Good Idea, Now What?

Today, I am pleased to share a review of a book recently published by my good friend Charles Lee. It’s called Good Idea, Now What? and it is one of the best books I have read on the subject of bringing ideas to implementation and execution. The first time I met Charles, he was sharing with individuals at West Virginia University and in the city of Morgantown, WV as part of a week of events called “Another World Is Possible.”  Charles spent an afternoon talking about how to take an idea from the starting block to implementation, and gave some fantastic examples. The same evening, he gave a presentation on the subject of slavery and human trafficking and gave people tangible steps to take toward eradicating modern day slavery and the trafficking of human beings. The next morning, while I was taking him to the Pittsburgh airport, he told me about a small conference he was hosting two weeks later for idea makers that was called Idea Camp. After talking it over with other members of our team at Nuru, I made it a point to go. Everything I’ve seen Charles produce or implement, has been done with thoughtful excellence and quality and with an end result of helping others to do better at doing good in the world.

As I picked up the book, I must admit,  I wondered if the world needed another book on getting things done or idea making. Books like ReWork, Making Ideas Happen, and The War of Art all seemed to hone in on the subject—what more could possibly be said?  Charles’ book is actually quite remarkable. It is a series of études within a book. He has put the book together so that individual chapters are short, and easy to draw out applications. He uses real world examples from both his own life and the experiences of other idea makers to drive home his points, and he talks about subjects that can be challenging for creatives and ideamakers to talk about, things like team chemistry, implementation, and maintaining a family life and boundaries for work.

With each new section, I was thoroughly impressed with both the quality of content, the brevity of words to communicate the content, and the practical next steps offered to individuals to take ideas to reality. I believe this book could be helpful for individuals involved in start-ups as well as for teams.  This book is perfect for creative folks who have a hard time staying grounded to push their ideas into implementation as well. The chapters are short enough that anyone can pick up and read and think through application points for individual concepts. For folks who chronically start books and cant finish, the book is set up to be read as a whole, or read as chapters in isolation.

If you know, have heard, or are in other ways familiar with Charles’ work, you know that this book is a must read. If not, and you have an entrepreneurial bent, you should give this book a read and add it to your short list of books that are motivating, informative, and practical for converting ideas into reality.  Buy it today,  and, if you have time to insert it into your calendar, you should make it a point to participate in a conference Charles’ consultancy created, called !deation in Chicago this May.

A Little Encouragement For Your Health And Wellness Goals: Twenty Three And A Half Hours

My good friends Luke & Diane Harriman recommended this video to me while I was in Florida as an extra incentive to pursue some of my health and wellness goals for 2012. I was just able to watch the video for the first time this weekend, and I did so with my wife and her parents, and we all found it insightful, engaging and inspiring for pursuing improved health and fitness.

What I love most about this video is the different tact taken to describe how to pursue a fitness goal. We’ve heard that 20-30 minutes of exercise(walking, cardio, hiking, biking) per day can do the body a world of good, but to ‘couch’ it in a different way is pure brilliance.

Dr Mike Evans encourages us to limit our sitting and lying down to 23.5 hours per day to enjoy some pretty amazing health benefits. There’s something about looking at it in this way that I find extremely motivating.

I hope you enjoy the video as much as we did, and that it can provide additional motivation toward your own health and wellness goals this year.

The War of Art

I was first exposed to this book during the summer of 2003. I was working in Orlando, FL to help facilitate a leadership development program for college students and at the same time participating in a separate staff leadership program with Great Commission Ministries.  During my summer stays in Orlando, I had managed to find two incredible book stores in the area. One was a used book store called Leedy’s, and the other was a book store in Northland Community Church in Longwood, FL.

While I was at the church book store, the book store manager recommended The War of Art by Steven Pressfield to me. It wasn’t a faith-based book, but rather a book about the creative process and persevering from idea to action. It sounded like a great read, so I picked it up and added it to my list for the summer.

Just this past summer, it was mentioned again on a list of recommended reads at a java developers conference. So, of course, I picked it up to re-read it. What I found in it was a series of short essays on resistance.

Resistance is that internal invisible force that distracts us, shoves us away, and prevents us from doing our work particularly when that work derives from our higher nature rather than our lower (painting, writing, music, dance, or any creative art, any form of spiritual advancement, education, and more).  We all experience it, and our inability to overcome resistance is what leads to lapsed diets, exercise programs, creative endeavors, and other forms of personal development and self-improvement. And the crazy thing about resistance is that it comes from within.

I don’t want to share too much of the book here. Rather, I would say that particularly at this time of year when so many of us are in the process of setting goals, making new commitments, and pursuing new physical, spiritual, mental, emotional, financial, or creative endeavors, this book makes an incredible read.

The book can be an incredible tool for identifying resistance and pushing through to the realization of our goals. Once one knows their enemy, then they know how to combat their enemy.

If you are looking for a good read to give you a kick-start to achieving your goals, I highly recommend The War of Art.  I also highly recommend taking time to recognize how resistance rears its head in your own life, and determine creative ways to stop it before it stops you in 2012.

My 2012 Goals

After taking tome time to look over my goals from 2011, I decided to post a list of goals for 2012. I feel like there is something powerful that happens when goals go from the mind to being written down—I feel like the act makes me more committed. Studies have shown that it’s not a reality that is unique to me, so I highly recommend that you write down and share your 2012 goals with someone as well.

So here are my top ten for 2012.

