Pride of His life

What an amazing day this was. Jesus goes to be baptized by his cousin, John the Baptist. His Father validates He is His son. The Holy Spirit comes down on Him.

The sign is a dove. The voice is “You are my Son.” “You are chosen.” “You are marked with love.” “You are my pride of life.”

That is our longing. We all want to know we are loved by our Father. We all want to hear He is proud of us.

We get that in His Spirit. We get that in His love. We are chosen.

How cool is that?

After all the people were baptized, Jesus was baptized. As he was praying, the sky opened up and the Holy Spirit, like a dove descending, came down on him. And along with the Spirit, a voice: “You are my Son, chosen and marked by my love, pride of my life.” Luke 3:21-22

Is the AARP in trouble with Congress?

Politico is reporting that the powerful seniors lobby is facing continued opposition by GOP Reps. Wally Herger, Dave Reichert andCharles Boustany on the House Ways and Means Committee, PI colleagues at Morning PULSE reported. “The lawmakers plan to release a letter today that they wrote to the IRS asking it again to consider an in-depth examination of the AARP and its finances,” they report. So far, no word from AARP in response. The lawmakers allege they’ve found evidence relating to business deals with UnitedHealth and HearUSA, that calls into question whether AARP should retain its tax-exempt status

Year end question: Am I booking enough time to think?

Answer. Probably not.

Christmas table 2011

“The goal of faithfulness is not that we will do work for God, but that He will be free to do His work through us.” ~~Oswald Chambers

Starting to decorate the tree – 2011

 

If Mary and Joseph used Facebook

I love this video. This is a must see. Mary and Joseph on Facebook

“Things don’t have to change the world to be important.” ~ Steve Jobs

[categories personal]

Listening to John Foley, Blue Angel pilot

Vision
Clarity
Liberation

That is the belief level.

“Action springs not from thought, but from a readiness for responsibility.” – Dietrich Bonhoeffer

How true this is. A Godly life isn’t thinking alone. We must act and that comes from being responsible for what we hear from God.

iPhone 5 … do you want it?

Well, you know it is coming. And so, do you want it? Do you need it.

This grahpic helps shows how may be in line to buy it.

What do you think?

Wait for what the Father promised

Jesus told them they had to wait. He didn’t have to. He could have given them the Spirit of God right then and there. But He wanted them to wait. And so they did. And they received the Spirit of God and the power that goes with Him.

He didn’t leave them hanging though. He promised the Spirit would come soon. And He did.

We live in a world where we want everything, and I mean everything, now. We don’t like to wait. Patience is not seen as a virtue.

Here is a clue. God is in control. In His government, He isn’t in a hurry. Sometimes he wants us to wait. Our job is to obey.

As they met and ate meals together, he told them that they were on no account to leave Jerusalem but “must wait for what the Father promised: the promise you heard from me. John baptized in water; you will be baptized in the Holy Spirit. And soon.” Acts 1:1-5

Now here is some great news

Now here is some great news. Fewer Americans are smoking. http://ow.ly/6n5tH

It got worse (1909)

If the 1908 season was bad, who would have thought it could get worse? But, it always can and in 1909, the Boston Doves (now the Atlanta Braves) finished eighth. They had a 45-108 record and were 65 1/2 games behind the leader. Yes, that is right. 65 1/2 games behind.

They had 2 managers that year, Frank Bowerman and Harry Smith. Neither one would be back in 1910.

I’ve always believed

I’ve always believed that if you put in the work, the results will come. -Michael Jordan

Alignment

It is God’s goal for me to align my heart with my words in a way that is acceptable to God. I am to love Him and others with all my heart. Do my words reflect that? Does God’s love in my heart cause me to think amazing things and then act in a way that reflects His love?

Beyond what I have to say, is what I am thinking and meditating on acceptable to God?

May I align God’s love in my heart with what I say.

Let the words of my mouth and the meditation of my heart be acceptable in your sight, O Lord, my rock and my redeemer. Psalm 19:14

Explore Ground Zero with 360° panoramas

Explore Ground Zero with 360° panoramas of the site, before-and-after photos and more: on.wsj.com/oJVIVO

Harry Wright's last season (1881)

Harry Wright had managed a long time. He was an institution. 1881 would be a tough year. The Red Caps had a 38-45 record. Not too impressive that the ended sixth and 17 1/2 games behind.

Harry would not go out on top. While he was responsible for the cities brilliant start with professional baseball, he couldn’t overcome a second consecutive sixth place finish. He was run out of town.

Back to wrong school

Great article. Must read. Seth’s Blog: Back to (the wrong) school http://bit.ly/qQV3QI

Iron out our differences

We are God’s children. Now think about it. He has forgiven us. How does he want us to act? Does He want us to hold grudges? Does He want us to forgive, iron out our differences and make up?  

He has a new way for us and it is not what we think. His goal is for us to love not to hate. In His Spirit, we have the power to live that way. Children can get along. Hard to imagine but it is true.

 I urge Euodia and Syntyche to iron out their differences and make up. God doesn’t want his children holding grudges. Phillipians 4:2

Happy 13th birthday Google

Happy 13th birthday Google. What would we do without you? http://ow.ly/6l99X

New phenom on opening day (2010)

Jason Heyward had a great Spring Training in 2010. Lots of promise but he not played in the Big Leagues yet. Jason Heyward’s legend grew even larger on April 5, 2010 when the Braves phenom drilled a three-run homer on the first swing of his Major League career. After looking at two fastballs from Carlos Zambrano, Heyward mashed a 2-0 sinker deep into the Braves bullpen beyond the right-center field wall for a three-run homer. The 20-year-old made his way around the bases to the sound of a thunderous applause provided by a sold-out crowd at Turner Field. As Heyward made his way back to the dugout after providing his club a 6-3 lead, he was greeted by Chipper Jones, who stretched his arms out and gave the young outfielder a hug.

