It Comes to Church Size

By Chad Hall | Culture, Featured, Ministry, Relationship

 

I have had the privilege to serve as a coach to pastors for over 15 years, and I’ve noticed that it does not take long in the coaching relationship for the topic of church size to come up. I’ve also noticed that some pastors approach church growth with health and wholeness while others struggle with (and because of) church size.  If you are a pastor, church planter, or key leader, you need a healthy and theologically sound attitude for dealing with church growth, size, and numbers.  To help you develop such an attitude, here are five things to recognize when it comes to church size.

1. Growth is not the only good.  Some church leaders lack a biblical imagination that would allow them to envision a purpose for their church other than growth.  Making growth (or big) synonymous with good is a recipe for disaster because it prevents good from being a higher value than growth.  Granted, big and good are not opposites, but there is much more about being a good church than being big.   Imagine if you gauged the goodness of your family on numbers – number of family members or size of bank account or some other metric.  That would be silly and very unhealthy.  Certainly there are numbers you need to look at in order to help your family thrive, but the numbers are not your goal.  The same is true for a church – numbers are second and third level concerns, not primary goals with inherent goodness.
2. Evangelism may be a mask for egoism.  There are many poor reasons to focus on church growth (ego, consumerism, competition, greed, etc.) and only one good reason to give any attention at all to growth: evangelism.  The sad fact is that some pastors use evangelism as a cover for what is really nothing more than an ego trip – they say they care about souls saved, while in reality they want the church to grow in order to satisfy their own sense of worth.  To be fair, I think the ego-driven needs of pastors are often beneath the surface so that the pastor is not fully cognizant of why exactly they want the church to grow, and sometimes the motives are mixed.  So be sure to reflect very deeply and very often on what is driving you to want church growth.  To help explore your deepest motivations, you might ask yourself, “If God capped the size of our church at where we are now, how would I practice evangelism?”
3. Pegging your sense of worth to attendance will drive you nuts. Pastors who get up when numbers are up also get down when the numbers drop.  If you feel more worthy, more loved, more hopeful, and just generally better about yourself and the world when the sanctuary is full, then watch out.  Watch out because when the sanctuary is not so full you likely will feel down, pessimistic, less hopeful, and generally worse about yourself and life.  If you let numbers dictate your mood, you will be on an emotional roller coaster that makes a teenage girl look like a stoic.  Numbers are a terrible thermometer, but an even worse thermostat.
4. Growth solves nothing.  If you think growth will solve some challenge your church is facing, you are wrong.  A leader who thinks that more people, more resources (money!), or more of anything will solve some problem they currently face is interpreting life through something other than a biblical lens.  Growth is not the solution, the gospel is.  If you think growth will solve your challenges, you are likely focusing on the wrong goals and/or you have a very poor strategy for being a church.  There is no biblical evidence for needing more people in order to meet a congregational challenge.
5. The litmus test for truth is not growth.  I cannot tell you how many times (it’s a lot) I’ve heard a pastor respond to a questionable church practice with something along the lines of, “Yeah, but they must be doing something right.”  If we are not diligent, there is a subtle pragmatism that can seep into our ministry, leading us to do only that which works and discarding anything that does not work.  The problem is that “works” is shorthand for “works to grow the church.”  You could very likely come up with a long list of very bad things that will “work” to increase attendance so my encouragement is to cease using “does it work?” as a way to discern whether a style, strategy, practice or person is of God.  By the way, the flip side is equally true: growth is not evidence of heresy.   Evidence for heresy is heresy; evidence for truth is truth.  If you’re in doubt about these, study the Bible, pray, and read some church history.

My experience with wise church leaders is that they reluctantly embrace growth when it comes, but they do not chase it, they do not fixate on it, and they do not use it as an indicator of anything in any short-term way.  They do look at long-term trends to help identify obstacles to effective ministry, and they certainly celebrate the stories of people who experience gospel-centered transformation.  For the most part, wise church leaders focus on actual people and celebrate names way more than numbers.
What about you?  What have you learned about a healthy approach to church growth, numbers, and church size?  Where have you seen it handled well?  Not so well?


