en mford@multicastmedia.com Copyright 2010 2010-04-07T10:37:57+00:00 http://316networks.com/church/entry/1001/ http://316networks.com/church/entry/1001/#When:22:53:11Z Dr. Sam Chand says leadership without pain is questionable.That meeting, as painful as it was, revealed to him exactly what he was up against in making the company profitable. Eventually, he had to transform IBM's powerful culture, a culture that made it both famous and successful in the 1960s and '70s. Imagine being a company outsider and having to transform an icon like IBM. How did he do it? Gerstner made friends with his pains. He had to embrace the pain of transforming the famous IBM culture, the pain of centralizing what had become a very individualistic operation, and the pain of flying in the face of many other things that were considered standard-operating procedure before he arrived. By embracing these pains, he turned IBM around. Athletes are always playing while they are hurting. They know they have to make friends with their pains. One pro-football player says that playing is like "being in a car wreck every day." Why do they continue doing it? Because they love playing; they understand that their pains are the price they pay. Embracing your pains is never easy. All leaders must bear the pains of criticism. You cannot be a leader and avoid being criticized. Everything the president of the United States says and does is intensely scrutinized. Every Sunday talk show dissects his policies and actions. It takes thick skin to be the president. When Princess Camilla visited America, the press criticized her for what she wore and what she didn't wear. They wrote about how many changes of clothes she brought for an eight-day visit. Imagine, being Camilla and reading an article that said she looks "frumpy." That's painful. But if you want to be a princess or a president, that's what you have to deal with. Making friends with your pains is part of leadership. Our pains tell us we are moving in the right direction. New pains will always be a part of your life as you continue climbing the ladder to your destiny. (Taken in part from: What's Shakin' Your Ladder by Dr. Sam Chand) 2010-06-22T22:53:11+00:00 http://316networks.com/news/story/1000/ http://316networks.com/news/story/1000/#When:22:47:23Z Louisiana lawmakers issue a resolution of prayer for the Gulf Coast oil disaster.State senators designated Sunday as a day for citizens to ask for God's help dealing with the oil disaster. "Thus far efforts made by mortals to try to solve the crisis have been to no avail," state Sen. Robert Adley said in a statement released after last week's unanimous vote for the day of prayer. "It is clearly time for a miracle for us." The resolution names Sunday as a statewide day of prayer in Louisiana and calls on people of all religions throughout the Gulf Coast "to pray for an end to this environmental emergency, sparing us all from the destruction of both culture and livelihood." Also Sunday, wildlife officials were planning to transport and release 40 pelicans that rescuers rehabilitated after finding them covered with oil. The birds will be moved from New Orleans, Louisiana, to the Aransas National Wildlife Refuge in Port Aransas, Texas. As much as 60,000 barrels (2.5 million gallons) of oil may be gushing into the Gulf every day, new government estimates found last week. BP said it was able to capture roughly 8,480 barrels of oil from midnight to 12 p.m. Saturday. The company said it captured 24,500 barrels -- just over a million gallons -- of oil Friday, a little less than it captured the day before. BP said Saturday that it has paid $104 million to residents along the Gulf Coast who have filed claims related to the Gulf oil spill, issuing more than 31,000 checks in the past seven weeks. Article Reposted From CNN   2010-06-22T22:47:23+00:00 http://316networks.com/church/entry/997/ http://316networks.com/church/entry/997/#When:14:41:38Z Watch this year's conference sessions live with 316Networks.com!Speakers for this year's pastor's conference include Dr. Tony Evans, David Platt, Steve Gaines, Andy Stanley, Ravi Zacharias, Francis Chan, and Dr. Albert Mohler. Held in Orange County Convention Center, 316Networks.com is proud to provide live streaming of all of this year's conference sessions. You can watch them by click here: http://316networks.com/sbc10/pastors For more information about Southern Baptist Convention Pastors' conference, log onto http://sbcpc.net 2010-06-11T14:41:38+00:00 http://316networks.com/news/story/994/ http://316networks.com/news/story/994/#When:13:47:24Z 316Networks.com is proud to provide live streaming of this year's gathering, held in