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I'm really loving using my new Google Voice service.
Here are the best things about it:
> it's totally free
> when Google adds new features, I automatically get them
> it turns voicemails into transcripts that get texted to me (perfect for when I'm in a meeting)
> it allows me the capability to download my voicemails as an mp3 file (now I can save precious messages)
> it allows me to record phone conversations (of course not without the other party knowing)
> it allows me to hold conference calls with basically an unlimited amount of participants

Here's a great example of it's voicemail feature.

Chill Out A Bit! (Martha Sounds Like A Staff Member)

You need to chill out a bit!
Yea, you, church staffer or volunteer...chill out just a bit.
It's interesting how many church people claim to have their priorities in the "proper" order yet continue to live out and schedule hectic stressful calendars. Many times I feel like grabbing some of my friends and church volunteers by their collar and whispering "Is that task really going to matter 3-years from now?" We just run from place to place, person to person, text to text, errand to errand, service to service, church group to church group, recovery group to recovery group, all the while thinking bitterly, "Why can't I seem to get more help around here to share the load?!"
And then wonder why we can't seem to have enough to time to ever soak in a John 10:10 life.
I include myself in this group


This is why when I read the following passage I had the strong feeling that,
Martha sounds like a staff member! She would fit in better than Mary in many church staff teams!
Here's the short description of us...oh wait, I mean Martha...a lot of the time:

As Jesus and his disciples were on their way, he came to a village where a woman named Martha opened her home to him. She had a sister called Mary, who sat at the Lord's feet listening to what he said.
But Martha was distracted by all the preparations that had to be made. She came to him and asked, “Lord, don't you care that my sister has left me to do the work by myself? Tell her to help me!” “Martha, Martha,” the Lord answered, “you are worried and upset about many things,
but only one thing is needed. Mary has chosen what is better, and it will not be taken away from her.       (Luke 10:38-42, emphasis added)

To me, Martha sounds a lot like me and you. Doesn't it?
I'm convinced that one of the main reasons we get sick, or get stuck in traffic, or get put in a long line at the grocery store, or have to go to the bathroom so frequently is that Jesus is graciously forcing us to be still and actually listen to Him.

I think Jesus is often saying to us, "Chill out a bit."
What are you doing in life right now that you know you don't need to be doing?

A Proverb: Choose Your Students Wisely

As I read the following Proverb yesterday I knew I had to share some thoughts on it.

Here's the passage:

"Anyone who rebukes a mocker will get an insult in return. Anyone who corrects the wicked will get hurt. So don't bother correcting mockers; they will only hate you. But correct the wise, and they will love you. Instruct the wise, and they will be even wiser. Teach the righteous, and they will learn even more."
Proverbs 9:7-9 NLT

A couple of thoughts:

• This passage implies that there are only two types of people:  the mockers and the wise.
• This passage implies that I'm instructing/supposed to be instructing people how to live.
• What "mockers" am I wasting my time and wounds on? Because I can only take so many wounds before those wounds start killing me
• If I'm going to "correct" anybody, it should be those who are already "wise" because it's a better return on investment. (I'd rather get love than wounds back for my instruction efforts)
•  I think this passage speaks against those Christians who dedicate their lives to boycotting companies like Disney or public schools. Again, you might be wasting your efforts and wounds on the wrong people!

What do you think?

Caleb Zachary Goodban

Caleb

Easter Is Coming! Get Pumped

Elevation Church Easter Opener from Elevation Church on Vimeo.

Great Message On Giving...in less than 36 Seconds

From NewSpring Church:

Giving: From A Child's Perspective from NewSpring Media on Vimeo.

Take A Pause

...to eat some Bread.

Pray With Urgency and Expectancy

I know that many people don't know how Zac Smith is doing, so I wanted to pass on his latest update.
Please pass this on to people who will pray with urgency and expectancy:

Unkindly Showing Kindness

Posted By zac on March 11, 2010

The past few days have taken their toll. The cancer in my abdomen is growing. I can feel it expanding with my fingertips. The pain is getting worse. Every day is worse than the day before. I am taking pain medicine around-the-clock now. I sleep about 60-90 minutes at a time. I yearn for an uninterrupted six hours of sleep. Or for an hour of no pain.
And yet through it all, I am seeing blessings. People continue to shower us with notes of encouragement or with checks. Those who love us are helping us get things in order. While it hurts to finalize things, it gives me peace knowing my wife and kids will be taken care of.
Everything is a gift from God. This life appears to be simply a sequence of blessings prompting a response of worship to God. And so I worship Him through the pain. He shows me kindness.
John Piper says it beautifully in his book on Job:

The Lord has made me drink
The cup of his severity
That he might kindly show to me
What I would be when only he
Remains in my calamity.
Unkindly he has kindly shown
That he was not my hope alone.