Practice Sabbath, Solitude, Silence, and Fasting—This was once a strength for me, but I’ve allowed this discipline to slip in recent years.  I think part of the challenge comes from living in a world in which people are expected to be ‘always on’. As a partial remedy to this, I’ve decided to start sleeping with my phone in another room (no temptation to check/respond to emails, Facebook, or Twitter).  I believe that reintroducing these practices of Solitude, Silence, Sabbath, and Fasting will be a point of refreshment and revitalization in 2012.

Blog More Consistently—Maybe my 2011 goal of 3-5 posts per week was a bit high. Last year I had 83 blog posts. This year, I would like to have at least 105 posts (2 per week).

Exercise—I’m proud of the habit of exercise I cultivated in 2011. This year, I would like to at least walk 30 minutes per day for a minimum of 3-5 days per week. Separate from this I recently started jumping rope—it’s a fairly inexpensive and intense form of exercise I highly recommend. Again, I am hoping to work on fitness rather than fatness in 2012.

Lose Weight—Continuing to build on the successes of 2011, I would like to lose weight during 2012. My weight at this writing is 197 pounds. I would like to lose at least 18 pounds during 2012, and maintain that lighter weight.

Parkersburg Half-Marathon—It eluded me in 2011, but there is time for training for this event in August.

Steward Resources More Wisely—In 2011, Jamie and I took a few steps to lower our footprint, shrink our spending, and be more earth friendly. In 2012, we would like to continue this trend.

Get Outdoors—In a world that is becoming more and more connected to technology, it has been refreshing to spend time enjoying the great outdoors. Whether walking in Cooper’s Rock or around Lake Floyd, my goal is to get outside for at least 30 minutes a day. Hopefully that time will be tied to some of my fitness goals.

Connect—I want to continue the trend of visiting with friends both near and far. One of the best gifts I have been given in this life are the incredible friends who I have met along life’s journey. As often as I have opportunity, I would love to reach out and connect with friends. These times of connecting are a refreshment to my soul.

Plant a Garden—Of course this is a goal every year. I’d love for us to grow more of our food this year, and this time with our hands in the soil will also help us spend time outdoors.

Leave Margins—This is separate from the idea of Sabbath. I tend to stay on the go most of the time. I think it would be good to leave some ‘wiggle-room’ in my schedule, and in so doing, it will probably afford me more opportunities to connect and enjoy spontaneity in the rhythm of life.

What about you? What are your goals for 2012? What habits would you like to make or break in the coming year?

You Lost Me Book By David Kinnaman

Recently, I had the privilege of reading David Kinnaman's new book, You Lost Me. David is the president of the Barna Research Group, one of the most well known research firms in the country.  David illuminates current trends being seen in both Protestant and Catholic arenas of the church as people in their twenties and thirties are disconnecting from the faith practices of their youth. As I read the book, I couldn't help but think about how exeperiences during eight years I spent in vocational ministry coupled with the seventeen years I have been a Christian seemed pretty congruent with Kinnaman's research findings and conclusions.

In the book, he talks about three distinct groups of people who are leaving classic expressions of faith, and landing in significantly different places, Nomads, Prodigals, and Exiles.

Nomads--Make claims to a basic truths of the faith but don't engage in outward expression of the faith. 

Prodigals--Have completely separated themselves from the faith in which they were raised. 

Exiles--Hold closely the basic truths of the faith, engage in outward expression of faith, but in very non-traditional ways.

And what has lead to this array of departures? According to Kinnaman's book the biggest problem is that these youth who are raised in the church are not being equipped with the tools they need to make sense of the world in which they live through their faith communities.

For instance, although there are many scientists (myself included) and workers in the realm of science and technogy who have little difficulty seeing their engagement with science, medicine, health, and technology as an arena in which to express their faith, many young people are raised in the church with either an anti-science background (at worst) or little thought being given to how faith and science work together (more generally).

Aside from being antiscience, Kinnaman notes in his research that these young nomads, prodigals, and exiles also consider the church to be overprotective, repressive, shallow, exclusive, and doubtless. While Kinnaman shares these concepts with the data to back them up, he also paves a way for the church to navigate going forward to course correct amid these problems. For me, this was the most encouraging part of his book.

Why was it encouraging? Well, the reason was two-fold. The first reason is because it would be very easy for a researcher to simply just lay out the findings and walk away to let the reader engage with the data and figure it out. David doesn't do that. He cares so much about this issue that he is willing to share examples of bright spots amid these negative trends. The other reason I was encouraged by this book was more personal. I read the book and felt affirmed in the way in which I went about my work in vocational ministry on the campus of West Virginia University and in the city of Morgantown, WV while I worked for Great Commission Ministries at Chestnut Ridge Church.

I highly recommend his book; particularly for church leaders and others who are wondering why they are seeing a decrease in attendance among those in the 18-35 year old range in their congregations. I would also recommend reading it if you are a person in this age group period. It is well written, not preachy, and Kinnaman writes from the position of a fellow journeyer.

My 2011 Goals

No, the title of this post is not a typo. In separate posts, I will be sharing my 2012 goals and some reflections on some of my favorite moments of 2011, but I thought I’d take a minute and examine how I fared with some of my personal goals from 2011. For instance, I had hoped to run the Parkersburg Half Marathon, but it did not happen. I had set a few other goals as well, and I’d like to share how I fared in each of these.

Lose Weight—I started 2011 weighing 211 pounds. I ended 2011 weighing 197 pounds. I hit my low weight for the year during the week before getting married, and I weighed in at 183 pounds. I had hoped to hit 170, but didn’t make it; nonetheless, I am glad that I could measure progress, and perhaps my goal of 170 pounds by May 25 was a little unrealistic.

