Allowing poverty to go on is a crime.

Internet Monk, Mark Driscoll on Stay at Home dads. Driscoll says Yes! IM says No!  What do you think?

From the 9 Marks blog "3 Books Church Planters should read". Interesting that none of them are specific to church planting.  I am pleased to say that I have read 40% of these books (6/15) - better than previous lists!  Although 53% (8/15) of them I do own.

As my policy is to always try to learn from others I have chosen one (out of 2) of those I already own but have not read John Murray's Redemption Accomplished and Applied to read.

9 Marks also has some helpful stuff on how to continue growing in your theological study when time is tight.

Tall Skinny Kiwi has a great challenge: "Blog Action Day is an opportunity to blog about poverty. Start thinking about what you would like to SAY and DO for October 15" I just joined up.

Let God be God of your church plant (HT: Church Planting Novice)

Tim Chester's "church planting movement" series just gets better.  The next installment: An Apostolic Pattern.

Tom Smith challenges us to see stories rather than numbers as a measure of how healthy our church plant is. (HT: Scot McKnight)

The blog topic for Blog Action Day on Wednesday Oct. 15th is poverty. One thing we could blog about locally is the dire situation at the Atlanta Community Food Bank (ACFB). A story from WABE/GPB on just how bad it is for the ACFB is here.

And watch this blog, Mostly Media, for more on what we here in Atlanta can do/blog about on Blog Action Day, or whenever you darn well feel like it, to address the issue of poverty in our own backyard.

Add your blog. Add your voice. Add your action!

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Next week I will be participating in Blog Action Day 08.

Bloggers across the world will unite and do what is necessary to spread the word about poverty and create creative solutions to fight this unfortunate reality. If you blog I would encourage you to sign-up and share your story.

I think I'm better at designing things for other people than for myself. I'm far too picky. Also, I don't know what I want.

I'm participating in Blog Action Day 08.

You should think about it.

Net zoals vorig jaar doe ik ook nu weer mee met de Blog Action Day. Toen schreef ik één van mijn succesvolste posts ooit (en daar zal de titel wel ergens voor tussen zitten) over milieuproblematiek. Voor deze editie is het onderwerp armoede en ik ben nog volop aan het brainstormen. De 15de is de dag.

Oja, voor ik het vergeet: doe ook maar mee!

Das diesjährige Thema: Armut. Und dazu tausende von Stimmen. Der Lieblingsplätze-Blog ist wieder dabei, wer noch?

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Oh - but you can! I know that it is all too easy to be overwhelmed, humbled even, by the magnitude of the world - its problems and its beauties - and to realize just how insignificant we are in the vast scheme of things.

And it is just this 'frozen-rabbit-caught-in-the-glare-of-the-headlights' kind of attitude that can render us all into gibbering idiots. And we give up - right there and then.

But if we all sat around thinking that we couldn't change things - then things would never change. And we would still be gnawing raw meat off bones in damp caves somewhere. (I, for one, am happy not to have to do this!)

So, what am I trying to say here? (Mmmm... good question!) I think I'm trying to say that we can all make a difference, no matter how small. Because if you put all those small things together, then they can add up to a huge heap of good stuff. We can help make a difference - one baby step at a time.

That is why I have decided to take part in what I hope wlll be a massive global action to make things better.

I like to think that my little blog, together with thousands of others also focusing on the global, complex issue of poverty, will really put its money where its mouth is (that conjures up a weird picture, doesn't it?) in its own modest, small way.

I know that many of you out there have often posed the question of what you and your blog can do to help others. Well, this at least, is a start. That is why I have registered my blog and on October 15, that's next Wednesday folks, I'll be writing something personal about poverty.

And I'll be donating money for every reader who views the post and - even more money if you leave me a comment that day. So, you can even PRETEND to read what I write and still contribute... (Note to self: must warn Sir Pe to save all his loose coins!)

You can accuse me of viewing the world through rose-tinted spectacles. Call me an idealist and laugh at me. Mock me for giving away some hard-earned money.

But I can live with that. As long as you check in on Wednesday October 15th and mock me publicly then.

Can we call it a date?

I have to admit that I was intrigued by the idea.  If you're unfamiliar with what Blog Action Day is and what it focuses on, here's an exerpt from the Blog Action Day website.

First and last, the purpose of Blog Action Day is to create a discussion. We ask bloggers to take a single day out of their schedule and focus it on an important issue.

By doing so on the same day, the blogging community effectively changes the conversation on the web and focuses audiences around the globe on that issue.

Out of this discussion naturally flow actions, advice, ideas, plans, and empowerment. In 2007 on the theme of the Environment, we saw bloggers running environmental experiments, detailing innovative ideas on creating sustainable practices and focusing audience’s attentions on organizations and companies promoting green agendas. In 2008 we aim to again focus the blogging community’s energies and passions, this time on the mammoth issue of global poverty.

This year, the focus for Blog Action Day is poverty, which is an issue that affects the globe.  Blog Action Day seeks to get the online community discussing this important issue and engaging people in various forms (blogs, vlogs, etc.).  Once you engage the online community in discussion about this topic, it will reverberate throughout the Internet, and 1) Bring this issue to light to many people 2) Possibly prompt people to act in some way, in order to deal with the problem.

If you would like more information on Blog Action Day, click on the link below.

Blog Action Day 2008 - Poverty

If you have a blog/vlog/website/podcast etc., and you want to participate, be sure to register your blog with Blog Action Day so that the organization can keep track of who is participating in the event.  It's definitely a worthwhile event to take part in and definitely a great idea to engage your readers and the online community at large on such an important issue.

So don't forget to mark the date October 15, 2008 on your calendar.  Because that's the day you're going to be part of an online global movement.