Orlando, Florida.316Networks.com is proud to provide live streaming of this year's annual meeting sessions. Watch them by clicking here: http://316networks.com/sbc10 The following are just a few of the events and organizational meetings that will be taking place this year at the SBC annual meeting. For a complete list is, log onto www.sbc.net. ------------------------------------ SATURDAY, JUNE 12 • CROSSOVER ORLANDO officially kicks off the 2010 SBC annual meeting. Crossover, now in its 22nd year, is a yearly evangelistic outreach to share the Gospel of Jesus Christ on the weekend before the SBC's annual meeting in the host city. • THE SOUTHERN BAPTIST CONFERENCE OF ASSOCIATIONAL DIRECTORS OF MISSIONS will convene for their 50th meeting June 12-14 in Orlando, Fla. The meeting, with the theme "Celebrating 50 Years of Partnership in Kingdom Work," will begin at 2:30 p.m. Frank Page, vice president of evangelization at the North American Mission Board and Ed Stetzer of LifeWay Research, will be among the keynote speakers. ------------------------------------ SUNDAY, JUNE 13 • PASTORS CONFERENCE is to start at 5:30 p.m. Sunday with a pre-session concert by Travis Cottrell in Halls WA1-WA4. Sunday's speakers include David Uth of First Orlando, Steve Gaines of Bellevue Cordova (Memphis), Tenn., Evangelist Ravi Zacharias, and TonyEvans of Oak Cliff Bible Fellowship in Dallas. • Richard Land is scheduled to address the topic of immigration during the NATIONAL HISPANIC FELLOWSHIP OF SOUTHERN BAPTIST CHURCHES MEETING from 2 p.m. to 5 p.m. Sunday afternoon, June 13, in First Baptist Church of Kissimmee, Fla. Land, president of the Southern Baptist Ethics & Religious Liberty Commission, will examine implications for Southern Baptists of the nation's immigration issue.  ------------------------------------ MONDAY, JUNE 14 • CHILDREN'S CONFERENCE, 7:30 a.m. to 9:30 p.m. Monday through Wednesday, in W109A-B, for children ages 5-12. Theme: Star Patrol - Serving and Trusting Our God. For more info see http://www.childrensconferences.com. • PASTORS WIVES CONFERENCE, 8 a.m. to noon Monday in Valencia Ballroom A-D, on the fourth floor of the OCCC. "Greater Things" will be the theme, with keynote speaker Bobbye Rankin. There is no cost for the event and registration is not required. Sherry Blankenship, a hospital chaplain, pastor's wife and author of "Draw Near," will share her testimony on the story of the loss of one of their triplets and the journey back to intimacy with the Lord. • PASTORS CONFERENCE starts at 8 a.m. in Halls WA1-WA4, with speakers David Landrith of Long Hollow Baptist, Hendersonville, Tenn., Ken Whitten of Idlewild Baptist in Tampa, Fla., Matt Chandler of The Village Church in Flower Mound, Texas, and C.J. Mahaney of Covenant Life Church in Gaithersburg, Md. The Pastors Conference Monday afternoon session starts at 1:30 p.m., in Halls WA1-WA4, with speakers Danny Akin of SEBTS in Wake Forest, N.C., Ed Stetzer of LifeWay Research, Russell Moore of SBTS in Louisville, Ky., and Francis Chan of Cornerstone Church in Simi Valley, Calif. The Pastors Conference starts again at 6 p.m. Monday in Halls WA1-WA4, with speakers Albert Mohler of SBTS in Louisville, Ky., Andy Stanley of North Point Community Church in Alpharetta, Ga., and David Platt of The Church at Brook Hills, in Birmingham, Ala. • NATIONAL AFRICAN AMERICAN FELLOWSHIP OF THE SOUTHERN BAPTIST CONVENTION, ANNUAL MEETING, 4 p.m. Monday, W307A, and dinner 6:30 p.m. Monday, W307 B-C. ------------------------------------ TUESDAY, JUNE 15 • MINISTERS WIVES LUNCHEON, 11:45 a.m. to 1:30 p.m. Tuesday, Valencia Ballroom, A-D. "We are praying that younger ministry wives will join us for the luncheon this year," Rhonda Kelley, president of the event, told Baptist Press. "We are intentionally trying to draw in younger wives who are newer in the ministry." The luncheon, in the Valencia Room on the convention center's 4th floor, will feature Jackie Kendall of Power to Grow Ministries. • BIVOCATIONAL PASTORS LUNCHEON, noon to 2 p.m. at Central Parkway Baptist, 5281 Central Florida Parkway in Orlando. It is for any bivo pastor and his wife; tickets are free and available at the bivo booth in the exhibits hall, WB1-3. • SBC ANNUAL MEETING in Halls WA1-WA4 ------------------------------------ WEDNESDAY, JUNE 16 • COSBE WORSHIP SERVICES 9 a.m. to 3 p.m.Wednesday in W320, Chapin Theatre. • SEMINARY LUNCHEONS all start at noon Wednesday. Valencia Ballroom. SBTS: Valencia Ballroom Section A. NOBTS: Valencia Ballroom Sections B-C. SWBTS: Valencia Ballroom Section D. GGTBS: Room W303. MWBTS: Rooms W307A-D. SEBTS: Room W304E-H. To register for this year's meeting, log onto www.sbcannualmeeting.org 