Archive - November, 2008

We’re ready to start Unwrapping ’09

November 28, 2008 in Church Related with 0 Comments

We’re starting a new series Sunday at Cornerstone called Unwrapping ’09. We will be taking a look at some of the exciting changes coming in the new year. Here is a sneak peak to the video intro for this week’s message. We’re taking a look at our new membership covenant and we will be discussing what it means to partner together. I did this pretty quickly using iMovie 08 and Photoshop Elements. I used some stock footage from istockphoto as well. And here is a little trivia challenge as well. Where did I get the background music? …. Leave a comment with your guess and you’ll win absolutely nothing!!!


Unwrapping ’09 Series Opener from Mike Morris on Vimeo.

Thankful Thursday

November 27, 2008 in Church Related, Family with 0 Comments

I’m going to borrow a tradition from my wife’s great blog. Jenni regularly posts her “thankful Thursday” list. On this great Thanksgiving Day, we all have so much to be thankful for. I’m thankful for …

  • My wonderful wife – I continue to fall deeper and deeper in love with her. She is an amazing woman. We started dating 18 years ago and our love is stronger than it has ever been.
  • My happy children – I had so much fun just playing with the kids today. They are all so special and fun to be around. Jenni and I are blessed to have such great kids.
  • My extended family – it was great having Jennifer’s mom and dad, my mom and dad, my brother and his wife, and Jennifer’s uncle all over for Thanksgiving dinner. It is great to have family that actually gets along and that enjoys getting together.
  • My church – I am blessed to have a church that actually believes we can make a huge difference in our city. I am thankful that they believe enough in me to actually pay me to do God’s work. I pray that God will continue to bless our efforts and help us as individuals to grow closer to Him.
  • My health – I am thankful that everyone in my family is healthy. For me personally, this has been the longest time period in several years that I have been clear of psoriasis. I’m truly praying that God will heal me and that I won’t have to go back on the biologic treatments again. But if that isn’t his will, then I’ve enjoyed a great spring and summer with no pain and problems.
  • Our Thanksgiving meal – I am embarrassed by how much good food we had today. From the juicy turkey, to the mashed potatoes made with cream and 2 sticks of butter, to the pumpkin cheesecake, to the great southern gravy and rolls – everything was over the top awesome. It did make me stop and think about how blessed and spoiled we are in this country.

I realize that we live an incredibly blessed and comfortable life. I pray that God will continue to disturb us and challenge us to live our life fully devoted to Him. To everyone reading this post, I pray that you had a great Thanksgiving and I ask that we all take time to thank our maker and creator for our many blessings.

Psalm 100
Shout with joy to the Lord, all the earth!
Worship the Lord with gladness.
Come before him, singing with joy.

Acknowledge that the Lord is God!
He made us, and we are his.
We are his people, the sheep of his pasture.

Enter his gates with thanksgiving;
go into his courts with praise.
Give thanks to him and praise his name.

For the Lord is good.
His unfailing love continues forever,
and his faithfulness continues to each generation.

24 Tackles a Real World Problem

November 24, 2008 in Book and Music Reviews, Church Related with 0 Comments

If you watched 24 last night, I hope you were troubled by the images of the child soldiers in Africa. Unfortunately it’s not just a movie, it’s real life for many children around the world. In the past, most topics on 24 were things that could happen, but things that we didn’t expect to really happen. One reason that I have always liked 24 is that it reminds me of a Tom Clancy novel, lots of technology, terrorism, and action packed into a compelling story. But the storyline from last night left me upset, because I know that it is real. I’m glad that attention is being brought to one of the great Human Rights issues of our time. My hope and prayer is that the church would be the catalyst to eliminate the use of children as soldiers around the world.

How can you make a difference? Check out some more info on child soldiers on World Vision’s website. They list several ways you can help. Below is an excerpt.

The abuse of children as soldiers


Where does it occur? | Who are the most vulnerable? |
What are the driving factors? | What is the impact on these children? | What is World Vision doing? | What can the U.S. do? | What can you do?

