Our family watched most of the Summer Olympics opening ceremonies held in London.
Since we’re big Mr. Bean fans, his cameo was our favorite part.
I’m not sure if you know this or not…
Mr. Bean has also made an appearance at church.
I’ve included a portion of the video below… Read More
Hope you’re having a fantastic Friday. Maybe I can make it even better with some free & fun stuff…
#1. FREE WATCH—Bright Yellow or Green with NWLife Logo.
Win one of these limited edition NWLife watches—just be the first one to comment on this blog post & I’ll send you one (scroll down to the bottom of this page to comment).
#2. FREE BOOK—Love Does by Bob Goff.
This is currently my favorite book. I love the stories, adventure, & challenge to love God & do stuff. Be the first one to comment on this blog post & I’ll send you a copy (scroll down to the bottom of this page to comment). Also—follow Bob Goff on Twitter. You’ll be glad you did.
#3. FREE BOOK—Creating A Prodigal-Friendly Church by Jeff Lucas.
If you’ve ever wondered, “Why are we doing what we’re doing at NWLife?” this book will be of interest to you. Be the first one to comment on this blog post & I’ll send you a copy (scroll down to the bottom of this page to comment).
#4. THE HYMNAL & THE CLAW—by Bryan Allain.
You’ll love this fun, heartwarming description of attending grandma’s church. Also, you’ll see what this is all about…
#5. BOB ROSS REMIXED—The Happiest Little Video You’ll Ever See.
The Joy of Painting with Bob Ross… only remixed.
#6. NEW APPLEBEE’S AD CAMPAIGN—Urging Hipsters To Come To Applebee’s Ironically.
Ya gotta love the Onion News Network.
#7. MEN THROWING ROCKS—With The Other Hand.
With some excellent French music.
Like this post? You should also check out:
Even More Friday Fun & Free Stuff
Fridays Are For Fun & Free Stuff!
Fridays Are Best With Fun & Free Stuff
I can’t stop thinking about these two words…
Legacy and Permanence.
My dad worked at Puget Power (now Puget Sound Energy) his entire career.
My parents have lived in the same neighborhood for over 40 years.
They still go to the same church I was raised in.
Their closest friends have been around them for multiple decades.
They’ve made a positive difference in their church and community…
One of the secrets to their positive difference-making abilities is that they stuck around.
They lasted.
They didn’t bounce from thing to thing, place to place, or cause to cause.
They had permanence—staying power.
I’m convinced, lasting legacies come from people who last.
Perhaps the idea of sticking around or permanence isn’t very sexy.
And maybe bouncing around has more allure…
But trees, repeatedly transplanted, will always struggle to thrive or produce fruit.
Thriving and producing fruit comes from deep, healthy roots.
This is why God told his people:
“Build homes, and plan to stay. Plant gardens, and eat the food they produce.Marry and have children. Then find spouses for them so that you may have many grandchildren. Multiply! Do not dwindle away!” (Jeremiah 29.4-6)
Notice, the thriving and fruitfulness comes after the “build homes and plan to stay”.
Marriages cannot thrive where spouses aren’t willing to stay.
Churches cannot thrive where pastors and leaders and people aren’t willing to stay.
Communities cannot thrive where Christian people aren’t willing to stay.
Thriving and producing fruit comes from deep, healthy roots.
And lasting legacies come from people who last.
Sometimes I think our only legacy will be digital.
Will our generation leave any sculptures? Pieces of art that last for centuries? Beautiful buildings?
I’m not suggesting we walk away from our digital ways…
But I am suggesting that we print some Instagrams.
Make a book.
Or a poster.
Maybe some stickers too.
My point: Let’s contribute some practical and tangible things—in addition to all our digital creations.
I don’t want my legacy to be status updates on Facebook or a collection of Tweets.
I want to have built things—and people.
I want to be a blessing now…
In such a way that the blessing actually continues even after I’m gone.
I want to raise up leaders who will go further and do more than I was ever capable of.
Proverbs 13.22 says, “A good man leaves an inheritance to his children’s children.”
Of course we want to take care of our own families—our children and our grandchildren.
But remember: we are God’s family. This means we have a spiritual family too.
We must set up our spiritual children and grandchildren for the future.
Legacy-mindedness is Kingdom-mindedness.
Let’s be a blessing now… in such a way that the blessing actually continues after we’re gone.