About Chad Hall
Chad Hall is the Director of Coaching for Western Seminary and also serves as a leadership coach for ministry and corporate clients through his role as Partner with Coach Approach Ministries and iNTERNAL iMPACT.


http://www.westernseminary.edu/transformedblog/2014/01/28/5-things-to-remember-when-it-comes-to-church-size/

Let’s play pretend some more!

Here’s a story I thought you should know about. This isn’t a story that the US Press Corps will report on so you should be thankful that this story has come to light.

 

It occurred in Vladimir Putin’s office in the Kremlin in Moscow. The Kremlin, an important location in Russia, is similar to the US White House. The Kremlin is ominous looking and is a symbol of Russian strength and power.

 

Vladimir Putin is the current President of Russia for a second time. He has previously been the President of Russia and has also been the Prime Minister of Russia. Putin has ties to the former KGB, the Russian equivalent of the US CIA.

 

He is responsible for declaring war on the Ukraine, a country that has significant energy reserves, and just recently sending Russian troops into the Ukraine, a former Soviet controlled satellite country. This is significant because after World War II Russia sent troops into many European countries and took control of those countries and ruled each with an iron hand.

 

So the idea of the Russians sending troops into someone’s sovereign and independent country to occupy or control it is not new and is not something to be happy about. It’s done because a country isn’t cooperating with the Russian desires.

 

**********************

 

Imagine we are walking by Putin’s office. Maybe we are on a tour. Tension is in the air because Russia has declared war against the Ukraine and also sent troops into the Ukraine. The Ukrainian people aren’t cooperating and playing nice in the sand box. The Pro Russian Ukrainian President was chased from office by the Ukrainian people who prefer to associate with the European Union, an economic and political union of 28 member states that aren’t interested in invading the Ukraine.  

 

But back to Vlad.

 

Putin is on the phone. He is laughing with great zest and enthusiasm. Perhaps he has had some Russian Vodka. Maybe a few too many drinks. He is pacing back and forth. He is excited and very animated. His deeply Russian voice is rising with excitement.

 

We aren’t sure what is going on so we try to get a little closer so we can better hear the commentary and we hear the following

 

Vlad is saying: ‘Barack! You are such a kidder. I have so much fun when we play pretend and when we talk.’

 

‘You drew a line in the sand over Syria and said we shouldn’t cross it. Well when I crossed it you acted like you never said it and you just erased the line and drew another line in the sand closer to you. And you didn’t do anything again. I just love it when you tease me like that.’

 

We hear Vlad laughing more.

 

‘And we sent a Russian warship to Cuba last week and I don’t think you said anything. But your government issued a really weak statement that didn’t challenge or question us.’

 

More laughter.

 

‘Then you just said we shouldn’t do anything in the Ukraine. In fact it was so much fun because you acted like you really meant it this time and you seemed so sure of yourself you didn’t even go to a high level meeting in Washington that was called to discuss how the US should react to our move. It was like passing when it was your move in a chess game. I love it when you pretend so well.’

 

‘Especially when the US Press acts like nothing is going on and they go along with this stuff that you don’t do. How did you train or coerce them so well. I could use some pointers on how to get the press and the populace to be so complacent that they never question or challenge me.’

 

More deep, belly laughs with a few snorts.

 

‘Oh Barack this is so much fun. Let’s play some more!’

 

‘Oh and by the way. Don’t send that stiff John Kerry back over here. He doesn’t have any sense of humor.’

 

‘I can’t wait to see what you do after my next move. Let’s keep in touch.’

 

‘Next time we get together for lunch or for one of those big expensive State Dinners I’ll bring Hassan Rouhani, the President of Iran. You remember him don’t you? He also likes the way you like to play pretend. No he isn’t going to send nukes into Israel. You have to stop listening to those extremist conservatives.

 

Trust Me!’ Lots more laughter after this statement.

 

That's All You Got?

Hey guys a women’s magazine presumes to know what things that shouldn’t be said to men and may tick them off. Joe Queenan, an American journalist, critic and essayist, who wrote a piece on this has some interesting observations. Make sure to read the last few paragraphs where he does identify things you shouldn’t say to a man. FYI, vig, in the last paragraph, has to do with betting if you didn’t know.

