Throughout my life, I've frequently paid the price for an adjustment I rarely make.  For some reason, I have a tendency to fall asleep with my arms on the pillow, above my head.  Naturally, blood rushes down, not up the body.  So in the middle of the night I wake up with numb, tingling, very uncomfortable limbs.   At 3 in the morning, here I am re-learning a lonely lesson, knowing that it will only be a matter of time before this happens.... again.

Facebook. Twitter. CNN. Reality shows. Skype. FOX News. Blogs. Podcasts. Timelines. Live Updates. Digital acronyms. iChat. Uploads, downloads.  

It's so easy to drown in today's low-effort, high-tech, mass media culture.  Our minds are constantly fed bytes of fact and opinion, and after a while you can find your own self confused on where you stand--not only on social or economic issues, but even in your own spiritual beliefs.  Things that were once black or white... begin to look gray. And the big question is, has the information age caused a societal drop in personal integrity or character--or has it simply caused people to become more open-minded to different views, new perspectives and "enlightening" information?

Oh well, it's still a good day.

This may be why we stumble upon so many passion-less people... folks walking through life not interested in the purpose God has for them.  As a society, this culture has caused us to become numb.... but what about Christians?  For some of us, the digital age has saturated our lives--we wake up to our iPhones and fall asleep next to our laptops. As intellects, we're entertained by information. As gossipmongers, we're informed by entertainment.  Some of us feel that our ministries, our careers, our livelihood depend on an external server.  We're more concerned about who's commenting on a blog post than what the Gospel says.  We're more prone to tweet or text our complaints, than to pray about it.  We'd rather listen to a podcast than read the Word.  We live in this "freedom" that we celebrate except when our fingertips are glued to the keyboard.

Many Christians have cited the dozens of tornadoes, earthquakes and volcanoes over the last few months, as the signs of the times found in Matthew 24, and ultimately as wake-up calls to the Body of Christ and the world.  And while these signs are kinda obvious in their nature (no pun intended), maybe we should look right in front of our eyes at the phone, the computer, the iPad, and the TV.  Drowning ourselves in information and entertainment...we are becoming numb to the everyday, extraordinary presence of God in our lives.  Yet we fall asleep and put our arms above our heads over and over again.

As a graphic and web designer, my Macbook might as well be sewn into my legs. And there are days that between watching at a Twitter timeline all morning, working on Photoshop all afternoon, and designing websites all night--I just want to go to the nearest park, turn my phone off, lay under the sun and experience my Father. Let him un-numb me.  So that's what I do sometimes.... go and getaway.  Soak Him in, so that my spirit can come back to Life....back close to Him. No matter how many times I lose myself in technology and forget to put my Saviour first, He has a way of drawing me back to Him and back to the only information I'll ever truly need.

FIF.

ANY presentation of your church, your organization or your business, should be a passionate expression of what it represents and what it does.  It's like your signature-- see mine above?  If you look at it long enough, you'll learn a lot about me and my personality.  But the most important feature about my signature is that NO ONE ELSE has it.  No one else has the ability, the gift to write MY name like ME.  It's my signature.  And because I love how unique my handwriting is, I put my signature on almost any paper I see... it's that special to me.

In at least half of the first convos with potential clients, they almost vomit out the word "websites".
It goes a little something like this:

We say hello.
I briefly explain what Firstfruits Creative is all about, and ask a little bit about their ministry, nonprofit, etc.
My question is usually ignored, in exchange for the question "do you do websites??"
I say yes, and go on to talk about other work FFC does.
That's ignored as well, and then we talk more about "websites".... arrgggghhh!

Everyone wants a "website" these days.  Great.  And although i love web design, the "W" word is beginning to make me cringe... seriously.  Pastors, CEOs and directors of nonprofits desperately need to see the bigger picture. Everyone wants a website, so eventually everyone eventually GETS a website. Hundred of thousands of organizations with URLs.   Digital clutter for your potential supporter to sift through.  And the average online commuter is rapidly adapting to the messiness.   The internet is becoming more like the Yellow Pages than a place to showcase a vision, mission or a message.  Some people think that just having a website is enough, or even that "as long as it LOOKS nice" that that's enough.  ALL WRONG.  

This is why Firstfruits Creative strongly advises potential clients-- let's learn your organization's signature first.  The more we learn it, the more we'll love it and the more you will want it to be all over that website you want so badly.  Without YOUR signature-- the unique gift or vision that God has placed deep inside of you-- it will just be another webpage, another video, another URL that someone will forget.  Another "website" in the midst of clutter.  

So let's not skip steps-- promotional tools like websites lack substance and originality when they are constructed just to "have one".  Don't forget your signature!

