Greg Atkinson

My friend (we went to college together), Shawn Wood, Communication Pastor at Seacoast Church just blogged about the company they use for outsourcing work: OvernightPrints.com. Shawn said, “For anything near the 500 pieces mark (most of the time even the 250 piece mark) their prices are better than printing in-house on our copier and beat Kinkos et. al. by a ton! And their quality is out of this world for the price!” Check out his blog for more of his thoughts on OvernightPrints.com.

EXTRA FROM SERMONSPICE:

Get 3 illustrations or 2 countdowns for only $10 (this special ends today). Also, get any 2 “The Work of the People” videos – two for the price of one. Check it out HERE.

Kent, from Bombay Creative and ChurchRelevance, told me about Oaktreeidea. What is Oaktreeidea? Here’s the description from their website:

Oaktreeidea is not your average online social community. If you want to make a real difference in the world, then our site is for you. We have built the site for the innovators, the out-of-box thinkers, the emerging churches, the creative people and those living life with purpose, passion and meaning.

Use our site to: meet others, inspire, collaborate, to reach out, make a positive impact in your community, introduce your ministry to the world, to show God’s love, to give hope to others, and to promote any other positive world changing endeavor you may have.

The founders of Oaktreeidea.com originally founded the site to facilitate the exchange of prayers and encouragement to and from people all across the world. As the site grew, the staff realized that there was a much bigger need than just our humble beginnings as a Hope Exchange. Christians, and the greater online community, were looking for an online environment that was creative, cutting edge and comfortable. This is when our staff began to work on what we called “Oaktree Idea.”

The new Oaktreeidea.com seeks to bring people together that have a passion for God, life, community, and have the drive and urgency to make a difference in this world. The site is also geared for those that are seeking direction in their life and want to learn more about the Christian faith. We want to be a gathering place for the purpose driven, the innovators, the difference makers and the ones that want to leave their stamp on the world. Our hope is that the new site will foster creativity and innovation in the world and be the launching pad for the next great idea that will leave a positive impact on the world.

BONUS:

Want a FREE Thanksgiving looping background? Igniter Media Group has got you covered. Just go their homepage and click on “Free Download”.

MORE THANKSGIVING RESOURCES:

Check out “Thanks Backs” from Wasteland Media in the WorshipHouse Media seasonal store. These new seasonal backgrounds (many are good for all Fall and Winter) are available in standard size (800×600) and in wide format (1280×720).

Daylight Savings Time ends this weekend. Don’t forget to “fall back” and enjoy an extra hour of sleep on Sunday morning. Gotta love it!

I blogged before about YouSendIt.com, which I’ve used for quite sometime to send and receive large files via email. I’ve been working on my annual “Christmas Media Review” lately and receiving new content from tons of producers. One recently used Dropload to send me their files. I had never heard of Dropload, but they’re worth checking out. YouSendIt is SO busy that it sometimes takes forever to upload something.

The “Live Audio Basics” course teaches practical, useful tips and techniques from the ground up with the “ordinary guy/gal” in mind. It covers the technical basics; signal path, microphones, equalization, etc. But just as important it covers things that are not just technical explanations, but “real world” topics like the personality differences between musicians and technicians, or the best and most effective way to communicate to the musicians on stage from behind the console.

This DVD includes a FREE BONUS RESOURCE CD-ROM full of vital information to help you reach that ‘next level’. Stay organized and inspired with these useful PDF print outs which include input lists, stage plots, signal path diagrams and a whole lot more.

Also included in this package is a FREE CD-ROM GAME “Audio Engineer Challenge” which allows you, the ‘contestant’, to answer a series of questions that when answered correctly eventually reaches the golden million point question that gives you the title ‘Audio Engineer’. Wow.

Phil Cooke just asked Chris Perry, the Art Director for numerous major companies, as well as Hillsong in Australia, and many Cooke Pictures clients, for some tips on good design. Below are the highlights. Click HERE for the full article.

1. Clear communication.
2. Application of standard artistic visual principles.
3. Use good quality images — both photographs and footage.
4. Establish a hierarchy of information.
5. Consistency.