I have excerpted a small portion below:

Redbook, for whatever reason, is feeding impressionable young women totally false information about the male psyche. No man I know would go ballistic just because a woman said, "Your tummy is so cute." Nor would he lose it if she said, "Well, you are a bit on the chubby side." Or even "My, aren't you the chunky little butterball!"

See the whole piece at the site below.

Words Assured to Tick Off Any Man
http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052702304176904579111343745543778.html

We all have a part to play

My thoughts on a blog post by Pete Scazzero

Thinking Evangelicalism has the answers to societal problems is the problem. If we taught more people to be disciples and read the Bible there would be more strong and dedicated Christians. We're in a losing battle until the end but we should be doing what Christ told us to do as long as we are on earth - make disciples, baptize them and teach them to obey what Christ commanded (my abbreviated interpretation of Matthew 28:19-20). Anything less makes weak Christians subject to worldly temptations and ineffectiveness for Christ.

*********************

Scazzero was responding to a question uttered by Gordon MacDonald during a recent leadership meeting at New Life. –‘Is Evangelicalism Exhausted?’ It has caused me to wonder also: “Might it be true

Scazzero stated that MacDonald noted three things:

1. Society is unraveling and evangelicalism has few answers.
2. Research studies, like Reveal, seem to confirm that mega-churches do no grow deep Christians. Those who do go “deeper” with Christ often leave.
3. 80% of the quotes in evangelical books are from outside our tradition, i.e. from Roman Catholics and the Orthodox believers.

See Scazzero’s blog for the remainder of his post

http://www.petescazzero.com/discipleshipformation/is-evangelicalism-exhausted/

 

 

Confident Assurance

Joyce Meyer, who is one of the world’s leading practical Bible teachers, according to her book, and author of almost 100 books, is writing about the topic of indecision in the section titled ‘The Misery of Indecision’ in chapter 3 of her book ‘Making Good Habits, Breaking Bad Habits’.

I found the section in italics that is pasted at the very bottom of this piece interesting and I pulled out some of the key points and show them immediately below. These are things that God is teaching us in the book of James.

·         We should ask God for what we need, wisdom for example

·         Ask in faith with no wavering

·         If we waver in our faith we don’t get what we ask from God

·         The indecisive person will be miserable, confused and unable to get God’s help

·         We should approach God in faith and be ready to take action

·         God may not provide direction so he is giving us the freedom to make our own choice

The ideas of faith, decisiveness and confidence were reinforced for me this past weekend. A number of us attended a fund raiser held at a church my wife and I previously attended and was held for a local ministry. The pastor of the church who is now 20 years older than when we attended did not speak until the end of the program when he offered the closing prayer.

This pastor’s heart for people, which has always been visible, was in evidence when I heard him pray at the end of the program and ask for God’s blessing on the ministry, the people aided by the ministry and the supporters and volunteers. I was struck by his calmness and confidence that God would answer his prayer. It was reassuring and comforting. It is evident that he serves God and depends on God to bless his church and this ministry.

I have learned much about being a Christ follower from those whose words match their actions, like this pastor, and especially when those words are Biblically inspired and used to glorify God.

If you haven’t yet, then learn to learn from those who have a strong personal relationship with God and are committed to helping and teaching you and others as well as building God’s kingdom. They model what Christ modeled and that is what we should do.

Excerpt from the book

‘The apostle James, being directed by the Holy Spirit, teaches that if we need wisdom we are to ask for it, and God will give it. Only it must be in faith that we ask with no wavering (no hesitating, no doubting). If we do waver, hesitate or doubt we become unstable and unreliable in all of our ways and we are unable to receive from the Lord anything we ask for (James 1:5-8). These Scriptures make the position of the indecisive person quite clear. He is going to be miserable, confused, and unable to get help from God. We must approach God in faith, ready to take action when we have assurance in our heart of some direction. If after prayer and waiting we still feel that we have no direction, then it may mean that God is simply giving us the freedom to make our own choice’.

 

It's Alabama all the way

The big NCAA football game today is Alabama at Texas A & M at least based on the media blitz. Don't forget that the media's job is to create the hype that gets you to pay attention and buy into it so you will watch the game.

A&M beat Alabama last year in a kind of coming out event for Johnny Football Manziel who went on to win the Heisman Trophy.