Spend Less—Well this was a bit of irony. I actually spent more in 2011, but a major part of that was a result of unforeseen medical bills, and expenses associated with getting married. What I’m happy about is that separate from these expenses, I did hold fast to my goal of spending less.

Blog More Consistently--Over the last year, I had started the year with a goal of writing three to five blog posts per week over the course of the year. Had I accomplished this goal, I would have written around 150 posts for the year.  Unfortunately, I did not meet this goal, and, in fact, only posted 83 times in 2011 which accounts for the lowest number of posts of any year since I started this blog in 2005. (Although, I did have another blog on another now obsolete site from 2003-2005, that probably had fewer posts).

Get Outdoors—I’m really happy about this one. I spent such a small amount of time outdoors in 2010, there was nowhere to go but up.  From October to the end of the year, Jamie and I made a habit of visiting Cooper’s Rock for some hiking at least once per week to hike when we were in town.

Exercise—I joined a gym in September, and spent most of the year getting exercise of some sort 3-5 times per week.

Parkersburg Half-Marathon—Injury prevented me from training properly for this event, but it is in my sights for 2012.

Reflect—I started the year well with this goal, but as the year lurched forward, I found less and less time available for this discipline. This will change in 2012.

Say “No”—I did improve in my ability to say no over the course of 2011, but I can still improve in this area.

Martin Luther King Day 2012

Today we remember the Reverend Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr and his legacy of working toward justice in America and in the world. It's pretty amazing to think about the fact that less than a century ago, the civil rights movement was in full sway. Less than a century ago, schools were segregated, restaurants were segregated, and even bathrooms and water fountains were segregated. Our nation has come a long way since Dr. King's death but there is still much work left to do in the realm of justice.

This weekend, I pulled a book off the shelf called "A Testament of Hope." It is a collection of the writings and speeches of the late Dr. King. I read a sermon, which was Dr. King's last Sunday sermon and it was given at the beautiful National Cathedral in Washington DC on Passion Sunday 1968, just a few years before I was born, almost to the day.

As I read the sermon, all I could think was that it could have been given yesterday just as easily as it could have been given 34 years ago. The words ring as true today as they did in 1968. Here's a small section.

"First, we are challenged to develop a world perspective. No individual can live alone, no nation can live alone, and anyone who feels he can live alone is sleeping through a revolution."

And another.

"Something positive must be done, everyone must share in the guilt as individuals and as institutions."

And yet another.

"There is another thing closely related to racism that I would like to mention as another challenge. We are challenged to rid our nation and our world of poverty. Like a monstrous octopus, poverty spreads its nagging, prehensile tentacles into villages and hamlets all over our world."

Dr. King, in this sermon centered the message around these words of Jesus, "Behold I make all things new--former things are passed away."

And as a closing remark, may the closing words of Dr. King's sermon be our prayer today, and every day, until Jesus returns.

"God grant that we will be participants in this newness and this magnificent development. If we will but do it, we will bring about a new day of justice and brotherhood and peace. And that day the morning stars will sing together and the sons of God will shout for joy. God bless you."

My Thoughts About Tim Tebow

Tim's First NFL Touchdown from Tim Tebow on Vimeo.


It seems like everywhere people are talking about Tim Tebow. Sports pundits wonder if he has special favor from God because of some of his team's amazing victories this year. The faith community seems divided, some thinking he is a great proselytizer and others thinking he is drawing too much attention to football. Others, somewhat cynically work to remind the masses that he is just a man, and what he is doing is being overly hyped.

Now, historically I'm a Pittsburgh Steelers fan, although I have a nephew who is a huge Denver Broncos fan and has been since he was a little boy. I'm not writing as a sports pundit. Of course, those who know me know that my faith is very important to me, and that I strive to learn how to best live this life from Jesus Christ, and I seek to follow his example, but I'm not being so bold as to claim to be an expert as to how Tim Tebow should incorporate his faith into football. This post is about Tebow, but it's really about all of us.

This morning after I woke up, I read an article about Tim Tebow that really touched me. There's been a lot of ink used on Tebow in recent months, and as I referenced earlier, it has been a mixed bag with regard to what people are saying about him. As I thought about whether I should write anything at all, I figured that if I did, I should definitely write it before tonights game, as regardless of one's perspective on this guy, lots of people will be writing about what he did or didn't do tomorrow.

That's a lot of pressure on any human being, but Tebow seems to deal really well with it. I mean tomorrow there will be thousands of tweets and facebook posts talking about the game and his faith, and his prayers, and his life, but the article I read this morning on ESPN really brought a different angle to his story.

You see, even though all eyes are on Tebow before and after games, each week, he has his eyes elsewhere.   He has his eyes on someone who has been suffering, whose life he is attempting to make a little brighter. Rather than re-tell the story of the ESPN article I read, I'm just going to post it here, and let you read it as well.

This post has made reference to Tim Tebow multiple times, but it's not because of his accolades on the field, or the way he talks about Jesus every time he gets the opportunity. It's for what I saw in the article, and what I hear from time to time from others. Sure, he's just a man, but in spite of having all eyes on him and having all eyes expecting him to fail, expecting him to shout about Jesus, expecting him to pull-off a miracle play, he is looking to care for others. He is spending time with the hurting, and trying to make others lives a little brighter.

And so although this little ditty started as a post about Tim Tebow, it's really about you and me. You see, the majority of us will never rise to the celebrated status of this or any other professional athlete or rock star or writer or hollywood mogul, but, we have an opportunity every day. Every day, we have an opportunity to serve others, to make someone else's day a little brighter, to love our neighbor as ourself. It's really about what we are going to do with the time we have to make this world a better place.