God unkindly showed kindness to Job. And He is unkindly showing kindness to me.
God has never promised me tomorrow; but God has promised me eternity.

Take A Pause

My Favorite New Video!

Watch and be amazed as the talented Jordan Kranda (@jordankranda) blows your mind:

5 + 2 + 1 = 5,000

We've got a botched math system.
I think I'm beginning to understand God's better math system.
Here is my theory:  with God, addition turns to multiplication.

As I was reading through the miracle of Jesus feeding the 5,000 men with only 5 loaves of bread and 2 fish (Luke 9), I felt as if God was saying, "As long as I'm in the equation you have to stop using your math and start remembering my math."

We all get so used to using our math system all the time when we go shopping or out to dinner or get paid, but our math gets turned upside down every time Jesus enters the equation.


5 loaves + 2 fish + 1 Jesus = 5,000 men eating to their hearts delight!


We can't ever forget that adding Jesus to the equation multiplies everything everytime.
 
Luke 8:17
"They all ate as much as they wanted, and afterward, the disciples picked up twelve baskets of leftovers!"

Radicalis Session 2 - Perry Noble

"First, Rick Warren, then Andy 'freakin' Stanley...Why am I here?!" (I love Perry)


"I, at about 230lbs., was running from a 6lbs. goose! Why would I run from a goose? Then later it hit me, we have the same problem in our churches; we're running from geese when we have the Holy Spirit!"

Acts 26:15-17 - Radical Devotion


1.  Radical devotion begins with an accurate view of Jesus (v.15)

2.  Radical devotion calls us to action (v.16a)

"When the alarm goes off, you've got to do something about it."

3.  Radical devotion will impact me personally (v.16b)

4.  Radical devotion will lead to the supernatural (v.17)


"If you're going through hell right now, it could be that Hell is scared of what you're about to do."


"If it's God's will, then it's God's bill!"

Radicalis Session 1 - Rick Warren

"We always want better methods, but God wants better men."

"Radical living means rooted living."

"We need radical Christians who have a radical devotion to the radical commandment."

"No roots = no fruits"


"Who you are going to be in private determines who you are going to lead in public."


"There is no correlation between the size of your church and the strength of your church."


"If it's new it isn't true because truth has been around forever."


"Worship is the primary (root) purpose of the Church."

What Are Your Strengths (or Know Thyself)

"What are your strengths?"

That's a very important question. And if you want to spend your time wisely, you'd do good to get to know what you're good at. Can you answer that question for yourself? If you need help discovering what your strengths are and why you should be OBSESSED with them, I highly recommend this book.


I read the book and took the assessment a while ago and it was eye-opening to say the least. But it's been a while since I thought about it's findings. So, I just took a look at my Strengths Finder Signature Themes because, to be honest, I was beginning to forget them. 

If you're interested, here's the summary of what it says for me:

