This has now been resolved with the forthcoming release of 'Engage' in September.

You can order HERE and download HERE a preview of what it's going to be like.

From the Good Book Company website...

Engage Bible notes have been written to help young people understand and apply the scriptures. They also seek to address relevant issues in teenagers' lives and provide a Bible reading resource that is engaging and long-lasting.

They include articles on stuff relevant to young Christians, looking at issues like self-esteem, money, sex, bereavement, etc as well as interviews with real-life Christians!

Engage includes essential information on the basics of the Christian faith, sections which tackle mind-bendingly tricky questions that confuse us all and an expanding toolkit to get readers wrestling with the Bible and understanding it for themselves without relying on what other people tell them.

I wonder how often we pack the big ideas, the major concepts in the standard, first with students. Do we lead off the unit with telling them about the standard? Do we instruct them directly on the big ideas?  Do we give them activities that clearly focus on the big ideas? Do we assess them on the big ideas?

I remember watching a teacher who did a half period introductory activity to the unit. The activity was engaging.  However, it did not deal with the big ideas of the unit but with a very minor point.

Do you pack the big ideas first with your students?

In addition to the following dates for Engage, Wayfarer is also doing two multi-day events in the upstate in 2008-09. These events, which we call intersections, are specifically designed series for our partners in which we provide not only speaking but also other programming elements such as responses, prayer exercises, and more. We did our first intersection in January 2008 at CrossRoads Community Church. We'll be back at CrossRoads January 2009, but our next intersection will be at Anderson University Sept. 8-10 of this year. We'll have more details on the Anderson intersection soon.

Engage dates for 2008-09

Fall season: October 6, 13, 20; November 3, 10, 17

Spring season: February 2, 9, 16; March 16, 23, 30 and April 6, 13, 20

If you want more info on Engage, visit the Engage website at www.EngageGod.org. And if you'd like to be added to the Engage listserv to get regular updates on Engage, fill out the form here. The Engage site also has ways to get updates via text message and Facebook, if that's more your style.

ERS advises that Clients are using cost savings to enhance the attractiveness of the package offered to secure quality Permanent employees, as Employers enjoy the benfits of stabilising the workforce, allowing greater investments in the development of valuable personnel and enhanced retention within specialist teams. ERS report that Clients are offering very attractive packages to secure the very best staff as competition hots up.

ERS is finding that in these days of economic uncertainty, a well paid and secure permanent postion is proving very attractive to the best quality candidates, keen to secure the best ongoing terms for their skillsets. 

ERS advise that excellent career opportunities now exist with some of the leading Specialist Engineering firms and Nuclear Operators for personnel with qualifications and experience in  Mechanical, Engineering, Electrical, EC&I, Safety, Compliance, Quality Control and Assurance, Process, Business Development, Commercial Management, Project Management, Planning, Design, Structural and Civil Engineering, New Power Plant Build, Construction, Commissioning, Decommissioning, Construction, Site Management, Waste Management, etc.

Details of current vacancies can be found via http://www.ersjobs.co.uk or feel free to contact Simon Turner direct for an informal chat about your career objectives. More information about ERS is available on  http://www.nuclear-energy.co.uk

To discuss how to best leverage your skillset and enjoy the best possible terms of engagement, contact Simon Turner of ERS on +44(0) 1454 203 460 or submit a CV to cv@energyrs.co.uk to register your interest or request a Job Search.

Die britische Gewerkschaft UCU (University and College Union) ist die weltweit größte Gewerkschaft für Angestellte im Bereich der höheren Bildung. Sie ging 2006 aus dem Zusammenschluss der Gewerkschaften AUT (Association of University Teachers) und Natfhe (National Association of Teachers in Further and Higher Education) hervor. Die UCU bietet große Kräfte auf, um eine jahrelange Tradition fortzuführen, die von ihren Vorgängerorganisationen begründet wurde: Das Liebäugeln mit einem Boykott israelischer Akademiker und akademischer Einrichtungen in Israel.

Engage wurde zu dem Zweck gegründet, dieser Strömung innerhalb der Gewerkschaft durch praktische und theoretische Arbeit entgegenzutreten. Neben einem sehr lebhaften Forum findet sich auf der Engage-Website auch das hauseigene wissenschaftliche Journal. Essential Reading.

.

It's the sound of man, unfurled.