2010-06-11T13:47:24+00:00 http://316networks.com/church/entry/992/ http://316networks.com/church/entry/992/#When:14:08:37Z Zondervan will hold off of releasing The Hope You Need yet againIn a statement Friday, the company explained that Warren needed time to focus on other projects at the moment. "We understand many people will be disappointed at the delay, but we fully support Rick and respect his decision," said Moe Girkins, president & CEO of Zondervan. "Of course, we remain eager to bring this book to market when the time comes." The book is based on an eight-part sermon series on the Lord's Prayer that Warren delivered last year at Saddleback Church in Southern California. Initially, the book was scheduled to be released in November 2009 and then rescheduled for Fall 2010. Ahead of the anticipated 2009 release, Zondervan launched a contest to design the book's cover that was opened to the public. There were more than 3,500 entries. The winner was an Italian couple, Simona Dall'Argine and Simone Salardi, who submitted a simple and clean design. Warren said he chose the winning cover because it was simple and helped convey the message inside the book that the Lord's Prayer is profound, yet simple. The megachurch pastor and bestselling author said The Hope You Need is a response to the economic crisis, a time when people need a message about hope. Warren's previous book, The Purpose Driven Life, is the best-selling hardcover book in history.   2010-06-01T14:08:37+00:00 http://316networks.com/news/story/991/ http://316networks.com/news/story/991/#When:12:37:19Z Americans United for Separation of Church and State, the American Civil Liberties Union, and the ACLU unite in filing suit.The groups, which filed suit Wednesday on behalf of two Enfield High School seniors and three parents, are charging that the Enfield Public Schools' decision to hold their graduation ceremonies at First Cathedral in Bloomfield "excessively entangle[s]" the district with religion and is - for a number of reasons - in violation of the Establishment Clause of the Constitution. "Public school students have a right to attend their graduation without feeling like they're taking part in a religious service," says the Rev. Barry W. Lynn, executive director of Americans United. "The use of a church for this important milestone is clearly inappropriate." The American Center for Law and Justice, which is defending the district, however, insists that the use of First Cathedral, also known as the First Baptist Church of Hartford, does not constitute a violation of the Establishment Clause. It says the main reason the Enfield School District chose to hold graduation at First Cathedral was financial. The church, ACLJ argues, is $8,000 to $40,000 cheaper than holding graduations at comparable facilities - a claim that AU rejects. The Baptist megachurch also reportedly provides "the best amenities," including ample seating and parking, advanced audio visual capabilities and "general comfort for graduates and their families." Furthermore, student support for the cathedral venue was found to be very strong. Student Board of Education representatives from both Enfield and Fermi High School stated that, after polling their fellow classmates, the vast majority wanted graduation to be held at the church. Also, students at both high schools signed a petition in support of the church venue. "The law in this area is clear and well established and the United States Supreme Court has decided numerous cases involving public schools and the Establishment Clause," says ACLJ Senior Counsel Vince McCarthy, representing the school district. "Once again, those seeking to marginalize religion in America have turned the clearly secular use of a religious building into needless litigation." According to the Establishment Clause of the U.S. Constitution's First Amendment, "Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion." The prohibition, through the Due Process Clause of the U.S. Constitution's Fourteenth Amendment, applies to the official acts of local governmental entities, including public schools. The case is Does v. Enfield Public Schools.   