:::. joshbrickey.com .:::

My Halloween Costume...

Thanks for all those who tried to guess my costume on here and on Facebook.  However, no one was able to guess correctly.  So without further ado, here is my costume for Fright Night 2008:  As inspired by a Geico commercial, a grown up Cabbage Patch Kid!

I have to admit, it took a lot of effort and work by 4 or 5 people (with Will Wright and Robin Hunt doing a TON of work with me), but we actually finished it.  The original plan was to make three Cabbage Patch Kids and Robin and Will would wear them as well.  The problem was, we majorly underestimated the art of paper mache.  It actually was really funny to see three dudes spending lots of time in the crafts department and trying to do paper mache.    

One other funny thing to note.  If we had made three, the plan was that one of the others would have been Asian and the other white.  You know...we wanna be politically correct and all.

Inside Scoop on my Halloween Costume...

Tomorrow night is "Fright Night" at youth, and for the first time ever, I'm making my own costume.  I will post pictures on Thursday, but here's a clue to what I'm making....here are the items I'm using to make it:

• Large plastic ball....the kind that you shoot into huge bins at Wal-Mart when you're not supposed to.
• Elmer's glue
• Newspaper
• Two wigs
• Hot glue
• 1 yard of brown, stretchy cloth
• Spray glue 
• Modeling clay
• Artist gesso 
• Clothing  
  

  Any guesses?

Ten Signs that you're a Facebook (or Myspace) Whore- Part Four

This is part four of an ongoing series on the blog. Make sure to check out Part One, Part Two, and Part Three.

9) The Underwear Shot- Underwear is the new outerwear. There have been lots of pictures posted on social networking sites of people in their underwear. Often paired with the "mirror shot", the "underwear shot" loves to show off what once was considered sacred. The underwear of choice is often the boy cut underwear, whether on a boy or a girl. Girls may even choose to show off their latest Victoria's Secret purchase, or guys may unveil the boxer briefs (and abs). It's a new twist to the saying...make sure you're wearing clean underwear...just in case someone sees your picture on Facebook or MySpace.

10) The Bits Showoff (a.k.a. "The Cleavage Shot)- One of the most popular shots of the Facebook and MySpace whores is the Cleavage Shot. Starting about as early as they develop, girls are posting more and more pics that reveal part of their breasts. Typically a self shooter, these girls seem to feel as if they must put one arm above their head and take a picture at a downward angle. Of course, this shot must also include a tank top, a loose fitting shirt, or simply a bra (because the bra wasn't revealing enough). The most ambitious of the Bits Showoff skanks also love to notify their friends that they have new pictures and that they REALLY want you to offer them some "comment love," although "comment lust" would be more grammatically correct. Fortunately, guys have not personally embraced this trend as much, despite the fact that a lot of them are developing large breasts while spending so much time with video games and the internet.

Just to let you know, this will not be the last you see of the "Facebook/Myspace whore" series. I have at least a few more blogs in the works in regards to it, so make sure you check back often!

Ten Signs that you're a Facebook (or Myspace) Whore- Part Three

This is part of an ongoing series on the blog. Make sure to check out Part One and Part Two.

7) The Katy Perry Shot (aka The "I kissed a girl and I like it" shot")- There is this phenomenon that is ever increasing in popularity amongst younger people. It is the tendency to post a picture of a girl kissing another girl. Spurred on by a society that encourages youth to explore the "bi-curious," the pattern usually starts out with an "innocent" picture of a girl kissing a girl on the cheek. It then progresses to the make out picture (once again, often paired with a Solo cup in hand), or even the "kiss the cleavage" shot. What's interesting to note is that you really don't see guys kissing other guys, because "that's just gay." One final note, this is occasionally accompanied with the "Boob Grab Shot."

8) The "I’m in a bikini, so I have to pose seductively" Shot- Buying a bathing suit that is skimpy and doesn't leave much to the imagination? $80. Positioning your body to reveal as much as possible without being totally naked for the camera? $5 to put batteries in the camera. Posting slutty pictures online of your bikini, softcore porn self that will haunt you for the rest of your life? Priceless. There are some things that money can't buy...like innocence, purity, and respect for yourself. For everything else there's MySpace.

Check back tomorrow for the final two on the list! You can leave comments below by clicking on "comments."

Ten Signs that you're a Facebook (or Myspace) Whore- Part Two

Continuing this post from yesterday:

4) The Boob Grab Shot- A lot of girls apparently see nothing wrong with having a picture of someone grabbing their boobs being posted online. Sometimes it is a picture of them grabbing their own boobs, while other times it is a girl or a guy grabbing them. When the latter happens they usually have a (fake) look of shock or embarrassment on their face. It seems that everyone in the picture has a cup in their hands, whether it be a bra cup or a red or blue plastic cup(Although a bottle of alcohol is sometimes substituted for the red or blue plastic cups). As one final note, guys may have pictures grabbing their own boobs or chest. This is a sure sign that you're an idiot and you will never get a date.

