In order for a gospel community to be counter-cultural, we first have to assess what we are encountering in the culture. How does culture and society determine how community is formed and fostered? What are some of the guiding principles and motivations behind its formation? These are questions I find important to determine the starting point, that is, the current reality in which we enter.

I have discovered 11 aspects “societal segregation” that form and foster the community at large. By segregation, I’m talking about ways society separates or isolates individuals to form groups favorable to their preferences and/or convictions. Positively speaking, they may be referred to “affinity” grouping. Most often, this happens naturally.  When multiple aspects of societal segregation are combined, clustering sub-cultures are formed. The eleven aspects of societal segregation are:

11 Forms of Societal Segregation

1. Demographically – “age and stage” in life; boomers, busters, Xers, Nones, etc.
2. Economically – low, middle, upper class
3. Ethnically – black, white, hispanic, asian, “other”
4. Sexuality – heterosexual, homosexual, bisexual, transgender
5. Spiritually – religious, spiritual, atheist, Christian, Catholic, etc.
6. Geographically – downtown, midtown, suburb, exurban, rural, etc.
7. Linguistically – English, Spanish, Korean, German, etc.
8. Educationally – not just levels of education but philosophy as well
9. Politically – republican, democrat, independent, tea party
10. Occupationally – white collar, blue collar, no collar; government, private sector
11. Extra Curricularity – hobbies, sports, music, third-place loyalties

These eleven forms/aspects have several uses in society, most notably being how they serve as filters for societal identification. When you get to know someone, you will discover their age (demographic), perhaps where they live (geographic), what they do for a living (occupation), and maybe even what they enjoy doing in their free time (extra curriculars). These aspects can not only serve as filters but also barriers to keep out (separate) those most unlike yourself. If you find someone to be a Hispanic (ethnic), speaking Spanish (linguistic), practicing Roman Catholic (spirituality), construction worker (blue collar), and you are none of them, it is possible that a person with those aspects may never become a part of your community as barriers have been erected (either knowingly or unknowingly) to prevent that from happening. As you can see, using them as filters can lead to creating barriers, but using them as barriers can lead to judgments and stereotypes. These aspects become the basis or grounds for security the kind of community that most suits your preferences or convictions, that makes you most comfortable by security people most like you. Judgments are made about people to determine who is allowed into the community you (and others like yourself) have formed.

In my next post, I will share what I believe to be the internal driving motivations behind societal segregation and five components of heart idolatry surfacing in the process.

Think deeply.
Believe sincerely.
Live relentlessly.
For Jesus.

POWERFUL.

Perhaps the best presentation of the gospel I’ve heard.

Is Getting a Virtual Assistant Right for You?

Admittedly, I’m going to speak from personal experience here, but here are some ways to determine if perhaps a virtual assistant is right for you.

1. Are you doing too much work to maintain previous success without margin to move forward? Are devoting very little time to doing what only you can do and spending the majority of your time doing tasks other competent assistants could do?
2. Are you looking for a highly trained assistant but cannot afford to pay someone 20+ hours a week?
3. Are you leading a start-up organization or new church, needing additional help, but don’t want to spend the time and money to set things up in-house (space, equipment, taxes, insurance, etc.)?
4. Does your work flow include a varied method for communication and collaboration, online and offline?

In my case, those are questions I have answered in the affirmative. Here’s how I answer these questions in my personal context:

1. One year ago, I was doing 10% of what only I could do and 90% maintaining what had already been done. I was virtually stuck. Since then, I have moved from 10% to close to 40-50%. That increase in margin to do what only I could do has moved my leadership forward in significant ways, and I consider that percentage to increase even more over the next year.
2. I simply did not have the budget or space to justify having someone work 20+ hours a week. If someone is highly competent, the work hours could be reduced to more than half of that. Plus, I work from home, Panera, and other coffee shops with no “real” office space.
3. I lead two start-ups and pastor an established church. The majority of my time is spent on the new start-ups, and at this point, don’t have the bandwidth to facilitate in-house handling of provisional equipment, taxes, insurance, etc. Ideally, I wanted a turn-key set-up where those necessities are outsourced to a third-party.
4. I am typically online throughout the workweek and can be accessed easily. Over the past year, I have focused more intensely on my methods and means for online and offline communication.