Heyward, was drafted out of suburban Atlanta’s Henry County High School with the 14th overall selection in the 2007 First-Year Player Draft, had the hometown faithful stirring as he made his way to the plate. Before slugging his monstrous home run he was serenaded with boisterous chants of “Jason Heyward.” After becoming the sixth player in Atlanta history and just the 11th player in Braves franchise history to homer in his Major League debut, Heyward took his position and found the fans beyond the right-field wall applauding him even louder than they had when he took the field to start the game.

While making his Major League debut for the Braves on Opening Day last year, Jordan Schafer became the 99th Major League player to homer in his first career at-bat.

Heyward, who was widely regarded as the game’s top prospect, was wearing No. 22 this year in honor of his former high school teammate, Andrew Wilmot, who was killed in an automobile accident in 2007.

A time for all things

Ecclesiastes 3

There is a time for everything,
and a season for every activity under heaven:
a time to be born and a time to die,
a time to plant and a time to uproot,
a time to kill and a time to heal,
a time to tear down and a time to build,
a time to weep and a time to laugh,
a time to mourn and a time to dance,
a time to scatter stones and a time to gather them,
a time to embrace and a time to refrain,
a time to search and a time to give up,
a time to keep and a time to throw away,
a time to tear and a time to mend,
a time to be silent and a time to speak,
a time to love and a time to hate,
a time for war and a time for peace.

What does the worker gain from his toil? I have seen the burden God has laid on men. He has made everything beautiful in its time. He has also set eternity in the hearts of men; yet they cannot fathom what God has done from beginning to end. I know that there is nothing better for men than to be happy and do good while they live. That everyone may eat and drink, and find satisfaction in all his toil—this is the gift of God. I know that everything God does will endure forever; nothing can be added to it and nothing taken from it.

Promise and dissappointment (1994)

Bobbie Cox began his 5th season in 1994 with the Atlanta Braves. The team started with huge promise. Unfortunately, they would end up dissapointing us all.

Many had felt the Braves would win the World Series. It would have been their first since 1957. The prospect of Fred McGriff in the line up for the whole season gave us hope. When we won 13 of the first 14 games, oh man, did we think the promise would come true.

Of course no one could predict a couple of things about this season. Montreal seemed to come out of nowhere. Our pitching was inconsistent. It would have helped to have some timely hitting. AND, playing 162 games might have helped but the players strike hit after 114 games. Atlanta was 6 games behind and when the players didn’t come back from the strike, we ended with a 68-46 record. If we had played the whole season, who knows?

Locusts and wild field honey

John paved the way for Jesus. He set the stage. It is all about life-change. We know we have missed the goal that God is mind for us. We need to make it clear that we understand that.  Being baptized with Jesus into death and resurrection gives us a changed life. It is His new plan for us. We can reach God’s goal for us. We don’t have to live a life that misses that. He is in an amaziing mood and gives us this gift simply because He loves us.

Now how great is that?

John the Baptizer appeared in the wild, preaching a baptism of life-change that leads to forgiveness of missing God’s goal for us. People thronged to him from Judea and Jerusalem and, as they confessed their knowledge of missing God’s goal, were baptized by him in the Jordan River into a changed life. John wore a camel-hair habit, tied at the waist with a leather belt. He ate locusts and wild field honey. Mark 1:4-6

Change (1882)

1882 brought  the first time that the Braves would change managers. Harry Wright was out. John Morrill was in. This would be the first of many managerial changes.

The Red Caps improved. They moved up from sixth place the year before to tie for third. A fairly impressive 45-39 record.

Change.

Amazon Tablet to Sell for $250

Amazon Tablet to Sell for $250 http://ow.ly/6kjwo Now this could be a game changer.

A clean sweep

 God has made us a grand promise. And, He is true to His word. We know that we’ve missed God’s goal in our life. He doesn’t see that. He sees Jesus taking that burden off of us. Once we come clean, he completely purges us from that way of seeing things.

I need to remember that and change my mind about how God sees me. I can achieve the goal He has in mind for me. I am His child.

On the other hand, if we admit our we have missed God’s goal for our lives—make a clean breast of  that issue—he won’t let us down; he’ll be true to himself. He’ll forgive us and purge us of all wrongdoing. 1 John 8-10

DRaaS

Everything is moving, in a very cost effective way, to the cloud. Now we have a new, and much needed, category called Disaster Recovery as a Service (DRaaS). Got to love it. Here is a good overview by Forrester Analyst Rachel Dines. Both VMware and SunGard have announced services.

When I care

I have to get out of myself. Out of what I think is so dadgum important. I have to start being “care-full”. I need to abandon myself to caring. What else really matters?

Isn’t that what I love so much about my Father. He abandoned himself so much that He sent His Son for me. He didn’t hold back any good thing. His gift to me is complete!!

May I be care-full!! May I be cared for.

You’re more than happy when you care. At the moment of being ‘care-full,’ you find yourselves cared for. Matthew 5:1-12

Business Technology Framework

Working with Forrester to learn the this process. We have run 2 prototype sessions the last 2 days.

More boldness and fearless confidence!!!

If Peter was anything, he was nothing but bold. But it seems that he was also asking for more. This boldness came upon him suddenly and he didn’t ignore it.

When I have my eyes on our Master Jesus that is the way it is. Jesus was the same way. He didn’t do anything but what he saw His Father doing. AND we serve a bold God.

May I have more boldness and fearless confidence. Water longs to be walked on again!! God is looking for men and women who are bold and confident in Him.

