The answer is yes, but with some conditions…

1. You have to do your homework. Read Reviews. Not all are created equal. None really have a great reputation, but some better than others. (I’ll get to the why on that in if you keep reading)

2. You have to jump through the hoops. Read the terms and conditions carefully. Decide whether they are worth doing for the “free” item. A site that may be totally worth it to you, may not be worth it to me.

3. You have to follow the rules. There are all kinds of videos for “hacks” for certain free sites. All you will do is get yourself kicked off the site. Besides, if you simply follow the rules, you get your reward, they get their money, and everyone is happy.

4. If you like a network of sites, stick with it. No sense in relearning everything.

5. Start small. Start with something that takes a few referrals (maybe 5-8), instead of going for that loaded out iPad 2 32GB +3G that is going to be 12 referrals or more. Get a feel for it and you will be less frustrated.

6. Have fun with it!!

All that said, sometimes stuff happens. An email gets lost, a form disappears. You may have some frustration, but be patient. The people at the company are just doing their job. Just keep in mind that you are getting something (usually big) for free or cheap, and in the grand scheme of things, a week or two is not a huge deal.

Want to give it a try? You can start here.

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The leadership team put together a chili cookoff, we had Jeff Anderson (@JeffAOfficial for those of you on twitter) lead us in some music, and Roger Bear from Baptist Collegiate Ministries in Terre Haute bring a message.

It was a really great time. People heard the gospel, several unaffiliated people from the community showed up, and several churches (including a house church plant) took part. One local church who has youth ministries that night, just brought their whole group.

I enjoyed Jeff’s ministry through music. He is one of those rare people who you partner with for events that has a real servants heart. It oozes out of his music and lyrics. He has a real heart to see the lost come to know Christ in an intimate way. He understands it is about God and not him. He does not waste opportunities to share Christ from the stage.

While not a typical revival service, I hope to see fruit from it in one way or another. It may be in service, evangelism, or deeper community relationships – I cannot wait to see it…

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http://phandroid.com/2012/01/12/hands-on-asus-padfone-is-it-a-phone-tablet-or-both/

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Ubuntu Linux powered TV

iRig Stompbox (I would love to demo one of these!!)

Vlingo Voice Assistant coming to TV…

Polaroid Smartphone/Camera Combo

1st Intel Based Smartphone

Gorilla Glass 2 

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Some Ideas:

In our youth ministry, we use one on a label pointed to a GOSPEL presentation.

Personally, I use one as my Twitter profile pic, that points to MinistryPlace.net (See Image..)

I would love to hear what you’re doing….

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Maybe You are a Youth Worker that has been told you are too young/old/boring/playful/whatever to effectively serve in youth ministry. Maybe you have been sucked into church politics without even knowing it and you are now paying the price. Maybe you’ve been bullied by a youth parent/deacon/elder/Sr Pastor/whoever. Maybe you fantasize about what youth group would be like if “that kid or those kids” suddenly stopped coming. Maybe you want to hang it up, go work 9 to 5 in a cubicle somewhere. Maybe you have the feeling that nothing you are doing in your church matters, or you made a mistake coming to the church where you are serving.

Maybe you feel horribly inadequate and ill-equipped to deal with all the junk that is thrown into the laps of your teenagers and families. Maybe you have felt the constant pull between church expectations and building deep relationships between spouse and your children.Maybe you’ve had that deep feeling tearing away at you that something is not matching somewhere between your beliefs and what your church is teaching. Maybe you have that desperate wish to tell someone you are not “fine” ; that you are really dying and wasting away inside, your soul is screaming for something, somewhere to give.

I’m not going to tell you to just suck it up, or that it will get better. It really may get worse first, in a way you can’t even imagine. I’m not going to tell you to count it joy, that you are doing something right. While Biblical, it is the wrong time to hear it.

I will tell you I have been there.  I will tell you that you cannot walk through this alone. I will tell you that the longer you hold it in, the worse it will be when it finally comes out (because IT WILL, one way or another). I will tell you that you are not the only one who has ever experienced this. I will tell you that I will gladly talk, pray, cry, or whatever else to help you walk through this.

Youth Workers, we are in this together. It is not God who wants to see us like this, but the enemy that seeks to kill, steal, and destroy.

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“Why do I see a bunch of 40 and 50 somethings with iPhones?

Here are my answers:

1) They are reasonably affordable

2) They (usually) work without a lot of fuss.

3) They have a lot of advertising

4) Their high-school age/college age/20-something children probably recommended it .

Any ideas I missed? Let me know below.

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There are couple here that I never could have imagined before living in Indiana.
For Example:
The Newport Antique Auto Hill Climb – A bunch of people bring in modified (some more than others) autos to climb a big hill over Labor Day Weekend. Highest point reached/or best time to the top wins in each class. They even have a Beauty Pagent for the “Hill Climb Queen”.

The Covered Bridge Festival – 30ish covered bridges, 700,000+ visitors over a 10 day period. Keep in mind that the rest of the year, the whole county only has 18,000 people.

What happens where you are?

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We can learn a lesson from this in the church.

I remember as a very green PC Technician working to repair IBM Aptiva Computers. They were terrible. The manufacturing was not good. They were horribly overpriced. It didn’t take IBM long to figure out that it took more than the IBM name alone to sell computers in an increasingly Dell and Gateway market. They needed quality to match the name. Enter Lenovo. IBM figured out that Lenovo had much better quality at a cheaper price, and they could put the IBM name on it. That worked. For a while.

As profit margins became ever thinner, IBM finally sold the PC division to Lenovo for a large chunk of cash, hence making them money, which was the goal all along. Was that the route they originally had in mind? No. They had to be flexible. Yes, even IBM has the ability to change.

So what does it mean in the church?

In the church, we have to be increasingly aware of what is working and what isn’t. Are we using the resources that we have been entrusted with to make gains that look successful on earth, but have little or no kingdom value? Are we continuing ministries that worked 5 or 50 years ago “just because”? Have we put in so many levels of committees and administration that it takes ridiculous amounts of time to get small changes to ministries approved?

Let’s finish the IBM Story.

IBM has dropped things that do not fit their goal (making money, remember?). They now use the lion’s share of their resources to do a very few things – making and selling servers, installing and maintaining enterprise computing equipment, and enterprise level software.

We have a different purpose.

The church has the goal of spreading the message of the Gospel, making disciples, and teaching them what Christ has commanded (see Matthew 28:18-20). We need to be willing as churches to jettison anything that does not fit the purpose of glorifying Christ. Whether it is programs, buildings, activities, or the donated carpet, anything that stands between us and completing Christ’s purpose for us needs to go…

I’m ready, Let’s go!

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Guide each of us that trek in the trenches of youth ministry. Help us celebrate the breakthroughs with Teenagers and their Parents.

Help us completely rely on You in good times and tough times. Refresh us through your Word speaking to us.

Help us boldly proclaim your Word through our actions and our speech.

Help us make a difference in our communities. Help us realize the value of a generation.

Amen.

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