And so, whatever you do, whether it's playing professional sports, or some less celebrated activity, remember that your time, and your day is really not about you, but rather it's about how you can serve, bless, and/or improve the lives of other people. May we each make the most of the limited time we have on earth, and learn to love well. When we love well, we make the world a little more beautiful. As I read and learn more about Tim Tebow and his off the field exploits, I see the beauty he brings into the world. And as I close this post, I pray that he, and you, and I can grow in our love and service for others.

National Human Trafficking Awareness Day 2012

For the last three years, I have written a post about National Human Trafficking Awareness Day. And as I write a post about the day this year, I'm excited about the growing number of people who are committing their time and efforts toward working toward an end to human trafficking, and for the steps taken last year to eradicate modern day slavery.

Just a week ago some of my friends attended the Passion Conference in Atlanta, GA. Over 40,000 college students attended the event and raised over $3 million dollars to fight human trafficking. They also made a commitment to work toward the end of human trafficking and modern day slavery. Did you know that there are over 27 million slaves in the world today? Did you know that this is more than at any other point in history?

Numbers like this can be overwhelming, but I would love to share some more positive numbers from an organization my wife and I proudly support, International Justice Mission.

• More than 1600 men, women, and children were rescued from violent oppression, like sex trafficking, forced labor slavery, and illegal detention.
• Nearly 1000 members of Thailand's hill tribes received citizenship documentation critical to protect them from trafficking and other violence.
• More than 100 traffickers, rapists, and other criminals were convicted as a result of IJM casework; hundreds more were charged or face trial.
• More than 4000 men, women and children were served by IJM aftercare.
• A dozen bars and brothels were ordered to shut down permanently for human trafficking crimes.

But there is more work to be done. Will you consider taking a step this year to help bring an end to human trafficking?

• Support an anti-slavery or anti-trafficking organization like IJM, Not For Sale, or Polaris Project.
• Write your congressional representatives and encourage them to support the Trafficking Victims Protection Reauthorization Act of 2011 and other anti-slavery and anti-trafficking legislation.
• Commit to learn more about the issue. There are tons of resources on the web, and if you can make time to visit, I highly recommend a trip to the Freedom Center in Cincinnati, OH.
• Also, if you suspect a potential slavery or trafficking operation happening in your community, report it to the National Human Trafficking Hotline.

May we each take steps this year to help make this world a better place.

As The Sun Prepares to Rise on Another Year

Today I'm sitting in a Starbucks in Morgantown, WV, far from the view pictured above. I just finished a brief conversation with one of my old roommates, Joel Setal, and started re-reading a really cool book my friend Pavi suggested to me a few years ago. The book is called The Sabbath by Abraham Joshua Heschel. I highly recommend it.

Earlier today, Jamie and I took a walk across town to get a little exercise, and because she is going through orientation for a new part-time job. She's going to be teaching aquatics classes at a local fitness and rehabilitation center called Healthworks. I'm excited for her to launch into this new endeavor because I think she is incredibly gifted in both aquatics and with people. Her bosses are being incredibly flexible with her, and have built into her schedule time off to travel with me when I need to be on the road for Nuru.

This year has been incredible, and in the near future, I'm looking forward to posting more details and highlights from the last twelve months. Life seems like it has been speeding up steadily over the last twelve months, and one of my passions that has suffered has been my blog. This year marks the fewest posts I have been able to put up on this blog since I started it in 2005. It's probably the fewest since the first year I started blogging which was 2003 (Unfortunately, those old blog posts are no longer available--the site was taken away).

Over the next couple of days, I'm hoping to spend some extended time writing, praying, reflecting, planning, and resting as I prepare to welcome in the new year. Jamie and I have had a wonderful holiday season, and have had the privilege of being able to spend quality time with many members of our family, as well as many friends. I think we are both just craving more time with everyone (including the people we didn't get to see). As much as technology has made our use of time more efficient, and opened up opportunities that were never before possible for staying connected, I find myself always craving more time with people.

I imagine that craving will never be satisfied on this side of the veil, and I imagine I'm not alone in my craving. As 2011 winds to it's end, and the sun rises on a new year, my hope is that you and I will be able to savor every moment, and make the most of the time you and I have been given.

Prophet's Rock

During my visit to the village of Tippecanoe, a local told me about a place where Tenskwatawa was supposed to have gone to pray and to encourage the members of the confederacy. I'm sure that Tenskwatawa visited this place, as did his brother Tecumseh.

In light of my last post and Willie's statement about a Shawnee walking through this area 200 years after the battle, it was kind of cool to stand atop this rock, look out on what would have been the site of the Tippecanoe (Prophetstown) village, and think about what once was, as well as think about what 200 years hold for all of us on this planet.

I thought you might enjoy seeing some of these photos and taking a moment to imagine what this part of the world might have looked like 200 years ago. Imagine traditional home structures that represented a wide array of cultures (tipis, wickiwas, longhouses, and more).  Imagine large agricultural plots to meet the food needs of a diverse village. Imagine a community rallying together to maintain some semblance of a traditional way of life and a heritage.

It was a rainy day in Tippecanoe, and I am grateful for the ability to walk in this place as well as for the ability to imagine a different world. I think that this is one of the great gifts we have been given, not only do we have the ability ot imagine what the past was like, but we have the ability to imagine, and be active participants in creating a future world, and playing our part to make this world a better place for future generations.