As soon as the meal was finished, he insisted that the disciples get in the boat and go on ahead to the other side while he dismissed the people. With the crowd dispersed, he climbed the mountain so he could be by himself and pray. He stayed there alone, late into the night.Meanwhile, the boat was far out to sea when the wind came up against them and they were battered by the waves. At about four o’clock in the morning, Jesus came toward them walking on the water. They were scared out of their wits. “A ghost!” they said, crying out in terror.But Jesus was quick to comfort them. “Courage, it’s me. Don’t be afraid.” Peter, suddenly bold, said, “Master, if it’s really you, call me to come to you on the water.”He said, “Come ahead.” Jumping out of the boat, Peter walked on the water to Jesus. But when he looked down at the waves churning beneath his feet, he lost his nerve and started to sink. He cried, “Master, save me!” Jesus didn’t hesitate. He reached down and grabbed his hand. Then he said, “Faint-heart, what got into you?” The two of them climbed into the boat, and the wind died down. The disciples in the boat, having watched the whole thing, worshiped Jesus, saying, “This is it! You are God’s Son for sure!”Matthew 14

Who is running things?

This is stunning. God raised Jesus from the dead and He is in charge of running everything. There is not a single thing that is exempt from His rule. He always has the final word. God is God. He is in charge. His church is His agent on earth carrying out His will. He speaks and acts through us.

So, do I act on this belief daily? Do I conform to what He wants me to do right now?

All this energy issues from Christ: God raised him from death and set him on a throne in deep heaven, in charge of running the universe, everything from galaxies to governments, no name and no power exempt from his rule. And not just for the time being, but forever. He is in charge of it all, has the final word on everything. At the center of all this, Christ rules the church. The church, you see, is not peripheral to the world; the world is peripheral to the church. The church is Christ’s body, in which he speaks and acts, by which he fills everything with his presence. Ephesians 1:20-23

If You Don’t Want To Use Your Real Name, Don’t Use Google+

Google+ was meant to be an identity service, Google Chairman Eric Schmidt said this weekend, shedding some light on Google’s reasoning behind Google+’s controversial real-name policy.

When things are bad

What happens when we trust our own resources to solve the problem? We solve the problem but we don’t see God. Money crisis? Whip out the credit card. Car problem, call AAA. Problem solved but no glory to God there.

Trouble can cause us to trust ourselves or to trust God. And under the right circumstances, to trust Him totally. Now that is a good idea since He is the one who raised Jesus from the dead. And we can trust Him. He will deliver us.

Some times when we think things are so bad it really isn’t. It is an opportunity to trust God. That is what he wants us to do.

We don’t want you in the dark, friends, about how hard it was when all this came down on us in Asia province. It was so bad we didn’t think we were going to make it. We felt like we’d been sent to death row, that it was all over for us. As it turned out, it was the best thing that could have happened. Instead of trusting in our own strength or wits to get out of it, we were forced to trust God totally—not a bad idea since he’s the God who raises the dead! And he did it, rescued us from certain doom. And he’ll do it again, rescuing us as many times as we need rescuing. You and your prayers are part of the rescue operation—I don’t want you in the dark about that either. I can see your faces even now, lifted in praise for God’s deliverance of us, a rescue in which your prayers played such a crucial part. 2 Corinthians 1:8-11

My inner being

My heavenly Father is VERY rich. His riches exceed anything I can imagine. They are glorious. Through the power of His Spirit, He can strengthen my inner being. Jesus, the Master, can dwell in my heart. I must have faith to make it happen.

May I have faith and be strengthened in my inner being. May His Spirit stengthen me.

I pray that out of his glorious riches he may strengthen you with power through his Spirit in your inner being, so that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith. Ephesians 3:16-17

Doing what you can do

“Don’t let what you can’t do stop you from doing what you can do.” ~~ John Wooden

Does planning help?

Paul knew how to plan. Fortunately, he listened to God and so sometimes was unwilling to follow what he planned so he could do what God wanted. It would have given him personal pleasure to do what he wanted. It didn’t mean that God didn’t want him to see his plans through at some point. It just had to be in God’s good timing and not Paul’s.

The thing to pursue is what God wants on any given day. He has ultimate goals for us and tasks to accomplish every day. That is all that really counts at any given point in time.

Please don’t misinterpret my failure to visit you, friends. You have no idea how many times I’ve made plans for Rome. I’ve been determined to get some personal enjoyment out of God’s work among you, as I have in so many other non-Jewish towns and communities. But something has always come up and prevented it.  Romans 1:13-15

Crutches?

He didn’t cause anyone to be lame. It was never about character building. There was no lesson to be learned. No patience needed. They came to Him. All the time. He always healed them.

He didn’t give crutches to the lame. He commanded them to stand. They did at His word.

What an amazing God we serve. He makes us whole again.

 …    the lame came to Him in the temple , and He healed them.  Matthew 21:14

 

 

 

Start with God

God offered Solomon anything he wanted. All he asked for was wisdom. God gave it to him. Here is his suggestion so I think I should pay attention to it. Simple advise.

That’s it.

Start with God—the first step in learning is bowing down to God; only fools thumb their noses at such wisdom and learning. Proverbs 1:7

Meeting best practices

Gloria Corcoran is an amazing project manager. Here are some of her thoughts on best practices for productive meetings. Lessons well learned.

· Create Outlook meeting requests for all members and participants and link to the SharePoint meeting workspace

· Schedule a prep meeting with the leader for two weeks prior to the meeting to brainstorm agenda topics, determine resource requirements, anticipate responses and follow-up actions and ensure all presenters are invited to the meeting

· Create an Outlook all day (free) meeting request for one week prior to the meeting to remind all parties responsible that materials are due for posting and distribution

· One week in advance of the meeting, ensure the agenda and materials are complete and posted and send an email to all meeting participants asking for action to review the meeting materials

· During the meeting, post meeting notes, action items and decisions on the steering team SharePoint site and remind members via email of the posted results or setup alerts

Imagine how well all meetings would work if we did this.