RelatorRelator describes your attitude toward your relationships. In simple terms, the Relator theme pulls you toward people you already know. You do not necessarily shy away from meeting new people—in fact, you may have other themes that cause you to enjoy the thrill of turning strangers into friends—but you do derive a great deal of pleasure and strength from being around your close friends. You are comfortable with intimacy. Once the initial connection has been made, you deliberately encourage a deepening of the relationship. You want to understand their feelings, their goals, their fears, and their dreams; and you want them to understand yours. You know that this kind of closeness implies a certain amount of risk—you might be taken advantage of—but you are willing to accept that risk. For you a relationship has value only if it is genuine. And the only way to know that is to entrust yourself to the other person. The more you share with each other, the more you risk together. The more you risk together, the more each of you proves your caring is genuine. These are your steps toward real friendship, and you take them willingly.
AchieverYour Achiever theme helps explain your drive. Achiever describes a constant need for achievement. You feel as if every day starts at zero. By the end of the day you must achieve something tangible in order to feel good about yourself. And by “every day” you mean every single day—workdays, weekends, vacations. No matter how much you may feel you deserve a day of rest, if the day passes without some form of achievement, no matter how small, you will feel dissatisfied. You have an internal fire burning inside you. It pushes you to do more, to achieve more. After each accomplishment is reached, the fire dwindles for a moment, but very soon it rekindles itself, forcing you toward the next accomplishment. Your relentless need for achievement might not be logical. It might not even be focused. But it will always be with you. As an Achiever you must learn to live with this whisper of discontent. It does have its benefits. It brings you the energy you need to work long hours without burning out. It is the jolt you can always count on to get you started on new tasks, new challenges. It is the power supply that causes you to set the pace and define the levels of productivity for your work group. It is the theme that keeps you moving.
Focus“Where am I headed?” you ask yourself. You ask this question every day. Guided by this theme of Focus, you need a clear destination. Lacking one, your life and your work can quickly become frustrating. And so each year, each month, and even each week you set goals. These goals then serve as your compass, helping you determine priorities and make the necessary corrections to get back on course. Your Focus is powerful because it forces you to filter; you instinctively evaluate whether or not a particular action will help you move toward your goal. Those that don’t are ignored. In the end, then, your Focus forces you to be efficient. Naturally, the flip side of this is that it causes you to become impatient with delays, obstacles, and even tangents, no matter how intriguing they appear to be. This makes you an extremely valuable team member. When others start to wander down other avenues, you bring them back to the main road. Your Focus reminds everyone that if something is not helping you move toward your destination, then it is not important. And if it is not important, then it is not worth your time. You keep everyone on point.
LearnerYou love to learn. The subject matter that interests you most will be determined by your other themes and experiences, but whatever the subject, you will always be drawn to the process of learning. The process, more than the content or the result, is especially exciting for you. You are energized by the steady and deliberate journey from ignorance to competence. The thrill of the first few facts, the early efforts to recite or practice what you have learned, the growing confidence of a skill mastered—this is the process that entices you. Your excitement leads you to engage in adult learning experiences—yoga or piano lessons or graduate classes. It enables you to thrive in dynamic work environments where you are asked to take on short project assignments and are expected to learn a lot about the new subject matter in a short period of time and then move on to the next one. This Learner theme does not necessarily mean that you seek to become the subject matter expert, or that you are striving for the respect that accompanies a professional or academic credential. The outcome of the learning is less significant than the “getting there.”
ResponsibilityYour Responsibility theme forces you to take psychological ownership for anything you commit to, and whether large or small, you feel emotionally bound to follow it through to completion. Your good name depends on it. If for some reason you cannot deliver, you automatically start to look for ways to make it up to the other person. Apologies are not enough. Excuses and rationalizations are totally unacceptable. You will not quite be able to live with yourself until you have made restitution. This conscientiousness, this near obsession for doing things right, and your impeccable ethics, combine to create your reputation: utterly dependable. When assigning new responsibilities, people will look to you first because they know it will get done. When people come to you for help—and they soon will—you must be selective. Your willingness to volunteer may sometimes lead you to take on more than you should.

 If you know me, does that sound like me?
It's almost scary for me to read =)

C.S. Lewis's Impact

(My great friend Zac Smith gave me a significant portion of the most popular portion of the C.S. Lewis library as a wedding gift and I will always be grateful to him for that.)

It's one of my goals in life to someday own & read EVERYTHING ever published C.S. Lewis.
He was such a great thinker and writer that I think everyone should read at very least 3 of his books (suggestion:  Mere Christianity, The Weight of Glory, and The Screwtape Letters). If you're not convinced of his importance and the potential for your life to be changed, take some time to watch this lecture by John Piper. It is a long lecture (lectures usually = slow at times), but one that is well worth your time.


Thank you C.S. Lewis. You have helped me love the truth and real joy more.

Because of His Love.

Remember the story of Jesus raising the young girl from the dead?
Here's the ending:

Then Jesus took her by the hand and said in a loud voice, "My child, get up!" 
And at that moment her life returned, and she immediately stood up!
Then Jesus told them to give her something to eat.

(Luke 8:54-55, NLT)

Jesus physically raised up a young daughter from her death bed! What a miracle!

