The Daily Detour

"Cash"ing in on the power of the internet

(First of all, friends, sorry for the lengthy delay. I've been under the gun with some speaking engagements and writing deadlines, on top of everything else... Thanks for your patience.)

We've all heard and seen the power of technology--especially the internet, but it's not always easy to measure. Certainly, the expert utilization of internet potential helped rocket Team Obama to the White House (and this potential for political power was first demonstrated by the short-lived presidential aspirations of Howard Dean in 2004). But it's not always easy to fully appreciate the power of the internet until your the one who downloaded the 10 billionth (with a "B") song on iTunes.

That's what happened to Louie Sulcer, of Woodstock GA, this week when he downloaded Johnny Cash's hit song, "Guess That's the Way Things Happen". Not only did Louie get that unlikely distinction, but he also got a personal call from Steve Jobs, as well as, the $10,000 prize money for the "iTunes 10 Billionth Song" contest. He said he couldn't believe that it was actually the Apple CEO on the phone, but they ended up talking for a while.

The internet, as with any powerful tool, has the power to influence positively or negatively. And it is reshaping the world at lightning speed. The Church is beginning to recognize the potential of using this medium for influencing the world with the Gospel. But there is much untapped potential. For the internet brings your neighbor right to your front door, no matter where they live.

Just ask Louie Sulcer. Who da' thought he'd be talking on the phone with Steve Jobs? :) And to think that Mr. Sulcer is 71 years old. Who says new technology is for those young whippersnappers?

Tim Tebow in the Super Bowl

Football phenom Tim Tebow is going to be in the Super Bowl...in the broadcast at least. Perhaps you've heard about the growing controversy surrounding an upcoming commercial which alludes to the story of Tim, and more specifically, the decision his mother made to not abort him when she was young and pregnant. The sponsoring organization, Focus on the Family, has said they put the commercial together to let families and parents who are at wit's end know that there is help and hope.

I'm hearing more and more about this commercial by Tebow, so I finally decided to go and look at it on YouTube. Only, I couldn't find it. Why? Because it's not there.

That is what is especially puzzling and surprising about the mounting volume of criticism that is being thrown about by everybody from the National Organization of (some) Women to everyone's favorite pundits on The View. No one else has seen the commercial either. It's like writing review of a movie without actually having watched it.

All of the critics are up in arms for what they think the commercial is going to promote. And even if it does suggest a pro-life message, is there something wrong with that? I was under the impression that this is a free country with the ability to express perspectives that others might not always agree with. So much for being tolerant.

I guess we can watch the Super Bowl and actually see what all the hubbub is all about. 

UPDATE: That's what the fuss was all about?!? Talk about anti-climactic... That is the inevitable problem with presumptive criticism. There is always the possibility of ending up with egg on the face. Of course, all of the critics would never go so far as to admit their missteps. I went over to Focus on the Family's website to watch "the rest of the story" about Tebow. That extended interview with Tim Tebow's parents certainly presents a strong pro-life message. But the Super Bowl commercial was nothing to write home about. And if we start suggesting that any of the TV networks not run commercials from message-driven organizations, where does it stop? There would be very little advertising left. Ironically, the critics did more to draw attention to this issue by vocalizing their criticisms. If they hadn't said a thing, FOTF's website wouldn't be getting nearly the hits.

TDD Live from Catalyst 09: "Get 'er Dungy!"

After a decent night's sleep we all were much more alert this first day of the Catalyst main event. Us and the other 12,997 people who are at this year's Catalyst. Crowded? That proved to be an understatement. But the energy was palpable. Fortunately, our good buddy, Tim Prickett from Kingsway is also down here, and he managed to snag us some great seats up in the balcony.

The theme of this year's event is "On Your Mark" and the importance of leaders leaving a mark on those under their influence. As with last year's event, there was so much good content, that I would regenerate it all here. But I do want to at least bring you a few of the highlights from the top-notch line-up of speakers.