Agony is life.

Reference: 1215511915

ERS have a Client who is seeking an Embedded Electronic Engineer to be a member of a team involved in the design and development of Warhead Electrical Systems. To build capability in the area of Arming Fuzing and Firing systems and their integration into Warhead systems. The role will concentrate on the application of commercial technologies to robust microprocessor systems

Location

Aldermaston

Salary

Competitive salary depending on qualifications and experience

Job Responsibilities

Lead the hardware development of COTS based digital hardware systems to solve departmental problems and contribute to the down selection and underwriting of suitable technologies.

Provide technical leadership in the development of COTS based approaches within the company and with external companies.

To assist in the execution of appropriate programmes to ensure that capability is developed and maintained.

Be part of the process to ensure that appropriate staff and facilities are available to meet the needs of our customer.

Lead the development of control systems using microprocessors and programmable hardware techniques using commercial high integrity approaches.

Maintenance and development of WES capability, in relevant technology areas, for Trident support and any possible future successor.

Identify high integrity commercial techniques Assess the applicability of identified technologies to WES problems.

Develop demonstration hardware.

Design informal software.

Provide advice on the application of standard commercial technologies.

Interact with industry to facilitate the development of high integrity techniques.

Ensure his/her performance and development is actively managed to meet current and future business needs.

Maintain good understanding of company and local issues.

Assistance with programme development and execution.

Input and advise appropriately to programme studies.

Execute programme for development of Warhead Electrical Systems.

Obtain understanding of future requirements and technology trends/solutions.

Maintain and encourage outreach activities.

Engage in collaborative activities with US labs, UK industry and academia.

Promote Business best practice (e.g. IIP and partnership).

Ensure understanding and apply responsibilities with regard to the Company’s Environment, Health, Safety, Security and Quality Standards.

Tel: 01454 203 460

cv@energyrs.co.uk

Este chico se hizo archiconocido con su versión,y le han salido muchísimos imitadores,y muchísimas versiones del canon rock.Esto seguramente ya lo sabríais,pero no,no os vayais aun.Ahora llegamos a lo que os quería enseñar.Resulta que navegando por internet encontre una versión del canon bastante curiosa,una realizada por una banda de power metal conocida como Engage y que me gustaría mostraros.

Sin más comentarios,os dejo con la opinión de alguien que odia el canon con toda su alma,Rob Paravonian (miradlo,no tiene desperdicio) XD.

Ala,y ya me despido que tengo sueño XD.

Un Saludo,Säkul.

For the most part the small business world is at stage 2 of their denial cycle:  Anger!

The Five Stages of Denial

Denial: (these reviews don’t matter to my business…those aren’t my customers…the internet doesn’t matter..who are these people?  Who has the time?  These people are losers…they aren’t my clientele, my “base”)

Anger: (Why me?  I HATE user reviews.  That is total bull…I’m going to post a sticker:  NO YELPERS ALLOWED)

Bargaining: (if I could only delete the review…or maybe I’ll sue them…)

Depression: (I don’t care anymore...I’m going to just ignore the whole thing…forget about it…)

Acceptance: (I’m ready for whatever comes – I’m ready to deal with this – let’s go…let’s engage this beast…)

Go to the beach, do yoga, get some extra sessions with your therapist in and vent until it hurts…beat up some pillows, cry.  Get a good long cry out.  Let it alllll out!

And then accept it!  Embrace it.  Start to engage user reviews, blogs, Facebook, MySpace, Twitter and everywhere and wherever.  Be open.  Be passionate.  Be real and be honest.  But most importantly:  be there!

Ce passage, que l'on ne retrouve pas sur les cartes routières officielles, n'est pas une autoroute; on y retrouve donc n'importe quoi, que ce soit des quads (VTT), des motoneiges, en hiver, etc. D'ailleurs, le passage n'était ouvert, autrefois, qu'à ces véhicules. Mais H-Q a décidé, il y a quelques années, d'ouvrir son lien inter-rives aux voitures, et camions légers. Voici donc des images de ce passage, de moins en moins secret.

Je tiens à vous aviser que compte tenu du fait que certaines photos furent prises en mouvement, elles sembleront déformées. C'est normal.

Je suis arrivé à l'intersection du Chemin de la Gabelle, à Saint-Étienne-des-Grès, du côté ouest de la rivière Saint-Maurice. La Gabelle est aussi le nom du barrage d'Hydro-Québec.

