While finishing up a Sunday afternoon bike ride with my son through the park trails near our home, a ruckus in the sky above our church parking lot caught our attention.  Much to our amazement, two mockingbirds were squawking and generally harassing a large red-tailed hawk perched atop a light tower.  While the hawk stood at the ready to swoop down on some wayward squirrel or chipmunk, the mockingbirds were swooping around the bird of prey and doing whatever they could do to motivate him to move along from their territory.  If you are not from Texas, mockingbirds may be the size of robins but they have they aren’t intimidated by anything as evidenced by the little guy you see on the left maybe two feet from potential peril.  You’ll have to forgive the quality of the image above that I snapped from my Droid while straddling a bike.  But that hawk was mammoth and intimidating to us 40 feet below.

The image reminded me of how we have to keep our focus when we are on a mission.  Like the hawk, we have an assignment.  While it may not be snatching up rodents for lunch, we have a task in our daily routine for which we must remain diligent to achieve our goals.  Then along come the mockingbirds …

Sure the raptor could have used its impressive talons to bring an end to the noise.  But the hawk recognized the mockingbirds as simply a nuisance.  If we spend all of our time focused on nuisances then we’ll never accomplish our greater goals.

Lately it seems I have had more than my share of mockingbirds cackling around me.  They have swooped around me and sporadically caused me to lose direction.  But the words of Solomon in the book of Proverbs provide sage counsel:

Let your eyes look directly forward, and your gaze be straight before you. Ponder the path of your feet; then all your ways will be sure. Do not swerve to the right or to the left; turn your foot away from evil.  Proverbs 4:25-27 ESV

The expression “hawkeye” refers to the ability to focus and see well into the distance with clarity.  Watching the bird atop the light pole reminded me how hawks can possess such amazing vision.

Geolocation has been a buzz word in communication circles for some time now.  GPS-enabled devices are commonplace today among even the least tech-savvy consumers.  But it is the potential of geolocation apps that has those of us in the communications world drooling.  The ability to reach those that sit closest to our exact location presents exciting new possibilities that until this wave of technology were limited to direct mail.  And if you’ve been to your mailbox lately, you realize how saturated that medium has become.  Right now there is still time to get out front of geo-location as it primarily remains in the “early adopters” phase.  For those in church communications, now is the time to punch your ticket to the geolocation train before it leaves you behind as a runaway locomotive.

First up, a look at the major players in the app field.  Some of the first on the scene were Loopt, Brightkite & Google Latitude.  But the two biggest names launched a year ago at SXSW in Austin and have attracted the greatest following thus far:  Foursquare & Gowalla.  Both are social media apps that reward users for checking in at places.  I’ve used both and despite their core differences they essentially operate the same way.  I’ve been checking in using both for some time now.

If I had to pick an early frontrunner in this race it would be Foursquare.  Mashable‘s Pete Cashmore closed out 2009 by dubbing Foursquare as “Next Year’s Twitter”:

“Among the Web’s early adopter set, the answer is nearly unanimous: Foursquare.  While the technology landscape is ever-changing, I’d argue that Foursquare already has aligned itself to become next year’s mainstream hit.”

Tech guru Robert Scoble is also on the Foursquare bandwagon following the path of Twitter.  “Go back three years ago. Twitter was being used by the same crowd that is playing with Foursquare today.”  And he adds this nugget that sums up where many of us are right now on geolocation.  “It sounds really lame, doesn’t it? But didn’t Twitter sound really lame to you when someone first told you about it?  It’s not lame.”

Unfortunately since I carry a Motorola Droid, I have been limited to Gowalla’s mobile site until this past week  when the guys in Austin released an Android beta app.  The latter is still a tad buggy but a completed version is promised soon.  The Foursquare app is smooth but makes you dig a bit to check leaderboards.

Yelp has recently stepped into the game by adding the capability to check into locations on their geolocation-based review app.  I’ve used Yelp when I am on the road and it offers some cool features like the ability to upload pics.  Frankly I am surprised pics aren’t available on the other guys’ apps yet.  It seems inevitable.  Yelp has primarily become the next generation TripAdvisor (a site that is paying the price for being slow to the geolocation game).  If your church or business is not fully updated on Yelp yet, do it now.  Yelp offers the ability to place your own info and match up to your overall branding.  And for the record, Yelp remains a much better option than ChurchRater.com.

Another app developer that was quick to to take advantage of geolocation was lifechurch.tv‘s YouVersion.  The YouVersion Live feature of their Bible app allows users to locate churches and find out what is happening and being studied without ever stepping foot on a campus.

It should also be noted that the much-maligned and yet still wildly successful Google Buzz has become the first (but certainly not last) of the more traditional social media such as Facebook/MySpace/Twitter to fully utilize geolocation.  Frankly it is the primary reason why it is still picking up users after the disastrous privacy issues at its launch.

