Are you one who cuts corners to get it done, over with, and then move on to something you really enjoy doing? If you don’t enjoy the task…why accept it? To get ahead? To get attention? If you’re going to do it anyway, you might as well give it your best effort. As it was once said, “Anything worth doing, is worth doing well” Another great inspirational quote is, “Your job is a self portrait of who you are. Autograph your work with excellence”
So, I ask once more, how do you complete a job? Is it worth it to you to give it your best effort? Remember, we are to work as if we are working for the Lord. After all, you will ultimately have to answer to Him. The following video depicts a man going to great lengths to offer his customers the freshest and highest of quality.
Danger awaits us around every corner. there are many who choose to cross the road and avoid the corner all together…andthere are others who go directly into the belly of the beast, pull up a chair, and face their fear. Where do you stand? Do you control your fear of getting outside yoru comfort circle? or do you allow your fears to control you.
I found this video and thought to myself, “Self…this is one of them kinda’ people”
God continues to bless us with special people who not only see this ministry like we do, but are willing to pick up the rains and shoulder some of the weight. A little more than a month ago our tech guy, Brandon Tanner, went back to college. He helped out a great deal with making us sound good. (easier said than done) And in my prayer I had asked God to send us one who could run the soundboard, keeping an eye on the levels, an eye on us, an eye on the time, and an eye on the net for on-the-fly research. I lost track of how many eyes this person would need, but apparantly God did not. I know what your thinking…we do not have a 4-eyed person on our crew now, however, I did have a very bright young man by the name of Taylor McDaniel walk up to me after small group last week and drill me with some questions about the podcast. I handed him a cd and we talked for a short while. The next day I received a call from Taylor who was very excited about the show and was interested in starting his own. It took me a while, but the light finally turned on, and we invited him to join us for the next show where he would see first hand what goes on behind the curtain…or computer.
Taylor showed up ready for an experience. Midway through the show, during the break, I asked him of his interest in what he had seen thus far, and if he would be interested in becoming part of the crew. Taylor loves electronics and is knowledgeable about the internet and computers. He enthusiastically accepted the offer and is now serving as our Production Manager.
We also have a new videographer for the show, my son, Michael James Baker, who is glad to endure the rantings of his own father to help reach lost teens for the kingdom and influence the net in a whole new way.
Teenagers can be so finicky. Take music for instance…Popularity and like-a-bility can change, not overnight…but you can be here today and gone…today! And with the speed of communication in today’s society, it can be even quicker. You can go from a stardom to nothing in no time at all.
Isn’t it amazing how quickly we forget who got “Academy for Movie of the Year” two years ago? One year ago? Who was nominated? Kids have an even shorter memory. I asked my son to take out the trash a few days ago. 10 minutes later I went into the kitchen to fetch a drink and saw him leaning against the kitchen counter with a “deer-in-the-headlights” blank stare in his face. (He is in 6th grade, which in youth ministry is normally referred to as “pre-human”) “Michael”, I said, drawing him back to earth…”the trash…” “Oh.” I’m sure you’ve been there.
Although teens have a tendancy to forget things like that, through the grace of God our listenership seems to hold steady at about 2400 teens per month. We conduct our podcasts on a weekly basis which is becoming more and more difficult to keep up with as there is much to do in a single week, but we are very excited about our growth with the audience and our current and potential impact with the teens. Please pray that we will continue to grow as we have a large goal to meet by this time next year which is to have 20,000 teens per month tune in to hear The World Gone Mad.
As you already know school is back in full swing for another year and the teens are gearing up to face all their old classmates once again…in more ways than one. Can you recall being in High School – the sharpening of pencils, minds, and unfortunately…tongues. They live in such a small world, and it becomes even smaller when they enter a classroom filled with students who get sheer enjoyment frommaking fun of them regardless of their wardrobe or attitude. This month you can expect a new show on the website which deals with teens and the harsh criticism they face every day at the bus stop, on the bus, throughout the halls, and int he classroom.
We had been invited by some of our friends to join them on the lake this past weekend. It was a blast just being out there on the boat, wind in the hair (what’s left of it) sun on the face, the kids being beat-up on a tube behind the boat, and seeing the world go by. We had switched positions just a few minutes ago. You see, I was the one on the water and my boys were inside the boat watching Daddy try to stay above water on two boards, which under a man this fat…I imagine looked a little more like an apple hobbling around on a couple of toothpicks, but I digress. Now, it was there turn.
I had asked the driver about the best way to position my body while skiing. It seems no matter what I do, within 15 minutes of skiing, my back is killing me and my legs just want to call it a day. ”What am I doing wrong?”
He said that most of the time, we over complicate the whole thing. If we just stand up, lean back a little, and allow the boat to take us for a ride…we’d be a lot better off. I thought to myself…”self, why didn’t we think of that?”
At the same time, God decided to whack me over the head with a big…”Duh!” I believe we do the same thing with faith and our way of living. We as people, let alone as Christians, accidentally over-complicate things to the extent we need someone to whack us upside the head and say…”All you gotta’ do is stand up, lean back a little, hold onto Jesus, and let HIM take you for a ride. HE said, “Love me with all your heart, soul, mind, and your strength. And then love others as yourself. Upon these rely the laws of the prophets.” Seems simple enough, doesn’t it?
