Bart Blair

Leader of Tomorrow

Silas came home from school today, having been recognized as a "Future Leader" by his school staff.

This is what his certificate said:

"Silas Blair was chosen to be a 'Leader of Tomorrow' because he always puts 'first things first'. He works hard to get his work done neatly and completely with having the 'End in Mind'.

I'd say he's a chip off the old block! :)

100 Books!

I began tracking the books that I read in October 2006, which is the same time I began this blog. Today I finished reading the 100th book in 5 years (The Fine Line by Kary Oberbrunner).

As a milestone marker, I thought I would share the ten books from that list of 100 that have had the greatest impact on my life, ministry and leadership:

1) THE CONNECTING CHURCH by Randy Frazee

2) JUST WALK ACROSS THE ROOM by Bill Hybels

3) WAY OF THE WILD HEART by John Eldridge

4) THE END OF RELIGION by Bruxy Cavey

5) ONE HEARTBEAT AWAY by Mark Cahill

6) AXIOM by Bill Hybels

7) OUTLIERS by Malcolm Gladwell

8) LEADERS WHO LAST by Dave Kraft

9) SIMPLY STRATEGIC CHURCH GROWTH by Tim Stevens & Tony Morgan

10) FIRST IMPRESSIONS by Mark Waltz

A Man Called Bart (by Bartley Sawatsky)

Cleaning up my office this morning and I ran across the lyrics of what could possibly be the best song ever written about me. Actually, it's the only song ever written about me!

Back in December, Grace Community Church held a going-away tribute for my family. Bartley Sawatsky, Grace's lead pastor and my great pal and ministry partner of the last dozen years, blessed us with a singing performance of a song he'd written. Unfortunately, I do not have a video of the moment, but I do have a copy of the lyrics.  Here they are:

A Man Called Bart

First name Bart. Last name Blair
A boatload of heart. A thimble full of hair
Came to Ontario, had the world on its knees
Traded it all for a microphone and nineteen G's

[Chorus]
Bart, not so smart. But you took the part
You took the part 
Bart, not so smart. But you took the part

Bart, he could play, and Bart, he could sing
Tell you the truth, he could do most everything
Bartley had to smile, his choice looked so shrewd
A perfect cover for his own ineptitude

Bart made some friends, like the Wheelers and the Stanleys
He knew he was loved, but felt none the more manly
He started chasing girls in the manliest way-
A 10-day free trial on the Christian Cafe

Met a gal named Lisa and Bart was on the take
She sang like and angel, bit better still - she could bake!
They hardly hear the wedding bells before the ultrasound
Lisa, she was pregnant, but Bart gained 25 pounds!

[Chorus]
Bart, drop that tart. You're headed off the chart
Off the chart
Bart, drop that tart. You're headed off the chart

Bart and Lisa loved their daughter...sweet Sarah-lynn
But Bart's dream of a baseball start wasn't happenin'
Had a son named Silas, and then E-pha-rum
Gotta come form Texas to think of names that dumb :)

But Bart's brains were fine, in fact, way above par-
When he came to Grace, couldn't even play the guitar
He learned it fast and soon amassed some fans that were keen
But the love went up in smoke with the fog machine

Bart's karma at mens' retreats, well it wasn't so good
Started back when he lost all of the men in the woods
But the men of Grace take the goods with the bads
Took advantage of a paintball game to shoot Bart in the [nads]

[Chorus]
Bart,ooh that smarts. But please don't lose heart
Please don't lose heart
Bart,ooh that smarts. But please don't lose heart

So soon Bart decides that he wants to lose some weight
Forever Fit is the answer, and soon he's feeling great
Could have been the poster child, applauded and cheered
But by the time of the photo shoot, he had done disappeared

Just a popsicle stick with a beard...

And now Bart is taking his last at bat
Uprooting the family and moving to Medicine Hat
Mississauga's loss will be Alberta's gain
Tradin' in a Bartley for an Oliver-Shane

[Chorus]
Bart, have a heart, please don't go away
Don't go away
Bart, have a heart, please don't go away
Don't go away 
Bart, have a heart, please don't go away
Don't go away 
Bart, have a heart, please don't go away 

An Early Birthday Gift For Si

It's 12 days early, but with the weather so beautiful we couldn't resist giving Silas his birthday gift from Nona and Poppa early - His very own catcher's gear set. He was THRILLED! Much of this afternoon will be spent in the backyard.

'Horns No.1

The Longhorns (basketball team) earned their first No. 1 ranking by The Associated Press this week. At 15-0, Texas is off to its best start since the 1932-33 season as the rugged Big 12 schedule begins.

And leave it to the basketball team to give the school a much-needed shot in the arm after the football team lost the BCS championship game to Alabama last week. Asked if Texas is a “basketball school,” senior forward Dexter Pittman referred to the Longhorns’ quarterback: “No. This is Colt McCoy’s school. He’s just letting us borrow it.”         AUSTIN, Texas (AP)

300th Post

Hey!  I just realized that the last post (Silas on his skateboard) was the 300th post on my blog.  Hip hip hooray!  I suppose.

The Latest Podcast Roundup

Here's a list of the podcasts that I'm listening to these days:

Northpoint Ministries (Andy Stanley)

Catalyst

Imago Dei (Rick McKinley)

The Moth: Stories Told

4001 Songs

I downloaded two new albums this morning and crossed over the 4000 song mark in my iTunes player.  It would probably be a good idea to back up my hard drive, you think?

The two new purchases today were:

Viva La Vida (Coldplay)

On The Blue (Joel Auge)

 

Am I Easily Amused?

I'm not a person who forwards the latest and greatest funny or clever e-mails.  I actually get so much of the stuff that I sort of resent it.  But I ran across this video (posted on my friend Tim Ling's MySpace page) and just found it irresistable.  Check out it!

korean baby singing hey jude

My, How Times Have Changed (and Hairlines Too!)

It's always a wonder to me how God manages to build His Kingdom with the hands, feet and hearts of plain old people; people like me. I am in awe and honored to have been given the opportunity to serve in ministry as my vocation.

I think of the road that led to this place and just laugh sometimes. I mean - really - back in the late 80's when I was singing heavy metal music and God was the last thing on my list of priorities, He knew that some day I'd be singing for Him. How cool is that?! An old friend of mine from Texas (Steve Murphy) has recently started a relationship with Jesus and has also begun blogging about it. I am priveleged to be the subject of one of his first blog posts. Check it out (and you'll see more pics of me with hair!)
CLICK HERE GO TO STEVE'S BLOG