Eventually, the stories will come out of what went on behind the scenes in those first few minutes of darkness. What was happening in the production trucks or among the staff in the bowels of the dome? What protocols were enacted on the national security front? Who was panicking and who wasn’t.

There’s a lot left to learn about that night, but there’s one group that we know was prepared for that moment: the folks at Nabisco and their ad agency, 360i. Mere minutes after the outage, Nabisco tweeted the picture and caption below.

How in the world did they make it happen so fast? Conspiracy theorists started pontificating almost immediately. The real answer, however, was simple. They were prepared for it.

No, they didn’t know the power was going to go out, but what they did know is that it’s hard to have half a day of live television, complete with portable set pieces, pyrotechnics and countless open mics, without having something go wrong. Something memorable and unscripted was going to happen that night, and Oreo was going to be ready.

How ready? Well, according to reports, the offices of 360i became Oreo’s social media central on February 3rd. In the room were brand managers, ad executives, agency creatives and anyone else it would take to brainstorm, create, approve and launch an ad campaign faster than you can say “creamy delicious center.”

Yes, you read that correctly, a process that would typically take months in a large organization like Nabisco was arranged on that evening to take just minutes. The results speak for themselves: 16,000 retweets and over 21,000 Facebook Likes for an ad that cost nothing to run and very little to create. Compare that to the $4 million fees for a televised 30 second spot and it’s clear that Oreo got the most bang for their buck on Sunday night.

But remember, they did so not because they were incredibly creative or witty – in fact, if you read the ad copy outside of the Super Sunday context, just about anybody could have written it – but because they were ready. If real estate is all about location, location, location, then social media is all about timing, timing, timing and the only way to respond to real-time events quickly is to have made the preparations and gotten the right people in the room ahead of time.

Today, I’m sure there are a lot of businesses looking at their social media teams (or the intern they put on that because they didn’t think it was all that important) and asking why they couldn’t capitalize on the situation like Oreo did. In the same offices, there are ad agencies explaining to their clients that, for a small fee, they, too, can set up a social media command center and be ready to respond to the next big unexpected event.

But here’s my guess. I’m guessing that at next year’s Super Bowl, when all the other brands are frantically trying to find something to tweet about, the folks at Nabisco will have already hatched up the next ad innovation that will keep them one step ahead of their competition. After all, that’s what innovators do.

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I saw the film and I have to say that I agree, although there were some shortcomings. Now, first, I must warn you that I was a musical theater guy in high school and college and even spent some time in theatre conservatory (you know it’s serious when the word is spelled t-h-e-a-t-r-e), so I know the story and music of “Les Mis” like the back of my hand. This, of course, serves to both inform and bias my opinion of the film. With that confession, here is my quick take before getting to the heart of this post.

The story is as compelling as ever (more on that momentarily) and the music brilliant as always. The direction and cinematography are well-done and add depth and intimacy to the story that simply can’t be captured on stage. The cast is hit-and-miss, with Hathaway being surprisingly good, Jackman holding his own, but not great, and Seyfried sounding OK, but a little like a modern-day fluttery Cinderella. Then there’s Russell Crowe – far out-classed by his co-stars and outmatched by the vocal score, the guy just isn’t up to the task. It’s not just bad. It’s really bad – embarrassingly bad.

The standouts are some of the unknowns of the film. Little Isabelle Allen as young Cosette, Daniel Huttlestone as Gavroche and Natalya Angel Wallace as the grown-up Éponine all shine in their roles as do Sacha Baron Cohen and Helena Bonham Carter as the Thénardiers. Eddie Redmayne as Marius is ho-hum.

With all of that taken into consideration, what I walked away from the film with was this: the story of Les Misérables is a story of redemption and forgiveness. It is a story of a cynical man being undeservedly forgiven and living the rest of his life trying to reconcile himself to that forgiveness. A single act, carried out without hesitation by a priest, pivots Jean Valjean’s life and opens up something in him that can never be resealed.