He didn't have to do it. She was already dead. But He did it because He loved. 

I believe, just like Paul, that he is still doing the same thing and that he can raise anybody from the dead:

"But because of His great love for us, God, who is rich in mercy, made us alive with Christ even when we were dead in transgressions; it is by grace you have been saved."

(Ephesians 2:4-5, NIV)

Latest Member of The Calvary Musician Family

Wow! Isn't she beautiful?!
Brand new all-tube, 30watt, 2-channel Egnater Rebel amp head and matching 1x12 speaker cab.


This will be used by all of our wonderful volunteer guitarists and I'm guaranteeing that many a pleasurable tones will be coming from the Fuel Servie, The Celebrate Recovery Service, and the Worship Center Services for many years to come thanks to our guitarists who help serve our church in worship every week.

Don't worry, it will be well taken care of and well used.

Thank You, Thank You, Thank You!!!

I was completely shocked and humbled on Friday, January 15, 2010 after my birthday dinner at my grandma Guy's home when Ashley gave me a gift that was a small box filled with money!

I have been wanting (even needing...but that's just the musician in me talking) an electric for some time now, but just didn't have the money to get one. I was going to save a small sum of cash regularly but it would have taken me over 2 years to save enough for the beautiful Strat that was essentially given to me!

Thank you to all my family, friends, and church family who participated in one of the greatest gifts I have ever gotten. Thank you!

PS. Another cool detail...it was on sale!

Just in case you didn't know (which I'm guessing you probably don't), here is this year's best undiscovered drummer who has now just been discovered through Guitar Center's National Drum-Off Competition. Each performance is judged on creativity/originality, technicality, and stage presence. After winning store, district, state, region, Ramon Sampson's life probably just changed drastically after winning the national level.
Check out his winning performance:



That is some mighty fine drumming!!!
Check out the official announcement to get all the details.

Why Would Jesus Rebuke His Own Mother? (Or Because We're All In This Together)

I promise I'm not as boring as I may sound.
Ok.
You may continue.


To set it up, Jesus has just rebuked his concerned mother (she thought he was going a little overboard with this whole Savior-thing) in front of a crowd of his disciples because it was so crowded that she couldn't get close enough to him. So, she basically tells a random disciple, "Hey, please get Jesus's attention & tell him that his mother & brothers are here to get him."(Ouch!)
Jesus essentially replies, "These are my mothers & brothers; the ones following me, listening to me, & obeying me."

Now, the explanation.
As I read this portion of commentary from the Life Application New Testament Commentary (by the way, one of my favorite resources) I knew I had to share it's contents which explain the story.

"Jesus gave a respectful rebuke to his overly concerned mother; he was not severing ties with his earthly family. Through this incident, Jesus gave another lesson to his followers by explaining that spiritual relationships are as binding as physical ones. This would be the basis for the new community that Jesus was building--the Christian family [aka. The Church]...In these words, Jesus was explaining that in his spiritual family, relationships are ultimately more important and longer-lasting than those formed in one's physical family." (in reference to Luke 8:19-21, emphasis added)

I love it!
Shouldn't this then change our attitude & behavior towards the people in our church communities?
Now, let these words sink in:

"Your love for one another will prove to the world that you are my disciples." (John 13:35, NLT)

Another Year of New Life

I'm just so thankful for the new life that God gave me.
It really is the most outlandish agreement in the world:
I give God my rags, He gives me His riches!
Even when I don't believe in me, God believes in me (By the way, He believes in you too.)

"In him we have redemption through his blood, the forgiveness of sins, in accordance with the riches of God's grace that he lavished on us with all wisdom and understanding. And he made known to us the mystery of his will according to his good pleasure, which he purposed in Christ,"

Ephesians 1:7-9 (NIV)

He has given me another year of new life.
 I love what He has done for me, but I love Him more.

Thoughts On Luke 7:44-47 (Am I Simon or The Immoral Woman?)

The actions that were skipped by Simon the Pharisee were missed opportunities to show Jesus great love. The actions that were showed by the immoral woman were taken opportunities to show Jesus great love. Which one, by their the actions, loved Jesus?
So, by my actions, do I love Jesus?


My capacity to be more like Simon or the Immoral Woman today will be determined by my remembrance of my great forgiveness.