And let’s print some Instagrams.
Here’s one way to print your Instagrams (mini-books, prints, posters, t-shirts, & more): Printstagram
My grandparents lived in the same house from the time my mom was born until the day my grandfather died.
They owned a little store about a mile and a half from their house for over 40 years.
When my grandparents passed away, their estate went to my mom (their only child).
I still remember the day my mom called me with a question…
“Have you ever thought about having LASIK?”
I wasn’t sure where this was headed.
“Um, yeah. But I don’t have money to pay for that.”
She persisted, “What if you did? Would you get it done if you had the money?”
“Maybe. I don’t know.”
Now she was getting frustrated with me. “You dummy, I’m offering to pay for it. Will you get it done if I pay for it?”
“YES! Absolutely! Of course! I’ve always wanted LASIK! Let’s do this! Thank you!!!!”
A few weeks later, both my sister and I had LASIK done on our eyes. No more glasses. No more contacts.
I had 20/20 vision thanks to my mom.
Actually, it was thanks to my grandparents.
Stocks left in the inheritance matured, so my mom had extra money and she wanted to do something nice with it.
I was blessed because of my grandparents.
I was the recipient of good things because of their hard work, careful money management, frugal-living, and legacy-mindedness.
This isn’t just a nice thing—it’s a biblical thing.
“A good man leaves an inheritance to his children’s children.” (Proverbs 13.22 NKJV)
We should be legacy-minded.
We should be working and building—not just for ourselves—but for future generations.
I know, I know…
Staying in one place, working hard year after year, being careful and wise with our resources, and leaving a legacy…
It’s old school.
But it’s a hit, and we should take it forward with us.
How about you? In what ways have you been blessed because of previous generations’ legacy-mindedness?
Happy Friday! My new tradition is to share some fun & free stuff with ya—just ’cause it’s Friday…
#1. FREE BOOK—Love Does by Bob Goff.
This is currently my favorite book. I love the stories, adventure, & challenge to love God & do stuff. Be the first one to comment on this blog post & I’ll send you a copy (scroll down to the bottom of this page to comment). Also—follow Bob Goff on Twitter. You’ll be glad you did.
#2. FREE BOOK—Creating A Prodigal-Friendly Church by Jeff Lucas.
If you’ve ever wondered, “Why are we doing what we’re doing at NWLife?” this book will be of interest to you. Be the first one to comment on this blog post & I’ll send you a copy (scroll down to the bottom of this page to comment).
#3. VIDEO—Mashed Potatoes & Gravy Dispenser.
Looks so appetizing. Wonder if this is how KFC does it?
#4. VIDEO—To Their Moms They’ll Always Be Kids.
Cute. And kinda heart-warming.
#5. VIDEO—US Olympians Are Good At Basketball.
Some incredible shots here.
Like this post? You should also check out:
Even More Friday Fun & Free Stuff
Fridays Are For Fun & Free Stuff!
Fridays Are Best With Fun & Free Stuff
The fence outside the development I live in has been tagged…
Spray painted.
Graffitied.
Vandalized.
I find it annoying.
I don’t like getting tagged.
That’s not what I would choose to put on our fence.
It’s not what our homeowner’s association would choose to put on our fence.
It doesn’t represent us—it represents someone else and their agenda.
It’s a violation. It doesn’t add value, it devalues.
I don’t appreciate getting tagged. Do you?
I don’t think anybody does.
Similarly, when we label people—they’ve been tagged.
And rather than seeing a person of unmeasurable worth in the eyes of God, we only see the tag.
We only see the label we’ve slapped on them.
Doing this strips value, significance, and worth from people…
Real people. People who God loves. People who Jesus gave his life on the cross for.
Let’s not be people who LABEL and TAG and VANDALIZE.
Instead, let’s be people who RESTORE.
In our church’s strategy (the “5 things we do here”), one of those things is: RESTORE—hope, dignity, joy, and life.
We believe people matter to God.
And they matter to us.
“Treat everyone you meet with dignity.” (1 Peter 2.17 MSG)
My paraphrase of that verse: “Add worth, value, and dignity to others—never strip it away.”
Restore, don’t vandalize.
Bless, and do not tag.
SEE ALSO:
I really do want to be like Jesus and say, “I see you. And I bless you.”
The thing is, the labels aren’t helping.