Comme il s'agit d'infrastructures un peu particulières, H-Q a pris soin d'installer un panneau indiquant le mode de fonctionnement du passage.

Nous voilà donc sur la rive ouest de la rivière Saint-Maurice, en attente de l'ouverture de la barrière.

Comme l'ouverture des barrières est automatisé, en fonction d'une vitesse de 20 km/h, lorsque l'on traverse plus rapidement, ce qu'a probablement fait ce quadiste, il faut attendre que l'ouverture se fasse.

Nous sommes engagés dans le lien inter-rives. Le passage, sur le barrage, ne laisse passer qu'un seul véhicule à la fois. Au bout du virage, le système d'ouverture des vannes.

Nous sommes au-dessus des vannes du barrage. Droit devant, la centrale électrique La Gabelle.

Dans le miroir, situé le long du parapet, juste à l'intérieur du virage, nous voyons l'extrémité est de la centrale. Le lien ne laisse toujours passer qu'un véhicule à la fois.

Bon, j'ai dû rouler trop vite, moi aussi, puisque je dois aussi attendre, pour une minute ou deux, l'ouverture de la barrière qui me conduira sur la rive est de la rivière Saint-Maurice.

Mais voilà, tout vient à point à qui sait attendre. La barrière se soulève pour me permettre de gagner le rang des Grès, puis le rang Saint-Flavien, à Notre-Dame-du-Mont-Carmel, municipalité qui est située le long de la route 157.

Il faut être prudent, et surtout respectueux des règles de circulation sur le lien inter-rives d'Hydro-Québec. Puisqu'il s'agit d'installations qui, d'ordinaire, ne sont pas ouvertes au public, la société d'état pourrait très bien, en cas d'abus, mettre fin au lien. Quand on sait qu'il s'agit du seul endroit où l'on peut traverser le Saint-Maurice entre Trois-Rivières et Shawinigan, cela vaut la peine de faire quelques efforts pour respecter les règles de base.

Dans un autre ordre d'idées, le temps me manque. Je n'ai pas encore terminé de publier les billets dont j'ai fait mention, que d'autres photos s'accumulent déjà! Vous verrez donc bientôt l'A-55, entre Drummondville et Sherbrooke, des travaux sur l'A-10, en Estrie, le chevauchement de celle-ci et de la route 112, entre Sherbrooke et Magog, ainsi que de toutes nouvelles photos du chantier de l'A-15 nord, à Mirabel. D'ici-là, je souhaite la meilleure des chances, et beaucoup de courage, à ceux et celles qui vivront le supplice du déménagement, ainsi qu'une joyeuse fête du Canada.

And all the believers lived in a wonderful harmony, holding everything in common. They sold whatever they owned and pooled their resources so that each person's need was met. They followed a daily discipline of worship in the Temple followed by meals at home, every meal a celebration, exuberant and joyful, as they praised God. People in general liked what they saw. Every day their number grew as God added those who were saved.

Spending time together, enjoying a meal with friends, praying together, making sure that those without are taken care of, praising God, and enjoying being around other believers.

These seem to be heartbeat of the early church. Community seems to be determined in different ways. By some as a group that lives highly communal lives, welcomes the stranger, serves with generosity, creates in community, studies scripture holistically, practices accountability and lives selflessly.

Right now we at Compass are wresting with this question…

What are the most important elements for community groups, small groups, life groups or whatever term you have deemed them?

I’d love to get input from all of you. What do you believe to of utmost importance and how do you plan on incorporating into the DNA of your groups?

I’d love for you to post and share your thoughts with all.

[murmur] is a documentary oral history project that records stories and memories told about specific geographic locations. We collect and make accessible people's personal histories and anecdotes about the places in their neighborhoods that are important to them. In each of these locations we install a [murmur] sign with a telephone number on it that anyone can call with a mobile phone to listen to that story while standing in that exact spot, and engaging in the physical experience of being right where the story takes place. Some stories suggest that the listener walk around, following a certain path through a place, while others allow a person to wander with both their feet and their gaze.

