Hey guys,

My friend's know that my movie 'game' (or selections) is pretty strong so I'm going to hook  you guys up with some good movie suggestions.
Today's theme is going to be Asian movies (There are no  Bruce Lee films because I want to focus on movies you probably never seen before)

1. Battle of the Warriors- this could be possible the best film in regards to military/leadership principles I ever seen...here is the netflix description-Tension swirls in ancient China as the evil Zhao commander Xiang Yan-zhong (Sung-kee Ahn) sets his sights on conquering the small city-state of Liang, where the residents would be otherwise defenseless if it weren't for the valiant warrior Ge Li (Andy Lau). Jacob C.L. Cheung (Hero) directs this epic action-drama based on the popular Japanese manga, based in turn on a Japanese novel about China's Warring States Period.
2. Ong Bak 2- This film is a little confusing (imagine a Tarratino film to the 3x power) but the fight scenes may be the best you ever seen..trust me. Tony Jaa is going the next big thing....here is the netflix description-Tien (Tony Jaa), the son of Lord Sihadecho -- a tragically murdered nobleman -- goes under the wing of Chernang (Sorapong Chatree), a renowned warrior and leader of the Pha Beek Krut who teaches Tien a variety of deadly fighting styles. Now a master of weapons and combat, Tien seeks out those who slayed his family. Jaa also directs and Sarunyu Wongkrachang co-stars in this martial arts thriller set in 15th-century Thailand.
3. Please Vote for Me- I already spoke about this awesome documentary in the past. Its a great film about a 3rd grade class elections in China.
4. Master of the Flying Guillotine- Probably the best 'kung-fu' flick of all time , this movie has inspired video games and other films. some of the production quirks are kind of funny and you can even spot the film makers views about other Asian countries in you look closely and the villain weapon maybe the craziest 'bad guy' weapon of all time....here is the netflix description-A man called the Master of the Flying Guillotine (Kam Kang) is hired by the government to singlehandedly crush an uprising from an opposition led by a one-armed boxer (Wang Yu). Mind-bending action (and hilarity) ensues in this Hong Kong martial arts classic. Yu directs this favorite of grind house connoisseurs like Quentin Tarantino that features a retro electronic soundtrack and arguably the most notorious weapon ever seen on film.
5. Take Out- This movie is so realistic you often think you are watching a documentary. Its an eye opening experience to see what Take-out workers go through...Here is the nextflix description-When an illegal immigrant (Charles Jang) finds himself behind on a large debt due to crooks who smuggled him into the country, he must come up with the payment in one day by hustling tips as he delivers Chinese food around New York City. Shot in vérité style, this provocative and grimly humorous look at a day in the life of the working poor also stars Jeng-Hua Yu and Justin Wan and was nominated for the John Cassavetes Independent Spirit Award.

I have to finish up so I don't have time to tell you about the Triad Elections (Chinese mafia flick), The Forbidden Kingdom (Jackie Chan/ Jet Li), 5 Deadly Venoms (Classic), Curse of the Golden Flower (Beautiful cinematography) and the Yun Chow-Fat films.

Peace,
Pastor Ed
Matt. 6:33

        

I once read that good question leads to good answers and I agree with that statement so I wanted to pose 21 questions to help you think about making this year the 'blessed' year of your life.

1. What are your goals for 2010?
2. What books are you looking forward to read in 2010?
3. How are you going to improve your health in 2010?
4. Where are going for vacation in 2010?
5. What are your strategies and personal systems to meet your spiritual, physical, financial and relationship goals?
6. What new significant things will you learn in 2010?
7. What things do plan to eliminate in 2010 to lighten your load so you can accomplish more?
8. Do you have a spending and giving plan for your finances?
9. How are you going create more value and a greater impact in you vocation and ministry?
10. Do you have an intentional bible reading plan?
11. Are you being mentored by anyone (directly or indirectly)
12. Do you know what makes you happy and positive? Do you schedule it often?
13. What great new places in your own city will you visit this year?
14. How can you help your church grow this year?
15. What quality product or thing do you want to own and what sacrifices will you make to buy it?
16. How am I going to intentionally grow as a parent or spouse this year?
17. When are going to create a daily routine to help live more efficiently and elegantly?
18. Do I have a soundtrack for my morning and commute (try the Bible audiobook or learn a new language)?
19. Do you have a plan to increase my energy in a safe and natural way (take it easy on the Rockstar drinks)?
20. Have you planned to go on a 'vision-cation' to increase your faith and focus (i.e conference)?
21. Do you have plan to arrange your environment to serve you as oppose to you always serving it?