Andy Stanley: pastor at NorthPoint Community Church here in Atlanta. Every leader leaves a mark. What mark will you leave? Am I willing to submit my leadership gifts and opportunities to God and promoting His story? It's not about making your mark; it's about God making His mark through you. We all leave a mark--whose mark is it going to be? (Note: This basic idea of everyone leaving their mark reminds me of one of the things I have shared not just with leaders, but with Christians in general. Essentially, all Christians leave an impression about Christ. What impression is it? After all, you may be the only Jesus people ever see.)

Jessica Jackley: Founder of Kiva.org. No real content that I took notes on, but I did want to share about her organization which is dedicated to microfinancing entrepreneurial endeavors in developing countries. Fantastic idea, which is having huge success. Four years ago, they financed 7 people at $3,000, the next year was $500,000, last year was $15 million, and they are anticipating over $100 million by next year. Incredibly effective effort! Check it out!

Malcolm Gladwell: author of The Tipping Point, Blink, and Outliers. He talked about the danger of overconfidence as a leader. A sign of overconfidence? The leader stops listening to others. On the contrary, humility = listening to others and soliciting their input as the organization evolves and develops.

Rob Bell: author of Velvet Elvis and pastor in Grand Rapids. Rob also produced the NOOMA video series. One of the things which really caught my attention was his emphasis on the second of the Two Greatest Commandments, "Love your neighbor as yourself." Specifically, he emphasized the second part of that, the assumption that we are actually loving ourselves. The truth, as he pointed out, is that we often don't actually love ourselves or take care of ourselves. Are we getting enough sleep? Are we taking care of our bodies physically? Are we taking the Sabbath seriously? More personally, does our spouse and family get the best of us, or just the leftovers, after we've given everything else to our work or ministry? Very unsettling for me personally, as I struggle with these very same questions in my own life and leadership.

Tony Dungy: As you might imagine, Coach Dungy was the highlight for me and those in our group who reveled in the fact that our coach not only took the Colts to the 2006 SuperBowl, but most importantly, because of who he is as a person and a leader. He didn't give a speech, but was interviewed about his life, his coaching, and his leadership. The takeaway for me was when he mentioned that the most important leadership is done in the down times. He recalled a week during the 2006 season after the Colts had been blown out late in December. The naysayers were all counting the Colts out. And yet, Mr. Steady Eddy said at the team meeting that week that they weren't going to change anything. They were simply going to stick with their gameplan, but tighten it up. The rest is history. He said, however, that many of the players pointed back to that particular meeting as the turning point for their season and really solidified them as a team as they moved into the playoffs.

I continue to be so impressed by him and so proud to have had him as our coach. I had wanted to try to get a chance to chat with him for a minute, but he wasn't around after his session. However, Brother Stephen got a chance to chat with him briefly and tell him how proud we all are of who he has been on and off the field. Couldn't have said it better myself.

(Oh, and did I mention that they actually had a tattoo artist come on stage and surprise the regular emcee Lanny Donoho by giving him a tattoo in honor of the 10th anniversary for Catalyst? Many of us signed the impromptu petition to have Lanny tattoed. I must confess, I didn't think they'd actually do it, but with Catalyst, you never know what they're going to think up...:)

All in all, it was a long, but very good, day. Tomorrow, we round out the conference with Dave Ramsey, Chuck Swindoll, Louie Giglio, and others. Should be a great day! But also will be a long night as we drive back to Indy at the end of the event tomorrow evening. See you then!

Great quote re. pursuing God's best intentions for us

I was meeting with a good friend of mine early this morning at Starbucks. And we were talking about yesterday's post regarding the increasingly urgent need to engage and the importance of not getting so comfortable with our suburban lives that we fail to step out and pursue God's will for us. As he put it,

"God didn't design us to just sit and watch 'Seinfeld' reruns.  ...not that there's anything wrong with that."