Many churches have begun looking at how to best utilize geolocation as they develop their own iPhone/BlackBerry/Android apps.  As technology improves, the more exciting the possibilities arise for helping folks find their way around your campus and to be alerted to events as they occur.  Locally, I love what the Houston Zoo has done with their iPhone app (although I’m still waiting for them to step up with Android for my phone).  They have created an entirely new experience for me taking my kids to see the animals by helping me locate other family members in the park and alerting me to feedings and special events.  This is where churches need to be heading as we push further into 2010.  Particularly megachurches like the one I attend that have sprawling campuses and an overwhelming schedule of programs & events.

Consider this the “All aboard!” for geolocation.   Don’t get left at the station.

Like most who hang their hat in Texas, I generally give the Winter Olympics a collective yawn every four years.  Even growing up in Ohio I didn’t develop much of an interest in the Games until Lake Placid in 1980.  That’s when the Miracle on Ice brought hockey to my world and a guy named Eric Heiden momentarily attracted my attention to long track speedskating.

A few years ago, I was working for a news channel where I did sports when I put together a story on a local kid here in Houston who was shocking the winter sports world by successfully making a transition from inline skating to the ice.  Chad Hedrick lived just around the corner from my house.  His parents run a roller skating rink where my kids are skating right now as I write this.  So it had some additional appeal on a personal level.  Chad was cocky & brash which was not uncommon for the elite athletes I interviewed regularly.

Four years ago, I was producing Olympic segments for the NBC station here in Houston before the Torino Games.  Chad was in full character as the arrogant outsider who was crashing the Olympic party. Even some of the other Olympians we were interviewing at the same time were taken back by his over-the-top persona.  His actions in Italy were received in similar fashion by the rest of the world as he captured gold, silver & bronze medals.  Frankly he was obnoxious and tough to like at all even while winning.

Hedrick slid to the recesses of my mind until this past fall when I noticed fellow Champion Forest Baptist member Laura Wilkinson (3-time Olympic diver and a gold medalist herself) conversing with Chad on Twitter.  They were discussing the impact of Christ on their life in a competitive environment.  Having interacted with Chad in the past, I had a tough time believing this could be the same Chad Hedrick.  This new Chad was talking about his daily devotionals and his love for his wife & daughter.  But as often is the case, a personal relationship with God has resulted in major changes in Chad’s life & personality.

Chad was baptized at my church in November.   Just a week later, he won gold over his archrival & American teammate Shani Davis at the World Championships in Calgary.  The Houston Chronicle ran a feature on Sunday that explains his dramatic transformation:

“God gave me this talent and the drive to go out and be the best I could be, and I did it without ever acknowledging him or ever once thanking him. I thought I was happiest when I was winning races and going out afterward, and then I had to find myself as a person and learn that it wasn’t how fast I skated or what place I got, that speedskating was what I did. It wasn’t who I was.”

With a new role as a husband & parent since Torino, Chad was picked up by Pampers to be a spokesperson.  With a young daughter and another child on the way, he was natural fit for pitching diapers.  But just a couple of weeks ago, Chad’s wife Lynsey suffered a miscarriage.  But even with this devastating turn of event, Lynsey told the Chronicle that the couple is still trusting God with all their hearts.

“It was a shock. It really was. But we didn’t play the ‘Why me, why is this happening to me?’ card. He played the same role that I played: ‘We don’t know why this is happening, but we need to hold on to what we know, and that is that we are only going to be able to find peace through our God and comfort each other as much as we can.’

“It’s an opportunity for us to show that even with Chad in the position he’s in and the position our family is in before the games that when disaster strikes, we don’t come unglued. We don’t come unraveled. It’s hard for people to understand that in the dead center of tragedy, you can find peace, you can find joy and understanding and strength.”

That brings us to Vancouver today where Chad has checked into the Olympic Village and is waiting for his family to join him for three weeks of racing before he hangs up his skates forever at the end of the month.  You can follow @chadhedrick each step of the way on Twitter.  He is very open with his feelings and about the tremendous opportunity he has over the next couple of weeks to share Christ with the world.  Here is a sampling of his recent tweets:

• I feel so blessed to have the opportunity to show millions this month how God has changed me!
• Heading out into the city on my day off- just got off Skype with my girls and Hadley said DADA for the first time! What a cool feeling!
• Going to bed after a great day in Vancouver! Looking at a pic of my daughter as I lay in bed. Man I’m one blessed man- Thank you Lord!

This week, the church where Chad has been attending in Salt Lake City released a video of their pastor interviewing Chad about his testimony.