O.K. that's enough, I hope these questions make you think and also hope they help you come up with some great answers to make 2010 a great year!

If you live in the NYC and you don't have a home church join us this Sunday at 108 Manhattan ave (btwn Boreum and Johnson ave) in East Williamsburg Brooklyn service starts @11am.

        

Ok 2010 is in the building
so before I go on talking about 2010 I wanted to post 9 lessons I learned in 2009

1. Having faith while being faithful is a great combo- Believe your destined for great things while doing the little things in a great manner consistently is a great combo.
2. Practicing spirituality is more important than just knowing spirituality- While your discussing the theological debates I rather help people discover the difference Jesus makes or While your fighting over Bible translations I'm letting God transform me or while people pondering if your the light bulb carrying the light or the light living in the bulb I'm glowing and growing.
   
3. It's better to focus your intentions in ministry that we work with God instead of just thinking we work for God- Reading John 15 over and over revealed that to me
4. Train your eye to focus on the opportunities more than the obstacles- Don't stare at the cup of obstacles while ignoring the ocean of possibility my friend, then you will be a person who passes over many opportunities which will make you p.o.o.r (passed over opportunities repeatedly)
5. We have to discipline and train our kids not just Love them- The earlier the better.... its better to diligently discipline them than to occasionally 'wild out' and punish them.
   
6. Take important things seriously but don't always take yourself so seriously
7. Discover and continuously fine tune your vision, Prioritize your values, Find your voice and Schedule monthly victories- if you can have synchronization in these four areas you can make quantum leaps in your life.
8. It's easy to make decision its a challenge to manage them
9. Live ready to leave- We must understand that we often tie God's hands from blessing us because God can't bless a mess, we must organize or agonize. We must set up our settings, systems, schedules, situations and our spirits to help position us for our purpose, prosperity and posterity so we can stop generational curses and begin to release generational blessings, we cannot expect others to do it for us. The bible says trust  (and LOVE) God not necessarily men (we must love them as we LOVE OURSELVES).

Hope you enjoyed this post!

Peace

P.S. here is the link from My 8 lessons from 2008 http://shrunklink.com/dwtt

        

I love to read so I decided to give my blog readers some thoughts and tips from some of the books I have read
I hope it helps

Today's book is The Power of Full Engagement by Jim Loehr and Tony Schwartz
Here are some stuff I gleaned from the book:

1. Its better to manage energy rather than time
2. Energy diminishes from both with overuse and UNDERuse, its better to balance energy usage with intermittent energy renewal.
3. We must train our capacity like athlete does (preferably a sprinter) with systematic pushing beyond our limits then resting.
4. We must create specific routines fro managing and increasing energy.
5. There are 4 primary sources of energy- physical, emotional, mental and spiritual.
6. Drink more water..if you dehydrate a muscle by 3% it can lose 10% of its strength and 8% of its speed.
7. Eat a good breakfast ..it's call 'break the fast' for a reason.
8. The book schools you on the importance of understanding slow and fast glycemic foods)
9. It indicates that research shows that prolonged TV watching is actually correlated with increased anxiety and low-level depression.
10. To become a fully engaged corporate athlete (or ministerial athlete) we must learn to begin to periodically disengage.
11. We must develop positive rituals that will help us develop our energy (diet, exercise routine, sleep schedule etc)

there is so much more but that's enough for today I hope you learned something.