Classic! :) And a great reminder that there is so much more that God wants to show us and do through us. My last 13 months of unemployment have reminded me of that. As I've often reminded audiences, God doesn't need us to do anything, otherwise He wouldn't be God. But He does allow us the privilege of joining in what He wants to do in the world. The key is whether or not we're willing to share in that process. What does God want to do in and through you?

The wait is finally over! :)

It's official! I...FINALLY...HAVE...A...REAL...JOB!!! (You can only imagine how happy my wife, Jean, is. And how happy I am because of that! :)

Even I can't believe it, but it's true. As of last week, I have secured full-time employment for the foreseeable future. It only took 13 months, much, much longer than I ever anticipated. :)

I was just hired as the Executive Director of the Sagamore Student Leadership Initiative. Some of you may already be aware of this student development start-up idea. I've been talking about my having been working for quite a while with a committed group of leaders here in Indianapolis to see about getting it off the ground. (In looking back at my notes, I was surprised to discover that we have been slowly-but-surely moving this idea forward since September of 2005).

Briefly, the SSLI is an organization that is dedicated to equipping next-generation leaders to exercise strategic leadership in the culture. It centers around educating them on who we are as a country and culture--teaching them to understand and respect our past in order to impact our future. Incorporated in this effort is also the opportunity to help young people begin to recognize their passions and calling in life, develop certain fundamental leadership skills, and pursue those passions in whatever endeavor they pursue in the culture (e.g. media, journalism, law, business, education, politics, science, sports, etc.).

I must say, I'm very excited about this opportunity to be able to impact the next generation of leaders to go out and make a lasting difference in the world. (We certainly need that kind of positive influence.) But this endeavor is not without it's significant challenges. (So don't be surprised if many of you begin to hear from me, since I'll be reaching out to anyone and everyone who I think may be able to help us out with this effort. :) Right now, we have no website yet, no real office yet, no letterhead, no staff...not even a stapler. But at least we have the first and only employee, ME! :) The rest are minor details by comparison and will be taken care of in due time.

I will be posting a more personal follow-up this week on all of this, but for now, I wanted you all to at least be aware that Yours Truly (and the rest of the family) are finally off the bread line. :)

Pop goes the culture (and our obsession with it)

This is a recurring theme here at The Daily Detour from time to time--namely, our twisted obsession with all things pop culture. Who's hot? Who's not? Who's hookin' up? Who's breakin' up? Who's straight? Who's gay? Who's pregnant? Who wants to be? Who's too fat? Who's too skinny? What's everybody wearing?

And that obsession goes to the nth degree--when celeb magazines like US Weekly fill their regular "They're just like us!" column with sightings of celebs walking on the beach, buying their Starbucks coffee, taking their kids the playground, and generally doing the kinds of things that make us believe that the gap between the celebrated lives of some and the average lives of the rest of us is not as big a chasm as we once believed. And the onslaught of reality TV has only exacerbated that myth.

In today's Indianapolis Star, my former student at Marian College, Kirsten Sordelet, raises a very good point related to this obsession. In talking about the ongoing saga surrounding TLC's hit series, "John and Kate Plus 8", she points out how our pop culture is dulling our general awareness of the more important happenings in the world. It is difficult to know what the source of this unbalanced obsession may be. It is the age-old "chicken or the egg" conundrum--does the media feed us this steady diet because we desire it, or have we developed a penchant for it because the media continues to spoonfeed us with it? Who knows. But I think Kirsten is dead-on. As she points out, "The problem isn't that America is being misinformed, we're being uniformed." I simply wonder, have we asked for it? Unfortunately, it seems we have. And the situation won't change unless we decide to make it so.

Who is Susan Boyle?

And why has she become the latest internet sensation? More importantly, what is it that draws us to this sweet-hearted spinster from a forgotten village in England?

Susan Boyle is what cultural critic Andy Crouch correctly labels, "a cultural artifact," in that she is the atypical performer on reality TV. He physicality and demeanor would put her more comfortably in the role of Alice the housekeeper from "The Brady Bunch" than that of a pop cultural icon. Somehow she has defied the trappings of contemporary pop culture and managed to maintain her simple humanity throughout.

