I started this post over a year ago…and just now got around to finishing it.
I recently read this book and strongly suggest it to ANYONE…especially parents! Click on the cover for the link. I picked it up randomly at the store and couldn’t put it down. It’s not a big book by any means, but has some great thoughts on the legacy that we leave with our friends and family. Especially our children. Check it out!
From Amazon.com:
“We cannot change the cards we are dealt, just how we play the hand.” –Randy Pausch
A lot of professors give talks titled “The Last Lecture.” Professors are asked to consider their demise and to ruminate on what matters most to them. And while they speak, audiences can’t help but mull the same question: What wisdom would we impart to the world if we knew it was our last chance? If we had to vanish tomorrow, what would we want as our legacy?
When Randy Pausch, a computer science professor at Carnegie Mellon, was asked to give such a lecture, he didn’t have to imagine it as his last, since he had recently been diagnosed with terminal cancer. But the lecture he gave–”Really Achieving Your Childhood Dreams”–wasn’t about dying. It was about the importance of overcoming obstacles, of enabling the dreams of others, of seizing every moment (because “time is all you have…and you may find one day that you have less than you think”). It was a summation of everything Randy had come to believe. It was about living.
In this book, Randy Pausch has combined the humor, inspiration and intelligence that made his lecture such a phenomenon and given it an indelible form. It is a book that will be shared for generations to come.
Some of you may remember back on my FIRST (and only, so far) “Friday Faves” post, I mentioned Carlos. Carlos is the Godfather of Christian Bloggers, a worship leader at a little church called North Point Community Church, involved in planting a new church in Chicago and most importantly, a great father and husband.
Today is the day his record drops on iTunes. I picked it up first thing this morning and have listened all the way through it several times already. This is a great CD. This one will be on my playlist for a ling time to come! Click on the album cover below to get it from iTunes. You can find him at Ragamuffin Soul or tweeting as @loswhit.
Disclaimer: This is part two in a series covering my journey to where I’m at now. This is more for me than it is for you, but you are welcome to read! Some things have never been passed on before, some things have been shared in limited circulation.
My Mom and Bruce Gagle got married during the summer before I went to kindergarten. It was the summer of 1987. I was paid a dollar to stand on said dollar and not move through out the ceremony. I didn’t really care about the dollar, I was too excited about being the Ring Bear. That’s right, Bear. All I got was a silly tuxedo.
I’m still waiting on my bear suit.
Soon after, we moved to Kentucky. My dad was in seminary at Asbury in Wilmore, KY. I began kindergarten. Sometime within the first week, I met a girl. For some unknown reason I asked to walk her home. In kindergarten. Still not sure why I would even think of this at 5 years old, but I did. I walked her the three blocks to her house only to realize that I was afraid to walk the four blocks the other direction to my house by myself. My mom had to be called to come get me. Big man when it came to walking a girl home, but when it really came down to it, I was just a big chicken.
We spent two years (Kindergarten and 1st Grade) there before returning to Florida after my Dad’s graduation. From 1987 to 1996, we moved 6 times. By the time I was in 8th grade I had gone through 8 schools. Ahh, the life of a preacher’s kid.
Wen I was 8, my “Grandaddy Wells” passed away. My Mother’s Father, he had always been there for e and always found ways to make me feel special. I still look back to him a lot of times as a guide of how to treat people. We would wake up and walk the several blocks to the grocery store and get donut holes and milk and sit outside and eat them together before heading back. Yahootie. The Scrapbook. Hermit Crabs. The Trophy. Each one another story I could go on about. Maybe another post.
When I was 9 my sister, Janelle was born. I was ecstatic. I had experienced the only-child life and was anxious to have a sibling to share it with. In the next few years, I got to welcome two brothers into our family as well. It was awesome. I was old enough to understand and not be jealous and was really able to enjoy watching them grow. More on them in another post.
We finally settled back in Niceville, FL halfway through my 8th grade year. After living in Niceville, Wilmore, Cottondale, Pensacola, Orange Beach, Jay, and Mobile, we finally settled back in Niceville. I had had my first “real” girlfriend, I had my first kiss, and my first broken heart.
If you’ve been reading for a while, first off, thank you! Secondly, there are going to be many changes coming in the next few weeks. A new focus. A new theme. New content.
Please bear with me and let me know what you think. If you notice something that just sucks, please let me know!
Every Friday I will post a few things I’m digging right now and a few I’m not. This could be anything from people to products, q-tips to quiet times. Pretty much anything. These aren’t meant to be full blog posts, just introductions to things/people you may or may not know about. Let me know what you think! BTW, these are in no particular order…
Faves: #5: FM Static -- Take Me As I Am
Funny story. I’ve been listening to/singing this song for months now. I hear it on the radio ALL. THE. TIME! I could never figure out who sang it. Every time I heard it, they never announced the band or song title and always forgot to go looking for it. No one seemed to know. Finally yesterday I heard the song and realized about 10 seconds in that the woman on the radio had announced the band. I had to try and rewind and remember what she said. It worked. If you haven’t heard the song, check it out below!
Ryan Detzel is a tattoo’d, photo-taking, gourmet-cheffing pastor from Cincy. He’s the pastor at Vineyard Westside. He’s an amazing cook and an awesome photographer. He has two of the cutest kids ever (after my kids of course). On top of ministry info, he creates some crazy awesome recipes and loads of photos on his site. Go check him out!
I’m really excited about The Whiteboard Sessions. 1 Day. 7 Influential Leaders. 30 Minutes Each.
Jonathan Fallwell. Al Mohler. James MacDonald. John Tyson. Perry Noble. Tony Morgan. Eric Mason. Worship Leader, Carlos Whitaker. Talk about a lineup!
This is straight from the Whiteboard site:
The Whiteboard Sessions is a one-day conference on Friday, May 21, 2010 about ideas in ministry -- ideas that will stretch our thinking and shape the church’s future. Eight, influential leaders will have 30 minutes each to present one, compelling idea. This could be a biblical conviction, a proven strategy, a recent epiphany, or even a raw, untested theory.
We’re asking the presenters not to bring a canned presentation, but rather to treat Whiteboard as an extended, senior-level staff meeting. We want them to roll up their sleeves and talk openly and honestly about what works or doesn’t work in their ministries. We believe you will be stretched by their thinking and challenged by their insights.
After spending 10 years in Cali as a Creative Arts/Worship Pastor at Sandals Church, Carlos left to work with Andy Stanley at Buckhead Church in Atlanta. Now he has signed with Integrity Music and is in the process of relocating to Chicago to work with Soul City Church as they launch this year. Los is a busy, busy man. I’ve been following him over the last year and even in that time have seen his ministry grow in amazing ways. God is using him for some amazing things. This week marked the release of his 3 song EP and saw it rise to #1 on iTunes in Christian music on day one! His full album drops on April 27th, but don’t wait. Go get his EP RIGHT HERE! I promise you won’t regret it.
9.7 inch multi-touch screen. Up to 64 GB Storage. Wi-Fi. 3G. Bluetooth. 1.5 lbs. 1/2″ inch thick. Wether you have a need for one or not doesn’t matter. You can’t deny it’s sexiness.
Seriously, just watched the WORST movie ever on netflix...actually, for a psychological horror, it was pretty funny :) via Ping.fm Permalink | Leave a comment » […]
Back to King's Dominion again this weekend. So glad we got season passes again this year, love that place!www.kingsdominion.com via Ping.fm Permalink | Leave a comment » […]