Price for progress

I live in Prosper and travel the North Toll way north of 121. There is major construction going on to increase our capacity and ease congestion. They have made a lot of progress but right now they close down the toll way every night at 9 pm. I don’t complain. It is progress and I am not on it, usually, at that time of night.

Tonight, for an hour, we shut down our eCommerce site, shop.heart.org for for some upgrades. It will be a better place for our customers.

Same thing I think and much less intrusive than every night for who knows how long.

Conditions of obedience?

When I see things from my world, I can fall into the trap that I can “dictate to God” how I want things to happen. God is God and it is only what he wants that matters. Mine is only a issue of hearing His word and obeying.

Beware of the inclination to dictate to God what consequences you would allow as a condition of your obedience ~Oswald Chambers http://ow.ly/VfjW

Does God feel this way?

I am hoping that God doesn’t feel this way when I pray. I have heard lots of prayers (including my own) that feel this way. It has me thinking for sure. I am wondering for sure.

May my prayers be a conversation (not a monologue) with my Father!!!

“Most conversations are simply monologues delivered in the presence of witnesses.” —–Margaret Millar

Bathing and motivation

“People often say that motivation doesn’t last. Well, neither does bathing-that’s why we recommend it daily.” ~~ Zig Ziglar

He isn't looking for sacrifice

In the old agreement (plan), no matter how many sacrifices were offered, they never added up to a complete solution. And, in church after church today, they still don’t. Way too many sermons on tithing and not enough on how God has all of our money, not just a tenth. So, if sacrifices are a solution, we would go merrily on our way and not hunger for something more. But we don’t. There is more and it is His new plan.

All these rules only make us more aware of how inadequate we are. And that is the point of the message of condemnation. Keeping rules can’t get rid of our missing the goal of trusting Him. Just can’t do it. No way. Jesus said that God didn’t want us to try to keep the old rules. He has a new plan. It isn’t tithing. It isn’t praying in church. It isn’t going to Sunday School. That is the old plan way.

It is a heart set on doing everything God’s way. His government isn’t a democracy. The new plan is based on “Your will be done.” “In my life right now as it is in heaven.” When Jesus said “I am here to do it Your way.”, He set aside the old plan in order to set in motion a new goal. So His sacrifice has made me fit for the new government He has ushered in.

Some good news from Chipper

Atlanta Braves veteran Chipper Jones confirmed that he will return to play for the Braves in 2012, the Atlanta Journal Constitution reported. Jones’ announcement ended speculation that the 39-year-old third baseman might retire after this season and walk away with a year left.

A passion for curiosity

“I have no special talent. I am only passionately curious.” ~~Albert Einstein

The year of the Hammer (1974)

The off season was all about Hank Aaron. No one could talk about anything else. He would break the record in 1974. No doubt about it. It was Eddie Matthews last year as manager. Clyde King would end the year as the manager. The Atlanta Braves would end up third in the East with a 88-74 record. 14 games behind was not anything to speak of. But it didn’t seem to matter too much in the year when the Hammer would become the home run King.

The season did start with some controversy though. The Braves would open the season in Cinncinnati. Everyone wanted Hank to hit his record home run in Atlanta. So, they were going to keep Hank out of the line up. Bowie Kuhn had to step in and demand the Hank play.

Can I?

Can I Allow God to have complete liberty in my life when I speak? Can I?

Before God’s message can liberate other people, His liberation must first be real in me. I must gather my material carefully, and then allow God to “set my words on fire” for His glory.

It starts in my heart.

What’s the point?

Questions are great. The right one can make a difference.

Try having conversations where the focus is on “What is the point?”

What’s The Point?

That is such a great question that provides a proper lens to process the actions and decisions of this journey we call life.

Look at your life, family, work, relationships, decisions… and ask yourself this simple question:

What’s The Point?

It will definitely change your perspective and priorities; it may change your life.

What’s the point?

You’re my singer

Keith Richards tells a great story about Charlie Watts, legendary drummer for the Stones.

After a night of drinking, Mick saw Charlie asleep and yelled, “Is that my drummer? Why don’t you get your arse down here?”

Richards continues, “Charlie got dressed in a Savile Row suit, tie, shoes, shaved, came down, grabbed him and went boom! Don’t ever call me “your drummer” again. You’re my … singer.”

No drums, no Stones.

Are you playing the drums? Whose your singer? How do you see your role?

Moral Confusion

“The urgency to preach the Good News is as true today as it was two thousand years ago, even if some scholars have naïvely declared God to be dead, forgetting that they are dealing with a God who found His way out of the grave…”

—— Roman Catholic Cardinal Ivan Dias implores Anglican Bishops at the Lambeth Conference to stand against “moral confusion.”

Three Questions

Here are three questions to help get focused.

· What is this year about?

· What is this day about?

· What is this moment about?

Knowing the answer to the first leads to great focus on the second. And know the answer to the second leads to great focus all the time.

Simple but not easy.

Got to love Google maps and weather

I really like Google maps. And I love the check the weather. Now, I can do both at the same time.

Maps users who enable the new weather layer — accessible from the upper right corner of Google Maps — will see weather temperatures and conditions, as denoted by cloud and rain icons, when zoomed out. Users can zoom in or click on a weather icon to get a more detailed report for a specific area.

Google Maps’ weather reports are sourced from weather.com, and the U.S. Naval Research Lab is powering the feature that shows cloud coverage on the map.

Way to go Google and Weather.com.

Microsoft 365 Outage

I knew it would happen. Of course, I didn’t know when. A handful of us have moved off our Exchange Servers for email, calendar, IM, etc. We are on Microsoft 365 (a cloud, SaaS model) which I generally like a lot.

