September 30, 2005 No comments

Bubble Gum Head

All day I’ve been thinking about how my day started because I knew there was some type of spiritual application I could make with this life event. It all started this way…

A few days ago I was chewing some gum and when I got sick of it I placed it on my nightstand, unwrapped of course, because I expected to throw it away as soon as I got the time. Why right then and there wasn’t the time, I have no clue, but that’s me.

Move ahead a few days and guess what, I wanted to go to bed and pull my long hair back because it’s hot at night and my naturally curly hair falls all over my face and everything when I sleep and I hate that. So I grabbed the closest necklace I had so I could pull my hair back. The reason I did that was because for the life of me I could not find a twisty tie to put my hair in.

Then I slept.

Then I woke up this morning and started feeling my hair and guess what, THERE WAS GUM ALL TANGLED UP IN MY HAIR!

But never fear, I didn’t panic, I just tried to figure out how much gum there was. And then I remembered that I had placed the gum on my dresser and the necklace was close to it and poof…gum tied up in the hair.

So I laughed, and then I got some scissors and cut off some hair this morning. It was only about 3 inches, not too bad, and it was underneath so no one will ever know.

Then my husband told me that I should use PEANUT BUTTER to get the gum out of my hair instead. And I thought, no way…that’s all I need in my beautiful long hair - gum and peanut butter. With my luck then the peanut butter would stick to the gum and I’d smell like a piece of blow pop bubble gum all day with a hint of Reeces Peanut Butter cups thrown in for good measure.

The spiritual application to Bubble Gum Head - sometimes God has to have us cut out something in order to make things new. It could be stopping a favorite sin, it could be literally pulling us away from something or it could be realizing that we need to live for today and not try to use crazy solutions like peanut butter in order to save the thing that is messing us up.

And guess what else I found out today - Skittles now has a bubble gum candy. I got some today because how could I not after starting my day with gum in my hair.

September 30, 2005 1 Comment

A Challenge to Make a Difference

Today Todd Nettleton from Voice of the Martyrs talked to Janet Parshall about how a persecuted Christian was released on Sunday because the government knew people were watching. How did that government know? - People wrote letters to them letting them know that they wanted that prisoner released. As a result I was inspired to challenge you…

I want to personally challenge you to set aside one day a week and write prisoners using the Prisoner Alert system.  It is so easy and literally only takes minutes, and yet your letter can help change the lives of those who are suffering unjustly for Christ Jesus.

I’d like to challenge my readers to go to Prisoner Alert and let’s see if we can’t get the number of letters written to our most recent prisoners past the 1000 mark!  You can do it and I know you will, so let’s get active, and do what God has called us to do by making a difference.

Tell all your friends, and direct them to our persecution blog so that more Christians and others can get involved and encourage those in prison.  Let’s make a difference today!

September 29, 2005 No comments

NY Times Anti-Good Bias

Posted by Stacy L. Harp on September 28, 2005 - 19:28.

A few days ago New York Times writer Ned Martel wrote an article called Manna from Hollywood: Charity Begins on TV about NBC’s new Friday night television show Three Wishes hosted by Grammy award winning singer Amy Grant.

 

As I began to read Martel’s critique of the show I was amazed to see that Martel took issue with a show that was designed to help people. To begin with  Martel begins by characterizing the whole idea of the show and how it is presented as a “traveling ministry, with revival tents pitched in a different small town every week”, thereby insulting any and everyone who has ever attended a revival meeting of some sort.

Martel also characterizes Grant by saying that the show actually “sets her up to actually play God.”  This is absolutely ridiculous because just because she is the host of the show and one of the most visible Christians in America does not mean that Amy Grant has a desire to play God.  This also dismisses every other person who takes part in the program, as well as other shows and charities that reach out to those in need. And taken to its logical conclusion every host of every show in the world is then in the position to “play God” whether it be with their programming or desire to meet needs.

And just when one thinks that Martel might have some axe to grind with Amy Grant because of her Christian faith, he compliments her by saying,

      “Ms. Grant is an amiable, wholesome warbler, and she has an easy rapport with her small-town hosts. But her show arrives at a moment that is rife with celebrity saints showily raising hurricane-relief money or arranging televised giveaways for the less fortunate. Clearly, she feels something genuine for the aggrieved. The problem is that "Three Wishes" elevates the already sky-high power of celebrity, suggesting that only through her presence can the locals get their prayers answered.”

Martel clearly states that the problem as he sees it is that celebrities “sky-high” power is the problem, which I find rather ironic because all most “celebrity saints,”  want to help those who are hurting and suffering.  Why is this such a bad thing to Martel?  Does Ned Martel desire that celebrities use their “sky-high power” to abuse the public instead.  This is a silly suggestion, I’m sure, but it does make one wonder when a great new television show that exalts the goodness of humanity is slammed because it uses celebrities, and in this case has a prominent Christian celebrity as its host.

The other interesting comment in Martel’s critique of Three Wishes is that he states that his wish is,

     “…that the town could have figured out how to stage such moments of support and catharsis without the arrival or blessings of a famous singer… much of these benefits could be accomplished without such a benefactor swooping into town.”

While I can understand the power of celebrity being an issue for Martel the problem I have with Martel’s wish is that he does not provide his solution to the problem.  How are hundreds or thousands of people in a town able to find out the wishes and needs of others in the town without some person of influence among them?  Not all people read papers, and everyone doesn’t listen to the news or even watch television.  So what is the solution to the problem of celebrity?  Martel fails miserably in giving a solid answer or even an ounce of an idea about how this can be accomplished.

Martel also could’ve done well to dismiss the anti-religious commentary and comparison in his article as not to offend thousands of Christians or God loving people who appreciate the good work NBC has finally decided to do.  My wish is that more people watch Three Wishes and are inspired to act in a manner that is helpful in building up, rather than tearing down.  Martel might want to watch the show to learn a few lessons from those celebrities he has criticized for doing good.  That’s the example to follow and only the beginning of the solution, for him who has eyes to see.

September 28, 2005 No comments

How To Use Your Blog To Make Money Doing What You Love

Coming Soon…GodBlogCon!

I am truly excited about being able to speak at the first ever God Bloggers Conference. If you haven’t signed up yet to attend, I want to encourage you to because there is still time.

My workshop is called Using Your Blog To Make Money Doing What You Love .

Here’s my description…

Everyone has a passion and I believe that it is totally possible to make money using the blogosphere in any field you are interested in, if you know how to explain the blogosphere’s influence, explore with your target market their needs and how you can meet them, and are willing to start small, think big, work hard and have a little faith you can and will make money.

Mind & Media was developed with that idea in mind and I would love to teach you what I’ve learned about presenting and promoting your ideas to those in the market you are entering.

As Christians, I believe that those with God’s ideas will never fail, and we can be the trendsetters in this ever-expanding and exciting medium called the blogosphere! So join me for an exciting time as I motivate you to dream big and make money at the same time.

I hope to see you there!

September 28, 2005 No comments

Coming Soon - Women Talk with Sharon Hughes & Friends

I am very excited to share with you that soon infamous radio talk show host, Sharon Hughes of Changing Worldviews, will be starting to highlight and focus on women!

She’s starting a new blog called Women Talk with Sharon Hughes & Friends and I’m honored to say that she has asked me to contribute to her blog on a weekly basis.

I will let you know when the site officially launches, but in the meantime you can click on over and read what Sharon’s vision is for this blog. I think you’ll be impressed and I hope you take the time to link to it.

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