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If you’re travelling this weekend here’s a timely tip that will help speed up your trip. A new study by the Department of Travel suggests that most traffic congestion problems could be solved with a simple ‘Honk’ of your horn.

(click here if you can’t see the video)

I just added a feature to my blog that I should have added a LONG time ago. This new feature is called Gravatars, which stand for “Globally Recognized Avatars.” Pull that one out at your next dinner party if you want to impress the socks off someone (or let them know how big of a geek your really are).

In simple terms, Gravatar allows you to associate a small photo of yourself so when you comment on a blog your avatar appears. It’s simple and can be set up in less than 2 minutes.

So what are you waiting for? Go get your Gravatar on! Then come back and leave a comment so we can put a face with a name!

Business Week recently ranked Google as the 2nd most innovative company in the US, and for good reason. They have made finding information about absolutely anything as simple as typing in a few keywords.

For example, that piece about Google being in the Business Week Top Innovative Companies list - did did I specifically bookmark that link for this blog post? Nope. Why should I when it takes less than 10 seconds to “Google” it - yes, this generation has turned Google into a verb.

There’s an interesting aspect of Google’s impact on our daily lives. Having so much information available to us so easily has changed the way we remember information.

For example, how many times have you caught yourself typing keywords into Google to get to a specific web site you’ve been to before? I do this all the time no matter how simple the address might be. Even on my blog with a simple web site address like www.bradruggles.com, do you know what my top Google search query is? “Brad Ruggles.” It’s easier for many of my non-RSS readers to Google “Brad Ruggles” than it is to type in my address.

We have subconsciously chosen to remember keywords to type into Google instead of remembering the actual web site we want to go to.

Here’s another quirky Google use. I’ve had a number come up on my caller ID that I don’t recognize and have been able to quickly type the digits into Google and figure out who was calling in time to answer the call.

Not only has this ease of access to information made our lives easier, it’s also made us dependent on it. In this Internet usage survey from 2002, 52% of users said they would go home if their Internet connection died at work.

When was the last time you converted a fraction to decimal without Googling it?

Who bothers to remember information like State or country capitals when it’s a search string away? U.S. Presidents? US to Metrics conversion? Time Zone conversion?

Don’t get me wrong. I’m not calling for the end of easy access to information. Heavens knows that I would be a mess without my Google toolbar, Goog411 or Google SMS. I’m one of the biggest Google fans out there. I’m just curious as to how this will affect the next generation.

There’s no question that Google has allowed us quicker, easier access to information than ever before. But are we really smarter?

What are your thoughts?

There’s a subversion of Christianity in many churches today. This shift in spiritual culture has taken Jesus out of the church and replaced him with a Jesus that’s less demanding. More “consumer-friendly.”

In the words of Voltaire…

“God created us in His own image…and we returned the favor.”

You have only to do a Google image search for “Jesus” to see the Jesus that exists in many churches today. We have the effeminate, “girlie” Jesus, the “homeboy” Jesus. Even the scary, thorny-heart Jesus.

But more disturbing than these popular images of Jesus is the Republican, consumeristic Jesus we find in so many churches.

This Jesus lets you remain comfortable in your suburban lifestyle without worrying about the needs of millions in the world around us.

This Jesus doesn’t challenge us to be outward-focused in our faith but instead focuses on “our needs.” Are we being fed? What are you doing to serve me?

Consumerism is destroying the church from within.  We have taken Jesus out of the church and replaced him with a Jesus we can live with.

In Revelation 3:20 we’re told that Jesus stands at the door and knocks. Traditional Christianity has painted this as an image of Jesus knocking on the heart of the unbeliever but if we read this passage in context we find that this is a letter written to the church. Which begs the question, how did Jesus get outside of the door to begin with?

Take a minute and think about your Jesus. Is he the Jesus we see described in the New Testament? Or have we spent a little too much time creating our version of a Jesus we can live with?

What does your Jesus look like?

For those of you who may not know, I’m a freelance web/graphic designer. You could say I’ve got the skills to pay the bills.

A couple of months ago I wrote a blog post called “How to Tell If You’re A Design Superfreak.” One of my favorite blogs recently ran another post covering the same topic. I picked out a few that I really related to.

If you’re a graphic designer (as I know a lot of my readers happen to be) I’m sure you will identify with these as well.

If not, read them to better understand that eccentric creative person you know.

HOW TO TELL IF YOU’RE A HARDCORE DESIGNER

I just made some amazing burgers the other day (if I do say so myself). Most great dishes I’ve made have come out of experimenting in the kitchen until I find something I like.

We grill a lot during the summer. Burgers are always a family favorite but I usually never throw burgers on the grill without first jazzing them up a bit. Yesterday’s burgers were really outstanding.

