This is it world. This is probably my final note. My ability to stay connected with and meet with the people I so desperately desire to be connected with cannot happen. Atleast not here, not the way I want. So I think this is it. I don't think I can stand it in this place anymore.
I know I'm leaving here to go to a better place.
I leave knowing that I have the love of my wife and the love of my Savior.
I hope to see you when you all get there. Atleast, hopefully I see you.
But after today, I'll REALLY know if its a better place.
I know this will seem random to some, but I really don't think I can take it here anymore. I mean, its not all bad. There's definately some good here. But the bad is too much for me to bare.
So, I'm going to Wordpress.
From here on out, you can check me out at czarthoughts.wordpress.com
What did you think I was talking about?
Monday, July 7, 2008
Wednesday, July 2, 2008
Todd Bentley anyone?
So, I've heard lots of rumblings about the Lakeland Revival. Maybe you haven't. That's not a bad thing if you haven't heard of it. But, its host Todd Bentley has been on every major media news outlet talking about what "God is doing" in the revivals.
Some have compared what he is doing to the Toronto Revivals. I'm not really sure. I've heard some people stand in support of Todd Bentley, I've heard some call him a false prophet. I've personally tried to not have an opinion about this but...its getting REALLY hard to stay nuetral.
This blog WILL NOT become the home of the anti-Todd Bentley rants. But I would love to hear your thoughts on this video.
Thoughts?
Some have compared what he is doing to the Toronto Revivals. I'm not really sure. I've heard some people stand in support of Todd Bentley, I've heard some call him a false prophet. I've personally tried to not have an opinion about this but...its getting REALLY hard to stay nuetral.
This blog WILL NOT become the home of the anti-Todd Bentley rants. But I would love to hear your thoughts on this video.
Thoughts?
Monday, June 30, 2008
Thursday, June 26, 2008
June 26th Should Be A National Holiday
Why? Because the nation should have the day off to celebrate my birthday! It should be a day of cheer a celebration throughout the nation. Well...maybe just my house then. :-)
Thanks for all of your Facebook, Myspace, Phone Call and text messages to wish me a happy birthday. It means WAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAYYYYYY more to me than you know.
It still feels a little weird to celebrate your birthday 2 days after your own wife's birthday - but that just makes the celebration last longer!
So, on behalf of the Patton family - thank you for your birthday wishes.
We both turned 28 this week.
p.s. All of the "old man" jokes can stop now. LOL! The best one so far was the AARP application placed on my computer monitor this morning. Good stuff.
Thanks for all of your Facebook, Myspace, Phone Call and text messages to wish me a happy birthday. It means WAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAYYYYYY more to me than you know.
It still feels a little weird to celebrate your birthday 2 days after your own wife's birthday - but that just makes the celebration last longer!
So, on behalf of the Patton family - thank you for your birthday wishes.
We both turned 28 this week.
p.s. All of the "old man" jokes can stop now. LOL! The best one so far was the AARP application placed on my computer monitor this morning. Good stuff.
Wednesday, June 25, 2008
Where are the black people?
I have more "leadership myths" I will blog about, and I'll get to those, but this is a question that has been getting me going for quite a while and I have to ask it.
As I look at some of my favorite leaders and their leadership organizations - Andy Stanley and Catalyst, Ed Stetzer, Mark Batterson, Erwin McManus just to name a few I VERY SELDOMLY see black leaders speaking at these conferences. Catalyst, Purpose Driven, Awaken and MANY others rarely feature black voices in church leadership. Occasionally, a black guy will speak about "Urban ministry" or "Hip-hop and the church" in a workshop setting but those are generally it. Or they'll get TD Jakes or Eddie Long and that'll be the extent of it. Yet, many of these places talk about "multi-cultural ministry."
Where are the black people?
Is the African-American church too far behind to be considered leaders in the current move happening in the American church? Are the voices coming from the church too irrelevant to white America? Do the voices of black leaders not reach the needs of Gen-X and Millenials - the target age groups of the more modern church movements?
Where are the black people?
It seems like the only way I get to hear the voice of black church leaders is in one of the following ways:
1. An outrageous statement made at a church Barak Obama went to
2. Al Sharpton
3. TD Jakes
4. At a Charismatic/Faith Movement Prosperity conference
Only one of the four are sources I'm okay with (that being TD Jakes). The other 3 are NOT sources that resonate with me nor do they generally represent my views on faith and leadership.
This isn't a blog pointing fingers nor is it a blog to say that anyone is racist. I genuinely want to know WHERE ARE THE BLACK PEOPLE?
So, if you could, could you ask Perry Noble, Andy Stanley, Dave Ferguson, Ben Arment, Scott Hodge, Erwin McManus, Mark Batterson and the rest of the modern American church leaders - where are the black people?
I'm GENUINELY curious. Are you?
As I look at some of my favorite leaders and their leadership organizations - Andy Stanley and Catalyst, Ed Stetzer, Mark Batterson, Erwin McManus just to name a few I VERY SELDOMLY see black leaders speaking at these conferences. Catalyst, Purpose Driven, Awaken and MANY others rarely feature black voices in church leadership. Occasionally, a black guy will speak about "Urban ministry" or "Hip-hop and the church" in a workshop setting but those are generally it. Or they'll get TD Jakes or Eddie Long and that'll be the extent of it. Yet, many of these places talk about "multi-cultural ministry."
Where are the black people?
Is the African-American church too far behind to be considered leaders in the current move happening in the American church? Are the voices coming from the church too irrelevant to white America? Do the voices of black leaders not reach the needs of Gen-X and Millenials - the target age groups of the more modern church movements?