If your serious about enlarging your capacity to be/do/have in 2010 then click on the book link on the right sidebar and get it today!

Merry Christmas!

P.S. if you enjoyed this post and would like me to present more thoughts and tools from other books I have read please leave a comment and let me know.

        

Yesterday I taught our second annual Goal Setting Workshop. Last year we entitled it 'resolution Revolution' this year I called it 'Life is Beautiful' (the movie with that same title is great ..rent it...how many time are you going to see 'Mall Cop')
So here are some thoughts from yesterday

When you discover your God given vision (picture of the future implanted by God that excites/scares you) and Destiny (internal/external/eternal destination) then your mind must design a map and your body must be willing to be trained to endure the journey.

Don't watch too much T.V. because that often results in you stopping from pursuing your vision to hear those crazy kids from the 'Jersey Shore' (poor Snooky) tell you their vision (get it Tel-a-vision).

Write down your Goals. Remember 'think it and Ink it' & 'put it (goals) on paper or it will be a vapor'

Here is a thought write down 5 BAG (Big Audacious Goals) and write down 5 BAS (Big Action Steps) to complete every 5 weeks (without a deadline the dream dies) then by the end of the ear you will accomplish 50 action  steps that will lead you to your (Birkin) BAG...So the 'Math' looks like 5X5X5X10 or 50
5 (BAGS)X5 (BAS)X5 (5 week time constraint) x 10 or 50 (Done 10 times...take the last 2 weeks to celebrate and prep for next years goals or 50 BAS completed)

'Big Goals get big results. No goals get no results or somebody else's results'- Mark Victor Hansen

Peace to the saints!
Ed

        

I know the members of my church may be getting tired of me always reminding them to develop and grow in their spiritual disciplines (hey repetition is the mother of learning..right).
One of the most difficult spiritual discipline for any Christ-Follower to embrace is Fasting.
Fasting is when you abstain from something physical (mostly eating) to focus on the spiritual.
You can learn more about fasting here www.gotquestions.org/fasting-Christian.html

Jesus said Matt. 6 when(denotes we are expected to fast) we fast with right intentions and secretly God will reward us openly
Jesus also said that there are certain 'breakthroughs' and realm of authority that only comes from Prayer and Fasting (Mark 9:29)

I want to give you 12 steps to help you make fasting a regular part of your Christian experience

1. Choose a date or day you will fast. Systematic and Simple is better than erratic and emotional. I suggest you can pick the date of your birthday or loved one's birthday or pick the same weekday every week.
2. Choose your fast (Daniel, Absolute, TV/Internet) and Duration (half day, 1 meal or 1 day)... ask God for strength
3. Try to keep the fast a secret.
4. The time you usually eat is the perfect time to spend in prayer and bible reading. If you eat at 12:30pm instead of eating lunch go for a walk and pray during that time.
5. Drink water
6. When you do pray understand that you are intentionally recharging and realigning your spirit.
7. If your fasting on a weekday take your lunch money and either add it to your weekly giving to your church or get a gift certificate to a restaurant and give it to someone in need with a church invite card and a small devotional booklet
8. Write a scripture on a index card and challenge yourself to read X40 during a fast.
9. Intentionally keep your joy, don't act weird and hyper-spiritual like God sowed you Brett Favre was coming back in May and don't walk around like you have Vitamin K Shortage either
10. Break your fast with a small and healthy meal.
11. Journal your experience.
12. Invite a friend or family members to fast with you.

There you go now your on your way to spiritual growth and then you will be known as a 'fast-a-nista' ....well maybe not.
try it like all those Preachers on TBN and BET (early in the A.M.) say 'if you want something you never had you have to what you never done'

Peace

Join us this Sunday as we have a super guest speaker Life Coach Randal Smalls http://www.vonorthbrooklyn.org/

        

I'm always stressing to my church the importance of developing our own personal spiritual system. We must let our prayer life progress from a desire to a discipline then eventually to a internal source of delight.
I would like to suggest 12 simple steps to take to begin your journey as a man or women of prayer.