You may be caught up in all this but I think that Alabama was surprised last year by A&M and I don't think it is going to happen this year.

I don't know what the score will be but I don't think Johnny Football will be as successful this year because Nick Saban and Alabama have had the whole off season to prepare.

Take Alabama.

Pompous is as Pompous does

I borrowed this style from the movie character Forrest Gump (played by Tom Hanks) who popularized the phrase ‘stupid is as stupid does’ in the movie of the same name, Forrest Gump.

I think the first time I heard the phrase ‘pompous ass’ used was when I was in high school. If so, it was in freshmen English class when we were reading something by Shakespeare. Not my favorite author by any means. I have no idea who Shakespeare was calling a pompous ass nor do I care but I know that I got the meaning of that phrase.

In fact most of the stuff we read or attempted to read that year was not my favorite and was not of interest to me at all. Until I and some others who were in the same position heard the phrase ‘pompous ass’ we were bored. When we heard the words we looked at each other and smiled and realized that Willie S was an ok guy even if we couldn’t understand anything else he wrote.

You might wonder why I bring up pompous ass now.

If you have been following the situation in Syria I think President Obama is putting himself in the position of being a pompous ass.

Originally I think he believed he had the upper hand in Syria regarding chemical weapons and decided to go to Congress for support to attack. His motivation, I believe, was to stick it to the Republicans by requesting Congress to take a vote. He was cruising to what, in his mind, was another victory and he wasn’t going to let the Republicans or the rest of us forget it.

He even sent Secretary of State John Kerry to try to drum up some support (which turned out to be potentially limited) from other countries, mainly our allies, even though the majority weren’t interested in assisting the US in an attack on one side or the other or both. I’m still not sure which it is?

Ultimately Vladimir Putin, Russian President, played Obama by offering a way out for Obama but by keeping Syrian President Assad in power and not allowing the US to do anything in Syria. But hundreds and thousands of Syrians continue to die daily on each side whether by conventional or chemical weapons.

The results to this point: no changes in Syria (Assad is still in power and Islamists are still fighting on the other side and one or both sides have chemical weapons) and the reputation and credibility of both the US and Obama have been reduced drastically. How about Putin and Russia? Their image and credibility have been greatly enhanced and their effectiveness in the entire Middle East has been and will be significantly improved if Obama and the US don’t get their act together.

I don’t know about you but I grew up during the period called the ‘cold war’ and there was an amount of insecurity to life every day during that time. We weren’t sure if we were on track to go to war with Russia (Russia at that time was much larger and stronger than today as it had taken over many Eastern European countries after World War II and was referred to as the USSR) or if we would be attacked or whether we would live another day. In school we even used to have air raid drills where we would hide under our desks or go down to basement hallway thinking we would be protected in the event of a conventional or nuclear attack.

I haven’t had those feelings of insecurity in a long time. But I have them now. With Obama at the helm and his lack of leadership and resolve I do wonder much more about what is going to happen.

A weak leader puts his nation and his people at significant risk. Obama’s pomposity, thinking he is smarter than all of us and can talk his way out of this, puts us all in jeopardy.
 

For more see: Obama Is Lost in the Mideast Bazaar, by Fouad Ajami

Mr. Ajami, a senior fellow at Stanford's Hoover Institution, is the author, most recently, of "The Syrian Rebellion" (Hoover Press, 2012).

http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424127887324549004579070802007714622.html

 

 

 

Men’s LEADERSHIP TRAINING (in the Philadelphia, PA Area)

‘No Man Left Behind’

Trainer David Delk

David Delk is President of Man in the Mirror and

Co-Author of the book No Man Left Behind

Oct 18, 2013 -Oct 19, 2013

Biblical Seminary - Greater Philadelphia North , 200 N. Main St., Hatfield, PA 19440 (US)

Details for this session

http://www.maninthemirror.org/event/125/nmlb-essentials-greater-philadelphia-north-area

To see Brochure

http://www.maninthemirror.org/images/ltc/Greater%20Philadelphia%20North%20NMLBE%20Flyer.pdf

 More info on Man in the Mirror

http://www.maninthemirror.org/ministry-overview/

 

 

Faking Injuries

One current problem in the National Football League is faking of injuries by a player or players on the defensive team to slow down play by an offensive team that has momentum and is driving for a score.