How I Got Started with EAHelp

After reading up on EAHelp via Michael Hyatt and following up with a few interviews with others using them, I proceeded in May of last year to get started. I don’t remember all the steps, but basically this is how I got started.

1. I filled out the initial form and agreement. Included is method of communication, number of hours, tools/apps used, etc.
2. A phone interview was conducted with me, filling in details from the initial form.
3. EAHelp conducted compatibility assessment with their pool of trained executive assistants.
4. EAHelp hosted a video conference call  with their recommended EA and me, introducing us to one another and beginning the “sync” process.
5. The onboarding process begins with regular assistance from EAHelp professionals to establish the work relationship and address any problems that arise in the process.

I was really impressed by how professional and personal EAHelp was throughout the experience. They continue to check in on me and my virtual assistant on a quarterly basis and have always been accessible and helpful to me.

Moving Forward with My Virtual Assistant

Learning to work with a virtual assistant was probably harder on my end than it was for my assistant. Over the past five years, I have grown accustomed to doing things on my own and never really implemented a delegation strategy, even though work roles and responsibilities have more than doubled during that time. So how did we move forward working together? Here’s some things I learned and implemented over the past year.

1. I started where the pinch was the worst. I didn’t want to bring every aspect of my work to my EA immediately, so I chose the areas most urgent/important that could give me some breathing room.
2. I diversified long-term projects with short-term assignments. This is important because the volume of work will ebb and flow. More than that, the shot-term assignments give immediate wins and sense of satisfaction in the new relationship, building momentum and means for assessing ways to strengthen the work experience.
3. I implemented a communication strategy with my EA. We talk (via Google Hangout) three times a week. Monday is our strategy call, lasting one hour. Wednesday is our mid-week calibration call, lasting 15-30 minutes. Friday is our debriefing call, lasting 30-45 minutes. Outside our calls, we primarily communicate through Google chat/IM to provide quick, brief updates.
4. I created a shared document detailing current and future tasks/projects. This gives my EA a big picture idea of where are and hope to be going so that in the event of slow weeks, there are long-term projects that could be given more attention.

In the first 3-4 months, my EA worked solely with part of my work (PLNTD Network), In the following 3-4 months, I integrated another part (Haiti Collective). In the last 3-4 months, we have added my final part (Grace). My EA started handling conference planning, calendaring, and event management and has moved into just about every nook and cranny of my workflow, including email administration, letter writing, travel administration, and finance.

Some Benefits and Why You Should Consider It

Since my productivity posts, I have talked with a handful guys about the specifics of moving forward with a virtual assistant. Obviously, I can’t cover everything here, so if you’d like to know more, connect with me about that. Let me wrap up this post with some benefits of having a virtual assistant and why you should consider it.

1. The agreement is scalable. You can start at 5 hours per work or more. If your work increases, you can scale up or down in 5 hour increments. You pay for the work done, not for unproductive hours to fill a position.
2. The virtual assistants are highly competent. Not only that, but they have a learning community where executive assistants share best practices and help each other address needs or challenges. EAHelp also has tech experts who can field our questions and find helpful solutions. So you are getting more than a well-trained EA. You are getting a community of support-EA’s as well as tech support. The more competent the EA, the greater the productivity and value they bring (and save you time, energy, and money in the long run).
3. The agreement and set up is simple and easy. I do not have to deal with equipment, taxes, insurance, or any of that. It is really a turn-key deal where a check is submitted and the conditions/necessities are met through EAHelp.
4. The little things make a big impact. When the demands of my workload increased, it was a challenge not to overlook the little things, like returning emails or phone calls, following up with requests or meetings, and the like. Dropping the ball on the little things can have a big impact on your work and the integrity of your organization. Doing things with excellence means there really are no little things. And having an EA to help address them goes along way in fostering excellence.

