Nestled in the sometimes tedious book of Leviticus is the extremely interesting and exciting commands of the Sabbath year & the year of Jubilee:

Leviticus 25:
The LORD said to Moses on Mount Sinai, 2 "Speak to the Israelites and say to them: 'When you enter the land I am going to give you, the land itself must observe a sabbath to the LORD. 3 For six years sow your fields, and for six years prune your vineyards and gather their crops. 4 But in the seventh year the land is to have a sabbath of rest, a sabbath to the LORD. Do not sow your fields or prune your vineyards. 5 Do not reap what grows of itself or harvest the grapes of your untended vines. The land is to have a year of rest. ... 20 You may ask, "What will we eat in the seventh year if we do not plant or harvest our crops?" 21 I will send you such a blessing in the sixth year that the land will yield enough for three years. 22 While you plant during the eighth year, you will eat from the old crop and will continue to eat from it until the harvest of the ninth year comes in.

Wow, that's inspiring! Why would you not take the Lord up on this? Turns-out the Israelites never did & were exiled for the number of sabbath years they never observed. Foretold here, IN THE NEXT CHAPTER (so interesting!):

Lev 26:
33 I will scatter you among the nations and will draw out my sword and pursue you. Your land will be laid waste, and your cities will lie in ruins. 34 Then the land will enjoy its sabbath years all the time that it lies desolate and you are in the country of your enemies; then the land will rest and enjoy its sabbaths. 35 All the time that it lies desolate, the land will have the rest it did not have during the sabbaths you lived in it. // DANG!

The year of Jubilee is even better! All the slaves are freed. All debts are forgiven. All the land goes back to the original owners (the land was divided by clan originally). Go read about it! Unfortunately, they never did it, but what a concept!

What does this say about God?

Catalyst friend and author Kary Oberbrunner is having a rocking party on 3.15.10 to launch his new project YOUR SECRET NAME. This FREE online event features videos, a Secret Name test, and thousands of dollars worth of prizes. Here's a peek at his new book:

"We all have one–a Secret Name that is. The Bible tells us so. Yet few of us know ours. Ignorantly, we’re stuck, caught up in the “Name Game,” searching for our true identity. Author Kary Oberbrunner takes you deep, past clichés to discover Your Secret Name and the vision God has for your life."

RSVP today in order to stay in the loop and score a free Catalyst ticket.

This is a guest blog post from Justin Wise. Read more of his thoughts here: BeDeviant.com

Most pastors are teachers, but not all teachers are pastors. Most pastors have some sort of regular public speaking routine built-in to there weekly/monthly schedule. As such, we have a lot to learn about human communication.

We have a lot to learn from others who communicate a message effectively and decisively.

One of those people to learn from is Steve Jobs. In fact, someone named Carmine Gallo even wrote a book on the presentation secrets of ol’ Steve. I haven’t read the book, but below is a list of some of the “secrets” unveiled by Gallo in a video at the end of this post.

1. Set the Theme

Andy Stanley does this more brilliantly than anyone I know. He weaves a single statement throughout his entire message, making it unforgettable by the end. Jobs does the same thing–one particular theme that you base everything else in your message off of. Cohesion, baby.

2. Provide the Outline

Tell people where you’re going. Don’t make them guess. Jobs will provide some sort of verbal outline near the beginning of his presentations. I like to do the same thing, just so people have an expectation of what they can expect to hear. You respect your audience by doing this, as well as giving them something to look forward to.

3. Open and Close Each Section With a Clear Transition

Give them a “bookend.” Clearly transition from one point to the next with a relevant and catchy transition. Jobs masters this and it shows–the momentum in his presentations never slows, even though the pace might. It’s like a stick-shift–you wouldn’t go from first gear to third, otherwise you wouldn’t have a car for very long. You go from first, to second, to third, etc. The same principle applies in public speaking.

4. Demonstrate Enthusiasm

Someone I work with once told me, “Your audience can’t exceed your level of excitement. If you’re at a five, it is not possible for those listening to go past that. You set the tone.” Steve Jobs is obviously, palatably excited every time he gives a presentation. He’s amped about the latest product he’s wow-ing the crowd with. What about you, pastor? Are you honestly excited about the message you’re conveying? Or are you manufacturing energy? Learn a lesson from Perry Noble: GET EXCITED!!!

5. Make it Visual

Pastors and preachers, listen up. I am convinced this is the most important take-away we can learn from Steve Jobs: Make your presentation visual. The spoken word is designed to engage the mind while visual images are designed to affect the heart. Steve Jobs is a master at conveying information about Apple products while engaging the heart at the same time (i.e. the “I want that!” factor):

    * He rarely has more than three images on a single slide.
    * There are usually less than 10 words on a single slide.
    * The images he uses are rich and vibrant, telling a story.
    * Visual aids are simple and rich with meaning (i.e. pulling the Macbook Air out of a manilla envelope. Brilliantly simple).

This is where we pastors have the most to learn. Powerpoint slides are not an excuse to cram as much information as possible onto the screen. Clip art is (and always should be) forbidden. Think less words, more images. Think less words, less slides. Let your story-telling skills do the walking!

6. Rehearse, Rehearse, Rehearse

While I’m not 100% on this tip, there is merit. Jobs makes his presentations look effortless because he’s logged dozens of hours to make you think that he’s not even trying. Believe me, he is. While every individual is different, and every schedule is different, practicing your message can never hurt. Knowing your transitions and cues from one segment to the next is key. While we pastors may not have as much time to practice for a weekly message, we can be intentional about knowing what we’re going to say before we step on stage.

No matter what you think about his products, Steve Jobs is an amazing communicator. Sure, he may not be communicating the truths of Scripture, but the message he is conveying is being heard and embraced by millions. Isn’t that something we can learn from? Leaders are learners!

(If you’re interested, below is a brief video presentation by Carmine Gallo on Steve Jobs communication skills. It’s a bit cheesy, but the info is great and the analysis is super helpful.)

Today is Winner Wednesday. Somewhere in the blogosphere we're giving away Catalyst stuff, just for fun.

Today, Tony Morgan is giving away 2 tickets to Catalyst West!  Tony is a great thinker & blogger in the Church. If you're not following his blog regularly, you should be.

This week is your last chance to get the lowest rate on Catalyst West tickets. Call us today to lock in your tickets before it's sold out!

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Speakers include: Andy Stanley, Erwin McManus, Kay Warren, Mark Driscoll, Donald Miller, Scott Belsky, Reggie Joiner, Eugene Cho, Wess Stafford, Charlene Li, and Dallas Willard. Plus, a special Thursday evening session with Chris Tomlin and Louie Giglio. Visit the Catalyst West site for more details!

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