Top 10's of 2011 - Music Releases

Regardless if they were released in 2011 or not, i got em in 2011

U2 - Duals
Some stuff you have hear of, most you havent but all the songs are with U2 and someone else.  My fave is Where the Streets Have No Name/Amazing Grace (U2 and the Soweto Gospel Choir) and I've always loved Miss Sarajevo (Passengers and Luciano Pavarotti).


Asteroid Galaxy Tour - Fruit
I first heard this band on a Heineken commercial then on an indie compilation.  Once I got the music I was hooked.  Good, different and worthy of multiple listens.  Fruit was originally released in 2009 but I guess the underground from Denmark to Dallas took awhile.  Indie bands, sheesh.


Portugal the Man - In the Mountain in the Cloud 
Heard them in the background many times and never paid much attention til my friend Scott Sorgea sent me a link to "So American".  I still cant get enough.


Adele - 21
Cant say enough so I'll say little.  If you actually have been under a rock, get this recording.


Civil Wars - Barton Hallow
Simple, whiny, beautiful.  So melodic and harmonic and did I say whiny.  I guess I like that.


Mumford & Sons - Sigh no More
Thank Justin La Fond for the recommendation.  Part folk, part Irish sounding (although they are another Danish band) and part psychedelic cool (but more folk harmonies and feel good toe stamps than anything else).

Evanescence - Evanescence

The fourth release in twice as many years is saying were here for a while.  I loved them in 2003 and thought their cool goth/rock/power vocal with a pinch of bubble-gum might grow tired but I was wrong.  I bit more maturity here but the same old Evanescence.

Beatles - Abbey Road
Stop making fun.  I know this was released in 1969, I just got it.  Been loving it for years and just came to the party.  I want you is still so creepy and cool.

Mutemath - Odd Soul
Thanks again Justin.  From a city know for everything rock, good old NOLA rock never sounded so good.

Florence and the Machine - Ceremonials

I'm intrigued with FATM but also uneasy.  More vocals than I like but the music makes up for it.

Bamboo Farming, the Saw and the Goal

Its a hodgepodge post but stay with me, they all fit together.


I've recently become a bamboo farming theoretician.  Not really, what I mean is, I've been doing some research on the growth of bamboo plants and trying to pull some stories or applications from that.  Its actually pretty interesting stuff.  At the same time I've been asked to write an article about how to best use the 7th Habit (See Stephen Covey's great book) all while pondering my New Years goals, new starts and all the other stuff that one thinks about around this time of the year.


BAMBOO
Bamboo is one of the fastest growing plants on the planet.  It is very sustainable, has a myriad of uses and is relatively easy to grow.  Bamboo can grow two or three feet in a day with the right circumstances (but usually 12-14 in a normal growing cycle).  Here is where things get more interesting.  It if very difficult to harvest and plant bamboo seeds because bamboo rarely flowers (when a plant releases seeds) and when it does it is irregular and if/when it does, they seeds are difficult to harvest.  Here is what i'm intrigued by; sometimes some varieties of bamboo seeds take a long time to germinate; some take a couple of months, others a year or two.  When the bamboo seed does finally push through the ground and when the roots system is ready it can rapidly grow.  During the time the seed is growing its root system UNDERGROUND is getting ready for rapid growth ABOVE GROUND. 


SEVEN HABITS
The Seven Habits of Highly Effective People is a must read book.  It deals with values, life, productivity, purpose and success (among many other things).  The book develops 6 habits (the list) and the 7th is making sure the other 6 stay healthy and in balance.  Those 6 habits are divided into two categories; PRIVATE VICTORY and PUBLIC VICTORY.


NEW YEARS GOALS
Each year I plan out my New Years Goals. I see my goals as elements for growth; a flower needs sun, etc.  For some time I have organized my goal elements according the scripture that shows the growth of Christ; "He grew in wisdom and stature and in favor with God and favor with man."  I make a couple of goals in each category: wisdom (mental), stature (physical), favor with God (spiritual), favor with man (social) and it seems to keep me well balanced.  Without these four elements I wouldn't have very good goals and without goals to help me grow, even worse.


SYMBIOSIS & INTEGRATION
All three of the above are related, they need and are dependent upon each other.  Unless we have roots, foundation or personal victory, we cannot achieve growth, flowers or public victory. Without the elements of soil, water, sun,(mental, physical, spiritual, social) etc there would be no plant growth at all.  To grow a healthy plant/life, etc I believe all of these things need to be in harmony. 


Without out one element a plant can survive, without two, it is in trouble, without three it stands little chance.  The same is with us, we need we rounded goals; all four areas in place.  When they are, we can best grow strong and healthy.These well balanced and healthy goals help us continue to grow and growth above and underground helps us to maintain our goals.


NOW LETS MAKE SOME GOALS

Mental Goals
1) ________________
2) ________________

Physical Goals
1) ________________
2) ________________.

Spiritual Task
1) ________________
2) ________________

Social Goals
1) ________________
2) ________________

If more goals are needed here are some additional suggestions; marriage, family, ministry, educational, financial, emotional, professional

Improving Your Serve

There should be a scale whereupon we can measure our servanthood.  Something like a thermometer that would instantly tell what a person’s servant quotient was; their SQ.  If we could have a barometer for individuals, we should also have one for organizations.  It would be great to see just how effective organizations that exist to serve a cause or people really are. How would governments fair?  Are postal workers or politicians serving their communities?  What would our SQ be as the church?  Would church hierarchy even have an SQ or do they really exist not just to say they serve, but to have others serve them?