The Battle of Tippecanoe: 200 Years Later

On my way back from a recent trip to Columbus, Cincinnati, and Chicago for Nuru, I had an opportunity to stop at Prophetstown State Park and the location of the Battle of Tippecanoe. I have for a long time wanted to visit this site where Tecumseh and his brother were beginning to build a confederacy of American Indian tribes to resist the encroachment of western settlers into Indian territory. Over the last several years, I have made it a point to visit historic and sacred sites for my tribe with members of my family and tribe.

It was a bit ironic to me as Jamie and I took a break from our long drive to visit this historic site. The date we visited was November 7th, 2011--exactly 200 years to the day of the original battle. It appeared there were a number of people who came out for the weekend to commemorate and remember the combatants (based on the number of re-enactors I saw dressed as militia people walking around the grounds).

So a bit about the significance of the battle for me. My family is Shawnee. Tecumseh and his brother were also Shawnee. Tecumseh is seen by many as one of the greatest orators and military leaders in history. He and his brother had begun assembling an array of people from tribes all over North America to stand as a united front against the illegal encroachments of settlers into Indian territory. Not only was Tecumseh a brilliant orator and military strategist, he was also an astute diplomat and a champion of justice. He's one of my personal historic heroes, and holds a special place in the hearts and minds of all Shawnee people.

For every good thing that Tecumseh represented, his brother Tenskwatawa was the anti-thesis. In early November 1811, while Tecumseh was speaking to tribes in the southeastern United States to encourage them to join this confederacy, his brother was making claims to great power, influence, and medicine. And a young American leader named William Henry Harrison began driving a militia group to encamp near Prophetstown, the gathering place of Tecumseh's confederacy. Tenskwatawa told the gathered people in his village that if they attacked Harrison and his men, they would become bulletproof, and the bullets in the rifle's of Harrison's men would roll out of their barrels and turn to dust.

But that's not how it happened. Tenskwatawa rallied people to fight and early in the morning, they attacked Harrison's camp. Harrison and his men were ready. They routed the poorly executed attack of the confederacy (without their leader, Tecumseh), and destroyed Tecumseh's dream of a massive confederacy. It also secured Harrison's political future and he later became president of the United States.

As I stood at the site of the battle, I was overcome with emotion. I can't quite describe it. I began bawling my eyes out when I thought about the lives lost in this place, and the possibilities of a different future for shawnee people that were shattered during this event. After spending a couple hours walking around the battle ground and memorials with Jamie, we proceeded to drive to Columbus, OH where I was able to share the whole experience with my best friend in the whole world, Willie, who is also a member of my tribe.

He had really cool insight for me as I told him about the great sadness I felt standing in that place. He said, "You know, nobody who had been there for that battle could have possibly imagined that there would be a Shawnee walking over that land two hundred years later." His comment put things in a little better perspective for me. It was a bright spot of a different sort. It was a reminder of the power of perseverance.

In my tribe, we have a song called Itcheepon. As I walked the battlefield on November 7th, 2011, I found myself singing it. I'd like to share one of the verses here.

"Now you think that we're gone.
Look around you! Hear my song!
Aren't the skies still blue? Don't the rivers run?
We're still here on Itcheepon.

And as I close this reflection, I'm encouraged in the middle of walking through such a sad place, because there are still Shawnee people walking on this earth. Things look different than could have been even imagined two-hundred years ago, but we are still here. HeYa!

Thanksgiving Reflections

Last Friday while looking out the window at Lake Floyd I enjoyed a brief period of reflection from one of the many places Jamie and I are thankful to call home. We've been incredibly blessed with loving families, with a wonderful community, and with each other.

More than this, we have been able to give our time and energy to meaningful work, to loving our neighbors, and toward a way of living that attempts to scratch the surface of the beautiful way of Jesus of Nazareth.


Today I slept in, and stayed away from the special sales, the shortages, the lines, and the hustle and bustle. As G. K. Chesterton once said, "There are two ways to get enough: one is to continue to accumulate more and more. The other is to desire less. There are many "things" that we can acquire, and, living in this period of amazing innovations, those 'things' can be pretty cool, but they pale in comparison to the people with whom we get to spend our lives.

Each year at Thanksgiving, whether I write about it or not, I try to carve out some time to look at just a few of the blessings I have received in this relatively short life. I actually try to do this more often than thanksgiving just because I think there is a value in seeing how much we truly have.


We get marketed many times daily and told about so many things that will "make our life better", but my limited experience (I'm still a young learner on the journey of life) tells me that the 'things' that make our life better are not what people lined up at stores for on Friday morning.


Rather, what makes our life better is a dedication to things like work we find meaningful, to people we love, a sense of purpose in our lives, and an opportunity to serve others rather than be served. This is an amazing world in which we live. I believe that it is filled with treasures that we tend to ignore while looking for something more. As the author Annie Dillard once quipped, "It is a poor person indeed who can't stop to pick up a penny." It's not an easy task, especially with so many entities selling us on other ideas of joy and happiness that aren't nearly as satisfying. My temptation is to write explicitly about what some of these treasures are, but I feel like I may never end this post as I start. Besides, I think there is way more excitement and adventure for each of us if we go out into our world with eyes wide open looking to discover what treasures we may be stumbling over just outside our doors or in our everyday routines.


As we are all amid the throes of the holiday season, I hope you are surrounded by people you love, and that you don't take for granted the little treasures that surround you. Stop, pick them up like pennies, and savor the moments of discovery, of laughter, of healing, and of togetherness.

Eleven Eleven Eleven: Veteran's Day 2011

Or maybe I should have entitled this post "One One One One One One."