To be read to the tune of Proud Mary, (Tina Turner version):

[murmur] is pleased to announce the launch of our latest Toronto expansion into the Church-Wellesley neighbourhood as part of this year’s Pride festival. Six new locations have been installed in and around the Gaybourhood, and include stories about: the Cawthra Park AIDS memorial; being gay & Muslim on September 11th; the bathhouse raids; guerrilla gardening by the Alexander Wood statue; 1990s queer activism; and what it’s like to grow up in the village and have drag queens put together your prom outfit. The six locations are:

1> Northwest corner Church and Wellesley (in front of Ho’s Place barbershop).

2> 538 Church Street by Cafe California & Zelda’s

3> 500 Church Street by Alexander Wood Statue

4> 519 Church Street (by Cawthra Park/519 Community Centre)

5> George Hislop Park (between Isabella and St. Charles St.)

6> Southeast corner of Yonge and Wellesley.

More locations and stories will be added this summer, stay tuned.

This iteration of [murmur] is sponsored by Pride Toronto and the Lesbian and Gay Community Appeal Foundation and is part of the Plot, Engage, Disperse program curated by Daryl Vocat. The project is a unique partnership for us as it was first initiated (and ultimately executed) by Chris Bentley, a researcher from York University looking into queer oral histories in the neighbourhood who thought it might be a good idea to do his recordings in the [murmur] format and make those stories accessible on the street, where the events occurred.

Chug-chug-squeal gets kind of lame.

Not their best, but close.

Structured Query Language (SQL) has been a phenomenally useful language for the relational database era.  But I see that era coming to a close.

One of the primary flaws is SQL allows for database Alters, Drops, Updates and Deletes.  When diskspace was expensive this made perfect sense, but with the unlimited disk resources we have today a greater principle holds true: NO SCHEMA OR DATA SHOULD BE ALTERED, DROPPED, UPDATED OR DELETED.

That being the case SQL has four unnecessary statements just waiting to be abused.  We need a better language.  In fact, we need a better database architecture.

A new language would provide no means for updates or deletes.  I created the first Releases of this language I called "Structured Thinking Language" (STL).

STL has the following commands:

1. CREATE - affordance concept (creates entities)
2. RELATE- affordance context (relates entities)
3. REPORT - affordance logic (entity output)
4. RECORD - affordance physic (entity input)
5. PORT - affordance episodic (entity security)
6. CORD - affordance spheric (entity manipulation)

As you can see there are no means to delete data.

Each entity (noun) has only one "attribute" in the relational ERD sense and each entity value is unique.

Each relationship between entities is called an attribution (verb).

What we are actually dealing with is a database that has data states.  Data being no longer affected by Alters and Deletes are instead affected by change of state without physical alteration or deletion.

After looking at STL recently I realized I had created a command language for an existing database architecture:  The Associative Model of Data by Simon Williams.

The Book on the Model and a free copy of the Enterprise Edition is available here.

An old release of STL can be found here.

Over the past week, I had the pleasure of meeting the multi-talented Graphic Designer Alex Ostrowski. Alex, a 2008 UK Graphic Design graduate from Bristol’s University of West England, recently won the RSA and NESTA’s competition ‘Engage!’.

Tagged to "catalyse social change through design-led citizen participation", the Engage! project, aimed to encourage social responsibility in young designers. The 2008 RSA Design Directions brief asked student designers to consider how they could best use design to bring about positive change within a community and instigate a project solution of this nature.

In response to the brief, Alex took his skills as a designer to The Frenchay Brain Injury Rehabilitation Centre in Bristol. Through immersive time spent within the Rehabilitiation Centre Alex soon discovered that many patients suffer from post-traumatic amnesia and experience confusion in their sense of time, place and person. The term for this lost understanding is disorientation, something the unit is responsible for regaining with patients. Through speaking with staff, Alex established that the process of re-orientation contained some inefficiency and needed addressing. Working closely with staff to establish an appropriate colour system to bring holistic navigation to the unit, which could dually apply to patients' timetables, orientation boards, and the building itself. The project proved very useful for the unit, who have continued with an improved re-orientation strategy.

Winner of the Engage! project, Alex received the RSA Design Directions Award for his supporting book 'I am here' (pictured). To find out his motivations for the project, you can watch an interview with Alex over at the RSA.

+ AlexOstrowski.com
+ RSA Design Directions 2008.

My eyes open, I curl over and struggle to find the snooze button.  PRESS HERE, to sleep for 8 more minutes...