1. Purchase some music that would set the atmospher for prayer. I suggest you go on Itunes and purchase songs from Eddie Zepeda, Israel Houghton, Brooklyn Tabernacle Choir, Chris Tomlin albums
2. Create a worship playlist and a praise playlist that last 30 minutes each
3. Put on the worship playlist and spend the first 5 minutes reading a chapter from Psalms or chapter from proverbs (you can read the chapter that coincides with the date)
4. Then pray using the A.C.T.S model
5. Adoration-Spend 5 minutes praising and worshiping God...You can read lyrics from classic Christian hymns and songs to get you started
6. Confession- Spend 5 Minutes confessing your sins before God. This helps us realign our heart and prevent sin from hindering our relationship with God (remember relationship not religion is the key)
7. Thanksgiving- Spend 5 minutes Thanking God for blessing.You can list them on a journal if you choose.The attitude of gratitude raises our spiritual altitude
8. Supplication- Spend the next 5 minutes praying for the needs of your family, friends and yourself
9. Meditation- Spend 5 minutes in silence listening to your favorite Worship song and meditate on the words.
10. Preparation- Switch the song selection to your praise playlist and spend a few minutes writing your to-do, to-stop and to-be list and prepare for the rest of your day listening to praise music.
11. Occupation/Education- Go to work or school or whatever and 'be the light of the world'
12. Turbo prayer- Set your Cell phone to alarm you at 2:58pm and spend 3 minutes at 3pm for 3 people who need it.

I pray that you will decide right now to make prayer a major part of your life.
Let prayer be like your steering wheel as opposed to your spare wheel.

        

So you finally got a day off but you don't want to waste it.
Here is my two cents

Preparation- Live by design not default...By Intention not by accident..be proactive not reactive
Meditation- Devoted people have devotion....Casual Christ followers often face growth casualties
Impartation- Read or listen to people who are a level you want to attain...Growth often comes by mistakes, moments or mentors
Review the vision- Keep your goals and vision before you. It's better to run toward a goal than constantly back away from an unfavorable condition (more on that in the future).
Exercise-  Divine healing is it a promise by faith but health is a responsibility
NEW- Try something New, Learn something new, Taste something New (If money is funny dress nice act like you have a time constraint share two appetizers and drink water) , Go somewhere New and take pictures to remind yourself which leads to..
Documentation- Take pics and journal the journey

Ok I would share more but I got to go it's time for me to do some exercises while I watch a Leadership DVD then the Castro family is going bowling (Lil Ed's first time) then have eat a Polish lunch (My first time)

Stay thirsty for God and greatness my friends.

        

Hey Guys and Girls,

If your busy like me then you realize that you have to be really selective in regards to your time, especially your T.V. time. It's no secret I'm a DVR and Netflix fan. I believe that those are the two of the best avenues to invest your limited 'Box' time wisely.
Here are some cool DVD rental ideas that will be a good T.V. time Investment

Please Vote for Me- 4 Stars Awesome Doc' about a school election that takes place in a 3rd grade class in China. These kids are bright and charming. Great flick..Here is the Netflix description-Though China's government is Communist, the third grade election forthe prestigious position of Class Monitor at the Evergreen PrimarySchool in Wuhan is being decided by a democratic vote. In thisenlightening documentary, filmmaker Weijun Chencaptures all the action as the three candidates -- two boys and a girl-- go all out to win: performing in a talent show, debating each otherand delivering speeches to their classmates.

The International- 3 Stars Good action movie with an international twist...here is the netflix description- Interpol agent Louis Salinger (Clive Owen) and New York Asst. DA Eleanor Whitman (Naomi Watts)team up to expose a global financial institution's money laundering,arms dealing and other illegal rackets in this tense thriller fromdirector Tom Tykwer. Asthe pair race from New York to Milan and beyond to pursue their case,they soon discover that the ruthless bank will stop at nothing tocontinue its profitable activities.