2010-05-10T12:37:19+00:00 http://316networks.com/church/entry/990/ http://316networks.com/church/entry/990/#When:12:47:16Z Ed Stetzer and Cross Point Church's Pete Wilson help lead the way to recovery.Pastors throughout Tennessee have been vigorously thumbing their limited characters since the "thousand year" flood ravaged several counties over the weekend. "It appears that I have moved into storm central. Thinking about preaching about Noah tomorrow," Ed Stetzer, who is currently serving as interim pastor at Two Rivers Baptist Church in Nashville, tweeted Saturday. "Lost additional power to downtown this a.m. No repairs until water recedes. Friday at earliest," he tweeted Tuesday. Stetzer acknowledged that he was posting so many tweets on the flood that people were following a story live - a story that has been getting less coverage that the "Balloon Boy," he says. "Thx Jon Stewart for mentioning #nashvilleflood. You are not real news, but the 'real news' is too busy for our flood," he tweeted Wednesday. When rain began to fall in the weekend, Stetzer thought it would just be a little storm. But with more than 13 inches of rain dumped in the Nashville area, the Cumberland River swelled and crested about 52 feet downtown Monday evening, nearly 12 feet above flood stage. Thousands of homes, churches and businesses were submerged and at least 18 people died in Tennessee. President Obama on Tuesday declared disasters in Nashville and three other counties. The affected areas were mainly affluent and many have temporarily moved in with their friends or families. But most homes as well as businesses that suffered considerable damage were found without flood insurance. After having surveyed the affected areas, Wilson of Cross Point Church said the extent of damage is so big that he almost felt paralyzed as he and his church team tried to outline a disaster response. "It's heartbreaking," said the young pastor, who, like many other pastors, had to cancel Sunday services. "I have never seen anything like this." "Once these families get past the emotion of losing their personal belongings and their house, ... not to have any insurance money to start rebuilding and refurnishing their house is going to be really tough," said Wilson during the "Exchange" webcast, hosted by Stetzer, Tuesday. Cross Point has been sending out a couple hundred volunteers daily to help clean up homes and provide pastoral care. Other churches nearby have also sent volunteer teams to Cross Point to aid in relief and recovery work. "I love seeing the body of Christ be the body of Christ," Wilson commented. Making the most of an otherwise dismal situation, the Cross Point pastor said churches should step up and reach people in the name of Christ. He noted, "We're not just about trying to attract them to our weekend services, although we think that's important as well, but we want to get out there and serve them, love on them, show them Christ. "This is when we can communicate to friends and neighbors and family that God is most powerfully present even when He seems to be most apparently absent." Cross Point Church has set up a flood assistance flood and plans to gather some 2,500 volunteers on Saturday for a big push in recovery work. Currently, volunteers have been providing drinking water, ripping up carpet and cleaning up houses. Two Rivers Baptist Church, which suffered only rain damage, just came out of "Servolution" weekend - a churchwide community service campaign involving cleaning up schools and parks, among other things. Following the flood, Stetzer is planning on "Servolution Part 2." In the meantime, the pastors are faithfully keeping their Twitter followers up to date from the ground. For more information on how you can support these efforts, log onto http://www.crosspoint.tv.   2010-05-07T12:47:16+00:00 http://316networks.com/news/story/989/ http://316networks.com/news/story/989/#When:12:27:22Z 316Networks.com is proud to power the backstage interviews for this year's eventVery few conferences engage all of your senses and provide a truly experiential day of leadership training. The Chick-fil-A Leadercast is committed to producing not only an event that is relevant and practical, but also one that energizes and inspires every single person that invests a day in Chick-fil-A Leadercast. With a desire to influence leaders at every level within an organization, The Chick-fil-A Leadercast is designed to help you be the one in your community to make a difference. To create lasting impact. 316Networks.com is proud to be power the backstage interviews for this year's event. You can watch them here: http://www.chick-fil-aleadercast.com   2010-05-07T12:27:22+00:00 http://316networks.com/church/entry/986/ http://316networks.com/church/entry/986/#When:20:45:37Z Obama states that prayer has long been an important part of U.S. history."On this day, let us give thanks for the many blessings God has bestowed upon our Nation," said Obama in the proclamation. "Let us rejoice for the blessing of freedom both to believe and to live our beliefs, and for the many other freedoms and opportunities that bring us together as one Nation." The National Day of Prayer was officially created in 1952 by a joint resolution