November is when Christmas starts. So, think about how you want to celebrate the birth of Christ this year:

This is a stop motion, timelapse, motion control in a circular canvas film made for the Discovery Channel. The theme was environment and the artist's responses to it. Numerous street artists, musicians, painters and animators contributed their time over a non-stop 12 hour period to make the final 2 minute film. Enjoy, "Fly on the Wall."


Circular Painting from Fly on the Wall on Vimeo.

Ebru is the art of molding color dyes on water and then transferring them to paper. The process is amazing...

If you know me and you read this blog with any regularity you know I like The Colbert Report. Below is an excellent example of why. Colbert pokes tongue-in-cheek at those who place faith in the economic systems that sustain us. The recent financial turmoil in the States is a reminder that our faith is not (or at least SHOULD NOT be) in the systems of the world but in the God who created the world. Watch the video, have a laugh and take a moment to ask where your faith lays.

Christians are called to be mercy where there is no mercy, love where there is no love, and grace where there is no grace. In doing so we associate the name of Christ who is the embodiment of all these divine attributes with a cause that desires to see an end to extreme poverty - something that should be close to our hearts, because it's close to God's. Consider posting a video.

Here is a video of a guy who just helps people. What if we had more people like this on our streets?


Watch CBS Videos Online

Have you ever been embarrassed by Christian subculture? Perhaps someone passed you a testamint, or you were forced to watch McGee & Me or Bible Man or perhaps you bumped into someone wearing one of those "Jesus Christ" t-shirts in the Coke-a-Cola script with the tag line "eternally refreshing." There is plenty of cringe-factor to be found in the Christian subculture. And let's not kid ourselves, there is a Christian subculture at play here. So much so, that when Disney promotes their Narnia movies it hypes them in the Christian market and when political figures want to obtain office they try to please the Christian vote. Dominant US marketing culture has recognized Christians as a culture to be targeted.

But don't think a subculture doesn't exist just because you're in Eastern Europe or Western Europe. As I've travelled around I've discovered that each country's contingent of believers has their own subcultures.

However, these subcultures are not what God has calls us to at all. Christians, if they are following Christ, cannot be a subculture, they must be a counterculture. A subculture buys into the values and ethos of the culture around it but simply adds their own style and view on its own things. A counterculture challenges dominant values not just by singing about a different way of life or by passing out mints with crosses on them but by living out the life Jesus lived.

If we don't, we might end up repeating something like this...



or even worse, this...

Watch and be amazed.

At conference we had our own particular brand of olympic games going. The distance spitting, shoe tossing and two-person swim all come to mind. It would seem Dwight from the Office had a similar idea: a centathilon.

Thought you might enjoy some of the amusing videos from Conference:

Here is the Bobbing For Sunglasses video. Anyone figure it out yet ;)


Which is related to this video (that I didn't show at Conference) where one of the lads catches sunglasses with his face:


And lest you forget, Europe is a country:


Sheep (Mission) Vs. Cows:


What if Church Was Like the NBA?


Anyone have any other funny vids I should be aware of?

Imaginative humor...

How often do you find yourself arguing your faith with your friends? Maybe you do it a lot, maybe not at all. Often we Christians can be so consumed with being right or feeling we have to defend God (as though he can't take care of himself) that we forget to love those who disagree with us, those who might even hate what we love. There is a new documentary coming out that I think will be worth our time. It is called Purple State of Mind and it tells the story of two lifelong friends, one a follower of Christ, the other an atheist and the conversations they've had. Check out the trailer:

It's nice to see the world come together around dancing:



About the video:

Matt is a 31-year-old deadbeat from Connecticut who used to think that all he ever wanted to do in life was make and play videogames. Matt achieved this goal pretty early and enjoyed it for a while, but eventually realized there might be other stuff he was missing out on. In February of 2003, he quit his job in Brisbane, Australia and used the money he'd saved to wander around Asia until it ran out. He made this site so he could keep his family and friends updated about where he is.

A few months into his trip, a travel buddy gave Matt an idea. They were standing around taking pictures in Hanoi, and his friend said "Hey, why don't you stand over there and do that dance. I'll record it." He was referring to a particular dance Matt does. It's actually the only dance Matt does. He does it badly. Anyway, this turned out to be a very good idea.

A couple years later, someone found the video online and passed it to someone else, who passed it to someone else, and so on. Now Matt is quasi-famous as "That guy who dances on the internet. No, not that guy. The other one. No, not him either. I'll send you the link. It's funny."

The response to the first video brought Matt to the attention of the nice people at Stride gum. They asked Matt if he'd be interested in taking another trip around the world to make a new video. Matt asked if they'd be paying for it. They said yes. Matt thought this sounded like another very good idea.

In 2006, Matt took a 6 month trip through 39 countries on all 7 continents. In that time, he danced a great deal.

The second video made Matt even more quasi-famous. In fact, for a brief period in July, he was semi-famous.