This, to me, is the story of the Kingdom of God. A single act of forgiveness that brings redemption to us all and (if recognized for what it truly is) affects us to our core for the rest of our existence. If we understand the forgiveness we’ve received, then we can give forgiveness when it seems the least warranted. If we understand the death from which we were spared, then we can spare others who deserve a similar fate. If we understand the brokenness of our own humanity, then we can see more clearly the humanity of even the most broken people.

The story of Les Misérables is the story of us. We are the miserable ones who, without the redemptive person of Jesus are “standing in our graves” here on earth. He rescues us – from prison, from the gutter, from being orphaned and, ultimately, from death. He died as one accused so that we could make a clean getaway.

If you venture out to see Les Misérables in the coming days, consider for yourself just how much forgiveness one man had to offer in order for you to live the life you’re living. Then, resolve to offer the same forgiveness to others that you have received for yourself.

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You see, summertime is that time of year when people actually venture outside – you know, into that green carpet-looking stuff around your house. And, inevitably, one day you’ll be out in your green stuff and your neighbor will also be out in his/her green stuff and you’ll make eye contact. Now, the sensible thing to do would be to close your eyes, run inside, pull all the shades and pretend you’re not home. But you’re not a sensible sort of person, so you acknowledge the guy who lives 10 feet from you and ease your way into a conversation.

You know the kind of conversation I’m talking about: “Hey.” “Hey.” “Hot out!” “Yeah.” If you’re lucky, the interaction doesn’t stray far beyond the known facts of temperature and season, but for those less fortunate, you might find yourself with a “talker” on your hands. The problem with the talker is that they tend to draw stuff out of you that you would never share voluntarily. You find yourself talking about your kids, your spouse, your 3rd job out of high school. And then, out of sheer desperation (perhaps to make them go away or to find some excuse for jumping in your car and speeding off) you mention “your church.”

Your church. Not “a church” or “the church down the street,” but your church – a phrase that indicates that you go there on a regular basis. You’ve let the cat out of the bag. This person who, despite your geographical nearness, knows almost nothing about you suddenly knows that you go to church! Now, everything has changed. Suddenly, you think back to that nasty letter you wrote to the home owner’s association about your property line. You think about the trash that sticks out of your trash can and what it says about the activities of your weekend. You think about some of the things you’ve yelled out the back door to get your dog stop eating his own poop.

Yes, all of those somewhat trivial matters come flooding into your brain now that you have identified yourself as one of “those church people.” So, what are you to do? You’ve told your neighbor you go to church…now what?

Well, for those of us who believe that you don’t have to be perfect in order for God to love you, the answer is simple. You be yourself. You see, though we need to hold ourselves to a high moral standard, when we lose the artificial expectations of what “church people” are supposed to be, we allow ourselves considerable freedom to be what followers of Jesus are supposed to be. Suddenly, we can open up our lives in ways that we may not have ever done before. Our love of people and our authenticity begin to shine through. In short, we become “real.”

In doing so, we find that our neighbor has an annoying, poop-eating dog, too. We also find out that he has an affinity for craft beers, can’t stand the home owners association and, by the way, always thought church was full of goodie-goodie, finger waggers. “Nah, if my church will take me, they’ll take anybody,” you find yourself saying, followed by nervous laughter. And maybe the conversation ends there. Maybe you never talk to that neighbor again, or maybe you become lifelong friends. Whatever the case, you’ve told him you go to church and he’s watching you – not for what you’re doing wrong (the other “believers” on your street will take care of that) but for what you’re doing that makes you and your family like him and his family.

He may even say to you one day, “You seem like a pretty normal guy, but you go to church, right?” Or, even better, “I don’t know too many church people like you.” Great! That is, if you’re here to rewrite the landscape of what it means to follow Jesus. You see, we’ve got centuries of erasing to do before we can get anywhere close to restoring the vision of Jesus for the Church. And so, if my neighbor thinks I seem different from his perception of other church people, we’re moving in the right direction. And, if I’m enough like him that he could see himself checking out my church one day, even better.

The post You’ve Told Your Neighbor You Go To Church…Now What? appeared first on adammosley.com.