For those who have asked, I hope this post answers some of your questions. For what it’s worth, I think the rise of virtual assistants will not go away anytime soon, but rather become more commonplace in the future. If my experience is any indication, I can see why.

About this time last year, I recognized that leading two start-ups along with pastoring part-time was requiring me to do so much work to maintain, there was no way I was going to be able to move forward unless something changed. It was either do less work (remove some things off the plate) or learn to work smarter. Not having an assistant for four years had me doing a lot of work that others could be doing (at least 80%) with little to no time to be doing the work that only I could do. That’s a recipe for burning out and stalling out at the same time!

By this time last year, I had been reading about getting a  “virtual assistant” through Michael Hyatt’s blog for several months and wanted to explore it further. I inquired with a couple of guys who had a virtual assistant and came away with strong affirmation that I should pursue this myself. The company that was unanimously recommended to me was EAHelp from Miles Advisory Group (MAG). Check out this introductory video they produced:

After engaging Bryan Miles and his team on Twitter, I took the plunge in May and have not looked back. Beginning with the on-boarding process during the Summer, I realized that I should have done this a long time ago. No doubt the reason for that is my stubbornness and unwillingness to let go of work that I should not be doing that someone else could be doing just as well or better than I had in the past.

My virtual assistant is Colleen Garcia. She is a mother of six and lives in Chicago. Though we have never met in person, we have come to know and understand how each other works in ways that have enabled me to move forward and dedicate the majority of my time doing what I, as a leader and director, can only do for the ministries I oversee.

Over the past year, she has integrated her skills and experience into just about every area of my work, including managing day-to-day matters related to PLNTD, Haiti Collective, and Grace. Before I was dropping the ball left and right, unable to juggle all the various responsibilities. I would close my computer in the evening to be with my family but my brain would not shut down because there was still so much work left over. Since that time, I have seen the competence of Colleen in handling the things entrusted to her care and can walk away with confidence in knowing the things I need done will be completed with excellence and diligence. I have to say that getting a virtual assistant this time last year was one of the smartest things I’ve done (though it really is a no-brainer!).

What’s so cool with Colleen is that I have thrown just about everything at her that an executive assistant can imagine, and she has jumped in with both feet to figure out a solution and complete the task/project. I think she secretly thinks I’m making her into the “virtual assistant tech guru”.   But seriously, I had no idea what this next year would bring and the way developing ministries would grow, and in spite of all the unknowns and demand for flexibility, we have been able to grow together and became what I think is a pretty dynamic team.

So on this Administrative Professional’s Day, I want to express my appreciation to Colleen for everything she have done for me over the past year. It has been a joy not only to work together with her but to pray with her regarding family needs and decisions and see how God is using her in her home to love and care for her family (while getting pinged by me via instant message). I look forward with joyful anticipation in all the ways God is going to us our labors to serve local churches, advance the mission, and bless others with the good news of Jesus Christ!

N.B. – For those interested, I plan on sharing more about my personal experience with a virtual assistant and how that work experience has developed over the past year.

Sadly, even tragically, evangelicals have sometimes been guilty of preaching and teaching a Gospel that is not, shall we say, “fully dressed.” They may have focused properly on the central features of God’s atoning work on the cross, faithfully preached Christ crucified for sinners, celebrated the resurrection as proof that Christ’s self-offering for our sins has been accepted, and urged hearers to be reconciled to God. In other words, they have been right about the essence of the gospel; the key facts have been there in what they have said. But at the same time they have missed some of the critical implications and applications of the Gospel for daily living.

[...] When we fail to conduct ourselves “in step with the truth of the Gospel” (Gal. 2:14), we are in serious error. We are to live in such a way as to make the teaching about God our Savior attractive to our neighbors (Titus 2:10) and to win their respect by responsible and godly living (1 Thess. 4:11-12). Thus our preaching and teaching of the Gospel–that is, our ministries and catechesis–must include teaching the godly manner of living that accords with sound doctrines of the Gospel (Titus 2:1).

[...] The Gospel is to be adorned by both sound doctrine and godly living. To set the Gospel before parishioners and public without these is to preach an unclothed Gospel.