But, I knew at some point we would suffer through a service outage. Here is Microsoft’s announcement. “At approximately 11:30am PDT, Microsoft became aware of a networking issue affecting customers of some Microsoft services hosted out of one of our North American data centers,” said Steven Gerri, General Manager for Global Foundation Services, in a statement. “We worked to isolate the issue and we are beginning to see service restoration. We continue to investigate the root cause of this issue.”

Microsoft additionally confirmed the outage via its @MSCloudUS Twitter account: “We apologize for the inconvenience that the #office365 outage has caused today,” the account wrote. “We’re [sic] are working on resolving the issue.”

Well, I had 5 plus hours of no email. The most frustrating part was not knowing from our own staff what the problem was and when it might be back up. Normally I just text someone and get a quick answer. Not in this case.

Small price to pay for progress I think.

No formula

Let’s say you wanted to “learn” how to heal the blind. Who better to “teach” you than Jesus?

So what is the formula? You could have followed Him around. You would have ended up VERY frustrated.

He never did it the same way twice. He spit on one guy. To another He simply spoke the word. Another He touched. To another He made some mud out His spit. To another He kicked a demon out.

No formulas with Jesus. He saw what His Father wanted to have done and did it. For those of us who are big on process, this is a BIG thing.

Google is about to invade your living room

There are lots of opinions floating around about Google’s acquisition of Motorola Mobility. Most of that has focused on the business of the value of their patents and their mobile phones. But is that why Google bought them alone? Maybe they just want to get into our living rooms. Motorola Mobile is also one of the largest suppliers of set-top boxes for the cable industry.

So why isn’t the internet on all our TVs already? Steve Jobs is on point here when he talks about why Apple TV didn’t catch fire:

The problem with innovation in the television industry is the go-to-market strategy. The television industry has a subsidized model that gives everyone a set-top box for free, or for $10 per month. That pretty much squashes any opportunity for innovation, because nobody’s willing to buy a set top box. Ask TiVo, ask Roku, ask us [Apple]. Ask Google in a few months.

The only way that’s ever going to change is if you can really go back to square one, tear up the set top box, redesign it from scratch with a consistent UI across all these different functions, and get it to consumers in a way that they’re willing to pay for it. And right now there’s no way to do that.

Here are some things that could happen:

• Comcast becomes Google’s largest customer. They work together on a TV gateway device/software that includes broadcast, interactive TV, on-demand content, and of-course, streamed Internet content. Google’s search competency and other assets (ad sales, YouTube, …) are at the center of this deal.
• The program guide on your set top box becomes a guide to any video, anywhere. And it generates revenue for the operators as well as Google — every click generates a payment from the content owner.
• Television networks’ deals with the cable and telcos become deals for broadcast, VOD, streaming from cable servers, streaming from Hulu, streaming from their own servers — basically, universal content distribution deals. Television networks transition to their future role as bankers, promoters, and aggregators of video content, not so much broadcasters.
• Google becomes the brand name for your program guide to entertainment, regardless of whether that guide is on your TV or on your PC.
• Google Plus gets built into your TV experience. You can +1 a TV program. Isn’t that what Spark is supposed to be?

Basically, Google could make more money from Motorola as an entree into the television world — ongoing revenues and advertising — than it can from continuing to push Moto set top boxes. And this new source of ad revenues and retention of viewers could make this attractive to many of the cable operators.

Think about it.

Skype WiFi

Now here is some innovation. Skype WiFi app allows you to pay by the minute at over 1 million locations. http://ow.ly/66lFX

Harry continues (1877)

Harry Wright continued on in 1877 as the manager. The Braves did very well. They were 42-18 and finished first, 7 games ahead. Not bad for having lost some of the best players in the league.

Al who? Maybe you couldn’t find it in the headlines that year. But time marches on. Al Spalding had been gone a year now. Perhaps the mourning was over. No way to know for sure. The good news is that Tommy Bond was signed to the team. A 21 year-old Irishman (ok, this is Boston) came on the scene. In 1876 he had a pretty good season for Hartford. He was 31-13. Got him noticed in Boston by the Braves.

Al who? How quickly they forget.

This is loyalty

Ever heard of Francis Thompson? Young guy, drop out, drug addict, drifter, sometime homeless. Eventually diseased and dead at 48. Probably not the kind of guy you would want to hang out with nor call a friend. And certainly not the kind of guy you would be inclined to be Loyal to.

But right before his death in 1907, Thompson came to know to very the core of his soul what true loyalty was. He expressed it in his poem, “Hound of Heaven.” It begins:

I fled Him, down the nights and down the days;
I fled Him, down the arches of the years;
I fled Him, down the labyrinthine ways
Of my own mind; and in the mist of tears I hid from Him,
and under running laughter.
Up vistaed hopes I sped;
And shot, precipitated, Adown Titanic glooms of chasmèd fears,
From those strong Feet that followed, followed after.
But with unhurrying chase, And unperturbéd pace,
Deliberate speed, majestic instancy,
They beat—and a Voice beat
More instant than the Feet—
“All things betray thee, who betrayest Me.”

The poem goes on and as Thompson unsuccessfully seeks peace through various human pursuits, he continues to hear, but ignore, the Voice that follows him unfailingly.

The poem, on its surface, is a dark story reflecting Thompson’s lifelong struggles. But beneath the surface, it is truly a Love story. Thompson’s Hound of Heaven is God, our Good and Great God who loves us so much, He follows us through each step of our lives. He is at our side. He is Loyal.

Where can I go from your Spirit? Where can I flee from your presence?
If I go up to the heavens, you are there; if I make my bed in the depths, you are there.
If I rise on the wings of the dawn, if I settle on the far side of the sea, even there your hand will guide me, your right hand will hold me fast.
If I say, “Surely the darkness will hide me and the light become night around me,” even the darkness will not be dark to you; the night will shine like the day, for darkness is as light to you.
For you created my inmost being; you knit me together in my mother’s womb.
I praise you because I am fearfully and wonderfully made; your works are wonderful, I know that full well.

