Jason Bedell Online

Good morning bloggers. I'm headed to a Tidewater Tides game to eat hotdogs, yell at umpires, and hopefully see the Orioles farm team win a game today. So while I'm with the staff hanging at the ball park, figured I'd drop some fun links that could COMPLETELY waste your time at work (courtesy of my sis).

#1 is my fav and wasted hours on it. and I can't wait to stay at #4, and if while hanging around too long at #2 makes me need to go #2, then I'll hopefully be close to #3. Anyways, later peeps.

1. Nothing good on TV? Channel hop on Neave Television. Probably one of the most bizarre things ever.
2. The Events House has made a massive slot racer track for the kid in all of us.
3. Google's toilets offer rear cleansing. Thank God!
4. French company Abilmo has developed collapsible hotel room that people can quickly construct in just about any location.

"I told you as I hovered, I'd never felt this way
You said "I had the shot that stops my clock" Baby, it's ok
You said you'd never have regrets,
Jesus is there someone yet who got that wish?
Did you get yours? Babe?"
- Dizzy by Jimmy Eat World

So this song is completely talking about relationships, but I think the church misses this huge across america. Inside each one of us is a longing and desire to have intimate relationships & friendships. This song seems to discuss losing love and trying to figure out what went wrong. As followers of Jesus we ahve a great opportunity to share the natural story of the gospel when people deal with relational issues.

Jesus' entire ministry was relational, one person at a time, let's show love and be love and have deep meaningful relationships. The american church uses a bunch of gimmicks, slogans and attractional ideas to lure people in... but that's fading fast if not completely gone all together.

Now is the time to meet in those "third place" parts of town (bars, towne centers, bowling alleys, starbucks, etc) and make conversation. Our job is to learn about people, meet people, love them, and in the process let them know about this amazing God who saved us, loves us and keeps this dizzy feeling at bay as we try to live in an imperfect world.

If the church is to survive, it HAS to be one person at a time. Relationally. Period.

Okay, so we've had quite a bit of viewing on the YouTube posts (2,500+ on the last video in less than 24 hours.. whoa) as well as back and forth dialogue over at vinceantonucci.com... but I'm sad to say the Arts Dicussion Chaos series is all done.

But don't get down kiddies; I have enclosed a link to the entire series so you can head on over to view all, link in your blog, spread the love, etc.

Here is the link to the entire series: http://tinyurl.com/52ly9m

Thanks to Tory, Paul, Billy, & Collide Mag for tracking back and passing this info along so we can all keep the discussion going.

We'll be doing some "How-To" Video blogging in a couple of weeks for set design & video projects. Stay tuned! Until then,

J-del **over and out**

So I am guest blogging over at VinceAntonucci.com this week and I'll be posting them here as well. Blogging is a beast to do multiple blogs so doublin' up is fine with me. Call me lazy, but my old lady will kill me if I spend any extra time on the computer. So, much love people. Enjoy.

I love Web 2.0, but this up and down never sure if it's going to work is a beast. Free or not... if you are going to provide a service, you should at least keep the service rolling. I wonder if people view the church the same way.

(Dr. Evil pinky near the mouth) Hhhhmmmmmmmmm.

So I am guest blogging over at VinceAntonucci.com this week and I'll be posting them here as well. Blogging is a beast to do multiple blogs so doublin' up is fine with me. Call me lazy, but my old lady will kill me if I spend any extra time on the computer. So, much love people. Enjoy.

"I'm taking your light with me; will you speak to me there?
(Our Lord, is this the way to go?)
I'll shut my eyes if you take my hand
(We're here living while we hope)
I'll take this light until it's faded
(Our Lord, is this the way to go?)
Praying over and over in my head
(We're here living while we hope)"
- Hammerhead by The Offspring

So there really isn't any explaination needed for this lyric, but what surprised me was that it was by The Offspring. Serisouly. If someone had told me years ago when I was rocking out "Bad Habit" and "Smash" that I would one day be gleaming spiritual truths and conversation starters... I would have laughed out loud.

But alas, I stand before you corrected and changed, because this has already given me 2 conversations with people I am close to, but who are far from god to talk about the ideas of searching in this life, looking for something more, and is there a God to ask these questions to?

What is it that you're listening to right now that has you going, "Wow! I totally can use this to talk to people who are unchurched." Until then...