Unfortunately, this chapter doesn’t contain an SQ test, but we should be able to look into our own hearts to see what kind of marks we would give ourselves as servants.  After all when the Lord returns we’ll have to answer to what we’ve been doing down here all this time while he has been in heaven building us a home.  Have we been building THE kingdom or our own kingdom or have we been building at all?  If this is a wake up call, its time to get busy and start serving.  Its never too late to build your SQ.

DO ELEPHANTS NETWORK (aka The Necessity of Networking and Peer Learning)

THE ELEPHANT GRAVEYARD

I recently watched a documentary about the Elephant Graveyard.  Fact or fancy, the tale goes something like this (oversimplified is an understatement).  Older Elephants get the sense of their impending demise and travel sometimes thousands of miles to die in the "Elephant Graveyard".  The EG is rumored to be littered with thousands of tusks and elephant bones.

TRUST YOUR GUT

Truth or fiction, the point is that there is something in our gut that tells us certain things.  I know!  You know it and Malcolm Gladwell (blink is an amazing book that needs to be in every thinkers library), among others have written books about it.

GUT, NETWORKING, HEALTH, LONGEVITY

We all know that hanging out with peers, like minded and even those better than us makes us better.  We also know that we get further down the road by stealing (I mean sharing) ideas, praying for each other and creating deeper connections.  So why dont we network regularly?

IMPORTANT BUT NOT URGENT

Some of the best things in life are like this.  Important but not urgent.  Several things come to mind; eating healthy, exercising , personal growth...anyone feeling me yet?  We would all rather eat junk food and never improve ourselves with exercise or education and hope we would all look like we just jumped off the cover of People mag, but good health and looks are not accidental.  Neither is being a good Youth Worker.  We must work at!  Almost everyone I chat with agrees that Networking is Important but they also dont attend local meetings as much as they should.  Sound like passing on the burger for the tofu sandwich?

WHAT TO DO?

1.  Get involved in a local network.  

2.  Make a commitment to attend regularly even come early and bring some business cards to share with others.

3.  Chant this...Better Together, Better Together, Better Together.  Then believe it.

4.  Play it forward. Thats just it, go first, lead the way.

The law of reciprocity is one of my favorites.  When it comes to networking maybe we should think about others and not just ourselves knowning that we will receive way more than we imagined.

Lastly, I dont know if elephants network but if they do, I'm sure they wouldn't have to travel thousands of miles to do it.

Back To School Party feat. I Am Second, PureGroup & Hawaiian Falls

Just saw a great article about the Back To School Party event last Thursday with I Am Second, Hawaiian Falls and PureGrup.  The event was awesome and this is a great news story about it.  

More than 1200 people turned out for the I Am Second Back-to-School party at Hawaiian Falls Garland on August 18. Guests donated school supplies to benefit local kids. The worship band from Stillwater Community Church in Rowlett performed a blend of rock and roll classics and Contemporary Christian worship music on the stage at the wavepool.  read the entire article oh NeighborsGo here

Thanks for all your help and prayers.  Lord willing we can all do it again next year if this is something use to help further your ministry and can help plan/design and see more people worshiping in the water and maybe even do it at other H Falls locations.


Is this a community of Love and Hope or what?

Thanks to David Alvey and http://neighborsgo.com/stories/73988 for the pics and story

Character Sauce

When I grow up I wanna be a Rock Star Chef!

Not a short order cook (Waffle House) or the guy that defrosts things from the freezer and puts them on your plate (nope) but the one who writes the cook books and has their own show (Mario Batali, Alton Brown, Paula Deen).  Until then, I'll just keep rocking the back yard grill and providing healthy "gourmet" meals for my family.

I threw lots of good and fresh ingredients in a pot.  As I was adding some fresh herbs and spices I began stirring it up and wishing it was already dinner time and the magic of time had worked its miracle of taking raw individual ingredients and amalgamating them into amazing Italian goodness.  I love pasta and I love pasta sauce; ya, I can buy it in a jar but it is so much better when I take time to do things right.  Here are the 5 things for Awesome-Sauce (@noahbenjamin).

  1.  Solid Ingredients
  2.  Recipe
  3.  Preparation
  4.  Cook Time
  5.  TLC

Wait for it.....Then I pondered Character and thought, its kind of like us on our spiritual journey...lots of ingredients that can be made into something really good.  All that is needed is the crucible of time, heat, stirring and TLC.  Now go back and read the 5 things for Awesome-Sauce but this time think of how Christ is cultivating your character.

Cant wait until its done!

Back to School ----------- Party!

Join I Am Second and PureGroup at Hawaiian Falls for a Back to School Party on August 18. The purpose of the event is to reach our campuses and community for Christ, connect believers before school starts, collect back to school supplies for those in need, and party righteously in Jesus name cause He is First and we are second (#mouthful). Plus, wont it be cool to have 2500 believers hanging together having a blast? Right now we are only selling bundles of tickets...click on the pic below to find out how to get tickets for your group TODAY!!!  Individual tickets (if there are any left) will be on sale the day of the event.

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