Psalm 139: 7-14

A perfect storm creates a brave new mobile world

It is definitely a new world out there with mobile and mobile applications changing the technology landscaping at blazing fast paces. One of the implications will be for CIO’s to rely on a very broad app ecosystem. I don’t think that will mean custom software or traditional packages. Some are calling this the app internet. A perfect storm, so to speak, of cloud and mobile. We will have a much broader network of app and as-a-service providers.

A core requirement moving forward will be more than just contract centered procurement skills. We need full and mature vendor management function that can oversee a massive range of network relationships.

Welcome to a brave new world.

What is important?

Today’s scripture blew me away. What is important? Not what the economy is doing. Not what I give away. Not what I get. I am bankrupt without love.

That is the focus. Everything needs to come down to this.

If I give everything I own to the poor and even go to the stake to be burned as a martyr, but I don’t love, I’ve gotten nowhere. So, no matter what I say, what I believe, and what I do, I’m bankrupt without love.Love never gives up.

Love cares more for others than for self.
Love doesn’t want what it doesn’t have.
Love doesn’t strut,
Doesn’t have a swelled head,
Doesn’t force itself on others,
Isn’t always “me first,”
Doesn’t fly off the handle,
Doesn’t keep score of the sins of others,
Doesn’t revel when others grovel,
Takes pleasure in the flowering of truth,
Puts up with anything,
Trusts God always,
Always looks for the best,
Never looks back,
But keeps going to the end.

1 Corinthians 13:4-7

 

They got Bobby (1954)

1954 was a good year for the Braves. Good but not great. Charlie Grimm was the manager. They ended up 89-65 and finished third, six games behind. They thought they needed some power. The year before Broklyn ran away with the pennant. They hit 52 more home runs than Milwaukee in 1953.

And so, it seemed like a good idea to get Bobby Thompson. In 1951 he hit the “shot heard ’round the world” to win the pennant for the Giants. He was a powerhouse for sure, scoring over 100 runs for his last four years with the Giants. It cost the Braves dearly to get him. In a six player deal they sent Johnny Antonelli to the Giants. And they got Bobbie.

During sprint training Thompson broke his ankle slidding into third base. He was out to mid season. Meanwhile, Antonelli pitched the Giants into the World Series. He won 21 games. He led the league in ERA and other pitching categories.

The Braves really helped the Giants that year but not themselves. So it goes with trades. It was not the “shot” they expected.

God knows how ….

God knows how to do surgery. He can bring about internal purification. I can trust Him. He is good, all the time.

Is God first in my life? Is He second in my life? Is He third? He wants my only priority?

I need more of that and only that. I can pay that price. He gives me strength.

The function of leadership

“The function of leadership is to produce more leaders, not more followers.” ~~ Ralph Nader

Everything

Sometimes I am stunned by the simplicity of how God speaks to us. Through Paul He gave it to us pretty straight. He didn’t say, a few things or occasionally or if I feel like it. Nope.

Do everything in love. May I live this daily.

Do everything in love. 1 Corinthians 16:14 

 

 

 

Mobile is the new PC

Mobile will shape technology just like the personal computer did over 20 years ago. What do we as CIO’s need to address now that this reality is our world? One obvious one is manage a wide array of mobile devices. Security is raised in an “ugly specter” kind of way but that is not the most practical of all issues. Support and service seems to be an expectation even when our corporations don’t own the devices themselves.

Some of our traditional organization models are being rethought. They can inhibit innovation and creative / empowered use of business technology. Even more important, agility to meet fast paced business needs is now a core driver. The pace of business change will not lessen up. Security at a more granular level is a key since we aren’t blocking everything at the perimeter of a network any longer.

I must say, while it is challenging, it is a way cool world.

The Michael Wilson Daily is out! http://

The Michael Wilson Daily is out! http://bit.ly/ncafTW

There is a new mobile world out there

There is definately a new world that is taking shape. It is the mobile worker / workforce and it won’t be stopped. A collegue, Debra McKnight, shared this graphic and it is so powerful.

All the evidence points to greater productivity. More work in less time. And that is a very good thing.

I had a collegue come up to me today to thank me for enabling him to work from India for 2 months. He was able to spend time with his family like never before, AND, he got all his work done. Imagine that?

What about this graphic resonates with you? What is your experience?

I should pause

Easier said than done some days. Someone says something and off I go. I react. I speak. I regret it.

God’s wisdom teaches me to pause. I should forgive what they say. I should forget what they say.

His wisdom teaches me to pause.

Smart people know how to hold their tongue; their grandeur is to forgive and forget. Proverbs 19:11

His strength makes me happy

I can’t say, as Paul did, that I have learned to be completely content and happy. But I am learning and I want to mature in this area. The secret is to live in His strength and power. When I seek His desire, I have confidence that He will strenghten me. That is happening. When I wander off on my own, oh boy, I can never be glad in God and happy.

The other area that helps me be happy is knowing who I am in Him. I am fully redeemed and His child. Knowing that strengthens me. Whoo Hoo!!!

I have learned to be content in whatever circumstances I am …. I have learned the secret of …. both of having abundance and suffering need. I can do all things through Him who strengthens me. Philippians 4:11-13

Content with who I am

All that striving is useless!! Can I be content with who I am? Is that it? That is all there is to it!! That is the attitude my Father wants me to have. There are things that just can’t be bought. Happiness is one of them. I just can’t whip out my credit card and buy it.

May I be content!!

You’re more than happy when you’re content with just who you are—no more, no less. That’s the moment you find yourselves proud owners of everything that can’t be bought. Matthew 5:1-12

A discipline not a technology

Customer Experience Management tools are getting some buzz by technology marketers. “Houston, we have a problem”!! Here is the rub, managing the customer experience is a discipline and not a technology. There is no single tool that can tell you how to understand and meet customer needs across multiple touch points. Great idea but just can’t be done.