I just need a little more sleep.  Then I will be ready for the day...

7:06, 7:07, 7:08 then again... smooth melodies ring out.

My mind justifies, 'Just 8 more minutes...'  Instinctually, I reach out, PRESS HERE, ahhh quiet, peace and rest again.  My mind is quiet, my body is at rest, I am still...

Again, and again my robotic hand that retreats from the reality of time reaches out to PRESS HERE, to snooze, to rest, to ignore.

So I PRESS HERE to hide from the realities of what not yet is today.

The homeless man I see standing on the same corner again...  I PRESS HERE and snooze and escape from reality that the home I go to he does not even dream of, cause all he dreams of is a full stomach.

The single mother who tries to be everything she needs to be; provider, care giver, homemaker.  Who cries herself to sleep every night from the loneliness she feels from sleeping in an empty bed each night.  PRESS HERE says she can make it, life is hard but through hard work and persistence she can make right choices.

So what makes this morning different?

Today I will be AWAKE!

I will engage the full realities of the falleness of man.

I will be AWAKE,

to the creation that groans from abuse of consumption culture.

I will be AWAKE,

to the divisions that liter our families, churches and government.

I will be AWAKE,

to the reality of suffering, death, loneliness and depression.

I WILL BE ALIVE TODAY!

I will not PRESS HERE and sleep in the false notions of peace and quiet, amid non-reality, false truths and convenient excuses.

And that makes today different.

So when the alarm of life goes off around me today, I will choose wake up and engage.

Romans 13:11 And do this, knowing the time, that now it is high time to awake out of sleep; for now our salvation is nearer than when we first believed.

"Is it ok to have premarital sex?" That is a common question among teens and engaged couples. Perhaps you are in a relationship that is progressing in that direction, but you're not sure what to do. In your mind, you are probably weighing the pros and cons of premarital sex. On the positive side of the scale, there is acceptance from your peers, hope for pleasure, and the fulfillment of sexual desires. The negative side of the scale carries the weights of morals, fear of pregnancy or disease, and guilt. How do these scales balance? What is the right decision?

have you ever been teased and bullied by friends because you are still a virgin today??? it is very common that peers tend to measure an individual's sexuality (in the case of men=masculinity) based on their sexual experiences... we tend to see those who are "sexually active" as masters of the act...

we challenge ourselves to follow their path... to become almost like them... its quite amusing that nowadays, it is very natural and normal to see a pregnant girl at the age of 14 or 15...

a lot have turned their backs from their responsibility as mothers or fathers of their children.. a friend of mine just knew, at the 16, that the sister he had was his real mother... i have 3 cousins, from an aunt, who have 3 different fathers... i have a friend who have nursed her baby at the age of 15... i have a classmate who was deprived to see his baby by his ex-girlfriend... my sister's friend has to stop studying because he got pregnant... my friends had a fucking friend whom they alternately had sex with, after that, the girl had syphilis... another innocent girl i knew, just tried having sex once, after that she just changed into a totally different person... a close friend of mine had to abort her baby because she was still studying...

yes.. having sex is a very climatic experience... but did it come to our minds the possible effects of our actions... a one night experience of pleasure may bring as a lifetime agony and despair..

Premarital sex high among Filipino youth

One out of four Filipinos aged 15-24 are engaging in premarital sex, according to a study by the UP Population Institute.

This year’s study also says that close to 4 million youngsters are engaging in premarital sex with 30% of the respondents doing it in their own homes while 18% were doing it inside motels and hotels. SOURCE

This is a brief and measured response, not having been out there but having watched hours of it on television and spoken to numerous friends who’ve not only been out there but have come back healed.

Background

Early April Todd Bentley was to have had a series of meetings lasting a few days at Ignite church, pastored by Steven Strader, son of Karl Strader, prominent in the charismatic Pentecostal movement in the 70s/80s. The building seats 700.

Such were the nature of the miracles that within a week 1,000 were packing the building out. They moved to the church building where Karl Strader pastored for many years – Carpenter’s Church – which seats significantly more than Ignite.

Numbers grew and they packed it out, mainly due to the healings. They then moved to a municipal centre and one of two other venues for a night here or there – there are very few venues that are available week after week, just sitting around completely empty!

As growth has continued they now have a specially constructed auditorium that will be used throughout the summer, seating up to 10,000 people.

