Zepfanman.com (Stylesheets Off Version)

September Words: The Butterfly Effect

"We know that the persons we used to be were nailed to the cross with Jesus. This was done, so that our sinful bodies would no longer be the slaves of sin. We know that sin doesn't have power over dead people.
As surely as we died with Christ, we believe we will also live with him. We know that death no longer has any power over Christ. He died and was raised to life, never again to die."
   ^ Romans 6:6-9 (CEV)

I don't understand why lower budget films like *The Butterfly Effect* aren't more popular than they turn out to be. There should at least be an Oscar or two for the screenplay, directing, or acting in this film; they even casted great Ashton Kutcher lookalikes (ages 7 & 13). I thought it was a great dive into psychology, abuse, love... and time travel! On the flip side, the R rating comes mainly from the unneccessary profanity throughout the film.

New '01 Ranger This Week

Thanks, Tex [shoutout]! Finally found a truck after waiting for the right deal: '01 Ranger. I actually made the deal on Tuesday. I spent the last few days doing (mainly making the mechanic do, I mean) some work on it (new tires, exhaust repairs, fuel filter). Wanted to make sure it was the vehicle I was definitely going to keep before announcing my choice to the world.

JPJ Workin On New Album

"The MAS tour has finished and I shall take a few weeks off to recover.... I hope now to spend the next few months writing and recording for my next solo album and attempt to turn all this inspiration into hard currency whilst the fingers are hot and the brain is buzzing!", says John Paul Jones. Never a dull moment in this man's life; I've always found him to be the most diverse (musically) LZ member.

New P.O.D. CD Releases

10/22 Update: More Truby details and P.O.D. recordings.

August 31st brings the release of "Amazing", the P.O.D. single off the new *Passion of the Christ: Songs* inspired by the movie. Jason Truby of P.O.D. will be releasing an acoustic instrumental album sometime in September - PayableOnDeath.com will be selling it early, before it hits stores later this year. More news articles about *The Passion* CD.

No Quarter DVD: Oct26

The last paragraph of this entry has been crossed out. Since there was so much misinformation about this release until this week, I'm just rewriting the entry! Note the news about Plant and Beck with a new track on the *Roll the Dice* compilation. LZ bonus material is becoming virtually endless: (1) *No Quarter: Unledded* will be released on Oct26. (2) It will be in select Regal E.G. theaters the day before. (3) The *Unledded* CD will be rereleased with extra tracks on the 26th, as well.

Comments Working Again

For some reason, my latest MT-Blacklist upload had a couple of entries that ended up marking EVERY commenter as a spammer. I was all happy that my log file was showing so many blocked spammers.... Thanks to my bro who alerted me about the problem. FYI, you can always use the contact link at the bottom of every page of my website to reach me (okay, bottom of every page with the new design). 'Night!

Good Christian Broadcasts?

I live in the middle of the Bible belt. TBN is disappointing, for the most part. Usually, it is broadcasting a charismatic preacher whose sermons are essentially self-perpetuating, about giving money to their TV ministry... so that the viewer will be blessed? Two alternatives to your typical evangelical programming are a new internet broadcast from Athens by True Love Waits and our own, Woodmont Baptist's Sunday service, broadcast live (mainly in middle Tennessee on ABC, but we've had satellite users all over the world who have written or emailed about being touched by our television broadcast).

Moments in the Life of J. J.

THURS
I'm sitting in the Yale Blvd (Albuquerque) Fuddruckers making website plans on a napkin... again. I just realized that I was at this very restaurant two months ago drawing Movable Type layouts for my new blog. This is a hint as to the solitary travel repetition that my job has to offer. Anyway, this post is for those (including my wife) who ask what I do on the job. For those I haven't talked to in a while, this is an answer to, "What have you been up to?" It is broken up into a typical work day, weekend, and business trip - as if typical is a good description of life's journey for a 23 year old.

I Fancy Google

Nov16 edit: There's a nice Google Cheat Sheet you can print out (thanks to Jake for this link).
Sep15 edit: Blogoscoped given a more useful review.