FIF.

And God said "Before I shaped you in the womb, I knew all about you. 
Before you saw the light of day, I had holy plans for you: 
A prophet to the nations—that's what I had in mind for you." But I said, "Hold it, Master God! Look at me. I don't know anything. I'm only a boy!" God told me, "Don't say, 'I'm only a boy.' 
I'll tell you where to go and you'll go there.
 I'll tell you what to say and you'll say it. 
Don't be afraid of a soul. 
I'll be right there, looking after you." Jeremiah 1:5-8, The Message.

Limits. We all put limits on who we are, what we are able to do, and what we will accomplish.  There are some moments in life where we become so aware of our fragility.  And within those blips of time, is when greatness just seems SO out of reach.  So we use limits as a way to cope with who we are. Weak. Unaware. Human.

We also use limits to cope with who we are NOT. I'm certain that a few years ago, somewhere in the back of my mind I told myself, "I'm not business-minded... so I'll probably NEVER own a business."  Foot currently in mouth.  Limits are a way to make us feel better about the talents, the gifts, the courage, the resources that we don't have.  They feel like a warm hug, but then you're left feeling so cold.  Feeling without.

Limits are designed to put restraints on us, so that's what they do. It's simply a false hope. But thank God for the Hope of Glory.  Thank God for His Word that speaks much more greater things about us, and thank God that His Word is TRUTH.  From Genesis to Malachi to Acts to Revelation, God's Word is pointing at me, at you. We're in the midst of a crowd, and His Word is pointing and saying---"Yes.... yeah... you!". Perhaps we don't believe it, but YES, He really is pointing at us! 

The great thing about the word 'inheritance', is that it is a spin-off of the word 'inherent', which is defined as "involved in the essential character of something or belonging by nature or habit."  So, what was promised to me is ALREADY inside of me.   Because of Christ connecting us to his Father, we are limitless.  There is no need to worry about who we are not, or what traits or gifts we don't have.  We don't have to be like Jeremiah and say "Hold it, Master God! Look at me!" The great thing about it, He has already looked at us, from the beginning to eternity.  And He knows what's deep down inside of us. Now, we must embrace the journey of taking the limits off, and uncovering a great inheritance...

Yes.... yeah... you!

FIF.

"Man, It's just some folks say, "All truth is relative, it just depends on what you believe." You know, "hey man, ain't no way to know for sure who God is or what's really true." But that means you believe your own statement; that there's no way to know what's really true. You're saying that that statement is true. You're killing yourself. If what's true for you is true for you and what's true for me is true for me, what if my truth says your's is a lie? Is it still true? Come on man!" Lecrae Moore.

For countless years, popular culture has injected Christianity into discussions of morality, and placed it on a big stage for the world to see.  But now you find these moments easily accessible on television, online, or all over the media. From Tyra Banks interviewing "exorcism victims", to "there is no God" on MTV's The Real World...the list goes on. By the end of the segment, the general jist is that God's 'ideas' are important, but "we've decided that there IS no right or wrong." More and more, there's this leftover inkling of a feeling that SOMEBODY is dissin' our Creator and His Son.  Not giving them their due props.  Once again, someone is making a mockery of His people. Once again, someone is confusing the masses on what the Word of God truly says and how necessary it is for our lives.  The message is "do what's most comfortable for you, BUT we don't recommend that Jesus thing. No freedom there." WHAT??

As Christians, how do we respond (through word & deed) to the influence of a culture that (consciously AND unconsciously) seeks to make God "gray" & defame what we believe and who we believe on?  Does our stance, or lack of, contribute to the message that popular culture presents to our peers?  If we even have a stance, is it informed by the Word of God, by religion, or even by pop culture? Do we let confusion or untruths rule the convo (or our lifestyles), or Christ the main focus, end of discussion?  Let's realign, folks.

"You are the salt of the earth, but if salt has lost its taste, how shall its saltiness be restored? It is no longer good for anything except to be thrown out and trampled under people's feet. You are the light of the world. A city set on a hill cannot be hidden...." Jesus Christ.

FIF.

No, it's not real.  Alllll CG (as in computer-generated).  Go ahead and pick up your jaw. :)

Two things to note. 1. This is art AND science. 2. God the creator creates people who create stuff like THIS. This is just a small duplication of what He does ALL the time.

All around, props are justly due.

FIF.

(Ps. Vid info: The Third & The Seventh from Alex Roman on Vimeo.)

Home. Workplace. Gas station. McDonalds. Whispering on the phone. Bible Study. After Bible Study. In the grocery store aisle. In an email. In front of children.  At a football game. On Twitter. In a prayer. In heated discussion. Across the street from the neighborhood bar. In the outfit chosen for the day. On a stage. In a small room. In the public restroom. In a text message. In the church parking lot. Walking down the street. Looking up at the sky. Taking another breath.