It’s been a few weeks since I’ve had ample creative space for writing, but my life has not lacked content for consideration. I’m hoping to write more in the near future, and possibly even re-vamp this blog again for the new year. For the last few years I’ve taken advantage of a feature in Facebook that allows my blogs to insert as ‘notes’, but it appears this function will be discontinued in a few days. For anyone who reads my notes on facebook, I apologize for this change. But enough about all of that logistical stuff…

What an interesting Veteran’s Day! Having a number of friends (and a few family members) who have served in the armed forces, In light of the date as well as the holiday (and a day off), I thought this was the perfect storm for creating a blog post.

First a little bit of history. Veteran’s Day was originally called Armistice day, and it was a day celebrating the end of World War I. It was intended to mark the eleventh hour of the eleventh day of the eleventh month. And here we are today marking the eleventh hour of the eleventh day of the eleventh month during the eleventh year of the century. 

Armistice Day was changed to Veteran’s Day in the 1950s as a way to honor the lives of all of those who served in our nation’s armed forces, and not just those who served during World War I.

And today, as I think about my friends and family who have served in various branches of the military, of course I feel compelled to share the story of my friend Jake.

If you have been following my blog for a while, then you are probably familiar with Jake’s story, but if not, let me tell you a bit. Jake and I lived in the dorms together at WVU, and after his sophomore year, he left WVU to attend the United States Naval Academy. He graduated with top honors, was captain of the rugby team, and went on to serve in the Marine Corps as well as a special operations unit called Force Recon. During his time as a platoon commander, he saw a connection between terrorism, insurgency, and extreme poverty and this led him to Stanford University, where he pursued the creation of a non-profit with a new approach to fighting extreme poverty called Nuru International.

Of course those who know me know I’ve been passionate about this work from the moment I first heard about Jake’s research at Stanford. I’m honored to call him my friend, and I’m thankful for the life of service that he has embodied. I featured a video that I’ve shared in the past of him sharing his story. It is a story of his first hand experiences in combat as well as a vision for a world in which our global neighbors living in extreme poverty have the choice to determine their future. 

As I sit in a Starbucks with my wife enjoying a pot of French pressed coffee and write this post on this intriguing date, I am a bit overwhelmed. I'm overwhelmed at the work we have before us to help forge a better world. I'm overwhelmed at the potential we have with the tools, knowledge, and resources we have at our fingertips. And I'm overwhelmed at all of those one's in today's date. 

When we start counting, we start with the number one. If I look at this date as a series of ones instead of a series of elevens, I can't help but think about new starts, like the new start my buddy Jake had when he ventured into grad-school focused on ending extreme poverty. Or the new start that so many people journey into when they start the new year.

And when we think about the term the "eleventh hour" it reminds us of the urgency with which an undertaking needs to be commenced. Today, on Veteran's Day 2011, I feel like there is something beyond the federal holiday to consider, and that something is a new beginning that is taken on with great urgency. 

May we all take a moment to pause, reflect on our lives, and consider this an opportunity for a new start to be commenced with great urgency, and may we all be part of leaving a legacy and building a better world for generations to come as we seek to do justice in this world. 

Invisible Children, Advocacy, and President Obama's Action Against the LRA

The year 2005 was an incredibly significant year for me. In 2005, I resigned as a chief of my tribe, I had my eyes opened in a life and career altering way to the issue of extreme poverty, and I was first exposed to an organization called Invisible Children.

My friend Dave Williams, who at the time was working with me as a leader in a summer-long character based leadership development program in Orlando Florida, shared a website with me. On the site, I was exposed to the brutality of child-soldiers in northern Uganda, and I saw the beginnings of one of the most impressive grassroots advocacy movements of young people I have ever witnessed, and I was thoroughly inspired. Less than a year later, representatives of Invisible Children visited the campus of WVU, and dozens in Morgantown and thousands around the country participated in a global night commute in solidarity with children in northern Uganda.

This organization, has catalyzed thousands of young people to take action against global atrocities like the work of Joseph Kony and the LRA in Uganda. I have met many people who trace back their beginnings of advocacy, justice, and community service work to their exposure to Invisible Children. Some of my closest friends have participated multiple times in some of this organization's awareness campaigns. These campaigns were designed to bring more than awareness. They awoke a desire in many for a different kind of world. 

Invisible Children, through one of their campaigns, came on Oprah Winfrey's radar, and because of that, came on the radar of millions. They have partnered with many other organizations and agencies, and have encouraged people to write their congressional representatives to take action to end the reign of terror caused by the LRA in Africa. It was because of Invisible Children that I wrote my first letter as a concerned citizen to Robert C. Byrd and Jay Rockefeller, my state's Senators at the time. They encouraged a lobby day in DC that saw over 1000 grassroots lobbyists travel to our nation's capital to advocate for a bill of which Invisible Children played a strong role in its initiation.

And now, President Obama has authorized 100 military advisors to travel to Africa to help local militaries bring an end to 26 years of terror, atrocities, and the abduction of 1000s of children who have been forced to become soldiers. I believe that Invisible Children has played a huge role in encouraging young people to participate in our government's processes, and I believe that for many, it has restored a belief that they can make a difference in this world, they have a voice that can be heard, and they have a role to play as citizen participants in our government as well as in bettering this world.

Who is the LRA from INVISIBLE CHILDREN on Vimeo.

Today, remember that you have a voice, and you have an incredible opportunity to good in this world, and to help make the world a better place--don't take it for granted!