When I categorize and label people, I stop seeing a person. Instead, I see a category…
Hipster
Hillbilly
Gay
Slut
Republican
Democrat
Trailer Trash
Snob
Uneducated
Academic
If I don’t like or agree with that category, it’s nearly impossible to bless the person behind the label I’ve attached to them.
When Jesus saw people and blessed them, he wasn’t blessing a label.
He was blessing a person.
Labels oversimplify. They don’t tell the entire story or the whole truth.
They cause us to look straight through people and judge them—as if we know everything about them because of the label.
Labels dehumanize. They make us miss the point…
People matter to God. A lot.
We’re all tempted to slap labels on people.
But the labels aren’t helping.
“The old labels we once used to identify ourselves—labels like Jew or Greek, slave or free—are no longer useful. ” (1 Corinthians 12.13 MSG)
The next time you see a label or a category, not a person, let it be a red flag announcing: SOMETHING’S NOT RIGHT WITH ME.
In order to be like Jesus, we must see people—not labels.
SEE ALSO: “The Ugly Diss”
I grew up in the ’80′s, so my vocabulary includes words like “dude,” “sike,” and “diss”.
Diss is short for disrespect.
Dissing someone means you insult, mock, shame, or humiliate them.
There’s nothing beautiful or attractive about dissing. It’s mean-spirited and it’s ugly.
What is beautiful?
Honor and respect.
Sure, the idea of honor and respect might be kinda old school—but they’re hits, and I want to bring them forward with us.
To diss is to vandalize. It devalues. It’s like throwing a rock through a beautiful stained-glass window.
Honor and respect gives value, worth, and significance.
It says, “I see you. And I bless you.”
Jesus did this constantly.
He saw Zacchaeus. And He blessed him.
He saw the woman at the well. And He blessed her.
He saw the demon-possessed man living in the cemetery. And He blessed him.
He saw the woman caught in the act of adultery by the religious mafia. And He blessed her.
He saw His accusers and executioners from the cross. And he said, “Father forgive them—they know not what they do.”
He blessed them.
I want to be like Jesus.
I want to see people… see them as persons of worth and value. I want to see them as God’s wonderful creation.
I don’t want to look through people. I don’t want to see numbers, categories, statistics, or problems.
I want to see people. And I want to bless them.
I want to smile.
Bless.
Encourage.
Love.
Help.
Add value.
Give worth.
Dissing is ugly.
Honor and respect—absolutely beautiful.
Let’s bring the hit of honor and respect into our homes, families, neighborhoods, places of work, church, city, and world.
Let’s make it our mission to see people, and bless them.
I prefer my Fridays with some fun & free stuff—so I’m happy to share some with you…
#1. FREE BOOK—Love Does by Bob Goff.
This is currently my favorite book. I love the stories, adventure, & challenge to love God & do stuff. Be the first one to comment on this blog post & I’ll send you a copy (scroll down to the bottom of this page to comment). Also—follow Bob Goff on Twitter. You’ll be glad you did.
#2. FREE BOOK—Date Your Wife by Justin Buzzard.
In this new book, Justin gives 100 practical tips on how to date your wife. If you’re a guy & you’re married, you probably need this book (if you don’t win it, you should buy it). Gotta love Justin’s last name! Be the first one to comment on this blog post & I’ll send you a copy (scroll down to the bottom of this page to comment).
#3. OFFICE ANTICS—iPhone app by Jon Edmiston.
Looking to inject a little humor into your day at the office? Office Antics brings you 16 sounds especially chosen for the corporate environment. This app isn’t free—but for the laughs, it might just be worth the $.99 price tag.
#4. DIY PHOTOGRAPHY PROJECT—Transfer Prints to Wood.
Confession: I just want one of my friends to actually do this and be really good at it—so they can help me do it too. Anybody?
#5. FREE TEXTURES—by Joe Cavazos.
Grab these free textures from a cool designer. Now go create something with ‘em!
#6. POWER OF COMMUNITY—by Jonathan Malm.
This is an excellent blog post—with 5 truths about friendship. Definitely worth the 2 minutes it will take to read it… so check it out. And if you like this post, you should check out Andy Jones’ guest post on my blog too.
Like this post? You should also check out:
Even More Friday Fun & Free Stuff
Fridays Are For Fun & Free Stuff!