Where are the black people?
It seems like the only way I get to hear the voice of black church leaders is in one of the following ways:
1. An outrageous statement made at a church Barak Obama went to
2. Al Sharpton
3. TD Jakes
4. At a Charismatic/Faith Movement Prosperity conference
Only one of the four are sources I'm okay with (that being TD Jakes). The other 3 are NOT sources that resonate with me nor do they generally represent my views on faith and leadership.
This isn't a blog pointing fingers nor is it a blog to say that anyone is racist. I genuinely want to know WHERE ARE THE BLACK PEOPLE?
So, if you could, could you ask Perry Noble, Andy Stanley, Dave Ferguson, Ben Arment, Scott Hodge, Erwin McManus, Mark Batterson and the rest of the modern American church leaders - where are the black people?
I'm GENUINELY curious. Are you?
Tuesday, June 24, 2008
Leadership Myth #1 - Multi-tasking
Since I'm in the process of recruiting for my leadership team and doing some interviewing to fill positions at my job, I get to hear people laud themselves about their abilities pretty frequently. I keep hearing about this mythical quality that people say that they excell in. This mythical gift people claim to hold that helps them be better leaders and better employees. This mythical gift is called - x-ray vision! Wait...not quite, but its pretty close. This mythical gift is called - "multi-tasking."
Multi-tasking belongs in the same boat as levitating, x-ray vision, Big Foot and other cultural phenomenons that have ZERO proof of existance.
Allow me to explain. People say that they can multi-task, or do multiple tasks at once. If that's true, then why do we turn the music down in the car when we are looking for an address? Since when did our ears affect our sight? Or why do we tell STOP talking to someone in person to send a text message? Our speech either slows down or stops completely when we start typing on our Blackberry's and iPhones.
Similarly, I don't believe you when you say you can multi-task in a employment or ministry setting. For example, if you are responsible for 3 projects that run concurrently, you cannnot do them all at the sametime. Let's say you are responsible for small group development, multi-media and youth ministry. You CANNOT do the three of them at once. You'll work on one at a time, quickly moving from one to the next. You'll make your reports for media, write your message for youth ministry and then write an outline for small groups - ONE AT A TIME. You would need three hands to write all three things simultaneously. You aren't multitasking, you're moving from one thing to the next. See the difference?
Multi-tasking is a myth. You can't do multiple tasks at once, so stop telling people "I'm a great multitasker." Tell them "I can move very quickly from one task to the next." Its not as pretty as multi-tasking, but quick and effecient is a fantastic quality to have.
Now, stop and re-read this post because you were probably trying catch-up on sports highlights, listen to the new Coldplay release and read this blog all at the same time and didn't really understand what I was saying.
Multi-tasking belongs in the same boat as levitating, x-ray vision, Big Foot and other cultural phenomenons that have ZERO proof of existance.
Allow me to explain. People say that they can multi-task, or do multiple tasks at once. If that's true, then why do we turn the music down in the car when we are looking for an address? Since when did our ears affect our sight? Or why do we tell STOP talking to someone in person to send a text message? Our speech either slows down or stops completely when we start typing on our Blackberry's and iPhones.
Similarly, I don't believe you when you say you can multi-task in a employment or ministry setting. For example, if you are responsible for 3 projects that run concurrently, you cannnot do them all at the sametime. Let's say you are responsible for small group development, multi-media and youth ministry. You CANNOT do the three of them at once. You'll work on one at a time, quickly moving from one to the next. You'll make your reports for media, write your message for youth ministry and then write an outline for small groups - ONE AT A TIME. You would need three hands to write all three things simultaneously. You aren't multitasking, you're moving from one thing to the next. See the difference?
Multi-tasking is a myth. You can't do multiple tasks at once, so stop telling people "I'm a great multitasker." Tell them "I can move very quickly from one task to the next." Its not as pretty as multi-tasking, but quick and effecient is a fantastic quality to have.
Now, stop and re-read this post because you were probably trying catch-up on sports highlights, listen to the new Coldplay release and read this blog all at the same time and didn't really understand what I was saying.
Friday, June 20, 2008
Start Spreading the News - Album Recording COMPLETE!!
I'm excited to announce that the recording for Life Support Vol.1 is FINALLY finished! My first official solo release and the first in the "Life Support" series is done with the recording phase. All that's left is to get it mixed and then voila - the release.
In case you've forgotten, here's a reminder of what "Life Support" is all about.
So, for those of you who plan to be in attendance for the Generation Conference - you'll get to be one of the first people to get your hands on it.
I'm really pleased with the way it came out. Here is the OFFICIAL tracklisting.
1. Pump Ya Fist
2. Masses
3. U Already Know
4. After The Pain
5. Hope
6. My Prayer
Vol 2 is set to come out by mid fall. The writing phase is already underway for that one, but until then - get ready to order your copy because they will go FAST!
Website, album art and details on how to order are coming soon.
In case you've forgotten, here's a reminder of what "Life Support" is all about.
So, for those of you who plan to be in attendance for the Generation Conference - you'll get to be one of the first people to get your hands on it.
I'm really pleased with the way it came out. Here is the OFFICIAL tracklisting.
1. Pump Ya Fist
2. Masses
3. U Already Know
4. After The Pain
5. Hope
6. My Prayer
Vol 2 is set to come out by mid fall. The writing phase is already underway for that one, but until then - get ready to order your copy because they will go FAST!
Website, album art and details on how to order are coming soon.
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