Our salvation does not end at new birth. We are taught by Scripture to say not only that we have been saved (Eph. 2:8) but also that we shall be saved (Rom. 5:9-10; 13:11; 1 Pet. 1:5) and even now are being saved (Phil. 2:12-13; 1 Pet. 1:9). What is the power that saves us? It is the power of the Spirit at work in and through the Gospel (Rom. 1:16) to change lives. We need both a fully orbed doctrine of salvation and a “fully clothed” presentation of the Gospel. But we have often fallen short on both counts.

Packer and Parrett go on to show how older evangelicals have gotten the essence of the Gospel correct by neglecting the implications and applications of the Gospel (undressed Gospel). Consequently, newer evangelicals have stressed the implications and applications of the Gospel but neglected the essence of the Gospel, or even worse, sometimes substituted them for the essence of the Gospel. What we need is a robust understanding of the essence of the Gospel that is fully dressed with all the implications and applications of the Gospel for every aspect of life.

Last week at TGC13, I was given a copy of a new book by Thom Rainer entitled I Am a Church Member: Discovering the Attitude That Makes a Difference.” Normally when I receive free books, publishers are clearing out inventory of titles not many people are buying (unless of course you come to one of my Band of Bloggers ). But in this case, I became particularly interested in this little 75 page book because of its title (a slow reader like myself can finish this book in two hours).

I Am a Church Member is broken down into six pledges:

1. I Will Be a Functioning Member
2. I Will Be a Unifying Church Member
3. I Will Not Let My Church Be About My Preferences and Desires
4. I Will Pray for My Church Leaders
5. I Will Lead My Family to Be Healthy Church Members
6. I Will Treasure Church Membership as a Gift

Each chapter concludes with a summary of what each pledge represents, along with discussion questions. There are several reasons I find this book really helpful.

First, IACM is really accessible to any member of a local church. It is really short, so even for those who don’t like to read, this book can be finished in one sitting. It is also starts where people are and takes them where they need to be. For example, I love Thabiti Anyabwile’s book What Is a Healthy Church Member? (IX Marks). But the first chapter is entitled “A Healthy Church Member Is an Expositional Listener.” Thom Rainer’s first chapter is entitled “I Will Be a Functioning Member.” Now which one do you think is more accessible to the average member? Thabiti’s book assumes you know what expository preaching is and familiar with exposition. Thom’s book assumes you want to be a functioning church member. Both are really important in my opinion, but the latter has a starting point that will engage a wider audience.

Second, IACM is presented with a “church member pledge” that would work well for churches who may not have a church covenant drafted. Members can makes this “pledge” by reading through the book prior to membership (e.g., in a membership class or coupled with a membership packet) and sign the pledge as they join their local church. In other words, this book is not only accessible but also practically functional. I can see who this book could be given to any prospective members or serve as a key component in the membership process.

Third, IACM addresses some of the critical errors with wrong-headed approaches to church membership. Though the book is short, and there are places I wish Rainer elaborated some points, Rainer successfully highlights and corrects unbiblical thinking and approaches so common in churches today. He addresses self-centered “me church” mentality strongly by exposing the preferential attitudes of consumer Christians (“if we approach church membership from the perspective of entitlement, we have it upside down…you always ask first what you can do for the church” (39)), while at other times condemning the church politician wanting to control the church through money, position, or assumed power. Finally, he stresses gross inconsistency of “inactive” membership as “unbiblical…man-made, man-centered, and man-maintained” (15). Churches seeking to move to a more biblical ecclesiology with regenerate church membership could be helped with just the first chapter of this book.

There are two points I would have loved to see Rainer draw out in greater detail. In his chapter on praying for leaders, he gives a great example of the pressures and stress that comes with pastoral leadership (and the demands often places upon him). Church members can often view their leaders solely through the lens of leadership in ministry, not through their primary roles as Christian, husband, and father. Pastors are most profitable in service to the church when they are enjoying Jesus, growing in grace and repentance, and modeling the Christian life for others. Furthermore, members would serve their pastors well to help them protect the ministry from overtaking family life. Being a father and husband is a priority to being a pastor and counselor, yet members with entitlement and demands on pastors can think their “needs” constitute and emergency where the pastor is indispensable and his family is disposable. Church members who pledge to pray for their leaders ought also pledge to understand and appreciate the roles of their leadership as Christian, husband, father, then pastor.