5) The Tanline Shot- It is not unusual in our culture to want to have a tan. What is odd (and a definite sign that you are a Facebook/Myspace whore) is when you want to show off both your tan and the areas that are still cracker white. The most common skanky "tanline shots" on Facebook are the "pull my bikini bottoms down to show off my tanline" shot, the "slide part of my top over to tease people" shot, or the ever popular, "I have a playboy bunny from the tanning bed" shot. 'Cuz nothing says "classy" quite like Playboy.

6) The Status Update or Mood Ho- Status Updates are definitely intriguing. You can let people know what you're up to and how you're feeling at any moment of the day. However, the Status Update Ho and Mood Ho feel as if they have to share T-M-I. The Status Update Ho can be found on both Facebook and MySpace. We can learn about how they are "getting drunk," "feeling lucky," and so on. The "Mood Ho" is typically on MySpace, where they can let us know how they're feeling. I have seen numerous teens let the world know that they are "feeling horny" at a given moment. Word of advice....You better be careful flaunting that you're "feeling horny" because you may end up feeling used, itchy, or pregnant (or all the above).

Okay...I have had hundreds of hits for these posts and only two comments. Have you experienced these things online? Leave a comment by clicking "comments" below."

Ten Signs that you're a Facebook (or Myspace) Whore- Part One

WARNING- This series of blog posts may be offensive to some readers. For some, you may need to wake up and smell the coffee. For others, you fit one of the signs mentioned below. Just as a reminder, you posted it online for the whole world to see...remember that next time before you post something online.

I have noticed a disturbing trend over the past few years. Teenagers (and adults alike) have used a social networking site like Facebook or Myspace to post images and comments that are incredibly inappropriate. What's crazy is that they see absolutely nothing wrong with it and don't realize that it reveals the true character of the person. It's a new breed of skank.

Based on actual pictures and such from people that I actually know, I've come up with "Ten Signs that You're a Facebook Whore." So without further ado...here are the first few:

1) The Slutty Mirror Shot- This is probably the most famous of the skanky pics. For some reason, people love to take a picture of themselves in the mirror. There's absolutely nothing wrong with that part. However, for some other strange reason, they often feel as if they must be scantily clothed or seductive in the process. Many also love to show off their curves by doing a side profile picture or a "wearing nothing but a towel" picture. The most common mirrors of choice are the bathroom mirror or the full length mirror in the bedroom.

2) The "Look at my Abs" Shot- Guys and girls love to show off their stomach. Guys love to show them off and make sure that the top 1/3 of their boxers or briefs are showing, while girls typically fold over their waistband of their shorts as they lift their shirt up (Because you obviously can't show off your abs without showing off your legs or the bottom of your bra at the same time). It must be noted, that girls that are unbelievably tiny or fit also have to add the caption "I'm so fat" to the picture, so that people will respond with comments to their picture. Most often, this is also a slutty mirror shot.

3) The Comment Hussy- As mentioned above, people oftentimes leave comments in response to the pictures. Guys lead the charge in this role, because they love to tell a girl how fine they are, how much they would love to "hook up wit u," or how they would like to "tap that." Girls aren't immune to leaving the comments, and often leave flirty or suggestive comments to their friends. It's also interesting to see how many ways "sexy" can be spelled.

Check back for part two tomorrow! As always, feel free to leave comments below by clicking on the word "comments."

Social Media

I have had a lot of discussion recently about social media and it's impact and use in the church. For those of you that don't have a clue what I'm talking about, I've basically spent a lot of time thinking about how technology and media can assist in connecting people. Specifically, how can the church grab hold and use these technologies to reach and disciple others.

So with that in mind... here's 5 quick nuggets about social media and how I am considering using it (or already using it) in the church.

1) Facebook- Honestly, this is our primary method of communicating with youth in the church. I feel that social networking sites like Facebook have to be used by our churches to connect with others. Heck...I have connected with friends online that I would have never connected with any other way, so it's not just the teens.

2) Text Messaging- We have been doing text messaging during our youth service for about a year now, with a lot of success. We have also started doing text alerts and using Jott to send them out.

3) Internet Campuses- I'm so intrigued by internet campuses. With the shift in our culture to a media culture, I think that churches should strongly consider using internet campuses. The biggest complaint I hear is typically, "but how do you connect people with others if you do an internet campus?" I heard someone else say, and I can't agree more.... how is it any different from broadcasting services on television? Hmmm.... more to come on this concept.