J-del **over and out**

Chris Martin- #3 and Jason Bedell- #2. Collide Magazine makes the list people, not me. Ha. Thanks to Eric for sending this to me this morning. Hysterical. Unfortunately, I think my wife has Mr. Martin at #1 [wink, wink]

So I am guest blogging over at VinceAntonucci.com this week and I'll be posting them here as well. Blogging is a beast to do multiple blogs so doublin' up is fine with me. Call me lazy, but my old lady will kill me if I spend any extra time on the computer. So, much love people. Enjoy.


Well located below are some links to everything from church resources to photo editors (click here for a pdf version). I've also enclosed a link for you to check out some of the graphics we've used in our series as well as a link to some of our message intro videos/bumpers. Enjoy.

Forefront Series Stuff
Forefront Series Graphics: http://tinyurl.com/4ofghg
Forefront Series Videos: http://tinyurl.com/43d44w

Church Resource Websites
CreativeMYK http://www.creativemyk.com/
Open Resources http://www.openresources.org/
The Vine http://vineresources.com/
Muddy River Media http://www.muddyrivermedia.org/
Fourty One Twenty http://www.fortyonetwenty.com
Igniter Media http://www.ignitermedia.com
Eleven 72 http://www.eleven72.com
Lifechurch Resources http://open.lifechurch.tv
Newspring Resources http://www.newspringonline.com/
Granger Resources http://www.wiredchurches.com

Photo Websites
Flickr http://www.flickr.com
Stock Photo http://www.istockphoto.com/
Stock Photo Xchange http://www.sxc.hu
Corbis Photos http://www.corbis.com
Shutterstock http://www.shutterstock.com

Presentation Software
Pro Presenter http://www.propresenter.com
ProWorship (formerly iWorship) http://www.renovatiosw.com/
Media Shout http://www.mediashout.com
Easy Worship http://www.easyworship.com
Power Point http://office.microsoft.com/powerpoint
Keynote http://www.apple.com/iwork/keynote

Blogs I Read for Creativity, Pop Culture, Media, Church Trends
MTV News http://www.mtv.com/news/
Spray Graphics http://spraygraphics.com/
Web Urbanist http://weburbanist.com/
Delicious Daily Photos http://picurls.com/
Ragamuffin Soul http://www.ragamuffinsoul.com
Collide Blog http://www.collidemagazine.com/blog
Relevant Blog http://relevantmagazine.com/releblog/
Rolling Stone http://www.rollingstone.com/rockdaily
Churchy Media http://churchymedia.tumblr.com
Terry Storch http://www.terrystorch.com
Church Marketing Sucks http://www.churchmarketingsucks.com
Church 2.0 http://church20.blogspot.com
Church Video Ideas http://churchvideoideas.com

Free Video Hosting Websites
Ustream http://www.ustream.com
YouTube http://www.youtube.com
Vimeo http://www.vimeo.com
Viddler http://www.viddler.com
MySpaceTV http://vids.myspace.com
Jumpcut http://www.jumpcut.com
Vidilife http://vidilife.com

Photo Editing Software
Photoshop http://www.adobe.com/products/photoshop/index.html
Gimp (free for Mac, free work around install for windows) http://www.gimp.org/
Live Quartz (free for Mac) http://www.rhapsoft.com/

Video Editing
Handbrake (free mac dvd ripping software) http://handbrake.fr/
Adobe Premiere Pro http://www.adobe.com/products/premiere/
Final Cut Pro http://www.apple.com/finalcutstudio/finalcutpro/
Final Cut Express http://www.apple.com/finalcutexpress/
Ulead Media Studio http://www.ulead.com/msp/runme.htm
Tooble (free Youtube capture for PC/Mac) http://tooble.tv/index.php?page=download
Replay AV 8 (youtube capture for PC) http://www.applian.com/replay-av/index.php
iMovie (comes with Mac OS) http://www.apple.com/ilife/imovie/
Windows Movie Maker (comes with Windows) http://www.microsoft.com/windowsxp/downloads/updates/moviemaker2.mspx

Countdown Creators for Pre-Service
Countdown Maker (Mac) http://trimonix.com/countdown-maker
Countdown Creator (PC) http://www.thecountdowncreator.com/

"Having believed, you were marked in him with a seal, the promised Holy Spirit, who is a deposit guaranteeing our inheritance until the redemption of those who are God's possession-"

"I hear Jerusalem bells a ringing
Roman cavalry choirs are singing
Be my mirror, my sword, my shield
My missionaries in a foreign field
For some reason I can't explain
I know Saint Peter won't call my name
Never an honest word
But that was when I ruled the world."
- Viva La Vida by Coldplay

So I am guest blogging over at VinceAntonucci.com this week and I'll be posting them here as well. Blogging is a beast to do multiple blogs so doublin' up is fine with me. Call me lazy, but my old lady will kill me if I spend any extra time on the computer. So, much love people. Enjoy.