The other area I would have liked Rainer to address is the relationship of church and family (58). While he provides classic texts regarding the roles of husbands/wives and children, he does not really address this issue. I’ve seen members fall into two ditches here. On the one hand, church members use their family as a justification for marginal involvement in the faith family. In other words, members can make their family relationships idolatrous and prevent them from functioning properly in the body of Christ. On the other hand, members can sacrifice their family for the church so that ministry is great but their family is a wreck. They are busy serving others and have no time to serve and care for one another. Leading your family to be healthy church members means avoiding both ditches.

Having said that, I believe I Am a Church Member is a great little resource for local churches to stress the importance of healthy church membership. I hope many church leaders will recognize the value of shepherding their flock to meaningful participation and life in the body of Christ. As Rainer concludes, church membership is a gift that should be treasured…

“Church membership is a gift. A gift must be treasured. It should not be taken for granted or considered lightly. Because it is a gift, we must always be thankful for it. And when we are thankful for something, we have less time and energy to be negative.

When we receive a gift with true appreciation, we naturally want to respond to the Giver. We, therefore, see service to God as a natural outflow of the joy of our salvation and the consequent joy of our church membership. We consider it a privilege to serve the King, so we look for those opportunities at the church where we serve” (72-73).

MailChimp – This is my default tool for e-newsletters and announcements online. Very intuitive and more customizable than others (e.g., Constant Contact). For each purpose, a template is created by the design team which can populated repeatedly in a rather efficient manner. The import and export features are also helpful.

Wufoo – If you need online forms and need something more functional and customizable than Google Forms, than Wufoo is the way to go. I use Wufoo for general feedback, conference registrations, mission trip applications, network agreements, and just about anything else I can think of. Along with Wufoo, Survey Monkey (by the same company) is a helpful tool for doing online polling.

TripIt – There are several quality apps for managing your travel. I have chosen to go with TripIt over the past year and have found it really helpful. The app syncs across all iOS devices and allows me to update the plans rather effortlessly. Flight information includes various details, such as confirmation number, flight times, map of terminals, and status. When traveling with several people, the trips can be shared with others as well.

Livescribe – Back in the day, Scott Thomas got me hooked on Livescribe pens. If you are not familiar with them, they are worth your time to check out. Livescribe pens record notes on dot matrix paper which is reproduced digitally on your computer. Not only that, but the pen is an audio recorder, which syncs recorded audio to the notes on the paper so that you can go directly to particular portions of the audio immediately. The newest pen, the Sky, has an 8GB drive inside it, and also has WiFi capability, allowing you to record to the cloud wirelessly and send them to your Evernote. How cool is that? Yeah, I have mine with me all the time. If you need to keep accurate record of conversations or meetings, Livescribe is the way to go.

Google Drive/Docs – I mentioned in my last post that I use Dropbox as my primary file storage and management tool. However, I have found ways to incorporate Google Drive as well as iCloud into the mix as well. The greatest benefit with using Google Drive is the ability to collaborate and edit in real-time with multiple people, and these documents can be revised while simultaneously on Google Hangout. Being that my work is largely decentralized, I often have documents being drafted with multiple people contributing, so the Google Drive helps me significantly with this. Drive also has a slick iOS app that syncs across all devices, which makes files accessible as well. The new Chrome app for iOS allows you to also save any web page as a PDF and store it on the Drive, a particularly helpful bookmarking and archiving tool.

Square – Along with the move from centralized to decentralized, from building to mobile, there is the need to receive donations and register payments on the go. Square is the app I use for on site donations for Haiti, for conference bookstore, and for contributions to specific causes (sometimes created on the spot). Square allows people to sign on the iPhone or iPad and have a receipt emailed to them immediately. The ability to create short-cut buttons/pre-sets makes the checkout process really easy. The only disadvantage is the cut Square takes from using their service, especially if you are already using PayPal as a service as well.