I heard about these meetings throughout the first 3 weeks of April, but confess I paid little attention, knowing that because something has profile it doesn’t make it significant and God is doing many, many things throughout the world that most of us know nothing about.

However I then watched it on the God channel and realised this was something significant, especially as programme schedules were, in the main, changed so that at 10pm the last evening’s event is broadcast and then around 12.30am it’s being broadcast live from Lakeland.

Currently it’s being beamed into 214 nations by the God channel but other TV stations are taking feeds, so it’s impossible to work out exactly how many nations or people are watching these programmes.

Evening meetings

Each of these typically begins with up to 1 and a half hours of worship. Similar songs are sung each night as most people are only there for 2 or 3 evenings and then move on or fly home.

During this time Todd is very much taken up with “the presence” or the “glory” of God.

Sometimes there is good teaching on various subjects, though rarely your 45 minute conference talk. Sometimes it’s exhortation and prayer.

It is normal for him not to pray for healing on a one-to-one basis. As worship continues folk are being healed and they come to the front, are screened and all of those who “came to the meeting feeling unwell and now I feel a bit better” are taken out of the line that will eventually end up on stage.

Then there are amazing testimonies normally concluding with Todd laying his hands on them or touching or hitting their chest saying “BAM!”

Those “healed” are told to go to the doctor and get it verified and send in the story and verification.

There are training events most mornings for leaders.

Personal Experience

Though I have not been to Lakeland I have been up to Dudley twice, in the West Midlands near Birmingham. Trevor Baker and his son in law Ryan Baker-Barnes are friends of Todd Bentley and mine and have returned from Lakeland “on fire” and are meeting every night.

Quite clearly people have received healing and numbers of people have made a first time commitment to Christ. As a result of taking up a worship leader who I’ve taken under my wing, he’s going to be working alongside Ryan on an occasional/frequent basis.

At Engage/Church in The Theatre in Leatherhead, Surrey, we have assigned Thursday evenings from 7.30 for 8pm for times of impartation and personal ministry. In the first 4 weeks we saw 5 people come to Christ, and several claims to permanent healing.

However this is not a panacea for all our ills and we still deal with pastoral issues just as we did before the “awakening”. However there is a heightened sense of the presence of God, an expectancy that God is going to do something and it’s sobering and fun pretty much at the same time.

Criticism!

1 – this is really not revival

Some have criticised Todd Bentley for not preaching the gospel. But if this is a “revival” then it’s the church that gets revived and from the wash of that blessing comes healing and salvation to those often on the edge of church, in Christian families and youth groups.

We should remember that “going to church” is much more prevalent in the USA than the UK. My guess is that the majority of the population are familiar with the gospel through church, a high proportion of church going friends, Christian TV/radio etc. Far more so than in the UK.

However in terms of Wesley, Whitfield, Spurgeon and other evangelists/revivalists it is not classic revival. But the likelihood of an evangelist turning up in a field or a high street in the 21st century, preaching the gospel and getting a crowd, I would suggest, is about zero.

We are unlikely to see those days ever again. We have to find new ways of communicating.

Muslim leaders in Africa have made it clear that “we are losing ground to Christian believers because of signs, wonders and healings”.

Is this what will turn the Muslim community to Christ?

All I can say is that everyone who’s touched this thing seems to have been revived in their faith and love for Christ and the scriptures.

One person at our recent Thursday evening event said they couldn’t stay out of the Bible.

2 – this should be in a local church setting

I understand the sentiment but this is an apostolic/prophetic thrust into the world and it’s unlikely that any one church would even begin to know what to do with this.

3 – the prophecies can’t be tested

Most of the prophecies given are that of a “firestorm over England”; or where the awakening will jump to; and some personal prophecies for individuals.

Whilst the mantra that we “test things” from scripture is understandable, only in the broadest sense of the phrase would you be able to test church planting, evangelism and where the revival might jump to against scripture.

Scripture certainly tells us what God is for, what he’s against, and therefore what we should be for or against.

Most prophecy is best tested and worked out after it has happened. And even if it doesn’t it raises numerous questions and it should not be automatically assumed it is not of God.

In scripture one prophet announced “a virgin shall conceive” but died without it happening. He was not a false prophet.

4 – Angels

Todd has made several references to an angel and my counsel to a friend of Todd’s is that he should not mention this.