We were about an hour into our party, complete with carnival games, great food, pumping music and lots of laughter. The place was jumping and the kids were having a blast. Then, around the corner, I noticed some people who weren’t enjoying the festivities. Instead, they were engaged in the dreaded task of moving furniture into an apartment. Having moved somewhere around 15 times in my adult life, I know that this probably wasn’t their best day.

As I walked up to the truck, I could see that they were just beginning to unload and already looked tired. Since there were only three of them (and one had an injured hand) they had a long afternoon of work ahead of them. That’s where open eyes come in handy. I asked a simple question, “Do you guys want a hand?” When they said yes, I ran off and grabbed some other guys to help.

10 minutes later, we had the truck unloaded. 5 minutes after that, our new friends were over at our party grabbing food and drinks with big smiles on their faces. A simple gesture, a helping hand and some nourishment. I’m sure it made their day better, and it was pretty rewarding for us as well!

Remember, those opportunities are right in front of you. Just keep your eyes open!

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As I sit here about to embark on some new adventures in my life, I can’t help but think through all of the details and all of the possibilities that come with each new thing. What will come of this initial trip to Kenya? How is the first course of my new college career going to go? How in the world are we ever going to pay for this new adoption? What about Lucy’s adoption? (I must admit, there is still a lot of anxiety in that one and there will be until the day it’s finalized.)

And yet, even as I look forward, I’m also looking back. At the encouragement of a friend, I am writing out the complete story of how Melody and I got to where we are now. I will be posting it in a series of blog posts on our new adoption blog. And, what reflection I’ve done up to this point (I’m up to 2001) has brought back a flood of incredible memories and set my mind to wondering about some of the people we encountered along the way.

All of this, the looking forward and looking back (and now I have a Paul Abdul song in my head…great) has spawned a little creative monster in me. He creeps up now and again and REALLY doesn’t want me to sleep! But sleep I must, because I have a 14 month old who will wake up early tomorrow whether I want to sleep or not. So, I’m hoping that a little bit of writing here will calm that little monster down. Here goes:

Journeys longed for; adventures sought
Joy experienced, but pain brought forth
Forged by skilled hands, I stand alone
Unique among creation, just like everyone else

My story, not so unusual as to be remembered
Not so drab as to be left untold
Seemingly enjoyed by my Father
As he reminds me of its arc

Yet, once again, my particulars,
Not singularly spectacular,
Amass in strange ways
Which seem, somehow, to matter

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You know that feeling when you’re on the verge of something really exciting and you can barely stand the anticipation? That moment at the top of the roller coaster, just before that last car breaks free? The last breath you take before leaping off the cliff into the lake below? You know that feeling? Yeah, that’s kind of my entire life right now.

As we continue to inch ever closer to the finish line on our adoption of our daughter Lucy, everything else in life seems to be in warp mode. Just to catch you up, here are a few things going on right now:

1. My missions involvement has really picked up in the last 6-8 months, with my primary focus being in two areas – Kenya and Central Asia. I leave for Kenya in just over a week for a series of meetings to discuss how we can best partner with local Kenyan churches to reach not only their country, but also the predominantly Muslim countries to the north as well. It will be an exhausting trip, but I know that God has incredible things in store!

2. Also on the missions front, I’ve been having a series of conversations with some incredible individuals about how we can support and play a role in the work that God is doing in Central Asia. There are incredible things happening in that part of the world that you just don’t hear about in the news. I can’t wait to see what happens there.

3. I’m going back to school! Only one other time in my life have I been excited about going to school – my freshman year of college – and I think that had as much to do with being several hundred miles away from home as it did anything else. This time around, I’m pumped to know that at 32 years old, I have some idea what I want to do (and more importantly, what God wants to do) with the rest of my life. I don’t have all the details, but I know the general direction. That’s a lot more than I could say at 18!

4. I’m really excited about where our church is headed. Over the past 18 months, we’ve seen a ton of new faces come through our doors and many of them are plugging into our community in exciting ways. I know, beyond a shadow of a doubt, that God is working in the lives of the people in our church community and I also know there is so much more yet to come. I love being able to share life with these people and am so thankful that God orchestrated our arrival at Trinity two years ago.