One way to deal with this is to require the injured player to sit out at least the remainder of the current series or the current series plus an additional series and possibly until the opposing team scores or the ball changes hands. If the player is truly hurt this is in the player's best interest. If the player is not hurt then the team and the player are both being penalized for faking injuries.

The 'injured' player could be placed in an area on the sidelines to receive treatment similar to a penalty box in hockey.The replay official or someone else in the replay box can keep track of the participation by the 'injured' player whether he is in a specified area or not. Not a lot of work will be required to track this..

Here are some other options (the fine has to be significant - maybe the player's salary for a game or $250K as an example):
Fine the team owner for every injury, and/ or
Fine the team head coach for every injury, and / or
Fine the individual player for every injury
Or something similar

If the player can't return to the game, assuming the 'injury' doesn't occur near the end of the game, or misses the following game then the fine is refunded.

One thing that will become clear quickly is that the team won't want to fake injuries because it is making it easier for the other team to score and possibly win the game plus it can get expensive. Thus the team faking the injuries may be eliminated from playoff contention and lose additional monies.

Complicated? Yea, maybe a little bit. But the coaches and players are forcing the league to do something to deal with this situation. If you don't like that something will have to be done then blame the coaches and or the players and pressure them to stop it now.

The league should immediately develop a plan with penalties and fines and implement it quickly. It appears that more teams are moving to speedier play and as a result there will be more injuries both legitimate and fake.

Mr. Obama, You’re No George Washington!

After reading an opinion piece in the September 7, 2013, Wall Street Journal by Peggy Noonan I thought that a particular portion of that piece, that I have pasted below, should be titled ‘Mr. Obama you’re no George Washington’.

This idea is adapted from the 1968 Vice Presidential debate where Democratic candidate Senator Lloyd Bentsen said to the Republican challenger, Senator Dan Quayle, ‘…I knew Jack Kennedy (35^th US President) and Senator, you're no Jack Kennedy’.

Obviously I didn’t know General Washington but I do know President Obama through his speeches, press conferences and various press reports and I am comfortable stating that President Obama is no General Washington - Unfortunately not only for America but also for the world.

Obama is proving that he is not a strong leader; neither strong in character nor strong in conviction. What makes him most scary is his poor judgment and lack of experience. He is like a five year old playing with a loaded gun. It may be interesting and kind of cool to handle it because you have seen the big boys play with it but you don’t know what to do with it and there is a good chance that that gun will fire and someone will get hurt or killed and many lives will be harmed.

Take the time to go to the piece and read the entire article.

********************

‘Finally, this president showed determination and guts in getting Osama bin Laden. But a Syria strike may become full-scale war. Is Barack Obama a war president? On Syria he has done nothing to inspire confidence. Up to the moment of decision, and even past it, he has seemed ambivalent, confused, unaware of the implications of his words and stands. From the "red line" comment to the "shot across the bow," from the White House leaks about the nature and limits of a planned strike to the president's recent, desperate inclusion of Congress, he has seemed consistently over his head. I have been thinking of the iconic image of American military leadership, Emanuel Leutze's painting "Washington Crossing the Delaware." There Washington stands, sturdy and resolute, looking toward the enemy on the opposite shore. If you imagine Mr. Obama in that moment he is turned, gesturing toward those in the back. "It's not my fault we're in this boat!" That's what "I didn't set a red line" and "My credibility is not at stake" sounded like.’

*******************

Noonan: Why America Is Saying 'No'

Syria and Obama: Wrong time, wrong place, wrong plan, wrong man.

http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424127887324577304579057420154706690.html?KEYWORDS=peggy+noonan

 

Basics, Basics, Basics

Life is all about the basics and this story below related by Dr Benjamin Carson shows that by learning the basics as soon as or as early as you can will make a big a difference in your life. Even if you didn’t learn the basics as early as Dr Carson did you still can benefit from learning and implementing the basics in your life. Why wait longer? Get started now.

And most importantly help your children learn and implement the basics.

***********************

‘One of the steps Carson’s mother took was regularly taking her children to the library, having recognized that people who read a lot “had the ability to change the direction of their lives,” Carson said.