53 Paper – I’m a visual learner. I’m not a great artist, but I like to draw out, diagram, and visually connect concepts and ideas in my mind. 53 Paper has quickly become the best app in the iOS market (for iPad) to do this. I was first introduced to 53 Paper by Seth McBee, whose drawings became a hit online and eventually turned into an e-book. They offer a nice selection of writing and drawing tools, and simple to use. If you like to draw, sketch, or simply visualize ideas, you should get this app.

Instapaper – I often discover articles, blogposts, or other forms of online content that I would really like to read, but the problem is that I want to stay on task and complete the projects before me. My “read later” go-to app that takes care of this is Instapaper. With the convenient button at the top of my Chrome bar, I can save all those tempting articles for a later time, which then can be archived, tagged, or shared on my social networks. I don’t use this as much since I’m employing Feedly more, but Instapaper is still valuable because I grab content I’m not subscribed to via RSS.

Siri/Dragon Dictation – I get tired of thumb and finger pecking on my phone and iPad quite often. Other times, I’m in a place or position where it is easier to have my words dictated and delivered for me. When it comes to SMS (text), emails, and social networks, I use Siri as my dictation device. When it is larger forms of communication, such as documents, I prefer Dragon Dictation. I have a bluetooth headset paired to my iPhone to allow me to dictate hands-free. I am finding myself using dictation tools more often my communication and workflow.

Skype – When it comes to video conferencing, I use Google Hangout, but Skype is a nice backup – especially when I am using my iPhone or iPad on the go. I also use Skype for international calling and communicating via SMS in places like Haiti. Because Skype has such a large and popular following, I use it for those not on the Google Hangout platform at this time. My primary purpose for using Skype is for mobile conferencing and international calling.

Pages – Pages is not my preferred word processor, but it is the default program for online publishing, especially within the world of e-books. Virtually all of the print work I do starts with pages before it is sent to copywriter or design team. I also use Pages as my primary teaching/preaching app for the iPad. I know there are various alternative apps for public speaking, but I have become comfortable with using Pages, and it works great for me.

So there’s the 12 additional tools and apps I employ in my workflow and productivity strategy. I’d be interested in hearing from you about the tools and apps you use for being more productive. Are there any that you could recommend to me?

NOTE: Several have asked how and why I use EAHelp personally, and I plan to answer those questions in a separate blogpost.

So how do I get things done? Here are my primary productivity tools and apps, meaning I use these on a daily basis. Note: there are others I’m exploring, and this list is likely to will change in the future. However, here’s the list as it stands at this moment.

Tools & Apps I Use on a Daily Basis

Dropbox – I started using Dropbox several years ago and have loved the ability to share files with dozens of people. I have used it in various ways, from working with teams, to sharing images from mission trips, to providing public folders for folks interested in my research and writing. Most recently, I decided to make Dropbox my primary file storage and management center, meaning I now save very little (if anything) on my laptop anymore. By saving everything to my Dropbox, I can access the files from my iPad and iPhone at any time. Lastly, I use Dropbox to back up photos from my D-SLR as well as iPhone, providing a centralized storage place for all my images.

Basecamp – The majority of my work is decentralized, so collaboration is key. The best collaboration tool I’ve used is Basecamp, which allows me to manage 10 projects at a time (I currently manage six). I get a daily briefing on all activity, and Basecamp centralizes discussion threads, task lists (with delegation assignments and deadlines), file uploading, and project scheduling. I’ve used Basecamp for everything including launching a website to planning conferences to starting group blogs to organizing mission trips. AND, most recently, Basecamp launched their own iOS app, bringing all this collaboration goodness to the iPhone and iPad.