5. Lastly…well…I can’t tell you. There will be a big announcement coming from the Mosley household very soon. Melody and I have been hard at work putting the finishing touches on our efforts to communicate about this new adventure to our friends and family, so you probably won’t have to wait very long. However, I will simply say that once again, God has called us to embrace what He has for us, regardless of what we think is possible, and to trust in Him for the strength and provision to see His work through.

I think 2011 is going to be a whole lot of fun…if it doesn’t kill me first!

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OK, I realize that this is an old clip and perhaps Mark has changed his mind on this subject, but today was the first time I viewed this clip and it drew and immediate response from me (and from my wife who also viewed the clip). For those of you who follow me on Twitter or Facebook, you saw my first reaction (yeah for unfiltered tweeting!). Here’s the thing. As a general rule, I think Driscoll says a lot of stuff to get a “rise” out of people. Most of the time, it’s the traditionalists that are up in arms over his statements. In this video, however, Mark seems to have his feet firmly planted in a very foundational, fundamentalist reading of scripture and, despite his objections (“I’ve read the whole book”) I suspect that Mark has added quite a bit of his own personal philosophy about what a “real man” looks like.

James, a friend of mine who stays at home with is kids (but also goes to school and works a part time job) asked me for my thoughts on this subject and here is my reply.

Here’s my thought. Driscoll has spent several years telling us to be more “manly” and I guess that’s fine. But here, he equates “providing for the family’s needs” solely with working outside the home. What if what the family needs isn’t income from dad, but, instead, for dad to stay home because mom has a solid career?

He seems to give no credence to the idea that a particular woman may be more suited for the workplace than to be a domestic goddess. I think it’s great if a woman wants to be a stay at home mom. However, I don’t think the bible dictates that, nor do I think it rules out the idea of a stay at home dad.

In the times and culture in which the bible was written, I’m sure the idea of a stay at home dad wasn’t even a consideration. That doesn’t make it wrong any more than, say, driving a car, which also isn’t mentioned in the bible.

It fascinates me, given Mark’s loose interpretation of other portions of scripture, that he is so hard nosed on this issue. I wonder what his “church discipline” would be for me. I work two jobs to support my family, but I also “stay at home” (work from home) 3 days a week to care for my child. Does that mean I’m 3/5ths worse than an unbeliever?

I just think his statements are ridiculous and completely out of touch. I could understand them if we were talking about lazy or deadbeat dads (which is what he seems to think a stay at home dad is), but there are so many situations where that simply isn’t the case. To make the kind of statements he does in this clip based on generalities and stereotypes is either incredibly irresponsible or it’s simply malicious.

That pretty much sums up my thoughts on the issue. Some may disagree and that’s fine. I don’t have to agree with you on everything and welcome discussion on the matter. However, I went on to reassure James that he and other stay at home dads are more than welcome at our church.

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That’s a question that can be pretty easily answered by anyone with knowledge of the two countries. Chile is located in the infamous “Ring of Fire”, where 90% of the world’s earthquakes occur. Yeah…90%. Haiti, on the other hand, is a country that hadn’t seen what could be considered a major earthquake since 1860 and not one of this magnitude in nearly 250 years. The Chilean people prepare for earthquakes. The Hatian people do not. Chilean buildings are made to withstand shaking (although many collapsed during this massive quake). Hatian buildings, many made of unreinforced concrete, crumbled under even modest shaking. So, the disproportionate amount of damage and casualties in Haiti is easy to understand, even if it’s difficult to swallow.

Unfortunately, there are still hundreds who lost their lives yesterday and hundreds of thousands who had to sleep outside last night. To them, the devastation is just as bad as Haiti. Their families will be forever changed by this event just like the families in Haiti. The big difference to you and me? This is not as “sexy” of a news story for the media to cover.