In Carson’s estimation, the importance of knowledge and education cannot be underestimated both in terms of preserving our liberties, and as a factor in shaping the course of one’s life.

The average person lives to be about 80 years old, he said, and they can either spend the first 20-25 years of it preparing, or choosing not to.

“If you prepare yourself, you have sixty years to reap the benefits.  If you fail to prepare yourself, you have sixty years to suffer the consequences,” he said.  “You get to make that choice. Each person gets to make that choice, how they want to program that incredible computer, the brain that God gave us.”’

Dr. Benjamin Carson Reveals Unexpected Childhood Hobby That Helped Lift Him Out of Poverty

http://www.theblaze.com/stories/2013/09/04/dr-benjamin-carson-reveals-unexpected-childhood-hobby-that-helped-lift-him-out-of-poverty/

Really, you're offended by someone being called a clown

Some people really don't believe in truly free speech.

Either speech is absolutely free or it is relatively or conditionally free. When it is the latter then that means it is being controlled or limited by those with the most power or the loudest voices even though they may not be the majority.

Those whose speech is deemed offensive by a subjective standard or a group's feelings are losing their rights to express themselves.

What this says is that some one's rights are greater than another's rights. In this case the rights of the offended are more important than the rights of the one who says something offensive.

For us to believe in absolutely free speech we must be willing to tolerate whatever people say or do that expresses their beliefs no matter how offensive or stupid it may be.

I don't agree with what the rodeo clown said or did in the attached piece and video but I believe he has the right to say it without repercussions.

If President Obama doesn't come out and call off his minions who are so critical of the clown's words and actions it is just one more action or lack of that shows that he is more interested in controlling America's citizens than enforcing the rights guaranteed to US Citizens.

I am more offended by the overwhelming amount of vulgar language used in movies and on television. But I guess I have to accept that because those who are offended by someone calling someone a clown don't think multiple usage of the F-bomb in a movie is offensive.

See in the attached piece by Byron York an explanation of the situation that caused this uproar and references to much worse treatment of other US Presidents. Maybe you could say that they just don't make Presidents the way they use to.

http://washingtonexaminer.com/in-partial-defense-of-the-missouri-rodeo-clown/article/2534213

Derek Jeter, the Captain –A leader by example

Derek Jeter homers on first pitch after returning from injury

Shortstop jump-starts struggling Yankees offense in return to lineup

http://ftw.usatoday.com/2013/07/derek-jeter-homers-on-first-pitch-after-returning-from-injury-obviously/

Say It Like a Pro

'Say Sorry Like a Pro!'

http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424127887324110404578626222863321106.html

'By now you have probably read and laughed over Ryan Braun's halting 130-word statement-slash-apology to baseball, which was so comically awkward and tin-eared it appears to have been written by a robot stoned on allergy medication.'

**************************

The points identified in this WSJ piece are also used by politicians and other high ranking officials in government, religious institutions, labor unions, non profits and corporations when they try to distance themselves from a crisis or embarrassing situation.

Yankees’ Rivera Spends His Goodbye Tour Saying Hello

Yankees’ Rivera Spends His Goodbye Tour Saying Hello

http://www.nytimes.com/2013/07/16/sports/baseball/yankees-rivera-spends-his-goodbye-tour-saying-hello.html?_r=0

 After announcing in spring training that he would retire at the end of this season, his 19th with the Yankees, the 43-year-old Rivera has embarked on an unusual tour of American League cities, meeting with ordinary, behind-the-scenes workers and some fans, who drive the machinery of baseball.

With all their money and success, the Yankees may be the most widely disliked team in baseball. A rival executive once branded them the Evil Empire, and few people came to their defense. But in stadium conference rooms and offices, Rivera thanks rival fans, charms them, regales them, awes them. And he turns many Yankees haters into admirers.

Matheny aspires to change the culture of youth sports

Mike Matheny, former professional baseball player and the current manager of the St. Louis Cardinals.^[1] He played in Major League Baseball as a catcher for four different teams during his thirteen-year playing career

Mike aspires to change the culture of youth sports to provide the greatest impact to kids, their character and their communities.