Miracle at St. Anna- 4 Stars- Great movie with a cool twist in the end.Here is the netflix description-During World War II, four black American soldiers (Derek Luke, Michael Ealy, Laz Alonso and Omar Benson Miller)find themselves trapped in a Tuscan village behind enemy lines. As theyattempt to evade German forces and reunite with their comrades, thefour experience firsthand the tragedy and triumph of war. John Turturro co-stars in this epic war film from director Spike Lee, based on the acclaimed novel by James McBride.

Revolver- 4Stars- Deep movie about the frailty of the human ego. ...'I got it' you may need to watch it twice or read a quick wikipedia review after to watching.Not for kids though.. I'm a big Guy Ritching fan. Here is the netflix description-Guy Ritchie delivers another fast-paced crime thriller starring Jason Statham  who this timeplays Jake, a gangster and ace gambler recently released from prison.Determined to hustle the crime boss (Ray Liotta)who killed his sister-in-law, Jake deliberately humiliates the kingpinin a private game. But when the mobster calls for Jake's head, amysterious duo steps in to save his skin.

O.K. guys I got to go. Don't forgot who hooked you up.
Have a great day.
Shout out to Pastor Al and  V.O. San Diego ..There is a revival going on in S.D.  http://www.sdvoc.org
Shout Out to Pastor Patrick Robbers and the future Urban Training Center Europe....That is going to be huge
Shout out to Rev. Ray G over in Spain
Shout to my friend in V.O. London and Manchester (I guess the Guy Ritchie review got me thinking about Eating at the Lahore restaurant and visiting the massive Man U stadium)
Peace

        

I'm what people call a 'Tent-making'  Bi-Vocational Pastor. At first I used to work at the '9-5' with a sense like I was 'doing time' until the church can support me in the work of full-time ministry but I would say a year ago I received a breakthrough in the midst of a near breakdown and I realized that I want to do my best in everything I do. Since that shift of mentality I have found plenty of success not just in the ministry but also in the marketplace (job)
Today I want to give you 13 keys to think about in regards to excelling at work.

1. God is worker- The first picture we see of God in the Bible is him Creating and then installing the sabbath system to rest from work.
2. Work started for mankind in the Garden of Eden-Adam was to keep and expand the Garden (Gen.2:15)
3. Accept work as a gift not as a prison sentence- There are thousands of unemployed people would like your job see Eccl. 5:19
4. Learn to prioritize your time at work- see Eccl. 3:1 and remember Paul said this one thing I do'. you must learn to develop fearsome focus, what I like to do is set my cell phone timer on 50 minutes and work as hard as I could and when a thought or Idea comes to mind I scribble it on a scrap paper to check out later.
5. Fight to keep your joy- When your having problems at work it often leaks to other areas in your life. Choose your attitude and learn to be internal proactive and not just reactive.
6. Stay far away from Gossip- It would come back to haunt you
7. Continue to expand your skill set and contionously update your Resume- This can be done with simple borrowing a book from the library or renting an instructional DVD from netflix or asking your job to cover your expenses for a continuing Education classes at the local Community College one more thing people say the the 'Video Professor series is good as well (maybe you can split the cost with a friend)
8. Pray for your job- Prayer works  'nuff said
9. Exceed expectation- You have to seperate yourself from others with your performance not just your personality. One thing I often do is to set one day a week to surpass the standard set by my job.
10. Have a forgiving attitude- When you sow forgiveness then you may one day reap forgiveness
11. Keep good records- learn to quantify and aoutomate your performance at work. Some people in my job have a notebook and they call it the C.Y.A (Cover your uh lets say rear) book. see Prov. 27:23
12. Ask God for wisdom and energy- read James 1:5
13. Use feedback as a way to get better as oppose to getting bitter- High performance people know freedback is the breakfast of champions. Promise me you will read Prov. 13:18

Ok guys that's all for today.
Come visit us this Sunday at 108 Manhattan ave @11am in Brooklyn