BONUS:

Looking for a job in religious media, or know someone who is? Check out the NEW employment area at PhilCooke.com. They’ll keep you updated on media and production positions at major churches, ministries, networks, and other non-profit media organizations.

MORE ON SEASONAL RESOURCES:

WorshipHouse just changed their monthly House Collection to a Thanksgiving-themed one from Igniter Media Group. Igniter always does quality work, so besides the price being right ($25), this collection is solid – from a very funny video that we all can relate to, to a cool countdown, to loops and stills – this collection has it all.

My friends at SermonVideos.com are discounting their Christmas stuff through the end of this month. TIL THE END OF OCTOBER, GET THEIR 2005 CHRISTMAS PAK FOR ONLY $24.99. SAVE $15.00 OFF THE REGULAR PRICE. This is a collection that I really pumped up last year and would encourage you to purchase if you don’t already have it. This Pak includes 1 Video Illustration, 2 Countdowns and 10 Looping Motion Backgrounds. NOTE: To get this price, upon checkout, you must use the coupon code: christmas

Also, you may want to check out my weekly column on Monday Morning Insights. This week’s is on Christmas!

Did you tune in this morning? I did. I sat at home in my recliner and watched the morning session at Willow Creek’s A2 Conference – it was awesome. People were texting and emailing questions the whole time. The speakers had laptops up on stage with them and were fielding questions from web viewers, as well as those in the audience.

This is something I’ve been wanting to see happen for a long time. I know CCN has held some interactive seminars, but you had to be at a location where they had a subscription to their satellite service. Also, 2 years ago, I did a Keynote at the Church Media Convention that was supposed to be streaming LIVE via the web, but I think it was premature and there were probably like 10 people watching.

Gentlemen (and women), we now have the technology. During the conference, Dave Schwarz from Dav Productions emailed me to say “hi”. He is one of the guys who produces some of the “next level” stuff for Willow. I look forward to talking more with him to find out about the technology behind things like what they did this morning.

I’ve had ideas stirring in my heart for sometime now about new and better ways to do conferences and continuing education. I’ve had conversations (on phone, via email and face to face) with cutting-edge Kingdom-minded people about ways to change and improve the effectiveness of conferences at the local church. More to come on that in the future.

Speaking of “the future is now”…

The movie “Face Off” has now become a reality. An ethics panel Wednesday approved a London hospital’s plan to carry out what could be the world’s first full-face transplant. Click HERE for the story and watch out for someone may not be who they appear to be! Now imagine hearing the “Mission Impossible” theme music.

For the very first time, a LIVE conference session will be available to you and your team via Web streaming from the Willow Creek Association—this morning, October 25, from 11:15 a.m. to 1:00 p.m. CST.

From the all-new A2 Conference in the Willow Creek auditorium in South Barrington, Illinois—you can experience an interactive session featuring Craig Groeschel and the multi-site and Internet campus of LifeChurch.tv. LifeChurch.tv was one of the pioneers in multi-site ministry and simulcast technology. They now serve more than 17,000 people with 36 weekly worship services in four states.

Through the new A2 interactive conference format, you’ll see video interviews with church leaders and staff, hear an introduction on the what’s and how’s of LifeChurch.tv’s multi-site model, then watch as Craig joins the A2 “Bullpen” for unscripted dialogue with Bill Hybels, Erwin McManus, David Anderson, William VanderBloemen, and others—to get the “story behind the story” and answers to the questions you want asked.

Craig Groeschel is just one of five leaders whose breakthrough church models will be featured at the A2 conference at Willow Creek, October 25-27. The case study format at the A2 experience will serve as a catalyst for dialog and discovery designed to help you think about your church’s unique God-given mission and the strategy you use to reach that goal. Conference sessions and published case studies will be available for purchase on all five of the churches. For more details, call 800-570-9812 or go online to www.willowcreek.com.

Click here to view this session live TODAY at 11:15 a.m. CST. Or, if you can’t view it at that time, the streaming video of the session will also be available on our Web site through Saturday evening, October 28.

If you’re having trouble with the link, please copy and paste the following address into your browser:
http://www.willowcreek.com/conferences/a2video.asp