You can find this one online here for only $4.95!

You can find this one online here for only $12.

And lastly, for those who prefer a cute handmade holder, look here for only $5.

So which is your Friday Fav Business Holder?
Any pet peeves or preferences with Business Card behavior?

Okay, I’m not really talking about cows, but I am talking about my problem. I think I’m identifying with the parent who is scheduled, hectic, and trying to keep up with their daily routine. Instead of working on how to become more efficient, maybe just stop and take a look at the view. See how green the grass really is and soak up some of the scenery. I fight work-a-holism like a lot of people, but the point is unless you get as determined to take a break as you are to complete your tasks, you are going to start missing some important scenery.

This is part of a post from our sister blog, Orange Parents. The next paragraph talks about prioritizing time away from our kids to refuel– that it will make us better parents. Read the rest here. Also check out the brand new Church Finder feature there. Parents (or leaders like you) who relate to our values and philosophy can search for a nearby church that embraces at least one part of our strategy. Is your church listed? Check it out and plan a field trip to see an Orange ministry in your area.

How often do you get out to learn from and partner with other churches trying to reach the next generation? You need to get serious about taking a break, having fun, taking some time off, and seeing other ministries– not simply because you deserve it, but because your MINISTRY needs you to appreciate how green your own grass really is.

Sometimes it is easier for people to see the wisdom of this fivefold structure when it isn’t presented in biblical language. If we apply a sociological approach to the differing ministry styles, we discover that Paul’s missional ecclesiology is confirmed by the best current thinking in leadership theory and practice.

In most organizational systems, there is acknowledgement of the importance of these leadership functions:

The entrepreneur: Innovator and cultural architect who initiates a new product, or service, and develops the organization.

The questioner: Provocateur who probes awareness and fosters questioning of current programming leading to organizational learning. 

The communicator: Recruiter to the organization who markets the idea or product and gains loyalty to a brand or cause.

The humanizer: People-oriented motivator who fosters a healthy relational environment through the management of meaning.

The philosopher: Systems-thinker who is able to clearly articulate the organizational ideology in a way as to advance corporate learning.


Various leadership experts use different terms for these categories, but they would all recognize the vital contributions these different types of leaders bring to an organization. Leadership theory says that the conflicting agendas and motivations of these five kinds of leaders will tend to pull them in different directions. But if these five could be properly developed, focused, and coordinated, together they would create a very potent leadership team.

What function(s) do you play on your team? Are you missing any of these five leadership types?

Today’s post is taken from an Fuller Youth Institute article written by Alan Hirsch and featured on our premium Orange Leaders content. Read more.

“Working in ministry can prove to have explosive results if we don’t share key values with our team. We can work through the smaller differences, but if we aren’t on the same page with regard to key issues, we put both our teams and ourselves at risk for burning out.”

I knew the importance of making sure that your team and staff define the things that are important, especially the overall strategy of the ministry, but I never thought about how that tied to burnout.

This reminds me of the common language that Reggie Joiner talks about in the Orange Leaders Handbook.

A common language is established to align leaders, parents, and volunteers to an overall mission and plan.

Investing in a common language will help you articulate your strategy in a way that everyone understands and will pay remarkable dividends in clarity and communication.

Do you and the people on your team have a common language and clearly defined wins? Why do you think Reggie says creating these requires investment? What are some of the positive results that you’ve seen when alignment around key issues is a priority ?

For those of you who work with high school students, we know that it can be a challenge to find a way to connect with their parents. So we’re giving you an easy solution. This is the first of a three part series about stuff for college freshman. Feel free to send this on to the parents of your recent grads as a way to keep the communication open (or send this to the small group leaders of these students, and have them forward it on to the parents). And you’re welcome to take the credit for coming up with the list too….no worries about that.

Be on the look out for Part 2 (STUFF TO BE AWARE OF) and Part 3 (STUFF THAT MAKES A GREAT CARE PACKAGE).

So, for the first installment, here is a short list of necessities for the college-bound freshman with our personal suggestions about each one (you can download the full list by clicking here):

STUFF TO PACK FOR COLLEGE

• FLIP-FLOPS

Community bathrooms mean lots of people use the same shower stalls. We probably don’t need to elaborate on why flip-flops come in handy in that situation. But they’re also great for running down the hall to your neighbor’s room or a late night outing to the sundry store for Diet Coke and a Butterfinger.

• EXTRA-LONG TWIN SHEETS

We’re not sure why this isn’t printed in BIG BOLD LETTERS on the information sheets for freshmen. It should be. And you should get a recorded voicemail message and lots of email reminders too. Most college dorm rooms are outfitted with extra-long twin mattresses so that they work for as many students as possible – especially those college athletes with big appetites. And don’t forget that extra-long twin sheets also means you’ll need an extra-long mattress pad and comforter.
** Since college students are notorious for doing their laundry on a frequent basis (wink, wink), it would be good for their personal hygiene if you provided them with multiple sets of sheets.

• EGG CRATE MATTRESS PAD

Speaking of mattresses, they’re generally not pillow top, extra thick, super duper, plush mattresses. An egg crate will easily disguise them and bring up the level of comfort by several notches.
** If you get to school and are creeped out by the look of the mattress in your room, a plastic, zip-up mattress cover will do wonders and should be available at your local Wal-Mart or Target.

There is a lot more where this came from….download the full list here.

With the Apple iPhone 4 antenna problems forming a growing wave of
concern – Pexagon Technology is offering a free solution to consumers. Through their “i Love Apple” campaign, they are offering a free iWrap (their version of the iPhone 4 soft plastic bumper) to iPhone 4 owners. Consumer Reports states that this soft plastic case has been proven to resolve the perceived loss of signal issue on the iPhone 4.

