I know that I've been hosting my blog as well as some on-line sermons on my "Spaces" page, but I've found a much better site for hosting the sermons.  A friend (thanks Danny!) introduced me to http://www.sermoncloud.com which will allow me to host up to one year's worth (52) messages on-line for FREE.

Anyone that knows me realizes two things:

1. I'm not usually at a loss for words.  I'll fill up the 52 entries quickly!
2. FREE is not good...it's GREAT!

I've registered Faith Chapel there as http://www.sermoncloud.com/faith-chapel-fsc and have uploaded this year's messages already.  I may do some of the previous as time allows, but the third thing that anyone who knows me realizes is I don't have much free time.

The site is really cool - it will allow you to stream online (through their own player) as well as download, podcast, and syndicate via RSS.  All in all, it looks to be a great service.

Give a message or three a listen and let me know what you think.  If enough people "Amen!" a sermon, it get's promoted to the main screen as a featured message.

You will need to register before you can listen, but the service is free and simply needs you to have access to an e-mail account.  Drop some comments here or there or send me a mail and let me know what you think.

Stay tuned - more to come...

I re-read my post from yesterday, and it didn't even touch on the area that I really wanted to address.  I wanted to talk about how prevalent that television (or video entertainment) has become in our society but somehow I never got there.

As I ride to and from work, I continue to be amazed at the number of people that have in-car video systems running.  You can just about watch a movie in the time it takes me to get home some days and I'm concerned about the current mentality of not being able to go anywhere without a TV.

Many houses have a TV playing anytime there is someone home.  I see more and more products that let you watch your favorite shows on your cell phone.  More and more applications and hardware devices are designed to let you watch shows that you've recorded from other rooms in your house as well as other parts of the world.  With a Slingbox device, you can tie into your home DVR and watch your recorded shows, as well as live TV as it plays in your home from anywhere with an Internet connection.

So - these devices are, well, cool.  But the question boils down to "why"?  When I was taking a class called "Critical issues of the 90's" (guess when the class was?) we had a paper to write on critical issues.  The topic I chose was "Just because we can, should we?".  I tried to address whether or not technology should be used in various ways:  Cloning, prolongation of life, etc.  The same has started to pull at my spirit with television.  Why is it that we feel we MUST have television with us everywhere we go?

My concern is not only with the availability of television, but the current content.  Shows like "Family Guy", "The Simpsons" and others do nothing but damage our perceptions of reality.  These shows are insulting at best and downright humiliating.  With these two "cartoons" being some of the most popular shows on TV, why would we bother carrying this stuff around with us?

The spiritual degradation that we experience while watching television has become overwhelming.  The content in the shows has degraded but is nothing compared to the content of some of the commercials.

As I mentioned yesterday, Rachel and I enjoy watching some old "Star Trek Voyager" episodes, which we record and watch at our leisure.  Having a DVR means we can skip past the commercials, but even at four times normal speed where you can't really see all of what's happening, the commercials are enough to make me cringe.

I guess what's really bothering me is just how ingrained we've allowed television to become in our lives, while at the same time we continue to allow God to take a back seat.  As Christians, I ask you to not only question, but re-evaluate your priorities in life.  Let's make certain that we have our personal relationship with God first, our family second...and everything else somewhere further down the line.

Stay tuned - more to come...

How much television have you watched in the last 30 days.  Think about it for a second and try to actually count the hours.

Wow - that many, huh?  Do you realize that you actually have less brain activity when you watch television than when you sleep?  Really - it's true.  There were a number of studies done in the '90s that showed that you actually used more of your brain when you slept than when you watched television.

Now - think of all of the things that are on your to-do list.  You know you have one...don't deny it.  Why aren't they done?  Okay, so there's a number of reasons:

• No money
• No resources
• No TIME

Yet you just realized you spent HOW many hours watching television?  Okay, so that's relaxation.  It's good to come home after a hard day of work and just unwind.  Relax.  Settle down. Unplug for a while...

But let me ask the next question:  How much time have you spent reading your Bible in the last month?  What?  That's all???  Come on now - surely reading your bible is more important than watching Star Trek re-runs, right?

We claim, as Christians, to want a relationship with Jesus Christ, yet we spend more time "unplugging" and watching television than we do "plugging in" to the source of our power - Jesus - through the power of the Word of God.

Now I'm not saying that I'm better than anyone else here.  I certainly spend my fair share - and more - of hours curled up watching Star Trek Voyage, Jericho and a couple of other favorite shows.  But God has been dealing with me to ensure that I keep my priorities right.  Spending time in His word, getting my SELF ready - not just studying for the word on Sunday.  Personal time with Jesus - not just preparatory steps for services.

My times of prayer on the way to and from work have deepened as of late, though in all honesty, today was a struggle.  Perhaps it was the thick fog and the temperature in the low 30s that kept me more attentive to the road than prayer.  Maybe it was a continuation of the spiritual battle that has been raging around me for the last week or more.  Could it even be just - exhaustion?

Yes - to all of the above.  But I redoubling my efforts effective immediately.  I will begin spending more time in God's word.  As Philippians 3:12 says "Not that I have already obtained all this, or have already been made perfect, but I press on to take hold of that for which Christ Jesus took hold of me." I will press on.

Stay tuned - more to come...