4) Mobile Media- I already mentioned text messaging, but the way we use cell phones is about to explode. I'm sure churches need to think about things like "can our website be accessed from a cell phone?" Also, how can churches make media and such so that people can receive it on their cell phone?

5)Roov- I'm interested in seeing how Roov pans out. I love the idea of an online community that connects people to others in their community. Would this be an option for creating new small groups? Serving groups? Simply connecting with and making new friends?

It was hard to narrow it down to five, but the others may be too geeky for most.
I'd love to hear people's thoughts. Where do you see social media going in the church? Comment below.

Crocs, Beanie Babies, and other ramblings

For so many years, my experience as a Christian showed me churches that were primarily focused on developing relationships with the people already inside of the church. The main ways to attract outsiders was to have a weeklong "revival" (which...ironically implies that your church is dead) or by "Vacation Bible School." Don't get me wrong...I saw a lot of close knit relationships develop through the church, but there just seemed to be something missing in the development of the church.

I have been thinking a lot about innovation lately. Why is it that most churches are some of the least innovative places and so resistant to change? It's not just in traditional churches. It's "contemporary" churches as well. While the methods used may have been considered innovative 15 years ago, it's definitely lost it's effectiveness now (Some things of note in 1993: Sega Genesis, Beanie Babies first released, and Leonardo Dicaprio in What's Eating Gilbert Grape).

Let's face it, we have to seek ways to be on the cutting edge of innovation. It's bigger than Facebook, Twitter, or text messaging (if you don't know what those are...look them up). Sure we can use those things now (and should). But we need to create ways of ministry that are constantly fresh and innovative. Let's think outside of the proverbial box. Heck...we should be nowhere near the box. Let creativity be more than simply filling in a template for a weekly worship service. Let creativity be more than a clever joke in a sermon. Let creativity be more than an email prayer chain.

Here's my prayer today: God...not only now, but when I'm 85 years old (let me make it that far please)...I hope that I am open and searching for new ways to teach about you and introduce people to you. Oh...and please let Crocs go out of style. They are so ugly.

Wow...it's been a while

Last week, we took our youth to camp...Big Stuf. It was incredible. You can check out video highlights from our youth website, by clicking here.

Anyways, I missed Patty and Isaiah like crazy. We had a good time on the 4th, watching some fireworks right outside our apartment. Here's some pics to show ya what we've been up to.

Isaiah and I taking a nap after camp

Fireworks outside

He's growing up quick

Five from Q & A

SO...I was totally naive about how many questions would be sent in by our students at our Q&A night. To keep from having to answer questions on every blog for the next two years, I will take a good balance of the questions and talk about them. Without further ado...here are five random questions from our Q & A night (more coming soon!):

1) What do you do when a teacher discriminates because you’re Baptist? I would invite them to a potluck dinner and sing “Just As I Am” at the end of each class. (We actually gave a real answer at Q&A night.)

2) How do we know how to listen to God? God can speak to you in a variety of ways, but the main way is through the Bible. Romans 10:17 tells us that faith comes from hearing God’s Word. God will speak to you as you study the Bible and He will never tell you anything that contradicts it. He also speaks so us through His Spirit. That subtle voice guiding you a lot of times is Him (John 16:13, Romans 8:14). He can speak to us through other people (Proverbs 12:15).

The main thing is to stop talking to God about our issues all the time and truly listen through these ways I’ve mentioned. It’s hard to listen if all we do is talk.

3) What do you do when some of your friends are saying bad words but when you tell them to stop, they say “But it’s in the Bible”? As far as I know, there aren’t any cuss words in the Bible. Hell is an actual place. Damn is used when talking about sending people to Hell to face punishment for their sins. Ass is a donkey. Other than that, I have no clue what their talking about.

4) Can you believe in God but think that He doesn’t like you? There is never a moment that God doesn’t love you. BUT…He often doesn’t like your actions (or lack of) or thoughts. It’s like this. Let’s say that I tell my wife (Patty) that I’m gonna wash the dishes and I don’t do it. Patty would not be happy with me and would not like what I did. BUT…she still loves me. She always will. That’s a small glimpse of God. He loves us but hates sin. (Romans 8:38-39...example of God always loving us. There are tons of examples of God hating sin in the Bible)

5) Something happened to me by one of my family members 3 years ago and I still haven’t told my parents. What should I do? You definitely need to tell someone about what happened to you. It will be difficult to tell your parents, but they would want to know so they can help you. Whatever happened, it obviously is something that still bothers you and is on your mind, so the first step to moving on is letting others know.