Dude! These photos rock… Sorry we didn't connect during the week.

no problem andy.

Thank you Bianca, today was a time of great joy. Christmas brings joy. Joy. Yet here, three days before one of the great celebrations of our faith we experience the one of the paradoxes of our lives. In the midst of our joy, we know sorrow… sorrow at my loss of my Grandma, and yet joy in celebrating the rich fullness of her life. And yet the paradox is really not as strange as we might think. For in the child Jesus we discover that this gift of God was destined to take on a mission that would lead to his death. Christmas brings light to these dark moments of life; and no darkness, not even the grief and mourning that my family and i experience today, will overcome that light. This child Jesus shows the way. Christmas was always a special time in our family and it just got more meaningful. I love you Grandma.

Barbara, Norm, and Josie these are some crazy powerful stories of your fall, redemption and restoration. I'm humbled and honored you can share these stories with me and my readers and hope more people share their stories as well. Thank you, you truly are People of the Second Chance. m.

Brad. Sorry I didn't have it clickable to full resolution, but now it's available in all of it's digital and font-y glory.

Look forward to it Paul. It's going to be a blast.

Our communication paradigm is evolving. Thats the point here. If we don't evolve with it we'll have a farther reach when it comes to the word. The shocking reality is American church statistics (1) have reported:

· In America, 3500 – 4000 churches close their doors each year
· Half of all churches last year did not add one new member through conversion growth
· Churches lose an estimated 2,765,000 people each year to nominalism and secularism

Furthermore, in Europe Christian Research has previously suggested that churches may be heading for extinction by 2040 – with just two per cent of the population attending Sunday services and the average age of congregations rising to 64. (2)

And when it comes to the "the traditional means of communication," as previously stated there are many ways to communicate the message and I believe preaching is primary mode. However as I mentioned we do live in a visual world and are a Post-Literate Society. I've been apart of Marketing and Advertising Focus Groups which fully back up that statement. But will throw in something more Scientific and Mesasuarable. Basic knowledge is learned through one of the 5 senses and is the primary method used by academia day in and day out.

· Seeing 83 percent
· Hearing 11 percent
· Touching 3 ½ percent
· Smelling 1 ½ percent
· Tasting 1 percent

Now the U.S. Department of Health, Education and Welfare has shown that we learn best by doing. People learn best when they hear, see and do. People generally remember: (3)(4)

· 10% of what they read
· 20% of what they hear
· 30% of what they see
· 50% of what they hear and see
· 70 % of what they say as they talk
· 80-90% of what they hear, see and do

1. George Barna, Twentysomethings Struggle to Find Their Place in Christian Churches, http://www.barna.org/
2. Ekllesia, February 28, 2006 Survey, http://www.wwrn.org/article.php?idd=20629&sec...
3. Kline’ M., Mathematics, A Cultural Approach, AdisonWesley Reading, 1962.
4. CIA, Psychology of Intelligence Analysis, Chapter 10, https://www.cia.gov/library/center-for-the-study-...

Gordon you will be missed at Cultivate. Please don't think I'm attacking the Christian media, although bad at times, does serve a valuable niche. I'm merely stating it's time for radical steps for the Church to keep a foot hold in society.

What makes me sad is that no matter how industrialized we have become, our current landscape is very similar to Christ time. Back then culture was Pre-Christian and Pre-Literate. Today we are Post-Christian and Post-Literate. Hum! People are not picking up books and are turing to screens and images.

Not sure what Paul would think of this, but I have a feeling he would be analyzing it to death.  And would probably say, we live by faith not by sight (2 Cor 5:7)  Yet I think of what Jesus would think or even do for that matter.  The key for the communication of the word is as poignant now more than ever. No matter how you cut it, Jesus was a master "narrowcaster." He would reach into culture by telling memorable stories, often with humble imagery, each with a single message to appeal to certain demographics of people. The end of the day everyone walked away with a nugget; a memorable moment. Those moments today can come in many shape, sizes and colors.

I'm willing to put myself out there, to use my gifts and talents that I have been blessed with to better the Kingdom.

This has got me thinking in more ways than most of these posts. We need to remember why we are standing at the plate Whats our purpose? The target is always fluid and we need to identify it and focus. The hardest part I think is the time from when the ball is thrown to moment you need to choke down and swing. It's the waiting game, the anticipation of whats to come. With experience we will be able to hit the ball over the GREEN MONSTER. Sorry Cubs fans. The journey is preparation for the destination! HUM!