Apple has been, and continues to be admired by Pexagon Technology President Brian Campbell who stated, “If indeed there is a potential issue with Apple iPhone 4, we are proactively doing what we can to help – offering each iPhone 4 owner a free iWrap bumper, suggested by Consumer Reports as a remedy to any possible connectivity difficulties.”

Again, the iWrap bumper, normally $19.99, is free for a limited time. Due to a very high expected demand, please allow us 7-10 business days for order processing.

USE COUPON CODE: CSWRAP7G inside the shopping cart.

LIMITED TIME OFFER & LIMITED QUANTITY. ONLY 1 PER CUSTOMER. MAY NOT BE VALID WITH SOME OTHER OFFERS. OFFER SUBJECT TO CHANGE. 7-10 BUSINESS DAY ORDER PROCESSING TIME.

http://www.pexagontech.com/deals/email/iwrap-i-love-apple-launch.php

If we let technology run the show, we don’t save time — we just end up with a different set of things to do. The amount of work hardly changes, if it changes at all.

This chapter, titled Do Everything Faster, ends with a very poignant quote from Mark Kingwell, a professor of philosophy at the University of Toronto.

“Despite what people think, the discussion about speed is never really about the current state of technology. It goes much deeper than that, it goes back to the human desire for transcendence.”

And that takes me back to my early morning affirmation/phone/clock check.

I know one day I’m going to die.

I’d like to hope that what I’m doing is making a difference…

Even though I’m not on this earth to make people happy, my morning “routine” is an (inaccurate) way I measure my value…

However, instead of viewing time as a line with a start and a finish, I’m going to try and see my life and purpose in seasons. Some fast. Some slow. Some stressed. Some refreshing. Some aggressive. Some passive. Some giving. Some receiving.

By intentionally doing this, there is no Point A in my linear time line of life and purpose that begins each morning.

Instead, every morning is a step into a season.

…A season lived in truth to whatever I happen to be doing at the time.

…A season to be embraced and experienced fully.

“What’s the very first thing you do when you wake up in the morning?”

The answer: We look at the clock.

For me, it just so happens that my clock is also my alarm is also my phone is also my email checker is also my Twitter checker is also my blog checker and my Google Reader and…

Before I even get out of bed, I’m caught up on what’s happened in my little world in the last six to eight hours.

That’s right.

MY little world.

One could argue I am simply checking in on connections and relationships.

But honestly, I’m just trying to find my first fix of affirmation for the day.

(FIRST fix. AHEM. More on that in a moment.)

In some philosophies, we learn from Honoré that time is considered cyclical. It’s renewing. Coming…going…it’s about seasons. Before there were things like clocks or time was measured as intricately as it is today, people ate when they were hungry and slept when they were tired.

In most of our developed countries, time is considered linear. There is a Point A (now) and a Point B (end) and we want to accomplish as much as possible between the two. We take chunks of activities (eating, sleeping, TV, work, community, reading, shopping, consuming, etc.) and try and fit as many chunks as we can into these pre-determined amount of time.

So we feel rushed. We feel there’s never enough time to do everything. Can you relate?

So important is the Sabbath… that the ancient rabbis concluded that God was not simply resting on the Sabbath, but rather creating His final masterpiece. God “finished His work” (Gen 2:2) by creating menuha– rest – which elsewhere in scripture is translated as happiness, stillness, peace, harmony, even eternal life. Clueing in to this … reveals the very way we were made, and invites us to participate in the time and rhythms of creation.

Unlike us, God is not in a hurry. God is not only in charge of time, but gives it to us as a gift, and its rhythms bring God glory. So, like this God in whose image we are created, we are called to pull ourselves out of circulation regularly to cease. To rest.

We do this in short-form every night when we go to sleep. We stop, and while we are resting, God is at work. God is holding things together, and when we wake in the morning to join in the rhythm of a new day, we get in step with the work God has already been doing and continues to do.

Have you ever thought of REST as God’s final masterpiece or a holy activity? To read more of this amazing article by Brad Griffin and see a list of resources that led to these thoughts, click on The Four-Letter Word of Youth Workers at the Fuller Youth Institute site.

We are all a bit guilty of being like this at some point in time. But what if it’s your norm? Being in ministry doesn’t help. In my world, ministry basically has two seasons: busy and busier. We all know the argument. But what if in our busyness we fail to take time to rest?

Do we really manage to accomplish more?

I have done the 60-hour work week and the 14-days-straight work stint and, quite frankly, it stinks! At the end of it all, I’m stressed, short-fused, and often sick. I know I need to take time to rest, but it takes discipline.

When God created heaven and earth and his work was done, he didn’t just press on with his next project. He took time to rest. He took time to reflect and enjoy. When Jesus walked with us, he modeled rest too.

When I rest, I’m more energized, more balanced and more focused. God knows what we need to not burn out! This rest thing is more of his infinite wisdom shining through.

Each day, I do my very best to carve out time with God- so I can reflect and connect with Him. Each week, I intentionally take one day to totally unplug from all things work-related… with zero guilt.

Can you relate? Do you struggle with working non-stop in the name of ministry? What reminds you to take time to rest?

Jenn Bailey is an Orange Leader directing the Children’s Ministry at Connexus Community Church in Barrie, Ontario, Canada. Visit www.connexuscommunity.com or follow her on Twitter: @jennbailey12. (Flickr image uploaded by fdecomite)