of the U.S. Congress, and signed into law by President Harry Truman. Since 1952, every president has signed a National Day of Prayer proclamation. In April, however, federal judge Barbara Crabb ruled that the National Day of Prayer was unconstitutional because it amounts to a call for religious action. Crabb ruled in favor of Freedom From Religion Foundation, a Wisconsin-based group of atheists and agnostics, that filed the lawsuit in October 2008. FFRF had originally filed the lawsuit against President George W. Bush and Dana Perino, his press secretary, among others. But the lawsuit has since been changed so that President Obama and Robert Gibbs are among the defendants. The Obama administration said it intends to appeal Crabb's decision. Crabb said her ruling will not bar National Day of Prayer activities until all appeals have been exhausted. Besides the court ruling, the day of prayer has also been caught in another controversy involving one of its spokespersons. Evangelist Franklin Graham, co-honorary chair of the National Day of Prayer Task Force, was disinvited from the Pentagon's National Day of Prayer event over previous comments he made about Islam. The Council on American-Islamic Relations tried to also get Graham's invitation for the Capitol Hill prayer event rescinded. But congressional sponsors of the event refused to withdraw the invitation for Graham to speak at the prayer gathering at the Capitol. Graham said he briefly spoke President Obama about being dropped from the Pentagon event when the president recently visited Billy Graham's home. Obama told him he "would look into it," Graham said. For this year's National Day of Prayer, Obama calls on Americans to particularly remember in their prayers the natural disasters in Haiti and Chile; the families of the West Virginia miners; the people of Poland who have lost many of their country's leaders; and for those serving in the military.   2010-05-04T20:45:37+00:00 http://316networks.com/news/story/984/ http://316networks.com/news/story/984/#When:16:18:30Z Obama made the short trip to Montreat where the 91-year-old “pastor to presidents”During their half-hour meeting, the two chatted about a variety of topics over coffee, including their wives, golf and Chicago, according to Graham's spokesman, Larry Ross. Graham attended Wheaton College in the Chicago suburb, where he met his late wife, Ruth, and Obama began his political career in the city. Obama, like his predecessors, shared with Graham how lonely, demanding and humbling the office of president can be, said Ross. The two concluded by praying for each other and Graham gave the president two Bibles, one for himself and the other for the first lady. "I am pleased to have had President Obama in my home this afternoon," said Graham, in a statement. "He requested a meeting since he was spending the weekend nearby in Asheville. My son Franklin and I enjoyed a brief visit with the President, followed by a time of prayer together." Obama had been wanting to meet Graham for some time, but a busy schedule and other situations delayed the meeting until this past weekend. The two had planned to meet in-person back in October 2008 while Obama was still on the campaign trail, but Graham's health prevented the meeting. Obama connected again with Graham last November when he called to wish him a happy birthday. Obama is the twelfth president that Graham has personally known during his public ministry. But Obama is the first sitting president to visit the Graham home. White House spokesman Bill Burton said Obama was "extraordinarily gratified that he took the time to meet with him." Billy Graham's son, Franklin, as well as aides and advisers to both men were also present during the meeting. Reporters were kept outside Graham's home. Franklin Graham said he spoke briefly to Obama about his recent problem with the army. He was disinvited by the army last week to speak at a Pentagon event for the National Day of Prayer because of disparaging remarks he made about Islam. The younger Graham voiced his concern to the president about activists trying to remove all religion from the military. "I wanted to make him aware of that," Franklin Graham said, according to The Associated Press. "He said he would look into it." Franklin Graham also thanked the president for saying he would direct the government to appeal a federal judge's recent ruling that declared the National Day of Prayer as unconstitutional. Graham is the co-honorary chair of the National Day of Prayer Task Force. Obama also said he intends to still issue a proclamation on May 6 to recognize the prayer day despite the recent court ruling.   2010-04-26T16:18:30+00:00