To inspire bloggers across the nation to participate, World Vision Australia is running a contest (here) to see who can write, draw, record and share the most compelling message about global poverty.

With the help of Amnesia, Yahoo!7 and Google, the grand prize winners of the WVA contest will be flown to Sydney for an exclusive digital training day with each of the above. It even includes an hour of time getting hands on with one of the only Microsoft Surface tables in Australia here at Amnesia.

So don't be a passive observer. 
1. GET INVOLVED  with Blog Action Day and REGISTER (HERE)
2. Submit your link in the comments of the page above (HERE)

http://learnaboutpoverty.org/2008/10/09/blog-action-day-competition/

Blog Action Day 2008
Blog Action Day is an annual nonprofit event that aims to unite the world’s bloggers, podcasters and videocasters, to post about the same issue on the same day. The aim is to raise awareness and trigger a global discussion.

Earth From Above
Aiming to inspire people to think globally about sustainable living, Arthus-Bertrand has been photographing unique views of our planet, seen from the sky, since 1994 - and has produced an exhibit of over 150 4-ft by 6-ft prints.

The Prizes

We have an amazing Digital Training Day prize to give away. The prize includes flights and accommodation to Sydney, where you will be whisked around the offices of the most innovative web companies in Australia (and the world).

First prize (courtesy of Amnesia, Google and Yahoo7)

1st Session (10:30 - 11:30am) Microsoft Surface
Spend an hour with the only Microsoft Surface machine and experts in Australia.

2nd Session (11:45 - 1pm) Digital Strategy & Creative
Learn about the trends and attitudes that drive Amnesia - one of the premier digital agencies in the Asia-Pacific region.

3rd Session (2pm – 3pm) Yahoo!7 SEO Training
Tutorial with Yahoo!7’s SEO and SEM expert.

4th Session (3:30-5pm) Google Australia
Finish off the day at Google’s Sydney office. Dialogue session with digital experts at Google Australia.

2nd and 3rd Prize (Courtesy of the www.nowwearetalking.com.au, Telstra's blog)

An Apple iPhone pay-as-you-go with $100 credit on the Telstra network.

The Competition

To put yourself in the running for the Digital Training Day and the iPhone all you have to do is:
1) Register your blog at http://blogactionday.org
2) Write your blog post
3) Submit a link to your post in the comments section of THIS POST to be considered for the prizes

The winner will be the person who writes the most insightful post about poverty (as judged by Steve and Joely at World Vision). Remember, to enter you must include a link to your post in the comments section below.

If you’re wondering what your blog has to say about poverty, there are some excellent resources at  http://blogactionday.org  and http://learnaboutpoverty.org. Here are some suggestions to get you started:

• A Design Blog might analyse a set of charity posters and how they convey their message
• A Tech Blog might look at pro-poor technologies and projects like 1 Laptop Per Child
• A Political Blog might examine the relevant agendas of leading candidates
• A Sports Blog might look at recent charity activities of a major sports franchise
• A Business Blog might discuss how businesses can utilize ethical practices to boost their bottom line
• A Celebrity Blog might write up a who’s who of celebrity causes and how their participation impacts those causes
• A Movie Blog might create a list of the best documentaries relating to issues on poverty
• A Personal Blog might document a personal activity of the blogger that is helping the disadvantaged
Our hope is that you will be able to have a real discussion about poverty with your readers, to raise awareness and begin driving change across the globe.

Terms and Conditions

Prize fulfilment date: Wednesday, October 29th, 2008. Flights from Australian capital cities and accommodation included. This is non-negotiable, so you need to be free this day to collect your prize!

Prizes courtesy of: It’s important to note that we secured these amazing prizes courtesy of our incredible friends at Amnesia, Google, Yahoo!7 and Telstra’s nowwearetalking blog.

Australia only: If you're an international reader, we really want to see what you have been writing and encourage you to join the discussion by logging your post in the comments section. Unfortunately, for the international readers, the prize is only for those bloggers currently living in Australia. But that's no reason not to share, is it?

Get to the airport: The successful winner will need to get themselves to their closest major domestic airport. Once you’re there we’ll take care of the rest and get you to Sydney.

Judges decision is final: Obviously, in this case, what say goes and the judges decision is final. We hope you understand but it's going to be hard to judge given the quality of posts we are expecting!

About World Vision

World Vision provides relief in emergency situations. We work on long-term development projects with local communities to address the causes of poverty and help them become self-sufficient.

We focus on driving change through relief and development, advocacy and relief. We define “development” not just as a higher material standard of living, but as a process of poor people taking control of their situations, identifying their most critical needs, and working together to find solutions. In this way people can transform their lives.

In this kind of development process, people discover the barriers that prevent them from moving towards a better future. This helps them to deal not only with immediate problems, like malnutrition and disease, but with underlying causes such as unemployment, illiteracy, landlessness and dependency.

We are participating in Blog Action Day because of its amazing ability to help us achieve our goals towards eradicating global poverty. We look forwards to chatting with you more through-out the day, and beyond!

About Blog Action Day

Blog Action Day is an annual nonprofit event that aims to unite the world’s bloggers, podcasters and videocasters, to post about the same issue on the same day. Out of this discussion naturally flow actions, advice, ideas, plans, and empowerment. Blog Action Day is about mass participation. Anyone is free to join in on Blog Action Day and there is no limit on the number of posts, the type of posts or the direction of thoughts and opinions.

Note: You can double your chances by entering the competition at Problogger, where there is another seat at the Digital Training Day up for grabs! See this link for entry details.

Лучший способ участвовать - опубликовать у себя в блоге заметку, подкаст или видео по заявленной тематике.