Nuru International Partners with Sevenly T-shirts To Support Rural Farmers On World Food Day

As part of observation of World Food Day, through October 16, Nuru International is proud to partner with the Sevenly T-shirt Company to raise funds and awareness for Nuru’s agricultural program in Kuria Kenya.  For every Sevenly shirt sold, the t-shirt company will donate $7 toward Nuru’s work to equip poor farmers with the tools and knowledge they need to lead their communities out of extreme poverty. Sevenly’s mission is to raise funds and awareness for the world’s greatest causes, and at Nuru folks are excited to be featured for their campaign this week in conjunction with World Food Day.

Nuru’s agricultural program is a linchpin for it's holistic model. We based this model on an incredibly successful model that we witnessed from one of our partner organizations, One Acre Fund. At Nuru, we pursue a holistic approach to international development that capitalizes on synergies developed by simultaneously attacking multiple issues that lead to systemic extreme poverty. For example, most families in remote, rural areas farm their own land. We train farmers to increase their harvest using the best agricultural means available. An increased harvest means they will have enough food to feed their families and surplus to sell; with the money earned, families are then able to save for the future and afford healthcare interventions for their family, education for their children, and necessities for their home, like a latrine.

This year, millions of families in East Africa are suffering because of a horrible drought, but amid the drought, Nuru farmers who have participated in our agriculture programs, while producing a lower yield this season, still have enough food to feed their families, pay back their loan of inputs, and generate revenue from the sale of surplus maize. In a recent blog post, Nuru’s CEO, and agricultural program manager, Jake Harriman gave further detail about what these interventions mean for farmers in Kenya. Since Nuru’s inception, it's  agricultural program has enrolled over 2000 families as well as loaned or sold over 40 tons of maize seed and 400 tons of fertilizer. Farmers have seen an increase in yield of 250% and Nuru boasts a 98% repayment rate on loans disbursed.

It is incredible that Nuru  is able to participate with Sevenly’s T-shirt program during the week of World Food Day, because this offers many an opportunity to take tangible steps to alleviate hunger as part of a greater vision to end extreme poverty in remote rural areas. Will you join us in our efforts to engage more people in this work? Here are a few suggestions from the World Food Day website. Join with Nuru, and take a tangible step toward a world in which people who live in extreme poverty have the choice to determine their future.

Also, if you would like to buy this Sevenly t-shirt, you only have a few hours left...sales discontinue at 12PM EST Monday October 17th.

Global Handwashing Day

Today is global handwashing day! Now you may be thinking, "What's the big deal about handwashing?" That's probably because you have had the idea of washing your hands with soap drilled into you from a very young age. Remember when you were first learning about this though? Remember your parents telling you that you always needed wash your hands after you go to the bathroom and before you eat to make sure you got rid of dirt? 


I can remember arguing with my parents that my hands weren't dirty because I couldn't see any dirt on them, but through them educating me about germs as well as programs in my school, I learned that there are germs and bacteria which I can't see that I need to try to remove from my hands too.


Handwashing with soap is the most effective and inexpensive way to prevent diarrheal and acute respiratory infections which take the lives of millions of children in the developing world each year.  This habit, could save more lives than any vaccine or other medical intervention, and could cut the number of lives lost each year to diarrhea by almost half!


There is a ton of publicity around initiatives to provide clean drinking water to our global neighbors who are living in extreme poverty, but there is also a huge need for interventions like handwashing stations and the use of soap after going to the bathroom and before eating. Water and sanitation hygiene, according to Unicef, is a key ingredient necessary to make international development possible. At Nuru, our holistic approach to tackling poverty has enabled us to tackle several problems at once and overlap solutions between different program areas. A great example emerges in handwashing. Our water and sanitation team has been developing low-cost handwashing stations that can be constructed, and sold to individual families at a very low cost, and then revenues generated from the sale of these stations can be used to maintain and grow our water and sanitation program. At the same time, our community health workers travel through villages and reinforce the concept of handwashing to save lives by visiting individual homes and providing education on why handwashing is important. As they travel, tehy also bring soap and other commodities to these homes and sell them for a low cost. This easy access to soap, along with handwashing stations, and education on why both are important when it comes to reducing sickness and the mortality rate of children under five are making a huge difference in the communities where Nuru works!


The video I shared here is a recording of testing an early prototype handwashing station for durability. To read more about this prototype click here. Global handwashing day is focused particularly on educating children, not only because of their great risk, but also because young people can also be incredible agents for changing behaviors. Their energy and enthusiasm is even more contagious than the pathogens on their hands. Today, as we celebrate global handwashing day, may we together take action to help others, especially children, to live healthier lives!

Breathing in the Creation

This past Sunday, Jamie and I decided we would attempt a little change of pace. Many weekends, we get the privilege of entertaining guests and connecting with friends both old and new, but this Sunday was different. We decided to take a trip to a nearby forest--Cooper's Rock.

In the past, I can remember going rock climbing with my buddy Steve in this park. We probably climbed at least four days each week. As soon as I was out of work at Mylan, we were in the woods. I also have many memories of hiking along a multitude of trails at Coopers Rock with my dad as well as with many of my friends.

Picnics, hiking trips, rock climbing, and just hanging out on an overlook have become a semi-annual tradition for me, and a wonderful part of the Morgantown area that I love to share with visitors.

This sunday was different for me. I haven't been out in the woods that much this year, and I think that time in the creation is something that we all need in our life. Otherwise, we miss out on so many smells, sights, and sounds, and find our only connection to nature is through video or some other media. I love photographs (as you can see above), but a photograph is no substitute for watching sunbeams break through the canopy and illuminate fiddlehead ferns along the forest floor.

I don't know if your work, your school, or your daily routine find you breathing in the beauty and peace of wilderness often, but it is my hope that we can all take some time to enjoy this wonderful world in which we live.