So what should we do? We need to map our whole ecosystem of customer touch points and continuously improve the people, process and technologies with a great strategy. Simple but not easy.

What do you think?

A Simple Test

Some tests are hard. Others are simple. This one is VERY simple. Loving others deeply and the way God does is the test of right living. Right living in God and right living with all who are a part of my life. It is all about the relationships. Acting right equals right-living with God. Loving God and loving my neighbor is the test.

So, my dear children, don’t let anyone divert you from the truth. It’s the person who acts right who is right, just as we see it lived out in our righteous Messiah. …. Here’s how you tell the difference between God’s children and the Devil’s children: The one who won’t practice righteous ways isn’t from God, nor is the one who won’t love brother or sister. A simple test.1 John 3:7-10

Great things are coming

Our Father cares for us. He has great things in mind for us. He is doing it.

What we are concerned about is what we are concerned about. He will complete the good work in us. He hasn’t brought us this far to leave us now. We need to stand firm. He cares for us!! How can anything happen that won’t complete His good work? Everything is working for our good and His glory.

Cast all your anxiety on him because he cares for you. 1 Peter 5:7

May we have absolute trust in Him. May we know how much He cares.

Love extravagantly

There is love and then there is extravagant love. My Father loves me extravagantly. I should love the same way. He isn’t reserved and holding back. Not at all. He sees me from afar and comes running. When I ran from Him he watched everyday waiting for me to return.

On seeing me a long way off, He came running for me. His heart was pounding. He embraced me. He kissed me. He brought me clean clothes, the best He has. He put His ring on my finger; the family ring He has been saving for a special time. He prepared an amazing feast for me. We celebrated. I was lost but He never stopped loving.

May I love like that!!! May I love extravagantly!!

But for right now, until that completeness, we have three things to do to lead us toward that consummation: Trust steadily in God, hope unswervingly, love extravagantly. And the best of the three is love. 1 Corinthians 13:13

Another beautiful day in paradise

It is another beautiful day in paradise. Which reminds me that He made all of this. With His word He commanded it all into existence. He said it, pointed to where He wanted it to exist and it did. How cool is that?

Oh my goodness. Nothing is  impossible for Him. Jeremiah got it. May I learn this as well.

Ah Lord GOD! Behold, You have made the heavens and the earth by Your great powerand by Your outstretched arm! Nothing is too difficult for You… Jeremiah 32:17

 

 

Use me Lord

Use me Lord. Use me until I am all used up. May I be disciplined in listening to You.

 May I be one you count on. May I be one of the few.

 Then He said to His disciples, “The harvest is plentiful, but the workers are few.” Matthew 9:37

 

 

 

 

CIO’s need to change the culture

As CIO’s we many of us have been focused on getting ourselves embedded or fused with the business. Business Relationship Managers have helped a lot. We need to go beyond that now. We have to empower our business partners to be successful with us and not in spite of us. We are leaders of a new technology culture. We are now business technologist. We are now business strategists. We need to be seen as business people not IT geeks. Now that is great but not easy. But it is the challenge. We can do it. We need to change the culture and that is our culture, not the business culture.

We are leading a transformation of our traditional IT culture. It nothing less than the old IT’s future. Change or become irrelevant. Seriously. That is the choice I think.

So what do we do about things like technology providers, security, compliance, and risk. Will the business allow us to ignore this? Certainly not at the corporate level. The Audit Committee and Board will replace us if we do. It seems that as we continue to enable technology in the business unit itself, we are responsible for collaborating with the business to embed oversight of providers, security, compliance, and risk through our ability to influence the business, not control the business. We need to learn new skills to do that. And, we can.

There is the traditional IT stack for infrastructure and enterprise applications. The new business technology is focused on being agile. Business is moving fast and agile technology supports that. Traditional IT practices don’t. The new business employees are used to being able to get technology on their own. Gmail, Facebook, YouTube, Twitter, Skype all can be used by the new employee with traditional IT. These are all user solutions not corporate IT solutions but they work very well. We must be open about their use and support them. Employees don’t need us to use them.

That’s my take, what’s yours?

Business Technology Best Practices

Nigel Fenwick with Forrester suggested to our team last some best practices that make a lot of sense.

Some things we should stop doing:

• Stop thinking IT needs to provision and control all technology

• Stop saying No to grass-root requests for non-standard technology

• Stop making ‘one size IT’ fit all needs

• Stop leading your business conversations with constraints

Some things we should start doing:

• Start de-centralizing expertise into your business

• Start embracing your empowered business users

• Start shifting your policies and standards into guardrails

• Start talking about opportunities rather than issues

What do you think? Is there something missing?

I am happy when I care

Am I caring enough? Am I full of care?

That is what it is all about. Jesus had this focus. He cared all the time. His Father focused on caring for him. That is what love is all about.

“You’re happy when you care. At the moment of being ‘care-full,’ you find yourselves cared for.” ~Jesus

Skype for the iPad

Skype released their iPad app this week. I just downloaded it. The review I read on Mashable was favorable. I am incorporating video more and more into my communication mix. I find it very powerful.

Anyone want to help me test the iPad app?

This is stunning

This is stunning. Apple has more cash than the Federal Government. http://ow.ly/5T1EK

A good approach to “hire for fit”. Wor

A good approach to “hire for fit”. Worth the read. http://ow.ly/5T1ji

Astonish the rest

Focusing on what God wants is an amazing thing. It has always been this way and always will. Some won’t appreciate it for sure. Others will be astonished and will see that is an absolutely perfect God who brings this about.