See Mike's thoughts at:

http://mikematheny.com/

The 140 Second Interview

Q&A: 140 Seconds With Pizza Hut on Its 140-Second Job Interview

By Venessa Wong on March 07, 2013 – Bloomberg Business Week

You’d best talk fast. Pizza Hut is holding job interviews this Sunday at the Hilton in Austin and online on March 14 (via Google (GOOG) Plus), and it’s giving each candidate only 140 seconds. The position: manager of digital media based out of Plano, Tex. In addition to preparing your spiel, be prepared to show them everything on your phone.

How much can you really learn about a job candidate in 140 seconds? A lot, Pizza Hut (YUM) claims. To test the theory, we sat down for 140 seconds with Caroline Masullo, Pizza Hut’s director of digital and social media and the person who will be conducting the interviews.

Explain the thinking behind the 140-second interview.
It literally ties to the way people communicate on Twitter today. We need this person to be super knowledgeable in the social space. They need to be able to communicate with our consumers in fun, quick, concise ways. They need to be relevant, and they need to be on the cutting edge of the social space and keep us at the forefront. In terms of that short an amount of time, we need someone who knows who they are, what they are looking for, someone who’s super passionate, quick on their feet, able to communicate clearly in a short amount of time.

Will you show more mercy if they run over time than, say, the Academy Awards?
If I love them, absolutely.

So no band ushering them away.
We talked about having an air horn or something. If they are amazing, we want to hear what they have to say, but at the same time, we want to hear as many people as we can. The other benefit of giving people 140 seconds is we’ll be able to talk to tons of people within that 1:00 to 5:00 p.m. time frame.

Have you been practicing? Are you talking faster?
Yeah. I spend a lot of time in the social space, so I would say, you know, we’re pretty good at it as a brand. We already have a good presence on Facebook and Twitter and Instagram, so this is a space we’re familiar with.

But you’re not looking for a glimpse into the hearts and souls of these candidates.
No. Ultimately it’s like an elevator [pitch]. Tell me in 140 seconds why you think you should be the next manager of ….

Oh! Sorry, we’re at 140 seconds. Thank you for your time.

Wong is an associate editor for Bloomberg Businessweek.

Make the effort

Knowing Jesus and living like Jesus requires more effort on our part than just attending a weekly church service and or a weekly group session. And weekly volunteering doesn’t do it. As Jesus explains in the scripture below, that Pat Morley uses in his book, reading and learning the Bible help us to know the power of God.  

In the next section of the book Morley explains that ‘You can be transformed. God will change your life one verse at a time’. It’s all a result of reading the Bible. Find someone to help you if you need some help or guidance.

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Excerpt from the book ‘Man Alive’ by Patrick Morley

Section titled ‘What’s going on? - pages 10 - 12

Jesus gave us a picture of both the problem and the solution (to a question asked in the previous section. The question is: ‘What do men who lead powerful, transformed lives do differently than their lukewarm counterparts?) in His well-known parable of the four soils. A sower went out and scattered the seed of God’s Word on four kinds of soil: the hard path, the rocky soil, the thorny ground and the good soil.

Most men today would recognize themselves in the first three soils where the seeds don’t grow. Yet they honestly want to be like the good soil where the fourth seed fell – to be men “who truly hear and understand God’s word and produce a harvest of thirty, sixty or even a hundred times as much as had been planted” (Matthew 13:23).

What is keeping men’s lives hard, rocky and choked with thorns when so many urgently want more and when God created us for more – much more?

And, positively, what do men who lead powerful, “a hundred times” lives do differently than their mediocre counterparts? Jesus gave us an insight when He was speaking to a group of confused religious men. He said,

‘Your mistake is that you don’t know the Scriptures, and

you don’t know the power of God.’ (Matthew 22:29)

Do you see it? Jesus made a direct connection between knowing the Bible and leading a powerful life. Lukewarm men are in error because they ‘don’t know the scriptures’ and therefore ‘don’t know the power of God’. Their capabilities don’t equal their intensions. Without the right training, their soil remains bare, stony and full of weeds. And as you’ll soon see, by ‘know the Scriptures’, Jesus was talking about a lot more than mere head knowledge.

On the other hand, transformed men ‘truly hear and understand God’s word and produce a harvest’. Digging into the Word of God is easily the number one factor that differentiates men who have tapped into God’s power.