Happy Thanksgiving

... to all y'all.

If you're like me, there is so much to be thankful to God for, and I'm not just talking about the turkey, home-made macaroni and cheese and, well, pie.

I am thankful you are alive and reading this.

Got to go. My wife isn't letting me do food testing, but I need to keep at it. Stay blessed!

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Wildcat Twitter

If you need further proof that Twitter is not just for people named Stefani Germonatta, Check out the University of Arizona Athletic Director Greg Byrne, who just announced the hiring of their new head football coach Rich Rodriguez via Twitter.

Great stuff. Remember when Twitter was a virtual race track for CNN and Ashton? Now, major programs make major announcements via social networks.

Of course, the cynics out there will argue that the come-and-go brevity of Twitter is perfect for the revolving doors of college football, but I refuse to talk to such naysayers. So there.

From a practical point of view, it is a pretty tidy means of disseminating news. It's basically grassroots broadcast communication. It gets the word out quickly, effectively and almost guarantees further propagation. Of course, you will deal with unsolicited feedback, but nothing comes that easy. But even that can be a potential advantage. You get to see the reaction to your decisions from everyday people. Press conferences don't do that for you.

Corporation and entities are becoming more savvy, and are understanding how powerful (and free) social networking is. And even teens seem to finally be jumping on the bandwagon.

What if... what if MJ (b-baller) had tweeted his comeback (for you youngsters, I mean the first one)? What if we had twitter when the Berlin wall came down? What is Breet Favre announced his retirement... oh, scratch that.

Twitter can be quite useful. Let's end on that.

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Adieu to Fall ball...

So... the Fall Season is officially over. 

And, yes, I already miss it.

It was a tough season, for a number of reasons. We dropped way more games than I would like to in the First Division with my older ladies; my younger ladies did well to gel and pull out an admirable season after an extremely rough start.

Yesterday, one of my favorite kids came and gave me a hug after our parents meetings.

"Coach, you are my favorite coach ever!"

"I am?" I preened. That made my day, even though we both know I am her first and only coach.

Whatever... I am the favorite right now.


My voice will get some rest, and I'll get to spend more time with family. My stress level will go down (even though, as a youth pastor, it seems my youth tend to make up for any deficit over the winter), and my afternoons will not involve pumping balls or washing pinnies.

And I miss it. I miss my players. Yes, I'm pouting.

Every season is a learning experience. I learned one of my kids survived a bout with meningitis. She's only our top scorer and sweetest kid in the world. And I thought I was strong. Ha. One of my other players has dealt with enough emotional pain that I think even the Statue of Liberty would sag under its weight. One broke her wrist during the season. Through all the cookies, cupcakes and candy, I realize that I am so blessed to be an occasional, ever-so-temporary guardian to a phenomenal bunch of almost 30 young ladies.

Every year, we give thanks for a multitude of things. I just want to show gratitude to God for an opportunity to teach -- and learn from -- an incredible bunch of kids. As I have said before, there is no more overwhelming feeling than to be surrounded by a bunch of 12 or 14 yr -old ladies, who are looking up (or, as happens more nowadays with the older group, DOWN) at you with trust and expectation.

I pray God gives me the strength to continually be the right type of guide for them. Love my Mundial and Mundial Select players.

*sigh* Come on, Spring...

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Connections vs separations.

I love cheap tech toys. In truth, I love expensive tech toys too, but I have to hold off on getting that decked-out Maybach. For now, at least.

One of my favorites is my Bluetooth Audio Bridge. It's a BlackBerry-branded device that allows me to turn most computer speakers to wireless output for my EVO. In other words, I can connect the bridge to a pair of speakers, and stream music to it from a short distance. It works well during youth devotions and stuff. Secondarily, you can use it in cars with tape decks.

There is, well, one drawback. It needs a source of electricity, as it is not rechargeable. So, even though I am not tethered to my EVO, I have to add a power cable to the equation.

It's interesting... on the hand, I am able to create a remotely controlled music interface, but on the other, I also created a little bit more clutter, and, arguably, an even greater need for resources.

It occurred to me that some of the "solutions" we pursue in life can be somewhat ambiguous, particularly when we fail to seek God in our decisions. I think this is not only important for church workers, but for believers as a whole.

Even more importantly, I think it is crucial that we don't create more barriers between God and our congregations. This isn't something that we can do with just technology. That new church initiative to go to a dual sermons on Sunday can do the same hing if not implemented correctly. As already noted, seeking God is the first step, because what is "logical" to us is not always God's plan. 


The church that remembers that will do well.

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Class and courage.

From rivals.yahoo.com

Courage is a term bandied around quite frequently when it comes to sports. Not to downplay the work ethic of multi-million dollar athletes, but if I made 5 or 6 (or, to be honest, even 3 at this point) figures a game, I'd hobble on the pitch with three broken limbs.

Seriously, I read about the type of courage that really matters... the courage to win by being  a brother to one's opponent. Two high school rowers, James Konokpa and Nick Mead gave up chances to win medals at a meet to help opponents.

These two boys actually quit racing to help out opponents that had capsized into frigid water. We live in a world where winning at all costs is celebrated. Even churches buy into this philosophy. We want to win so much that we forget that christianity is a collectives race.

In any case, I love seeing true competition germinating from within brotherly love.

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JoePa's last lesson (to the church).

Courtesy of frangrit via Flickr CC.

The Penn State child abuse scandal has everyone reeling. Frankly, it has been painful to even try to watch sports TV shows this past week.

A telling dichotomy emerged. Even as alumni and school officials publicly expressed shame and disgust, the students themselves seemed unanimous in their defense of Coach Paterno.

Like it or not, it seemed clear that contrary to what we might always have thought, college may not be the best place to teach our young adults about the realities of life.

In any case, there are some things that church staffers can get from this grave issue. The good news? Some are really, really obvious.

When it comes to working with children and young people, some non-negotiable accountability rules must be put in place.

Duh. 

The eyewitness account of one of the alleged offenses is excruciatingly horrid. The first question administrators should ask is: where were the controls? How did a coach/camp supervisor end up in a shower with a child?

Are there rules in place? Do the staffers understand them? Most importantly, are the rules actually enforced? A lot of times, the issue isn't with having rules present; the problem is actually adhering to them.

Secrecy generally leads to problems

Some things are meant to never see the light of day... ask Microsoft about the Kin. Staff issues with children? Deal with it, follow the law and put the broom and rug away.

Cooperation with law enforcement is key too.

Time alone does not heal these type of wounds, particularly when the alleged perpetrator is not held accountable. Which brings me to...

Be decisive in response to allegations.

I believe that if you create a transparent environment with protective rules, checks and balances, you won't have any allegations, but if you do, then act swiftly. 

Some folks may not agree with me, but I believe if any unsavory behavior is alleged, the prudent thing to do may be to ask the staffer to step down for a while. Why not? The church 's governing entity can decide upon the status of such a leave, but I do think it is prudent to remove, say, a child worker while any issues are being investigated.

Communicate.

This goes with everything else. Enough said.

I never thought that I'd see Coach Paterno not be at the helm at Penn State. It's a shame that it had to go down the way it did, but it should serve as a warning to the rest of us mere mortals. You can do a lot of good, but all it takes to tarnish a legacy is one major misstep.

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