Video Blog: Part A


(so there are two videos due to a quick bathroom break before I exploded on camera... which would have been AWESOME for you guys, but not so much for me. maybe next time.)

Video Blog: Part B


*PDF Download of our Creative Planning Visual/Sheet

Joe's Greatest Hits: Man Songs (Creative Element)
As I mentioned this was used during our series titled, "The Warrior." We have discussed at Forefront that we will do anything other than sin to reach people who are far from God. So, that being said... laugh and enjoy.

So we started a new series this week called, "E! True Hollywood Story: David." Here is the intro video/ bumper and the logo for the series. It is 5 weeks on the Life of David before he became king. So far, people really got into the first week. What series are you in right now? What elements are you using to tie it together?

If I or any of you are caught wearing these... I'm pretty sure we should be shot on sight. Seriously.

So I am guest blogging over at VinceAntonucci.com this week and I'll be posting them here as well. Blogging is a beast to do multiple blogs so doublin' up is fine with me. Call me lazy, but my old lady will kill me if I spend any extra time on the computer. So, much love people. Enjoy.



So I figured I would give you all an idea of what we use at Forefront:
Our campuses always have a live alt-rock band, cover song from secular radio that ties back to the theme, 2 videos that pertain to the message/ theme, a commercial about our "big event" or ministry we highlight for the series. We meet in a school so we set-up a PCI sound system, projection (single screen), pro presenter presentation software on a macbook pro. We occasionally do live skits. Top 10's and quirky moments tend to happen quite a bit as we plan for our services.

So what does your service look like?

So I was sitting in my apartment a few weeks ago and I heard this loud crash. So I hopped up and went to the window and saw that one of the ladies in our building had dropped a bunch of stuff she was unloading from her car. I hesitated for a moment, but my neighbor Art jumped out of his car and immediately helped her gather everything up and brought it inside for her. She looked so relieved.

So I thought, “What does my example look like?” I know Art doesn’t go to church and he says amen a bunch, but I don’t think he has a relationship with God- yet, Art leads by example. His life shines through in everything he does. From opening the door for everyone who walks in to making conversation with all the neighbors (and it’s always more in depth than “hey, how about this weather?”). Art has taught me a big lesson: I’m not a leader just because it says “pastor” on my business card, I’m only a leader as much as I act and live like one.

J-del **over and out**

As a leader you should be reading A LOT. I know guys who talk a great deal about wanting to read more, but every leader I see that excels, moves, grows and reaches those who are far from God… READS. So it prompts me to ask, “What are you reading? What is it that gets your blood pumping when you sit down and take it in?”

So I've been inspired by reading the blogs of Seth Godin, Tim Stevens, Scott Hodge, Kem Meyer, Ben Arment & others who seem to only engage in certain activities on the web to keep their lives a little less cluttered (and it takes your own stinkin' admin team of interns just to keep up with all of the accounts on Web 2.0). For this very reason I have deleted quite a few accounts.

There is something just overwhelming to have Twitter, Facebook (+ manage a couple groups), YouTube (3 accounts), Vimeo, Viddler, Anywhere.fm, Pownce, Virb, Blogger, MySpace (2 accounts, one for Forefront/Church), Flickr, iStockPhoto, & the list could go on for awhile.

I think it's going to be a little easier only having a couple of profiles to work with as opposed to 16+ accounts, passwords, comments, spam, "please be my friend," "check out my awesome garbage website," "can I have your bank account info to send you millions of dollars?" etc. etc.

What are you doing to "de-clutter" your life? How are you breaking the habits of more stuff and instead making real relationships with people? Paul was in the culture and meeting people on their terms, but if he were here today he would laugh at the 20+ accounts and ask us where is the time to actually "tell people about Christ's love?" I know I need to check myself daily. Hopefully this jumpstart will help.

