Matt's External Brain
My New Hobby: Productivity
Thursday, March 20th, 2008Oh great. Matt has a new hobby.
Most of you who know me know I have a wide variety of interests and passions. I tend to dive into things I do with a lot of vigor and excitement. Most of you who know me WELL know I tend to have a hard time […]
Hi, my name is Matt, and I’m creative.
Monday, March 10th, 2008Today, I read a compelling, and surprisingly well-written article in an online magazine that I follow on the topic of Web design. I think I saw a little bit of myself in it. At least, myself as I want to be.
Creativity is an inborn capacity for thinking differently than most, seeing […]
Dobson’s Absurdity
Monday, February 11th, 2008Dobson is not going to cast a vote if McCain gets the nomination.
Should Sen. McCain capture the nomination as many assume, I believe this general election will offer the worst choices for president in my lifetime. I certainly can’t vote for Hillary Clinton or Barack Obama based on their virulently anti-family policy positions. […]
Another Political Statement
Thursday, February 7th, 2008Be as involved as you possibly can be in politics, without derailing yourself from your mission.
And try to remember that your mission isn’t politics.
Exercise your God-ordained freedom to be a part of choosing (snicker) your next leader.
Be as informed as it is possible to be about the issues.
Be as informed as it is possible to […]
My Political Statement
Tuesday, February 5th, 2008I hate politics. (Though, sometimes I am guilty of playing them.)
There is as much hope to be found in politics as there is in religion and religion is a lie.
There is no hope to be found in any political candidate.
There are no men worthy to be looked to as leader of the free world. If such a man existed, […]
Christmas Letter
Thursday, December 13th, 2007This is the of time giving and receiving, but looking back over the past year, this brief page cannot contain all the gifts (material and otherwise) that we’ve been given. I’m not quite sure how we ended up with all these blessings and gifts. We certainly did not earn them or deserve them.
It […]
Thanksgiving
Thursday, November 22nd, 2007My Thanksgiving wishes are best summed up by the following. I am a blessed man. Wonderful family, beautiful daughter, amazing career, nice house, good cars, faithful friends… but the thing I am most thankful for…
Well, King David put it best:
Psalm 116 (”The Message” translation)
I love God because he listened to me, listened as […]
Speak with Authority
Friday, October 26th, 2007I love this poem. I found it (and thought I linked to it, though apparently not) a couple years ago somewhere. It’s great to hear it spoken. This man is a word smith. Preachers take note. In 3 minutes he give a coherent, compelling, memorable, important thought.
“Totally Like Whatever” by Taylor […]
Common Grace: Budgets, Schedules, and Weight Watchers
Wednesday, October 17th, 2007I am a terrible money manager, am even worse at time management, and have zero discipline when it comes to eating. Contrast this with the fact that I am blessed with a good income, have very flexible time commitments, and access to any and all food I could want.
Not a good combination.
The end result […]
Inspiration Revisited
Wednesday, October 17th, 2007My last post on inspiration needs some follow-up, I think. My intention was to speak to inspiration with regards to skill-sets and art. People I look to when I am trying to discover how better to do something (like make web sites, sing and lead a band, or preach). But there is […]
Christianity Today Poll - Should Churches Teach Cultural Literacy
Tuesday, October 16th, 2007Christianity Today has posted an interesting poll today asking: “Should churches teach Christians ‘cultural literacy’ as well as biblical literacy?”
The choices are as follows:
Yes. No, Cultural literacy is not important to Christian life. No, Christians should learn about culture, but not necessarily from the church.
69% of people who have responded so far say “yes” 4% Say No, it’s […]
An Artist’s Inspiration
Monday, October 15th, 2007“Every artist is a cannibal, every poet is a theif. They all kill their inspiration and then sing about their grief.”
U2 - The Fly
(The above quote has little to do with this article other than it’s by one of my inspirations, and it’s about art and inspiration :-D)
Every artist has their inspirations. Almost […]
Students and Archaic Learning Systems
Monday, October 15th, 2007Church, we would do very very well to heed this message:
glumbert - A Vision of Students Today
My Review, A Little Late: David Crowder Band - Remedy
Wednesday, October 10th, 2007I love The David Crowder Band. I love pretty much everything they do. They are the most innovative band operating in the Christian ghetto wing of the music industry these days, and probably rank up there in the wider world of the music industry as well.
I haven’t ranted and raved about the new […]
Cheap Worship
Sunday, September 30th, 2007Kathy feels we need to unplug… to turn it down. I don’t disagree. (In fact, I do agree.)
We need more quiet reflection, and deeper study of God’s word. We need shared meals, more prayer, more confession (to one another). We need more proclamation of God’s amazing grace and righteous judgment (maybe […]
God Spoke To Me Last Night
Friday, September 21st, 2007You who are younger, be subject to the elders. Clothe yourselves, all of you, with humility toward one another, for “God opposes the proud but gives grace to the humble.”
Humble yourselves, therefore, under the mighty hand of God so that at the proper time he may exalt you, casting […]
The Church
Thursday, September 20th, 2007Church - Greek ekklesia (ek-klay-see’-ah) - “A gathering of people”
Is built by Jesus. The Gates Of Hell will not prevail against it. (Matthew 16:18) Multiplies when it walks in fear of the Lord and the comfort of the Holy Spirit (Acts 9:31) Is cared for by pastors who are appointed by the Holy Spirit (Acts 20:28) Sometimes […]
Why we target young
Wednesday, August 8th, 2007Noel Heikkinen has an excellent observation on why Riverview Church targets the young. Stonebrook doesn’t have an age range that we target, but this is where my heart is. This article sums up half the reason my heart is there as well.
I talked about the rest of the reasons here.
ABC News: ‘Heretic’ Minister: Nobody Goes to Hell
Sunday, July 15th, 2007ABC News recently posted an article about Carlton Pearson renouncing historical Christianity, stating that no one goes to hell.
The article seems to applaud him for sticking to his conscience, and makes believers out to be lunatics; removing him from the pulpit “he built” for this heresy. It’s a rather sad story (the part about […]
Making Elena Smile
Sunday, July 1st, 2007I’m not extremely affectionate with Nancy in public, but I am more so around the house. One sure fire way to make Elena smile is to give Nancy a hug and a kiss. This always causes her to get a big grin, and giggle slightly, and sometimes even clap.
She’s […]