Is that an unfair assessment for me to make? Well, judging by the CNN coverage today that spent an hour showing a webcam in Hawaii waiting for a tsunami to hit (and the seeming disappointment by the anchors when nothing really happened), I think the news media will be done with this story in less than a week. It’s not going to make them money, not going to win them awards and not going to increase their ratings. So they will forget about it. And so will we.

Need proof? We’re already letting Haiti slip from our minds. Before yesterday, when was the last time you thought about Haiti? Did you think about the fact that millions are sleeping outside in the rain? Did you think about the separated families, the children stuck in UNICEF camps and those who can’t leave the country because of government corruption?

And even if you have thought about Haiti, has it dominate your thoughts and conversation like it did a month ago? Is it as real to you today as it was then? Sadly, probably not. I confess that even though I think about and pray for Haiti regularly, it has slipped from the forefront of my thoughts. How in the world did I let that happen when there is so much work still to be done?

And what about New Orleans (which is still rebuilding) or Indonesia? Yeah, remember Indonesia? Six years ago, a massive earthquake and the accompanying tsunami killed over 230,000 people (roughly the same as the Haiti quake). Before all the tsunami talk yesterday, when was the last time you thought about that deadly wave in Indonesia? Have you prayed recently for the countless number of people who lost loved-ones in that tragedy? Have you looked to see how you might be able to help the people in that region? Again, I confess that I hadn’t until today. (I found this article which outlines the rebuilding success and remaining challenges).

As eager as I am to help in Chile and Haiti, right now there isn’t much I can do. But in 6 months or a year or 5 years, when these people really need the kind of help I can provide, will I have forgotten them? Will I, like the media outlets that inform me, have moved on to the next disaster, political scandal or “sexy” news story? Wow, I hope not. God, help us to remember…and to lend a hand and a voice when others have forgotten.

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You see, in so many ways, she’s so much closer to what we are created to be than I have been in a very long time. At the same time, so many of her actions remind me of the things that seem to be hard-wired into us that simply defy logic. Today’s lesson:

I OFTEN FAIL TO IDENTIFY MY ENEMY

It seems silly to think that an infant would have any enemies. After all, the only people that Lucy has extended contact with are her mom and me. And yet, Lucy does have an enemy. This enemy picks on her, scratches her face, steals her pacifier and blocks her bottle from getting to her mouth. This enemy pulls the blanket off of her and removes her socks so she gets cold. This enemy even goes so far as to poke her in the eye from time to time.

The enemy, of course, is a baby named Lucy. She is her own worst enemy. Over the past three months, Lucy and I have had a running conversation about this issue. “Lucy,” I tell her, “if you wouldn’t pull that pacifier out of your mouth, then you wouldn’t get upset.” (I don’t think she’s listening.) “Baby,” I say, “if you didn’t kick your socks off, your feet wouldn’t get cold.” (She does it anyway.) “Sweet girl,” I beg, “please get your hands out of your face so papa can get the bottle into your mouth.” (This one makes her really mad!) No matter how many times we have the conversation, she just doesn’t seem to get it. Now you may say, “Adam, she’s only three months old. She doesn’t know any better and she certainly doesn’t have the ability to understand what you’re telling her.” Hogwash! My baby is brilliant! Haha.

Seriously though, Lucy doesn’t have the ability to understand my very logical explanations of her self-torment. However, I should be able to understand the concept, right? At 32 years old, surely I could recognize if I exhibited similar behavior. But, alas, that is not the case. I (like so many of you) have spent my entire life being my own worst enemy.

When you’re 3 months old, it means you pull your pacifier out of your mouth. When your 20 or 30 or 50, it means you pull away from friends when you are hurting and need them the most. When you’re a baby, your hunger for that bottle causes you to put your hands in your mouth (blocking the bottle in the process). When you’re an adult, your hunger for “the good life” and for stuff causes you to get yourself in over your head financially, which ultimately makes you a slave to debt and drags down your quality of life.

The apostle Paul put it so succinctly in Romans 7:15

I do not understand what I do. For what I want to do I do not do, but what I hate I do.

Yeah, Paul, me too, buddy. Me, too.

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