J-del **over and out**

Or at least for a moment. Our White Horse Pub campus in the Pembroke Mall is having it’s last service for the summer tonight. The bad news is that it ends our time in a venue that gave us an awesome opportunity to get out into the community and talk to people who are far from God. But, the good news is we possibly have an opportunity to do some even MORE amazing things in God’s name in the Fall. Stay tuned. More info during the summer months as we close the deal on a few things.

So to all my peeps at the WHP, we salute you!

J-del **over and out**

Yep, that’s me. Today is a day of mourning because a close friend & co-worker, Fletch; is heading off to the lone star state and leaving us behind. I know the church that picks him up will be so blessed because he is such a creative guy and a “jack of all trades.” I am pretty sure the Macgyver television series was based on him. Seriously. Bon voyage Fletch. I’ll watch a couple of Chevy Chase flicks and listen to some Johnny Cash in your honor. Much love.

J-del **over and out**

When it comes to Father’s Day. Our daughter Chloe was born a couple weeks ago and this is the first time I can truly celebrate father’s day. It’s quite possibly one of the coolest things I have ever experienced. Being able to spend the day with my daughter and wife is super cool and I wouldn’t trade them for anything. Being a dad is awesome!

Once a year we have a mandatory (but we love to get together regardless) staff & family day. It’s a great time of gathering together, spending time catching up from the craziness of life and just putting the work of the church aside for a brief moment to see what life is like on a personal level. I used to hate (yes, I did use the word) these type of gatherings, but as I get older I come to appreciate the community of getting together with those you work with. Being a true introvert when it comes to social situations, this sometimes can be overwhelming for me, but it’s definitely a way to stretch myself. So kick back and let the potato salad and burgers roll!

I mean, you never can tell. It's just a day though... the date isn't a big deal. Right? Watch your back. That's all I'm saying. 

So it seems as though there is quite a stir surrounding Forefront's popular boy band, "Out of Sync." With member changes, a hot to def cd that recently dropped and haters galore trying to bite our style... it's no surprise they're jealous. Check out the discussion:

I don’t think Sweet Baby James has ever sung that lyric, but man it couldn’t be more true for me right now. Last night I sat with a handful of people and taped their testimonies & stories about their trip to Vietnam to serve and love on the Mien people. Forefront adopted the Mien people with the hope and desire of sharing God with a people who have never heard the name of Jesus before. Their efforts helped to put in a clean water filtration system and in the process share the love of Jesus with those who are far from God. I teared up during some of the taping, it was so heart touching. I can’t say it enough, “I love my job!”

(I’ll post the video as soon as it’s edited and complete, wink wink)

J-del  **over and out**

So it seems as though my daughter Chloe is already trying to find herself. Classic.

I learned from “The Giving Tree.” Shel Silverstein is an amazing poet/author and as a kid I absolutely loved his books. TGT showed me a thing or two about how to give of myself and love people no matter what their attitude, circumstances, etc. My wife is an amazing example of giving herself to anyone and everyone in need. She spurs me on to be a better person and man of God.

As I think about this idea is makes me wonder, “What am I giving to God? How is my life a sacrifice that is handed to God as a tool to reach people far form God?” My life has to be in constant evaluation as I strive to serve him, but screw up all along the way. Thank God for His grace.

Recently had a guy call and ask about our "There's An Elephant In The Room" series graphic and it reminded me that I haven't posted our series graphics in awhile. So... here are a few of the series graphics we've used over the last 4-5 months or so. For your viewing pleasure, enjoy.
(The Warrior is adapted from LifeChurch.tv)

So I’ve been all about getting out of my house, jumping to the nearest java/food spot and do some blogging, creative planning while out in the world. But one of the places that has completely boggled me about not having free Wi-Fi is the one and only: Starbucks.

Well all that has changed my friends. You and I can now browse for two hours a day for absolutely nothing! What a novel idea eh?! Check out the scoop here.

*On a side note, if you want to see our Student Ministry Pastor get hit by a truck in front of a Starbucks, click here.

Not much for the band "Scandal," but their song the warrior is definitely hitting a vein with me right now. You see we started a new series called, “The Warrior.” We used some clips from Braveheart, Crouching Tiger, 300, Gladiator, etc. and the guys were into it. There is just something about watching swords fly, bodies clashing in battle, and the cry of dudes running into war.

So this morning was my first Sunday back from vacation and the band rocked out the opening with “Simple Man.” All I have to say is “Holy crap. That was awesome!” I totally love my job.