And as an added bonus, if you live in my part of the country, you get the joy of autumn bursts of color and the sound of leaves crunching under your feet real soon.

Wherever you are, may you find time to unplug, unwind, and make your way into the wilderness. Enjoy the fall, and maybe a little sunshine too!

Nuru International Celebrates It’s Third Birthday

It’s really hard to believe it has been three years since Jake, Doug, Janine, and Nicole left the United States and flew for two days to arrive in Nairobi. From there, they hopped in a matatu (bus), and began the eight hour journey toward one of the most remote corners of Kenya, and the nation’s second poorest district (county), Kuria.

I remember when Nuru was just an idea that my friends Jake and John had started contemplating late at night over many cups of coffee. I remember talking with John as Jake was finishing up his first year of grad school at Stanford. His goal, to develop a holistic, sustainable, scalable model to help people who live on less than a dollar a day to lift themselves out of that condition. He wanted the organization to be results oriented with a clear exit strategy, and long term going into some of the most desperate places on earth.

Some ideas are good, but they never get legs and they stay on the drawing board. But Nuru has been different. Virtually everyone we have been able to talk to 'gets' what we are doing, and they want to be part of it. They know that the solution isn’t handouts or isolated interventions. They know from their own experience that when they have been equipped with tools and knowledge, they have been able to do amazing things, and the story has the potential to develop in the same way anywhere in the world.

Three years ago, there were a handful of people in Kenya who were willing to trust and collaborate together with Jake, Nicole, Janine, and later others. And now, there are over 10,000 people who have been able to experience lasting positive change in their community as a result of their own community’s leadership and willingness to work together to forge a better future for people in their own community and beyond.

And back here in the States, there has existed a small skeleton of staff, and a growing number of volunteers, advocates, investors, and supporters who see the condition of our global neighbors and have been inspired to act. Again, I remember when Nuru’s grassroots movement was composed of a handful of activist in the hills of Appalachia who believed together that we could change the world and make a significant impact in ending extreme poverty, together, one community at a time.

Now, there are literally thousands of people who have joined Nuru’s work. They follow us on twitter, friend us on facebook, tell their friends and neighbors, and invest their time and money into inspiring others to confront the greatest humanitarian crisis of our generation—extreme poverty. Together, we have taken Nuru’s story to other organizations, to schools, churches, and to our workplaces. We’ve reminded people that there is hope, and they have an incredible opportunity to join with us in this work. And, they have joined us, and together, we are becoming a movement, an unstoppable force, a revolution, as we work to make a lasting impact in the world.

As Nuru celebrates its third birthday, I am grateful for the opportunity to work together with so many. I’m grateful that we have a panoply of significant and incremental successes that we can celebrate. But more than this, I’m excited for the future. We have learned so much over these last three years. We have become more focused in our efforts, and we have had a steadily increasing impact in our work. Together, I believe we can change the world.

As Jake so often says, may we continue to ‘stay in the fight’ and see even more of our global neighbors have lives filled with opportunity and choice instead of desperation. Together, we are ending extreme poverty, one community at a time. Thanks for being Nuru together with us wherever you are in the world. Your contribution is more significant than you know!

And as a small gesture, I want to make a birthday wish request of you. Will you share this video with at least three of your friends, and let them see some of what we have been able to accomplish together over the last three years?

Thanks for being Nuru!

Nuru International and Hunger In East Africa

It’s kind of hard to get our minds around a drought and what it means for people living in extreme poverty when we live in the United States. I think it’s hard because many of us have lost the connection between the weather and our food. It’s hard for us to imagine arrival at a supermarket and finding the shelves empty because food isn’t being produced. Imagine, walking through the produce section and seeing people fighting over the last small bag of potatoes, because nobody is sure when or if there will be another shipment arriving soon.

For 70% of the world’s extreme poor, they live in remote rural areas. There are no supermarkets insuring that there won’t be a shortage of food to eat. Instead, they rely on the land and work to the best of their ability to insure that their families have food to eat. And right now, there are millions in the Horn of Africa who are starving because of a drought, and because before the drought they lacked access to life-changing tools and knowledge.

Even in Kuria, Kenya where Nuru works, farmers have been affected by the drought. My friend Jake recently shared about a walk he took with a Nuru Agricultural Field Manager, James about the impact of the drought in Kuria. Nuru farmers have seen a decrease in yield of 20-30% on average, but thankfully, they still have enough food to feed their families and pay back the loan of seed and fertilizer they received at the beginning of the season. 

Other farmers did not fair so well. On the same walk, Jake and James came across a Nuru farmer’s fields and they were filled with maize that stood ten feet high.  Next to this field was a field with maize that stood 2-3 feet high and many of the plants didn’t have maize on them at all. James commented to Jake, “The drought has come again to Kenya. There will be hunger here. There will be so many this season.” James eyes grew more and more sad as he and Jake talked next to these fields.

The World Food Programme has noted that about 13 million people will be affected by drought in Somalia alone. This famine is absolutely overwhelming. It’s utterly heartbreaking, and yet, it is so difficult to imagine that in today’s world there are people who are literally starving to death.

It doesn’t have to be this way. As I mentioned before, over 10,000 people who are participating in Nuru’s agricultural programs are beginning to turn the tide.  They were trained in best practices for growing maize, took out Nuru agricultural loans, and have enough to feed their families and pay back their loans.  Programs like Nuru’s are allowing our neighbors who are living in extreme poverty to bring about lasting change through simple, scalable and sustainable ideas that can literally save lives.