Weirdly, his critics have accused him of being unbiblical and then criticised his reference to angels… which are biblical actually.

But we’re warned against making much of these in scripture, and when Paul was called up into the 3rd heaven he was forbidden from mentioning what he saw.

However, as charismatic/Pentecostal Christians, we don’t have a good history with key high profile people who are stating they are having angelic visitations.

Pray for Todd

In light of all the above I hope we are not just voyeurs watching him, but praying that God will keep him and he’ll be surrounded by good counsellors.

Is this the devil?

There is no biblical evidence that leads us to believe that the devil loves to hear God’s praises being sung for hours every day, 7 days a week, month after month. Nor does he like the public reading of scripture, praying for the sick in Jesus name, or offering salvation to the crowd. Scripture is key here.

So is the revival flawed?

Well as we are, it has to be. Every church and ministry is flawed, but because of the profile they’re getting this is why we should be in prayer as churches, not simply individuals.

What is our response?

On the day of Pentecost they simply asked “what does this mean” and “what shall we do?”

Some of our leaders in one of our churches were pretty much glued to the Florida Awakening, as was the key leader. He gave a good talk on lessons to be learned from Lakeland.

One guy then asked him “what are we going to do?” and he responded “until God shows us otherwise, we’re just going to carry on as we normally do”

I thought this was exceedingly wise. They are not a large church, don’t have a conference ministry or large database and don’t have any high profile ministries within the church. So they’ve decided to stay out of pressure but honour what God is doing there, and a few are wondering whether they should go out to Florida. And so they should.

For our King and His Kingdom

Gerald Coates

The Diamond Dawgs are one game away from the College World Series Championship. And they get two chances.

Go Dawgs! Beat Stanford!

Killswitch Engage is a metalcore band that was birthed from Mike D'Antonio and Adam Dutkiewicz's individual failed bands. The two began playing (being a bassist and drummer respectively) together and soon guitarist Joel Stroetzel, one of Adam's old band mates joined in. The trio formed up the name Killswitch Engage, meaning to cease at once and to begin again.

The current band lineup is as follows:
* Joel Stroetzel - guitars
* Adam Dutkiewicz - drums, percussion
* Mike D'Antonio - bass
* Howard Jones - lead vocals
* Justin Foley - drums, percussion

Killswitch Engage has produced four albums, and a fifth is expected in 2009.
Below is a live performance of their song The End of Heartache

KSE Homepage
KSE Myspace Page

I read today about the introduction of the Wovel – a Web novel. According to Underland Press, it’s the first of its kind. The author writes a new installment – long enough to get interested, but short enough to read at your desk – every Monday and readers vote to decide where the story goes next week. It’s an updated take on the old paperback versions mentioned above.

Marketers are looking for creative ways to engage consumers and create connections with their brands. While the core idea itself isn't new, neither in paperback or digital form, I think this Wovel is a great example of one way to accomplish that connection -- by giving consumers some ownership of the finished product. And, as long as the storyline remains interesting, there’s a good chance they’ll come back for more each week.

Thanks to Cory Doctorow at Boing Boing for bringing it to our attention.

The morning hosts were interviewing Kathy Orr from Operation Love From Home; an organization that sends cards/letters/notes/emails of support and encouragement to our soldiers. Her goal is to send 5000 cards/letters/notes/emails for July 4th! The deadline is June 14th, so there is still time to help OLFH met and exceed their goal. Bloggers unite! Even if you don't have time to send a card, there is a link to send an email. The emails are included with other cards/etc. sent.

Words from home make all the difference in the world to a soldier half a world away. And while you're there - hit the tip jar.

UPDATE: Come on, McCain bloggers, help them out!

I read today about the introduction of the Wovel – a Web novel. According to Underland Press, it’s the first of its kind. The author writes a new installment – long enough to get interested, but short enough to read at your desk – every Monday and readers vote to decide where the story goes next week. It’s an updated take on the old paperback versions mentioned above.

Marketers are looking for creative ways to engage consumers and create connections with their brands. I think this Wovel is a great example of one way to accomplish that -- by giving consumers some ownership of the finished product. And, as long as the storyline remains interesting, there’s a good chance they’ll come back for more each week.

Thanks to Cory Doctorow at Boing Boing for bringing it to our attention.