3 Things to Remember on Verse Selection Night

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Yes, of course this is another 168 Project post. Simply because, I’m participating in the 168 Project. Again. Did I want to this year? No!!! God had other ideas. As tonight is the night for selecting the verse that starts the writing ball rolling, I figured I’d do yet another list post, in order for Guy Kawasaki to read it. Maybe he’ll use the donate button in the upper right.

1. Don’t prepare for a specific verse,
2. Ask God to lead you to the stone, and finally
3. Remember, it’s not about me.

I’ve read through the entire Bible in my lifetime, and I don’t consider myself an expert by any means. The challenge as always in this competition is to take the verse you draw and create a ten minute short film based on it. The temptation is to try to get a jump on what you think your verse will be, and I’ve been guilty if this in years past. This year’s theme is Hearing God, and according to the founder of the festival, this means the entire Bible is fair game.

The second point basically boils downto, pray before you go up on stage, and draw. As opposed to a hat, the stones are arranged in a cross, and team members go up in order of entry, (Remember, this year I’m #13) and point to a specific stone, at which point, the aforementioned founder will hand it to you, and you get to read aloud your verse for the first time. Again, having a preconceived notion as to what verse to choose has not necessarily been a good thing, and ultimately, the odds on guessing which verse you’ll get, are astronomical.

In conclusion, this isn’t about me. It’s about God. Praying that He will give me a verse that allows me to make a film that glorifies Him, is hopefully a prayer that he will answer in the affirmative.

Oh, one more thing. If you’re not Guy Kawasaki, and you’ve read this far, you may still use the donation button on the upper right. Because ultimately, I can’t do this without you.

72 and sunny in Redondo Beach.

As always, please, retweet.

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He is Risen…

Image by Don Solo via Flickr

To which you should reply, “He is risen indeed!” Or so my former church would have you say. I’m at a smaller church now, so, we aren’t so micromanaged, although, sometimes, I get that feeling when asked to stand and greet those around me. “Take 37 seconds to say good morning to those around you…” Was a recent call to “Share the joy” as again, my old church called it.

You might not know this, but I’m actually a very shy person. Don’t know why that is, but I’d feel more comfortable if I woke up with a script next to me on my nightstand every morning. Of course, life would be a bit more boring, if that were in deed the case.

This may be why I became a filmmaker in the first place. I started as an actor, and through the grace of God, have been given all these incredible opportunities to create as well. So, I guess that’s what this post is ultimately about, as I need to payoff a few people from this last 168 Project film I did, as well as continue to make more 168 films in the coming years. So, I’ve put this new thing here, and you may use the current donation button, or this new one.

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Much thanks to those that have already contributed, and the list is too long, or else I’d name you individually. Your hard work is what got me here, and I hope we can continue to work together to create amazing films.

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168 Clarity

They should rename it, The 147 1/2 Project. Well, at least in my case. I’ll get a little publicity bump as I was the first team to turn in this year, however, it was very much a team effort. Still, over 20 hours ahead of the deadline, may be impressive. So, to review, or, in 21st century blogspeak, my takeaways:

• 24 hours in a day, times 7, equals 168. Just don’t try to stay up for all of them.
• Delegate. As I’ve previously discussed elsewhere, you can’t possibly know everything, AND
• Some may know more than you. Embrace it.
• Make sure your camera works with your editing bay. Did I say that one already?
• As the director, it’s your film. Well, ok, I’m writing this, so, it’s my film 🙂
• Actually, it’s God’s film, that he made through me.
• It’s not about me.

There’s so much more that I learned, upto and including, what my children may or may not look like seven years from now….

So, the madness is over.And now, I can move on to stressing over more important things, like is it any good? 😀 God blessed this production throughout, bringing me several miracles when I was about to chuck it all through the closest window. I could name names here, but it’s my hope that they’ll get to give their own acceptance speech April 4th.

In conclusion, throughout this experience, I was granted a revelation, which is why the #168Madness is over, and now I’m experiencing, #168Clarity. Please RT 🙂

72 and sunny in Redondo Beach.

Blogging for Human Rights Day

Is apparently today, and the right I’d like to take on as my cause is, the right to have an opinion different than yours. That’s what this site is about. Most in the world today believe in evolution, simply because they were told to. Another word for this is, indoctrination. I choose to believe the Creation account in The Bible, and by most, I get derided. Why? I choose a different belief system than you do. One of us will be found to be correct at some point, however, until such time as it happens, shutting down the debate is no way to win the argument. I’m done for today on the major issues of our time. I’m going to take the rest of the day away frrom most things that I do on more than an occasional basis, and pray. I will pray for you as well, even though you may not believe in the God I’m praying to.

Watchmaker, and 168

Have you seen Inherit the Wind? A necessarily fictionalized version of the Scopes Monkey trial that took place over 80 years ago. Back then, the minority opinion was that evolution took place. Today, the reverse is true. My writing partner and myself have taken up the reigns, and written an update, based on what’s going on in the news in various states…. You’d think these people have never heard of Intelligent Design, or Creation, but there you have it…..

Anyway, The 168 Project, now in its 7th year, takes place every February. Filmmakers from all over the world attempt to make a short film in a week, based on a Bible verse. I gave some of my impressions on my experience last year here, and I’m at it again. So, if you feel so led, please click the donate button, as unfortunetly, I can’t make either of these movies free 😦

Any questions? Leave ’em here! Thanks!!!