As you’re reading this, Robin, Frankie, and I are probably somewhere near the North Carolina/Virginia line on our way to the Whiteboard Sessions in DC. It should be a blast. Heck…I think our hotel rooms at the Hilton are gonna be insane! I’m gonna be blogging a lot while I’m there, so check back for exciting updates on the conference and our adventures in our nation’s capital. Any ideas on fun things to do while we’re there?

I just saw an article on CNN’s website that broke my heart. It basically says that in Ethiopia alone, 6 MILLION children under the age of 5 are at risk of starvation. An alarming 120,000 have only about a month to live.

You know, churches could eliminate this problem pretty easily if they worked together, but we’re too concerned with our own issues. I mean…gas prices are going up ya know?

Honestly, all throughout Scripture you will find passages that talk about caring for orphans, widows, and others in need. There should not be a single child facing starvation in the world. There shouldn’t be a single kid that is waiting to be adopted. There shouldn’t be any kids stuck in the foster care program. Christians should resolve these problems.

I’m gonna figure out a way I can help this immediate hunger issue. I’m sure there are things we can all do to help.

Over the last week or so, I’ve spent a good portion of time trying to get businesses to make a donation for our student ministry auction on May 31. In honor of the places that I have personally visited, I thought it would be fun to give out some awards. Without further ado, here are today’s awards:

The “Business that Sucks at Life Award”: BEST BUY

When I asked Best Buy for a donation, I was informed that they do not make donations to churches specifically because they don’t want to show discrimination towards anyone. Ummm…isn’t that discriminating against churches? Best Buy…you suck.

The “Business of Great Philanthropy & Consistency Award”: STARBUCKS

I visited three different Starbucks and each one of them gave me at least a pound of coffee and other items. We received 5 bags of coffee, one box of tea, and two Starbucks mugs in all. No Starbucks said no. What can I say? Great coffee. Great community service. More business for Starbucks

The “Why in the World are you Asking Me Award”: PHYSICAL GRAFFITI SOUTH (Tattoo Parlor)
Here’s the gist of our conversation. “I’m sure you don’t get this often, but would you all be interested in giving a gift certificate for our student ministry auction?” “Nope.”

The “I’ll Give You This Because We Don’t Want it Award”: LIFEWAY.

While I am thankful that they were willing to make a donation, I’m just not sure that the Veggie Tales Christmas DVD or the “Build a Bible Cover” will bring in big money for our auction.

So my new MacBook Pro came in a couple of days ago. It joins my iMac as our computers of choice in the Brickey household. This is the fourth Mac that I have owned, and I’ve noticed that Apple really has done an incredible job with their products. I think there are a lot of things that churches can learn from them. Here’s a few of them:

1) Apple values simplicty- I’ve noticed that churches have a tendency to do way too many ministries, and in the process, lose their effectiveness. As a Church, we should focus our attention on less things in order to make a greater impact on our community.
2) Apple is innovative – (I’m sorry Bill Gates. Apple is kicking your butt in this area.) I’m sick and tired of the lack of creativity and innovation in a lot of churches. The Church should be the driving force of innovation in our culture. If your church isn’t constantly evolving and changing, enjoy the ride while you can. Your church will die soon.
3) Apple products are incredibly excellent. Heck…even the styrofoam that my Macbook came packed in was well designed and appealing. It seems that the Church should strive to be unapologetically skilled and well crafted.
4) Apple inspires loyalty. Church hoppers suck. If your church is inspiring, I think a good number of people will stay. If they like your product, they will even tell others about it. Mac owners, including myself, are very dedicated to promoting Apple products. I should probably be making commission off of sales because of how many people I have converted to Mac.

I know there are other lessons to learn from Apple. What are some others?

There are times in my life that I have neglected studying the Bible when I have been caught up in reading other books. It’s really ridiculous when I think about it.

In case you haven’t noticed, I’ve read a decent number of books so far this year. Actually, I think I’m on book number 15 so far (which is a complete shocker for those that knew me before I moved to to South Carolina. Heck…I didn’t read a book college). The temptation for me is to read three or four books at once, and skip out on studying the Bible. Don’t get me wrong, the books that I read have a lot of Scripture in it, but I’ve learned that I can’t stay connected to God without studying the Bible.

What is getting in the way with your time with God? It may be good “Christian” activities or things. Don’t let those things get in the way with your time with God. Experience Him first hand.

To celebrate my birthday, we went to a Greenville Drive game last night.  It was awesome!  Isaiah had a blast at his first baseball game.  Well…he did grab the cup of beer in the cup holder of the person behind us.  He was a little upset that we took it away. 

I think that kids have a radar for things they shouldn’t mess with.  I had to laugh. 

Okay…two weeks from tomorrow I will be leaving for the whiteboard sessions in Washington D.C. I gotta admit, I’m pretty pumped. Not only does the conference look to be amazing, I have never been to DC before so I will get to check out some cool touristy things. I’m staying through Sunday so I can check out National Community Church. Should be tons of fun. Any recommendations of places I need to visit?