In case you haven't seen Ms. Boyle's surprising performance on Britain's Got Talent, I'm reminded of the other young lad, Andrew Johnston, who opened his mouth and stunned the world with his pipes. All of the judges had difficulty hiding their cynicism when Ms. Boyle said she was going to sing "I have dreamed a dream" from the musical Les Miserable. Even the audience barely suppressed their laughter at the presumed lack of self-awareness by Ms. Boyle.

And then she sang. And entire watching audience was mesmerized (as is the world now). After Susan Boyle finished singing, even Amanda, one of the judges, chastized herself for the obvious cynicism she had expressed toward Susan.

And Susan Boyle's experience is so revealing about who we are as a culture. Andy Crouch says it well:

And having granted all that, let us also grant that at least one gimlet-eyed cultural critic had tears in his eyes for most of an afternoon thinking about this video, not just because it lays bare the calculating and ultimately deadly superficiality at the heart of popular culture, but because it does so much more. It offers a picture of our age’s übercynical critics surprised by joy. It gives a glimpse of the creative capacity latent in who knows how many lives. And perhaps therefore it gives us a glimpse of the embodied glories that await us, the grace that waits just around the corner of our hopes and fears.

Why are we drawn to Susan Boyle? I would contend that behind our obsession with the "fairy tale" existence of celebrities is a secret desire to live that dream ourselves. And to see a very average woman silence her critics not with her looks or gimics, but with her genuine talent, gives us hope. More than that, it reorients our priority scheme, if only for a moment. I just hope we will allow Ms. Boyle's triumph to help us maintain that proper alignment of those things which matter most--starting with the all-important truth that we cannot (and should not) "judge a book by its cover", as it were. Nor should we judge a person by our first impression of his/her exterior. 

Why I love country music

I just finished watching the Academy of Country Music awards and was reminded again of why I love the country music community. Just one example: during the evening show, there was an introduction made by wounded Marine Corps serviceman (who had lost both of his legs in combat). He made reference to the Wounded Warrior Project, one of the efforts being supported by the Academy. And then country music superstar Trace Adkins sang a signature song honoring our military men and women.

Between these genuine expressions of patriotism and the heartfelt acknowledgements of God and country, the contrasts between the country music community and the usual celebrity-filled awards shows coming out of Hollywood couldn't be more pronounced. It's refreshing to see so many good folks who haven't lost their common sense or love of country.

I am, after all, a country boy at heart. Maybe that's why I wore my kickers to church this mornin'. :)

UPDATE: I hadn't remembered what USMC Lt. Andrew Kincaid said to conclude his introduction until I ran across it again. It bears repeating: "It's not about the war; it's about the warrior."

Debriefing from the TDD television challenge

Well, I'm finally starting to regain consciousness after my sugar-induced birthday coma. Wow! What a ride!

As promised, I wanted to debrief from the TDD television challenge from last week. I know there were some of you who participated in part, or in whole, throughout the weeklong sabbatical from television. I trust we're all still alive. Although there were a few close calls and the paramedics only had to be called in once. :) Thanks again to those of you who participated.

How did it go? Well, in our case, the expected evolution happened. First, complaints. At the beginning of the week, Caleb (age 5) asked if he could watch some program on television. When I told him that we weren't watching TV for the week, he asked incredulously, "What?!?" I asked, "How does that make you feel?" Caleb: "Not good!" Me: "Why?" Caleb: "Because I like TV." I understood his sentiment and was feeling much the same way actually. But I had to put forth a stiff upper lip for his sake. It's all for the children, right?