According to UNICEF, more than 250,000 children — boys and girls younger than 18 — are involved in armed conflicts worldwide (1); some of these child soldiers are as young as 7.

In the past decade, more than 2 million children have been killed in conflict situations. An estimated 6 million children have been seriously injured or permanently disabled (2).

Children conscripted into military service are forced to become:

  • Sex slaves (especially girls)
  • Spies
  • Front-line combatants
  • Suicide bombers
  • Mine sweepers

Where does it occur?

In Africa, up to 100,000 children, some as young as 9, were estimated to be involved in armed conflict in mid-2004 (3). Children are also used as soldiers in several Asian countries and parts of Latin America, Europe, and the Middle East. For instance, in 2004, paramilitary and rebel groups in Colombia used an estimated 14,000 girls and boys as child soldiers (4).

It’s about time …

November 21, 2008 in Crazy Stuff with 1 Comment

Finally, my favorite show is back on. I’m looking forward to see Jack back in action. I think 24 helps me deal with pent-up frustration. Watching him kick some serious butt has a way of cheering me up. I’m living vicariously through him as he saves the world.

I also love the title of this season opener. Redemption is such a powerful word. The topic for this year seems much better than saving the world from terrorists. Even though it is a violent show, it still has a way of drawing you in. Anyway find out more at Fox’s website.

Replacing our Sony Camcorder

November 20, 2008 in Technology with 0 Comments

Our Sony DCR-SR300 camcorder that we purchased last year (see my post about it here) died after about 15 months. Of course the warranty was only one year, so our options are to have it repaired for $360, or to just toss it and buy a new one. The camcorder was in great shape, but something happened to the hinge that causes the screen to go black and turn off the camcorder. It’s incredibly frustrating, but that’s life.

I think we have decided to replace it, but with something much smaller and much cooler. Take a look below at the new Flip MinoHD camcorder. I’ve downloaded some videos that people have taken with this thing and it is amazing. It is much higher quality than my Sony, and you can literally take this thing anywhere. I like convenience and simplicity and this thing definitely exudes both. It only holds 60 minutes of video, but for us, that will be plenty. It also records in mpeg4 which is much more compatible with my Mac. And the best part is that it’s only $229, which is much less than having our old one repaired. As soon as we figure out how to pay for this, it’s getting ordered.

Seniors Breaking It Down

November 20, 2008 in Crazy Stuff with 0 Comments

I’ve seen this go around over the past few days. I really don’t know what to say. This was actually used as an opening for a youth retreat. This would definitely make teens think about the songs they listen to. Watch through the entire video, it’s interesting.

The Problem With Potential

November 20, 2008 in Leadership with 0 Comments

I really dislike the word “potential” The dictionary defines it like this

potential |pəˈten ch əl|
adjective [ attrib. ]
having or showing the capacity to become or develop into something in the future :

Here is my problem. When someone tells me that we have the potential to do something great, or the potential as a church to grow and reach more people, or the potential to impact our community, what they are really saying is that we are not currently doing it. Potential is all about the future and not about the present. I’m not a patient person. While I know God has great things in store for us in the future, we must continually take advantages of the opportunities that we have NOW. The only way to reach your full potential is to quit talking about it and start living it out in the present.

What I Learned From This Past Weekend

November 19, 2008 in Church Related with 0 Comments

I just posted about my crazy weekend. So what did I learn

  • Going to two services on Sat./Sun. is not hard from a preaching standpoint. It actually helped improve the second message. I was able to get a full nights sleep and wake up excited instead of anxious.
  • Children’s Ministry is going to be the key to add a Saturday night service every week. We have to come up with a good system to not burn out our workers.
  • I have an awesome wife!! She truly respects and believes in me and that means everything.
  • We have incredible talent for a church our size. It is crazy that we have so many talented musicians!
  • This Saturday night service has the potential to reach people who would never step foot in church. It’s the same truthful hard-hitting message, packaged in an environment that fosters discussion and relationships. I can’t wait for the next one!
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