Suffice it to say that my family will now be watching the speedskating competition over the next couple of weeks strongly in the Hedrick camp.  Unlike Torino where he was a big favorite, he is faces some tougher challenges in Vancouver.  But whether God blesses him with victory or defeat, I will be anxious to see how Chad uses the platform to share the Gospel.

Courtesy: Smiley N. Pool of Houston Chronicle

]]> http://www.wordtotheword.com/2010/02/09/hedrick-finally-on-track-in-vancouver/feed/ 9 http://www.wordtotheword.com/2010/02/08/is-free-book-worth-the-investment/ http://www.wordtotheword.com/2010/02/08/is-free-book-worth-the-investment/#comments Mon, 08 Feb 2010 22:20:02 +0000 randy http://www.wordtotheword.com/?p=130

As a Cincinnati native, I have heard from a distance about the buzz coming from Crossroads Church.  And as a graduate of a school named Liberty, I was really looking forward to diving into the subject of freedom in Christ.  And if you haven’t figured it out by now, the title of this book is reference to freedom and not the price of purchase (hence the asterisk).

But what I found in the first two chapters was disappointing.  The author Brian Tome comes off as a hipster more interested in attracting attention and ridiculing other Christians than digging into the subject.  Matter he makes multiple references to how much Scripture we can expect as he work our way through his work.  But in reality a great deal of his ink is based on his personal opinion (which he honestly asserts most of the time).

Tome takes great joy in mocking one of his church members who is a recovering alcoholic who had the audacity to question the presence of bloody mary cocktails & beer in the Crossroads parking lot for a church Super Bowl tailgate.  In essence, he equates standards with bondage.  That is a notion that I have a tough time swallowing based on Scripture.

In the third chapter he turns his focus to freedom from fear and this is where I believe the book finally hits its stride. He uses some powerful language to help readers visualize what a triumphant life can be achieved when freed from the bondage of our sinful nature.

In summary, Tome’s self-inflation is a bit annoying but his primary efforts to encourage a life of liberty through Christ is probably worth a read … even if it comes with more than a few grains of salt.

Reviewer’s Note: Free Book* was provided at no charge in exchange for this review.

Recently, Tony Morgan brought his Killing Cockroaches Road Tour to Houston and it happened to be right around the corner from my house.  I met up with a bunch of my former colleagues at my church and took in the morning event.  Tony has posted his notes from the day on his blog.  It was a great morning to pull back out of the granular monotony and look at the big picture from 30-thousand feet.

While Tony didn’t provide anything earth-shattering that wasn’t previously revealed in his excellent book, the second half of the day provided some great support for some of the communications principles I have long championed.  Here are some of the quotes I collected that stood out to me to ponder as we face new communication & leadership challenges everyday:

• “In church in America, we think more options leads to more devoted followers of Christ. But more options simply confuse.  Where there are fewer options the easier it is to make decisions.”
• “Fewer programs means less competition for dollars, energy, and volunteers.”
• “We see all the people sitting in our pews and blame them for not getting involved.  Finger should be pointed at ourselves.”
• “When analyzing what communication should be presented, we need to determine what event or announcement requires the entire church to hear it? What would you do if we were not on staff? Does the program reach outside the church walls?”
• “What would happen if resources were poured into ministries that were most effective?”
• “The church spams people with all of our messaging.  And what happens to the spam you receive?”
• “The Giant Inflatable Monkey Syndrome is a fascinating but lousy concept that churches seem to be following.  Instead of Giant Inflatable Monkey for visitors we should worry about engaging relationships.”
• “What is the clear vision that God is calling us to & what is it going to take be intentional about that?”
• “If there is going to be a change it has to be purposeful based on agreed up vision. Otherwise it will be cause for alarm.”
• “Sometimes we have to make tough decisions for common good. Leaders should be satisfied with that.”
• “Without right leaders its not possible to make hard decisions.”

1.  Brain Rules by John Medina (Pear Press) – A colleague at the corporate communications firm where I work suggested I give this book a read to help better understand what communication sticks in our brains.  It is written by a molecular biologist and it offers up 12 principles that have significant applications for those of us who communicate for a living.  After referring it to the Executive Pastor of  my church, he in turn placed it as suggested reading for his teaching staff.  Often times we spend so much time focusing on our messaging that we don’t concern ourselves enough with how it is delivered and to whom is receiving it.  I highly recommend this to my church friends and anyone who wants to be a more effective communicator.

2.  The Last TV Evangelist by Phil Cooke (Conversant Media Group) – Cooke has carved out a niche as a guru in Christian television.  His prior book Branding Faith is a must read for all of those who find themselves marketing their church or Christian organization.  In this 2009 release, Phil focuses specifically on TV ministries.  While little in the book is groundbreaking, it brings together all of the hard facts that many who have been involved in the industry have often been ignoring.   At first glance, Cooke appears to be writing an obituary.  But he actually is looking to reinvigorate the genre to be more effective.