EAHelp – I have the privilege of having a “virtual assistant” working alongside me for almost a year. I lead two startups and serve as a pastor of a local church. Last year, I realized the work that only I could do, I didn’t have time to do, and the work I was doing, I could train someone else to do it. I took Michael Hyatt’s advice and got a virtual assistant. Colleen is a phenomenal help. She does everything from managing email, scheduling appointments, planning trips, assisting in research, following up with correspondence, processing documents, moderating comments on blogs, building social media accounts, etc. To say that she’s been a huge help would be an understatement. Needless to say, I’m a big fan of EAHelp and virtual assistants.

iThoughtsHD – I don’t know if it is because I’m a visual guy, or that my brain needs an outlet, but mind mapping has been perhaps the greatest creative outlet I’ve experienced. If I can’t have a 8 foot whiteboard with me everywhere I go, the next best thing is to have a mind map app, and the best app by far is iThoughtsHD. Very easy to use and quite powerful, I usually end up mindmapping some facet of ministry or mission on a daily basis. The maps can be converted and shared in numerous ways, including Dropbox, email, and social networks. I use iThoughtsHD for sermon construction, task management, project development, and a host of other ways. It is where inspiration meets perspiration and vision moves from 30,000 feet to my hands and feet.

TextEdit – I know this may be a surprise to some, but I use TextEdit all the time, if not more than Word or Pages. This is because I need a clean, lightweight tool for taking down quick notes, making lists, and keeping up with information more than a post-it note but less than a detailed document. Moreover, I use TextEdit for plain-text editing which is critical for populating content online. We have all seen online content jacked up due to proprietary code incompatible with other platforms. Having a plain-text editor is essential for online content, and because I’m a Mac user, I go with TextEdit.

iAnnotatePDF – This is another iOS app that I love. Since I’ve gone virtually paperless, I need a way to mark up documents, and iAnnotatePDF is a great tool to do that. I am capable of highlighting, underlinging, writing over, making captions, inserting typed text, and about anything you want to a document with this app. I especially like the ability to sign digital documents with a stylus and send via email. What used to take several steps I can do in a matter of a few minutes. iAnnotatePDF also syncs with Dropbox, allowing you to access all files there and allows you to edit other formats (Word docs, Pages, etc.), not just PDF’s. Bottom line: if you need/want to mark up digital documents, this is the app to use.

Feedly – Because Google Reader is shutting down, I had to make a switch for my RSS aggregator, and based on online consensus, I went with Feedly. I am relatively new to Feedly, but I have customized my categories to get the news and blogs I need with efficiency. You can spend hours browsing the Internet and burn a lot of time, or you can target your reading and get the sites to feed to you. Feedly is a clean, customizable RSS reader that meets all my needs for aggregation and works nicely across all my iOS devices.

Fantastical – This is a little misleading, because I really use Google Calendar as my primary scheduling manager, but since I’m on the go so much, I really need my calendar management to be on my phone. Fantastical is the calendar app that iCal should have been. It’s great, and I have six calendars synced into it with ease. I can view appointments or activities in various formats (day, week, month) and stay up-to-date with future plans as well. I do use iCal and Google Calendar, but these calendars really feed into Fantastical in, well, a fantastic way.

Photoshop – I am not a PS whiz. In fact, I would venture to say I probably can do less than 10% of what Photoshop is capable of doing. However, I do love photography, and I do need the capability of editing images quickly for upload on the Internet, especially for my blogs. I have other photography tools for editing images, but at the end of the day, Photoshop is the way to go. By the way, there is a Photoshop version for iOS and Android devicies as well.

ESV Bible Online – I know, I know. Why am I not giving props to Accordance or Logos Bible Programs? What I am about to say here is more about me than the Bible programs, but I am rather simple and need a simple tool to access Scripture online, do basic searches (concordance style), and past texts into documents and sermon manuscripts. The ESV Online Bible recently announced a major upgrade, and the developers are actively working to make it better. I bought the Greek/Hebrew add-on, as well as the Study Bible notes, which has been a nice feature. Again, I’m simple here, and as much as I would like to be more proficient in high-powered Bible programs, ESV Online Bible does it for me.

