Communication is not about sending the right message, it’s all about getting the right response.

How to clarify your message for the right response.

1. Check your ego
2. Get an image consultant
3. Keep it simple

Who gives a rip if your idea is original?

Talking about recycling ideas.

We’re all trying to make an impact for God’s Kingdom. How are we going to do it. So many church leaders feel like they have to do the next new thing. New and original are great, but it might not be the most important question.

We don’t ask the question, “Is this original…but we ask, Is this effective?”

Somebody visiting your church today is just sampling. They are new. They are a fresh face with a possibly fresher faith. They need you to help them get to their next step.

So all this made me think of this talk Shawn Wood gave at MinistryCom a few years ago. I think it’s highly appropriate when talking about Recycled vs Original Content.

The point is, what does it take to have a high impact? And what is the least amount of work to have the highest amount of impact. So, find the sweet spot. Don’t get hung up on needing to be original every time. Find the place to have the greatest impact for Christ in the least complicated manner.

Gladwell follows the story with coach Ranadive, a father to one of the girls on the team. Ranadive didn’t take the usual approach to winning basketball games. He wasn’t a basketball player himself. Most of his team were made up of first year players. There were no plays that were executed. No star towering center to dominate the lane. And no long-range shooting guard to sink shots from the outside. Rather, the approach was all about not wasting space and time.

The girls executed a full court press, every defensive minute of every game. The didn’t play the usual game of shoot and retreat. The never let up. They were, at their core, relentless.

Gladwell remarks of the strategy “Playing insurgent basketball didn’t guarantee victory. It was simply the best chance an underdog had of beating Goliath.”

It’s all about effort. When your opponent moves slow, you counter with speed. When your opponent relaxes, you counter with drive. Relentless pursuit can trump brute force.

So, how can the church implement the Full-Court Press?

• Relentless pursuit of relationships (our culture wants us to get something out of relationships. I think it’s wise to think about giving something to relationships).
• Relentless pursuit of relevance (if we don’t speak the language, we will fumble our connection possibilities).
• Relentless pursuit of breaking conventional rules (When convention keeps the game the same, defy it and change the rules).
• Relentless pursuit of the one we love most (When we pursue God, people will follow).

When we engage people, in their language, with a relentless pursuit that redefines the conventional rules, because of the love God has for us, we advance the kingdom of God.

David was a shepherd. He didn’t know he was supposed to bring a sword to fight off a Philistine in a duel. He brought a staff and slingshot. He changed the rules of the game. When Goliath slowly advanced, David sprinted. He didn’t cut off his head, and yet, Goliath lay dead.

God promises a great reverse. The first shall be last and the last shall be first. The peacemakers and the meek will sit atop the kingdom. It’s not the relentless pursuit of perfection, but the relentless pursuit that wins out. A game changing attitude that responds in real-time to the real needs of people.

David Carson on Humor and Design

Paula Scher on Play and Design

Hers:
ADOPT - Work towards baby #3…
LESS – Spend less, consume less, want less, 
DISCIPLINE – pray and invest daily in God. Consistency in Parenting and loving my husband

Mine:
CONNECT- Engage more in people this year. Real relationships.
LESS – Spend Less, Consume Less
MORE – Save More, Give More, Live More. Spend more time with my family.

2009. The year of the Scheller.

Staying true to that axiom, for the first time in three elections, I didn’t vote for Ralph Nader. I actually voted for a major party candidate for the presidency. 

Two things that will win my vote no matter what the rest of your platform is:

1. I feel like your telling me the truth. No BS. I vote for the most honest person in the room. The one who has nothing to lose and is a straight shooter. The one who doesn’t just play the game of fame politics, but is driven to achieve goals that are self-actualized in the character of the individual. 
2. Your definition of “Life” is from the womb to the tomb! Abortion is a hot issue, especially for Christians. But in my neighborhood, so is being a teen mom (in 2004, North Minneapolis had the highest teen pregnancy rate in the nation). Life is not just about bringing kids into the world, it’s about what are we going to do with them once they’re here. How will we care? How will we show it? What will we do to support young moms? I tend to think that poverty is the reason the abortion rate is so high, not just because women have the right to have them. A whole-life policy is what we need, not just regulation and restriction.