For the Lord your God IS a consuming fire, a jealous God.  Deuteronomy 4:24
Anyone who does not love does not know God, because God IS Love.  1 John 4:8

When love is truly Love, it is contagious. The Love of God is viral in its best form. But when it occupies our hearts, it takes on a different, less authentic form.  The less room we leave for God's Love, the more it's stifled...the less it spreads, the less we represent Him.  The less/more our hearts reflect His, The less/more Love will overflow out of us.

Today, let's remember: to you, to me.... God can only be God, a flame ready to consume us, THE Love without comparison or full description.  The truth is, He will spread with or without us.  But Jesus made plain which option was best...

So look again at those places/situations above.  Is God's Love in us being spread in these scenarios?  How often do you forget the power, the influence and the extraordinary effect His Love can have on people in ordinary moments?

Let's talk on the FIF.

I think when there is a happy cry, God laughs in joy. Happy for His child, happy that His child is finally getting it. Getting Him.

Saturday morning, I got in my car and turned the key in the ignition. Sat there for about ten seconds.  Suddenly, the floodgates of my heart were unlatched, and slowly in an increasing fashion, my eyes began to pour out tears of joy.  Couldn't see past the blurry, warm worship of my eyes.  

About 30 minutes before this moment, I was wrapping up a VERY major client presentation for Firstfruits Creative... the first of its kind.  I wasn't exactly nervous, but I was anxious to see and hear the feedback.  And as I sat in the presentation with words coming out of my mouth, it was almost as if I could hear nothing but see everything.  See smiles.  See pages turning.  See nodding heads. See light bulbs flickering above heads. See God, the artist, writer, the creator... God the movement.

It's an amazing moment when your purpose meets the present, and you're sitting there watching it happen.  It was in that moment (and a few others this past weekend) that I realized that FFC is not just this hybrid of ministry & business for clients to be blessed through.  It's a gift God gave to me FOR me, to know Him and to see His beauty clearer than ever before.  Although the gift is to give to others, many times we--us who are called and chosen to a specific purpose in Christ-- forget that WE were the first recipients of the gift.  A free gift pointing us toward freedom...an even closer relationship with Him.  

So in the car is when it hit me: the delayed reaction of overwhelming peace, joy and excitement.  The delayed reaction to His greatness. The clients unanimously voted for the bundle of projects to go forth, and I had nothing to do with the outcome.  Couldn't remember what I said, or who I shook hands with.  All I could do is rest in the fact that God is _(you can fill in the blank)_ and that I still had time to make it to my next destination.  :)

Tell the FIF what you know about delayed reactions...

(College Week was put on pause... So no need to panic, the FIF will be back in school soon.)

Here's a truth.

When God is changing you, you begin to look at things, at life, at people, and at Him differently. When you decide to change yourself...well, we all know that never ends well.

The concept of evolution (not talking about the ape-to-human kind *wink) is a mainstay within God's well of infinite creativity. Everything He has made is always changing. Yet nothing is ever the same, as in comparable.  No one ever has the same set of ideas. We all are always at different places, with different gifts for different seasons.   Our individual uniqueness ebbs and flows at our own special rate, set by our Father.  Herein lies the complexity of God--although all different, we are ALL still made in His image and likeness.

And this is why I looked at something as simple as a bowl of beans, and stared in awe. Although I did not analyze or measure any of them individually, I knew that none of these had the same exact hue, shape or size.  And they never will.

Texture. Hue. Personality. Laugh. Vision. Mission. Size. Mannerisms. Divine Calling. Actions. Tone of Voice. Purpose. Ambition. Make-up.

For people or for organizations, we must always remember that anything that isn't God or His Word, is always and eventually changing, as well as never exactly the same as anything else. This enables us to be more free in the way we receive difference or newness.  In Firstfruits Creative's case, we remember that a ministry or an organization's mode of operation is steadily evolving. This can change something as small as the composition of a flier, or as large as a primary branding strategy. So when in the role of designer/photographer/consultant, being open (and eager) to the involuntary evolution of a client, is extremely valuable to the quality of the work.

So where is the FIF going with all this change talk? You know where we're going... :)  Are we too hard on others, on our churches, or perhaps even too hard on ourselves? Do we attempt to impose similarities on situations?  Do we feel everyone (even those at a HIGHER level) should be where we are, when we are-- spiritually, socially or emotionally?  Are we frequently opposed to change? Or why do we get exhausted with difference?  God created difference...and even makes the difference come alive in different seasons.

How creative is THAT?