(Props go to HCD for helping me decide on a not so blasphemous alternative to "I Worship Google")

If you don't already know what Google is, wake up and smell the coffee! Unless you can convince me otherwise, Google is by far the best web search engine out there, and it's only been around for five years; they remind me of 3M because they're such an innovative company. Google Blogoscoped seems to be the most Google obsessed blog (although the page design is really ugly see some constructive criticism in the comment below), but Google itself has a blog now, too. WebmasterWorld is a great forum in general - their search engine section has several Google topics for you to stay current with, as well. Take your time looking through Google Help to see these features and much more:

Zepfanman.com Blog FAQ

Indeed, "blogging" is something many people aren't aware of. Most people don't even know what a blog is, much less how I've integrated one on my own website. I'll update this post from time to time with the most Frequently Asked Questions about the Zepfanman Blog. See About (also a link at the bottom and right sections of every page) for more about the rest of Zepfanman.com.

Missionaries Are Inefficient

That's right, you read correctly. As an evangelical Christian, I feel that the way Americans do missions is a waste of money and people resources.

Of course, it helps to specify what I mean by "missionaries". I'm writing mainly of foreign missionary families who pack up their middle class homes in the U.S. and travel to the third world to try to make a difference. Then they go and ask their U.S. friends and church to send (a lot of) money to support them. Myself included, Americans are too arrogant in their international dealings - we need to trust our brothers and sisters around the world and support them with resources that they don't have.

To digress a little bit, there are some good things about American missionary enterprise. Americans learn to sympathize more with their neighbors around the world. Also, the missionaries themselves get to travel, if that's what they enjoy doing.

Other than that, I believe that there are at least two other, under-utilized, methods for spreading the gospel effectively. The first is actually something anyone can do: discover ministry opportunities nearby; learn about your own communities and the needs around you. My local church actually took a trip to D.C. to help build up a church in an affluent area of town where people had simply missed the need for Christianity [Z]. While my church is in the "Bible belt", I believe that there are projects around here that we could spend more time, money, and prayers on instead.

The other under-utilized method of spreading the gospel is to donate money to "native missionaries". There is a free book available that focused my attention on this effective ministry. Why donate hundreds of dollars to your former neighbor who now lives in Africa when you could donate five dollars to a local missionary in the 10/40 window?

Related: While currently in need of a reformatting and review, see my Spiritual Links section for similar websites.

August Words - What's Your Response?

"A farmer went out to sow his seed.... some fell along the path.... some fell on rocky places.... other seed fell among thorns.... Still other seed fell on good soil."
   ^ Mark 4:3-20 (NIV)

Look closely at verses 14-20 to see what the elements of this parable represent. I often have to look back at my own life and wonder if "other things come in and choke the word, making it unfruitful" (v.19) - am I receiving God's Spirit and the Word but being choked by thorns? FYI, You can cross reference the Parable of the Sower from Matthew and Luke.

Primped Out

This Saturday was definitely a... healthy one, I guess you could say. As a side note, I did get up early and check out a few yard sales where we acquired a new twin bed set and some decent shirts.

The active day started with a trip to the Y at 9:30. Megan and Mandy were going to do their Latin Aerobics, but the kickboxing instructor showed up instead - so they joined me in the weight room.

Megan and I headed straight home for a quick shower and then went to A Moment's Peace where we got a tease of a massage for thirty minutes. You have to get an hour one to really make a difference. Megan had won this gift certificate for me on Valentine's day, so we had to use it before it expired on Aug14.

Schlotzsky's for lunch and then I finally got around to installing a new burner on our donated grill. The Omaha Steaks were fabulous, as usual. Our CSA corn was not a great batch this week, though.

We finally got to review our *Bourne Identity* DVD and enjoyed it as much as the sequel - I love the music in those movies. While watching, we took a break to apply a mask. I decided to shave, as well - I never like to keep a haircut for too long.

Time to wrap this puppy up so we can get ready for our new Sunday school class: Young Professionals. We're doing a Colossians: Navigating Successfully Through Cultural Chaos (PDF) study, which I'm sure Dr. Pryor will do an exceptional job of teaching.