Always do right. This will gratify some people and astonish the rest.
—–Mark Twain (1835 – 1910)

Love this blog. Why do we let sales reps

Love this blog. Why do we let sales reps behave like tourist souvenir hawkers? Let’s stop the madness. #CIO http://ow.ly/5SHSt

Not official (1876)

Joseph Borden is known for something he isn’t known for. He couldn’t really replace Al Spalding. In 1876 he went 11-12. On May 23 he pitched a shut out against Cincinatti, 8-0. Lee Allen who was an historian for the Hall of Fame thinks he should have been credited with a no hitter. It would have been the first in the National League. The research shows that two walks were scored as the games only two hits.

The game has never been officially recognized as a no-hitter. This blog will however give him official credit. After all, he was a Brave.

If I was King …

If I was King, I would ban the use of acronyms in technology. It is getting maddening.

What do you think?

“The main thing is to keep the main thi

“The main thing is to keep the main thing the main thing.” ~~Steven Covey

Telly Award

Deepa Karani announced that the Jump Rope For Heart online fundraising ‘superhero’ video we launched Fall 2010 on our Convio platform won 2 prestigious Telly Awards earlier this month. The Telly Awards is the premier award honoring outstanding local, regional and cable TV commercials and programs, as well as the finest video and film productions, web commercials, videos and films. The Telly Awards is a widely known and highly respected national and international competition and receives over 11,000 entries annually from all 50 states and many foreign countries.

Pursuant, the company who produced the video for the AHA’s Jump Rope For Heart program, was presented the Telly Awards – bronze for online fundraising, and silver for visual effects (the highest award honor). This video, along with other innovative virtual experiences incorporated in the online fundraising youth market Convio platform, helped Youth Market raise over $11.8 million in online revenue for FY11 (54% increase over FY10)!

Please click here to read the Pursuant press release which includes a quote from Emily Mauter, National YM Manager. http://www1.pursuantgroup.com/news070611.php

Blog post: http://blog.pursuantgroup.com/

Congrats to Pursuant, AHA and Convio for being part of this great achievement! We look forward to building upon this success!

Can anything happen?

Jesus summons us to a new level of belief. There are no “ifs” in His world. The new plan he inaugerated makes it so. Can anything happen?

Simple answer. Yes.

Jesus said, “If? There are no ‘ifs’ among believers. Anything can happen.”

Difficult conversations

Seth Godin has some pretty good thoughts on difficult conversations, whether work or personal. We know it but we need to do it. If it is going to be difficult, do it face to face.

http://sethgodin.typepad.com/seths_blog/2011/07/difficult-conversations-at-wor.html

Pitching is upsetting timing

Warren Spahn had a pretty straight forward approach to pitching. He once described his approach on the mound: “Hitting is timing. Pitching is upsetting timing.” He seemed to have something there.

He won more games than any other left handed pitcher with an amazing 363. He won more than any post 1920 live ball era. Generally he is thought to be the best pitcher ever. Of course, he played for the Braves while they were in Boston. He played for 21 seasons. All of that was in the National League.

For 13 different seasons, he won 20 games or more. Even when he was 42, he could go 23-7. He won the Cy Young Award in 1957 and was runner up three times. He made it into the Hall of Fame in 1973.

And, did I mention, he played for the Braves?

Life without Phil Niekro. Atlanta Braves

Life without Phil Niekro. Atlanta Braves in 1984. http://ow.ly/5RtOQ

One bad moment

“You can’t let one bad moment spoil a bunch of good ones.” ~~Dale Earnhardt

A faithful son

God gives us so much. Time, resources, relationships and gifts to get His job done. There will be an accounting for what I do with all this. Am I being a faithful son and getting the most out His generousity?

“His master said to him, ‘Well done, good and faithful slave. You were faithful with a few things, I will put you in charge of many things; enter into the joy of your master.’ Matthew 25:21

May I put to use His many resources for His world.

God can do anything

I have ideas. I imagine “what if”. Some of this stuff is pretty cool!! Do these ideas seem to be far fetched sometimes? Yes, they do.

God can do anything. He can go way beyond my ideas, my dreams. And, He does it through His Spirit which is already at work within me. Wow!!!

God can do anything, you know—far more than you could ever imagine or guess or request in your wildest dreams! He does it not by pushing us around but by working within us, his Spirit deeply and gently within us. Ephesians3:20

May I not limit God to my ideas. May I lean in to hear what He has in mind.

Life without Phil Niekro (1984)

1984 brought a whole new course for the Atlanta Braves. It would be a year with Phil Niekro. After two decades, he was now a New York Yankee. He won 16 games with the Yankees. No one on the Braves could match that.

The Braves had an 80-82 record, tied for second in the West. They were 12 games behind the leader. It was Joe Torre’s 3rd year as Manager. Having a sub-.500 record wasn’t good news for anyone.

How can I help?

Here is what Jesus did. He didn’t make it easy on himself by avoiding anything. Particularly when it came to people and relationships. He waded right in and He helped out. So am I strong in the faith? Do I lend a hand to those who are struggling? Or do I just look for the “easy way”?

My approach and attitude should always be, “How can I help?”

May I find how our Father wants me to help!!!

Those of us who are strong and able in the faith need to step in and lend a hand to those who falter, and not just do what is most convenient for us. Strength is for service, not status. Each one of us needs to look after the good of the people around us, asking ourselves, “How can I help?” Romans 15:1-4

That’s exactly what Jesus did. He didn’t make it easy for himself by avoiding people’s troubles, but waded right in and helped out. “I took on the troubles of the troubled,” is the way Scripture puts it. Even if it was written in Scripture long ago, you can be sure it’s written for us. God wants the combination of his steady, constant calling and warm, personal counsel in Scripture to come to characterize us, keeping us alert for whatever he will do next. May our dependably steady and warmly personal God develop maturity in you so that you get along with each other as well as Jesus gets along with us all. Then we’ll be a choir—not our voices only, but our very lives singing in harmony in a stunning anthem to the God and Father of our Master Jesus!