Things settled down again, and then in 2007 Matt went back to Stride with another idea. He realized his bad dancing wasn't actually all that interesting, and that other people were much better at being bad at it. He showed them his inbox, which, as a result of his semi-famousness, was overflowing with emails from all over the planet. He told them he wanted to travel around the world one more time and invite the people who'd written him to come out and dance too.

The Stride people thought that sounded like yet another very good idea, so they let him do it. And he did. And now it's done. And he hopes you like it.

Matt lives in Seattle, Washington with his girlfriend, Melissa, and dog, Sydney. He hasn't had a real job since Stride called him up. Matt doesn't mind working, but he doesn't much care for having to show up at the same place every day.

Matt is not rich. Matt also doesn't have some magical secret for traveling cheaply. He does it pretty much the same way everybody else does.

Matt thinks Americans need to travel abroad more.

For more info click here.

Not sure if any of you are Colbert Report fans but I sure am. The Anglican Bishop and theologian NT Wright recently stopped by the show to promote his new book, Surprised by Hope which asserts that Heaven isn't the end but merely a stopping point before the New Heavens and New Earth are created. I've been talking about this idea for a while ever since my theology classes with Dr. Ockholm in Wheaton and so was happy to see him give quite a succinct treatise on the idea while keeping his sense of humor. Check out the clip below and let me know what you think of his ideas.

Hold the dates of October 25th-27th and lets plan a trip to Ireland. Anois 2008 is a chance to meet other Christians, explore your faith and visit the wonderful country of Ireland. The promo video is below.

Did I miss something?

I own a guitar. It doesn't make these sounds so melodically.

The best part is that he ended up winning the entire competition...

Stephen Colbert, host of Comedy Central's The Colbert Report, recently had author Philip Zimbardo, a Stanford Professor, on his show to share about his upcoming book, The Lucifer Effect. Colbert is known for his sarcastic and tongue-in-cheek humor but on this show he broke character for a few seconds when Philip Zimbardo said, "Lucifer was right, and God was wrong," Colbert, who teaches sunday school, responded, "Evil exists because of the disobedience of Satan. God gave Satan, the angels and man free will. Satan used his free will and abused it by not obeying authority. Hell was created by Satan's disobedience to God , and his purposeful removal from God's love, which is what hell is: removing yourself from God's love. You send yourself to hell; God does not send you there."

What does it mean to stand up for your faith?

You can see the interview here:

We GEM-Ks love Facebook thus we enjoy this song:

Look down. How much did your shoes cost? They probably cost a lot. Check out this provocative video by Radiohead and MTV:

We know that the poor will always be with us but do we know who the poor are or why they are poor? I remember a few years back when Eoin was an infant Hailey and I were walking through Ventura, CA when a homeless man approached us asking for money. In a gut reaction I remember wanting to protect Eoin from any germs this man might have so we walked on. When I got home that night I felt ashamed and remember talking to my brother about it on Skype. I said, "Should I have given the man some money or let him touch Eoin?" My brother responded, "Before you give him some money or let him touch Eoin you should probably be willing to shake his hand." That story has always stuck with me.

So I have a question for you: "What is Poverty?"

Think through the answer to that for a few minutes and then,

WATCH THIS VIDEO

Do you agree with this man's definition? Why/why not?

Not sure if this fits into the "Sweded" camp but it sure makes me laugh. Ian is a friend of mine and has put together a few of these videos. I post Mr. Blue Sky here for your viewing pleasure.

I haven't seen the film Be Kind Rewind but the film coined the term 'Sweded' - referring to short remakes of famous films. The results can be quite funny...

I just finished watching the DVD "Dispatch Zimbabwe: Live at Madison Square Garden." Have you ever heard of Dispatch? Maybe you have. I hadn't. They are a reggae-influenced band with no record deal but a great networked following. So networked, in fact, that they managed to sell out Madison Square Garden three nights in a row and give all the proceeds to helping the nation of Zimbabwe. Quite a challenge to those of us who think we have nothing to give, who think we don't have what it takes to join God in his mission of world reconciliation. Reminds me of a boy with fish and bread. But these guys put their offering out there and were blown away by the results.

You have to wait for this one until about 1:45 but the wait is oh so worth it. Enjoy the chuckle.

I recently finished watching Frontline: Growing Up Online. It is a compelling look at how teens engage with the internet in the US. It looks at the effects of social network sites (like Facebook & MySpace) on youth culture and suggests that just as we learn social interaction skills so do we need to learn online skills. One of the biggest insights I felt was the distinction between how adults and teens interact with the web. For adults it is a place we go for additional services, be it shopping, emailing, or gathering information. For teens the internet is just a natural progression of their daily interaction with friends. To not have it is to be isolated. The 45 minute documentary is well worth your time and is available to view online for free or can be purchased from iTunes for $1.99.

I have to meet these kids some day.

Don't try this on the freeway.

This was the song we used at camp when we talked about holy anger.

This ad makes me feel fresh every time I watch it.

I forget how I worked this one into my discussion but I remember it working in my head.