The initial disbelief among our boys gave way to the grim resignation that these were events beyond their control. And that resignation eventually led to temporary amnesia during about days 3-5 while the boys were distracted enough by toys, stories, and rough-housing not to remember their loss. And finally, we crossed the threshold of day 7 and basked in the euphoria of saying hello to our little friend again. :)

I would like to say that the impact was overwhelmingly positive for our kids, but I just debriefed with them on the experience. And here's what they had to say. When I asked Andrew (age 4) why he liked, and missed, watching TV, he responded, "But it's fun to watch the little things move across the screen." And when I asked Caleb if he noticed any positive things that happened during the week as a result of no TV, he said, "Uummm, no... not really!" Aaahhh well...at least he was honest. :)

For Jean and me the changes were palpable. We were able to spend more time focused on things that were of more importance than watching our favorite shows. For example, I spent alot more time talking with, reading to, and wrestling with our boys. Jean and I were able to spend some quality time together, including some concentrated prayer about our current situation (which we are already seeing God answer). And in general, we were able to fill the time with more constructive activities. The fact is, even when Jean and I do watch television, it is typically while simultaneously multi-tasking on other things. It's amazing how your productivity goes up when the distraction of background noise is eliminated.

For those of you who did participate in some way, please share reactions to your own experience if you'r inclined. It would be interesting to see how the experience impacted you and your family. It may not have had a positive impact, and if so, feel free to share that too. Or, you may have discovered some of the same results that we did.

The key for us, and for each of you who participated, is to determine what lessons were learned from this brief experience, and what lessons can be applied in the future. The goal, as with all things, is to attempt balance in life. So, what does balance look like in this area? For Jean and me, were are going to try to implement a personal rule which allows television watching only when we're exercising (which means one of two things--either we won't be watching TV ever again, or we'll get so buff that my new career will be as a fitness instructor on a late-night infomercial. We'll see how it goes.) Here's to a life of balance...

UPDATE: By the way, stay tuned for an important upcoming announcement about the next TDD challenge. Participation will be of significantly more importance than simply turning off the television for a week. (And hopefully, we can create an impact of national proportions.) I'll keep you posted.

UPDATE: One of our newest TDD readers sent along this suggestion for some new apparel for Yours Truly. I couldn't agree with the message more! (Thanks MaryJeanne! :)

Congratulations to Mom and Dad Crane!!!

I don't usually bring my Mom and Dad's annivesary milestones to the blog, but this year is a notable exception. For it was 40 years ago today, January 19, 1969, that they married eachother!

This past Saturday evening, the Crane Brothers Inc. hosted an intimate gathering at a restaurant here in Indianapolis to pay tribute to my Mom and Dad for this very special anniversary. In addition to the Crane family, we had three other couples (lifelong friends of our family) with us, each of whom also represented many long years of marriage together. In fact, I believe after we tallied up the collective total, there were represented in that foursome 167 years of marriage. Incredible!

And it is particularly incredible in today's world of self-interest based instant gratification. We now have the "starter marriage" and divorce justified under the generic rationale of "irreconcilable differences". And with each new Hollywood couple in and out of marriages as fast as banks change names, the very institution of marriage has devolved in many cases from one of commitment to one of convenience.

You can't live in the culture today without being touched by the issue of divorce. And our family is certainly no exception. But it is in the midst of that reality that my Mom and Dad's 40 year commitment to eachother serves as an invaluable example of what can, and should, be. (As does Jean's Mom and Dad who also celebrated their 40th anniversary last month.) And in our case, it is what has been for my entire life.

That is why my brief words to them Saturday night are reiterated here on the blog today. Thank you so much, Mom and Dad, for setting such an example to all of us Crane brothers of what a lifetime of love, perseverance, and commitment can look like. We know that marriage is not always a "bed of roses". And Ruth Bell Graham's description of her relationship with Billy is certainly understandable: "We will never divorce eachother. We may kill eachother, but we will never divorce eachother." :) Through the ups and downs of marriage, you both have created an environment that is built firmly on the foundation of unwavering love and have demonstrated to us the importance of a covenantal commitment to eachother. In today's world that is a valuable gift indeed, and one that I and Jean are trying to pass down to our own children. It is difficult to express the gratitude I feel for that gift. I can only say from the bottom of my heart, "Thank you!" Happy Anniversary!