Evernote – I jumped onto the Evernote bandwagon three years ago, but I never really integrated it into my workflow until recently. I, along with my assistant, are working through a lengthy Evernote Essentials e-book that is proving to be a great help to integrating Evernote deeply into my productivity habits. And given that it works across all platforms, that almost every app is somehow connected to it, and that I am dedicated to working paperless, Evernote is a no brainer (even though I have neglected it for so long). Seriously, if you want quick access to your notes and be able to integrate your work on other apps to a central hub, then Evernote is the base station for digital productivity.

Google Hangout – Over the past year, I have gone through a myriad of video conferencing options, including GoToMeeting, Facetime, Skype, TinyChat, ooVoo, and Google Hangout. I have landed on Google Hangout because it seems to be reliable and stable (a must for video chats), and it has several features I really like, including the integration of screen sharing, Google Drive, and embedding video chats on YouTube. When I’m mobile, I still use Skype, but given that I use Google apps so much (chat, GMail, Drive, calendar, etc.), Google Hangout has become my default video conference, and a nice compliment to my online communication strategy with regards to micro communication and group collaboration.

Kindle – I have a Kindle but don’t really use it anymore. Instead, I’ve opted for the Kindle App for the iPad. Since I’m already using the iPad for just about every other aspect of my workflow, I figured it made sense. Over the past two years, I’ve moved 80% of my reading to the Kindle, and the nice thing about it is I can share important excerpts of what I’m reading with those on my social networks as well as those who are following my Kindle feed. With all the great deals going on for e-books these days, it is crazy not to get the Kindle app for your iPad. Whether it is devotional reading, personal development, or reading for ministry purposes, the Kindle app has been a great asset for productive self-feeding.

So there’s my daily apps. If I can summarize them by their primary purpose it would look like this:

Dropbox: File Management/Storage
Basecamp: Online Collaboration & Project Management
EAHelp: Administrative Assistance
iThoughtsHD: Process Development
TextEdit: Note Taking & Plain Text Editor
iAnnotatePDF: Digital File Markup & Signing
Feedly: Site Aggregation & Curation/Bookmarking
Fantastical: Centralized Mobile Calendaring
Photoshop: Photo Editing
ESV Online Bible: Bible Reference
Evernote: Digital Hub & Centralized Note Clipping
Google Hangout: Video Conferencing
Kindle: Book Reading

In a follow up post, I will post another dozen additional tools/apps that I use on a regular basis, but not daily or in a primary manner.

What does your list look like? Are there apps or tools I’m not utilizing that you think would be helpful in my workflow on a regular basis? Do share!

Other Related Articles to Check Out:

» Developing a Communication Strategy Online and Offline
» Mind Mapping and Sermon Development
» Sentence Diagramming with iAnnotatePDF

What I realized in Psalm 99 is three pairs: God’s reign and rule (vs. 1-2); God’s majesty and holiness (vs. 3-4); and how God’s people respond to God’s character and God’s ways, viz., exaltation and worship (vs. 3, 5, 9). As I thought about these pairs, the triperspectival grid kicked into my thinking (normative – existential – situational).

The normative aspect of the Christian life is God’s character. It is the standard and rule for our lives. We become what we are (children of God becoming like Christ). We are situated in a world where God’s ways are continually brought before us. We see his might and awesome deeds worked on behalf of His people. The situational aspect is that God’s people are in the domain of God’s reign and rule. The existential aspect has to do with how God’s people respond to God’s ways and enter into His presence. The answer is awe, wonder, and worship. We experience God in His character and through His ways so that we would make much of Him and “praise His great and awesome name” (vs. 3). In short, the standard is God’s holiness; the situation is God’s rule; our response is worship. This the matrix of communion with God.

Whenever God’s character is not normative for our lives, we wander off into situations of self-rule rather than divine rule. Our response is not worship of God but self-worship and idolatry. Therefore, the response of God’s people in worship is calibrated by the nearness and experience of God’s character and ways. White hot, fervent, earnest worship is born out of a clear and continual sight of who God is and what God has done for us in Christ. There is no better place to be in all the world than to be under the reign of God beholding the glory of God with others genuine engaged in the worship of God.