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I can’t stand when churches use cheesy, christianese slogans on letterboard signs.

However, when a business uses them I don’t mind. Down the street from my place are 2 such signs that do a great job of making me chuckle every time I drive by.

Here’s this week’s offerings:

“Don’t use big words when diminutive ones will suffice.”

“The procrastinator’s club would like to wish you a Merry Christmas.”

And one that I loved from last year:

“All those with telekinesis raise my hand.”

http://www.churchmarketingsucks.com/archives/2008/01/the_geek_world.html

Check out this short but sweet blog on WIFI hotspots. Imagine if your church were the “hotspot” of your town. It’s a great idea.

Being that I’m such an interwebber, I think it’s an amazing idea. Problem for us though in our “church” environment is that we meet in a movie theater. It’s a pseudo-permanent facility for us. We have an ongoing lease and we have total access, but only on Sunday mornings.

Our office facility is another option. It also doubles as our youth facility. But if we were to open it up to the public as a free “hotspot” I fear that our work environment would take a hit and we’d get nothing done.

Haha. What a dilemma. All we need now is land and a new building and then we’re set.

How would opening up YOUR church lobby (or applicable space) work for wifi sharing?

(ht: church marketing sucks)

Ok, I’ve narrowed it down to my top 5. But I need you, my loyal blog friends to crown the Ordinary Radical sitcom theme song champion.

Here are the contestants:

1) Coming straight out of the 60s with a catchy whistled tune titled “The Fishin’ Hole” by Earle Hagen and Herbert Spencer. It’s the Andy Griffith Show theme song.

2) In the 80s this theme song invited us all to a place “Where Everybody Knows Your Name” – it’s the theme song from Cheers written by Gary Portnoy and Judy Hart Angelo.

3) Filled with soul and a bit of sass this sitcom from the 70s and 80s brought us higher with a gospel infused theme song called “Movin’ On Up” written by Ja’net Du Bois and Jeff Barry. It’s the theme from The Jeffersons.

4) In the 60s, we rocked the Island with this catchy nautical theme song “The Ballad of Gilligan’s Isle” written by Sherwood Schwartz and George Wyle. It’s the theme from Gilligan’s Island, little buddies!

5) Back in the 90s, a group of “Friends” gave us one of the most catchy and annoying theme songs of all times. Written by Michael Skloff and Allee Willis specifically for the show and performed by the Rembrandts, it’s “I’ll Be There For You” – theme from Friends.

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Honorable mentions (including non-sitcom themes):

Theme song from The Fresh Prince
Theme song from Knight Rider
Theme song from Dallas
Theme song from Bonanza
Theme song from The Flinstones

Ok, friends, let the voting begin. Which song deserves the crown? And what is YOUR favorite TV theme song?

Why Blog?: The Series

1) Why I Blog: I blog for fun.
2) Blogging As A Worship Leader: I blog to connect, to share, and to encourage.
3) Blogging & Social Networking. My blog is it’s very own social network!
4) Staying away from the Dark Side.

Today: Why Blog?: Blogging & Stats

First, I love stats.

I love checking them to see how many people have visited my blog and the other handful of sites I administer. It’s fun. It’s almost a game.

For me, blog stats are a vital part of blogging. I don’t check them because I’m trying to win the world over to my blog. I don’t even follow them because I need to be popular.

I’m a man. Yep, a male. I’m very task oriented. You could even say I’m goal oriented, though my wife might disagree!

In my inner workings are wires that cause me to desire to SEE where I’ve been, where I’m at, and where I’m going. I love checking my blog stats.

Thing is, I’m never disappointed if I don’t reach a certain number, because my blog is ultimately about having an outlet to express my creativity and to connect with people along the way. It’s not about conversions and clickthroughs and what not. It’s fun.

Now, that being said I know there are many people who run successful blogs that DO need to set goals and hit targets to bring in income. More power to you. Maybe one day I’ll have the desire to run a blog for that purpose.

If you’re willing to journey with me by reading my blogs and commenting, then gosh darn, you’re so much more than a stat to me anyways. I consider you a friend!

And in my book, I’d much rather have a friend than a number on a chart!

I DO post top referrers and I do visit my google stats at least twice a week. Mostly to see where traffic is coming from and to give link love to those that are passing new friends my way!

So to sum it all up (for me):

1) I check stats because it’s fun, not because I need the popularity.
2) I’d rather have a few good friends to journey with than a few thousand ticks on a chart.

Why Blog?: The Series

1) Why I Blog: I blog for fun.
2) Blogging As A Worship Leader: I blog to connect, to share, and to encourage.
3) Blogging & Social Networking. My blog is it’s very own social network!

Today: The Dark Side of Blogging

Today’s thoughts about blogging are simple. There are some great aspects of having a blog. But for me, there is also one ugly thing about blogging. Some would call it narcissism, some would call it self-love. I call it vanity.

Whether it’s by posting too much about our own accomplishments, being too driven by stats, or simply by stroking on our own egos, it can be a slippery slope, the one that leads to the dark side.

It’s so easy to get caught up with yourself while blogging. As a blogger who blogs from a ministry perspective, my hope is that in all my ranting and raving; in all my confessing and creating, in all my sharing and showing…I hope that I never come across as self serving.

As cheesy as it might sound, I hope that the effort and time I spend blogging somehow in the end points people to Jesus.

Be it directly or indirectly, I’m not ashamed to say that my goal is to connect with God and to connect with others on my journey through life and to use all necessary tools to make that happen. In this case it is a blog.

While it is all good to blog about our own journeys and experiences in life, let’s make sure that we are blogging to share and encourage, to connect with others, and ultimately with God.

To keep this short and sweet: as bloggers who represent worship ministries, the Church, and ultimately God, let us not fall victim to the Dark Side of blogging.