craig groeschel is probably one of my favorite people in the world. over the last year or so, i’ve had the honor of getting to know him as a fellow zondervan author, and while i was on staff at lifechurch.tv where he is the senior pastor.

people always wonder if the pastors they see with influence are the same on stage as they are in real life…and i can say with confidence that craig’s heart, passion, and love for people is consistent.  craig was also was kind enough to write the foreword to mad church disease, to which i am uberly grateful.

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craig’s new book is called “it,” and he’s been making the rounds on several blogs (listed at the bottom of this post) answering our questions about “it.”

here’s mine:

Anne: What are some ways churches with IT can truly make a global impact on poverty?

Craig: Thanks for the thoughtful question.

Churches and ministries with IT can and should be making a global impact on poverty over time. Here’s why:

Churches with IT—that special something that only God can do—reach people. When people are excited about kingdom vision, they generally become generous with their time and resources.
Ministries that have IT tend to give IT away. And when they give, God often seems to give them more.

We’ve found that one of the best ways to disciple people is to help them serve in missions. Once they taste the presence of Christ among the poor, they are forever changed.

It seems that we are almost handicapped in experiencing all of God in a prosperous country. We never have to pray, “Give us today our daily bread…” because we already have a cabinet full of bread. As our people are exposed to the way God works in the lives of people in the rest of the world, our hearts and faith tend to grow. Serving people generously with the love of Christ is like Christian cocaine—once you try it, you’re hooked.

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see what other bloggers have asked craig about “it” here:

Swerve (Craig Groeschel & Bobby Gruenewald)
Scott Hodge
The Catalyst Blog and On the Journey (Brad Lomenick)
Velocity (Dave Ferguson)
Zondervan blog
Monday Morning Insight (Todd Rhoades)
Innovative Ministry Leader (Sean Lewis)
Tony Morgan Live
Leading Smart (Tim Stevens)

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you can buy IT here!

a few months ago, i caved in and made a blogroll and had about 300 of you respond.

if you’re on that list, your blog has been added to my little rotating blogroll over there in the right sidebar (which does count toward technorati, if that’s something that you dig!)

i’ve noticed quite a few names around here lately, so i wanted to open it up again…

link to me, i’ll link to you. it’s that easy!

just let me know in the comments that you’ve linked to flowerdust.net and then let me know what your blog is and i will get it added!

link love is good love.

to love someone means to believe the best of them.

a friend and i were talking the other night about trust, which really boils down to love.

do you love yourself more?

or do you love someone else more?

love has the ability to transcend.

or it has the ability to kill, when it lacks.

to love means to risk.

love takes balls.

my deadly viper friends get this.

mike said,

“What if right now, everything we knew, felt, believed about love was suddenly turned “upside down.” Challenged. Tested. No limits. What if we came to realize that everything we thought and believed about love, grace, forgiveness, each other and ourselves was wrong. We discover that radical grace is real and we can experience it in our own lives and freely give it to others.”

click here to learn about the people of the second chance and to download some ballsy wallpaper.

because love takes balls.

are you willing to risk it?

so you know when you used to get an “A” on your spelling test, your parents would put it up on your family’s fridge, right?

this is kind of the grown-up-i-love-marketing equivalent of that. mom, my name’s in business week! and i’m printing it off and putting it up on my fridge. along with seth’s head.

several months ago, business week interviewed me for an article on seth godin, and how his principles and brilliance have been absorbed in many channels — from corporations, to artists, and even to little girl bible bloggers (yours truly).

anyway, the article arrived today and you can read it here!

what’s one thing that seth has said that has stuck with you?

I need a couple people who live in Atlanta area that have three days to spare from October 8-10 and want to go to Catalyst for FREE.

We have a top secret marketing plan that we need help with for promoting Mad Church Disease. You’ll get a free copy of the book, and a very moooving experience. And again, you’ll get into Catalyst for free.

Interested?

Email Zondervan Marketing Genius Chris for details @ chris.fann@zondervan.com. I promise you will never experience anything like this any other time in your whole entire life ever forever.

This message will self destruct…

we have had some discussion on what happens when people confess and when people don’t confess.

today, i’d like to throw a theory your way….

one reason why people don’t confess:

…because deep down, they don’t want to change.

carry on.