Here’s the recipe. I’d love to know what you think if you try it.

Brad Ruggles (almost) World Famous Whiskey Burgers

Ingredients:

• 1 pound ground sirloin hamburger
• 2-3 tablespoons Worcestershire sauce (I prefer Lea & Perrins)
• 1 tablespoon crushed garlic (1/2 tsp garlic powder can be substituted if you don’t have crushed garlic)
• 1/2 teaspoon onion powder
• 1/2 teaspoon liquid smoke
• Salt - season to taste (I like a seasoned salt blend such as Jane’s Krazy Mixed-Up Salt Blend)
• 3 tablespoons Jack Daniels Whiskey (you can experiment with this amount but if you add too much your burgers won’t hold together well on the grill)
• 1 tablespoon brown sugar

Combine all of the ingredients in a bowl and mix it together. I use my hands to mix it since I’ve got to form the patties when I’m done anyway.

You can experiment with the amounts of each of the above ingredients to suit your preference.

Throw your hamburger patties onto a clean, medium heat grill to sear the juices in. Make sure the grill is the appropriate temperature. Too hot, and the burgers will burn on the outside before getting done on the inside. Medium-low to medium heat is best.

Tip: slice an onion in half and use it clean your grill. Run it back and forth like you would a grill brush. The acidity in the onion and the steam created from the water in the onion breaks down the charred gunk and adds an extra flavor to your burgers!

Keep the lid closed while cooking. A closed lid retains heat, shortening the cooking time and thus keeping the burgers moist.

After I flip my burgers I throw a slice of colby jack cheese on and let it melt. You can also add jalapeño slices for an extra kick. Serve these bad boys up with a good beer at your next summer cookout and let the compliments roll in!

This has been a whirlwind week so far! I just finished the Exponential conference - which was amazing (more on that in future posts). Lots of great connections and tons of information to download.

I just arrived at my second conference this week - LeadNow 08. As with the Exponential conference I’m going to wait to blog about what I’m learning until after I get back and have time to collect my thoughts.

In the meantime you can follow along with bite-sized pieces of what I’m hearing on my Twitter feed - www.twitter.com/bradruggles.

I’ve already met some amazing people and I look forward to meeting more while I’m here.

What an amazing week!
What an awesome time to be a church planter!
What a privilege to be a Christ follower!

I had planned on blogging every day from here at Exponential 08 but that doesn’t seem to be working out. I’ve been hearing so much and making so many great connections that it feels like my head is going to explode!

I’m going to take some time after the conference to consolidate all that I’m learning and thinking about into a couple of posts so watch for that this weekend. There are so many exciting things I can’t wait to share with you!

In the meantime you can catch bite-size snippets of what I’m learning/doing and who I’m meeting on my Twitter feed. Follow me there at www.twitter.com/BradRuggles.

I’ve got an exciting week ahead of me. Tomorrow Lisa and I head to Orlando for the Exponential 2008 National New Churches Conference. We’ll be with 2,000 other church planters and leaders listening to speakers like Andy Stanley, Ed Stetzer, Tim Keller & Rick Warren. If you’re going to be there or live in the area let me know so we can hook up.

On Saturday we grabbed some Greek food for a picnic lunch and headed to the beach to enjoy the beautiful bay breeze and Florida sun.

As it turns out, about a thousand other people had the same idea which is fine because I’m a people person and I love being around people. (side note: entirely way too many people wear way too little swim suits for their body type…enough said)

While the girls were playing in the sand I laid on our beach blanket reading unChristian. The guy sitting with his wife ten feet over asked me how I liked the book and we struck up a conversation.

His name was Jorn and as it turns out he was a church planter who had just planted a church in a college town in Pennsylvania a little over a year ago. We had a great conversation about the challenges and rewards of church planting after which he and his wife prayed for Lisa and I.

Out of the thousands of people who hit the beach that day God put us next to another church planter. It’s reassuring when God does the little things to show you that He knows you’re there and He’s watching out for you. I’m excited to see what other God-ordained meetings are in store for me at both of the conferences this week.

“The steps of the godly are directed by the LORD. He delights in every detail of their lives.” Psalms 37:23

Do you see that? My socks got rocked right off my feet! Here’s why:

The Raconteurs Consolers of the Lonely	She & Him Volume One
Adele 19	Bryan Karas Cambridge Songs

Thanks to Tim & Kassie who turned me on to She & Him (and lots of other great music). Thanks to @thelongbrake for the Bryan Karas tip.

Let me know if you get a chance to check any of these albums out and what you think. Any other new artists or albums I should know about? Be sure to leave me a comment and let me know. I think I’m addicted to finding new music.

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