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Paste Music Top 100 Albums of 2007

and so the lists begin...

Top 100 Albums of 2007 // Paste Magazine

Here are the Top Ten

1. The National - Boxer
2. Arcade Fire - Neon Bible
3. Bruce Springsteen - Magic
4. The White Stripes - Icky Thump
5. Feist - The Reminder
6. M.I.A. - Kala
7. Wilco - Sky Blue Sky
8. Modest Mouse - We Were Dead Before the Ship Even Sank
9. Band of Horses - Cease to Begin
10. Iron & Wine - The Shepherd's Dog

(check the rest...)

And, for those that never saw my My Favorite Albums of 2006 (especially since I didn't just link one album in the sidebar as I had done in previous years), make sure to check them out

The Rise & Fall of Downtown Kansas City

The November 2007 Issue of Ingram's Magazine is devoted to the revival of Kansas City's downtown. Articles include Moving the Boundaries (discussion of how the downtown area is defined), Tying it All Together (public transportation in the urban core), and several others devoted to retail and economic development.

(cross-posted @ reachkansascity.org)

Technorati Tags: KansasCity

Kansas City @ Flickr "Places"

My fascination with flickr and the degree to which I use it often makes me forget that many people are unaware that flickr even exists — not to mention the resources it offers to people beyond photography.

For example, anytime people call me for advice because they're going to Vancouver on a trip, I immediately direct them to the Vancouver flickr group. The near 3,000 group members not only discuss the best place to shop for photo gear (which we all know is beau photo), but they also discuss ad infinitum best bars, best pizza, best sushi, etc.

Enter flickr's new Places feature. It could be just another time waster, or it could be a strategic launching pad for all sorts of city and cultural research for reasons ranging from travel to church planting.

Check out Kansas City @ flickr's Places — or check out your place

You should also check out Reach Kansas City for updates on our work to plant a new church in the urban core of Kansas City.

Technorati Tags: flickr, KansasCity

Happy Thanksgiving from the Cawleys!

Though we are away from family for the first time ever (because Katie is 38 weeks pregnant), God has given us a great deal to be thankful for today. Countless things beyond geographic relocation have transpired since I wrote my 2005 Thanksgiving Reflections, but we are no less in awe of the God who created the universe and no less aware of his sovereign care.

May our Great and Mighty God awaken in your hearts today a spirit of thanksgiving that flows from a heart that treasures Christ as your only good. And may time spent with family and friends today and throughout the coming Advent season awaken in all of us a passion for the great feast that awaits those who treasure Christ in the age to come.

The Coming Shopocalypse...

With Black Friday upon us...

If you're not already familiar with What Would Jesus Buy?, the new film by Morgan Spurlock (writer and director of Super Size Me), you might want to check out the film's official website.

What Would Jesus Buy? follows Reverend Billy and the Church of Stop Shopping Gospel Choir as they go on a cross-country mission to save Christmas from the Shopocalypse: the end of mankind from consumerism, over-consumption and the fires of eternal debt! (source)

The film is a comedic-guerrilla-satire-umentary (I'm pretty sure I just made that up). Though a bit gimmicky and sure to be dismissed by many evangelicals for being sacrilegious, the film should spark humorous and healthy conversations about consumerism, credit, and the widespread superficiality of the retail Christmas. Perhaps worth considering before you brave the crowds on Friday, or purchase those new rims in the spirit of Christmas (watch the trailer and you'll get that joke)

Check out the trailer here

Additionally, I would commend several recent reviews:
-Brett McCracken, Christianity Today
-Darrel Manson, Hollywood Jesus
-Laura Kern, New York Times
-Walter Brueggemann, Sojourners

RELATED LINKS
-Media Omnibus
-Rev Billy @ YouTube
-Rev Billy dot com

Technorati Tags: consumerism

FRIDAY PHOTO

These are the three other church planting residents that I spend the majority of my days with at Fellowship Associates. Have a great weekend!

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Updates on Kansas City Church Plant

We have had an amazing and amazingly packed fall. I have made over half a dozen trips to Kansas City and have been thrilled at all the connections God is creating for us there. To be honest, time previously spent blogging has been filled with new faces, coffee, BBQ, photography and hanging out with Katie in preparation for our little boy's arrival, Lord willing, sometime within the next month!

Hopefully, this explains the tumbleweeds gathering in the corners here. I was reminded twice yesterday about the lack of even menial updates like books and music. However, I have been making some behind the scenes changes (like this updated bio), and hope to roll out a few more updates and improvements over the weekend. In the meantime...

TWO THINGS YOU NEED TO SEE:

1) The Arkansas Democrat Gazette recently wrote a profile on Fellowship Associates (the church planting leadership residency that I'm currently participating in). You can download the article here.

2) Our Fall Newsletter is Available!! I made a small oversight in the way I sent them out via regular mail, so if yours arrived looking more like confetti than a newsletter, feel free to download a fresh one.

October Newsletter

If you did not receive a newsletter (either via email or regular mail), and would like to receive them in the future, please feel free to contact me. NOTE: since we're more excited about building relationships than sending out newsletters, please let me know a bit about yourself and why you are interested in our vision to cultivate communities of disciples for the glory of God and the good of the city.

Visit our vision casting and fundraising website: Reach Kansas City

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my del.icio.us world

-Rightwing Film Geek reviews Darjeeling Limited
-CT reviews Gone Baby Gone
-Unphotographable: a text account of pictures missed (AMAZING!)
-The State of Church Planting
-Five Innovation Myths Applied to Urbanism
-The Best & Worst Logo Remakes of the Century
-24 Season 7 Preview (the last season was so ridiculous I gave up...and how is this better?)
-For all those lines you missed in the "Branch Wars" episode
-Sufjan announces Australian tour dates
-Feist @ NPR
-Shelfari (do we really need another social networking site? do we really need more email invites?)

my del.icio.us world