3.  Notes from the Tilt-A-Whirl by N.D. Wilson (Thomas Nelson) – I have to be honest, I had more enjoyment reading this 201-page paperback than anything else all year.  Wilson can flat out write in a creative fashion that challenges you to look at everyday life around us from a new perspective.  I literally devoured this little book and then restarted it again to relish the prose a second time around with a different perspective.   I am anxious to see what Wilson produces next because he has significantly raised the bar.

4.  Christianity in Crisis 21st Century by Hank Hanegraaff (Thomas Nelson) – The reason why this book struck such a chord in me this past year is because the truths it reveals in regard to the dangers of prosperity theology and more need to be spoken.  As Christians we often turn our head in disgust at the latest hot shot minister to use the greedy motives of men to distort the Gospel.  Hanegraaff demands that we not only be persuaded about the truth but that we be motivated to speak out.  This update on his original classic needs to be read with new vigor these days based on the challenges of today.

5.  Jewels from James by Robert L. Sumner (Biblical Evangelism Press) – OK, I have to come clean up front and admit that the author is also my grandfather.  So clearly you should factor that into your analysis of my review.  But if you are looking for a commentary on the New Testament epistle then you will be hard-pressed to find a more dynamic perspective on the text than this follow-up to his 2003 commentary on Hebrews.

First off, I have to offer full disclosure that I am indeed an unapologetic Longhorn fan. It may not have been my alma mater (Liberty will always be #1 in my heart) but having married a Texas Ex, having covered the program on a daily basis for 6+ years and having lived in the state for two decades I have some strong ties to the program. Consequently this year’s BCS Championship game was a jovial time in our household.

But even in defeat, Colt McCoy displayed the kind of character we rarely see exhibited these days in the moment of complete frustration and failure. Having stood on the sideline with an injured shoulder watching his team crumble to Alabama, the last thing he probably wanted to do was a postgame interview on national television. But just watch how his character is revealed by his comments amidst this heartache.

These days he recently became engaged and is having his shoulder treated before he embarks on his NFL career. In the meantime, he sat down with one of my former pastors in Austin, Mac Richard. My wife & I were involved in the early days of Lake Hills Church when it was just a new church plant meeting in a middle school cafeteria. We love seeing how God is using Mac & LHC to impact Central Texas. And this interview Mac conducted with Colt & his father Brad McCoy offers some great insight into how this young man’s character was cultivated.

It’s something that started about four years ago. It was chest pains that became rather significant two years ago. Whether it’s stress related, I was very concerned. I know there’s a great basketball coach that lost his life at Wake Forest. I started to become very alarmed with that. And then I’m a person of faith, and I just wanted to make sure I had my priorities straight. A lot of times coaches do not have their priorities straight. You put business before God and family, you have a problem.

The last sentence is especially profound.  I came to a similar realization a few years ago when I recognized my career in television sportscasting was making it difficult to be the type of husband & father that my family deserved.  Even though I often felt like the most fortunate man on the planet being paid to the do something I loved, it was coming at a very high price.  The nights & weekends when I was working made it nearly impossible to spend any quality time with the ones I loved most.  From my perspective today, it really wasn’t much of a sacrifice compared to the joy I have today investing time in the lives of my children.  But at the time, it was a gut-wrenching decision.

Apparently it was too gut-wrenching for Meyer to overcome as just hours before he was set to formally announce his retirement he attended a practice with his team and he had a change of heart.  And you’ll notice an interesting perspective he brings to the discussion in regard to his players:

I made a comment about how proud I am of this football team, the way we go about our business. To see that come out this morning, for I guess I’m a southerner now for us southerners it was kind of cold, and to see them come out with a great attitude and great work ethic and just go to work, I admire that.I know I’m dealing with some stuff, and my family comes first. That’s never been an issue. That’s non-negotiable, that I want to make sure I do right by my family. My second family are my players and our staff, and to see that was the moment.

So essentially he placed his “co-workers” on a pedestal alongside his family and their health concerns.  That’s where from a distance it would appear that he hasn’t completely re-focused his priorities.  Apparently their heartfelt hug of his crying I’ve known and worked with football coaches from the NFL down to the high school level and the 100-hour work week is an occupational hazard of that industry.  I have seen many of their families pay the price when coaches don’t make carving out time with their wives & children a top priority.  The sport can be a narcotic for some coaches that is more powerful than anything they can control.

Hopefully for Coach Meyer and his family he is able to turn to his faith in God to avoid getting squeezed by own passion for the game.