Looking for awesome Children’s & Preteen Ministry resources for your church?  Check out this sale from ONLY144.com. $97 for $1,678 worth of Children’s and Preteen Ministry stuff.  They’re like GROUPON for ministry stuff, and they have some ridiculous 144 hour deals.  Only 74 or so hours left on this deal so don’t miss it.  The website is ONLY144.com Spread the word.

Here’s all the resource providers.  Click the photo to check it out.

We challenged Ragamuffin Readers to use a real or virtual chalkboard to express one of Project 7′s SEVEN causes. (HEAL – SAVE- FEED – QUENCH – HOUSE – TEACH – HOPE)

And, as usual you did not disappoint. We received some AMAZING depictions of these causes. I honestly love seeing how creative you are.

But, alas, there can only be ONE winner.

Cheyenne Hensley is the one.

Congrats Cheyenne! Get ready for an entire YEAR’S worth of swag.

And the rest of you…let’s not let our creativity stop with the chalkboard…

Why not take a creative approach to gift giving this year? Make 2011 the year you give gifts that give back.

I’m about to hop on a plane to Rwanda for the next 7 days, maybe you aren’t. (Well you probably aren’t) But you can do good here with your feet planted on US soil, and still have Chipotle for lunch.

So do it.

The Project 7 Store is a fantastic way to make that happen.

So,today my family releases their amazing album, For The Honor.

Get a taste of the album with a free download of the title track here.

Today, all iTunes proceeds go to the women and children of Kamwokya through Compassion International.

So, get involved, buy their record, support my family.

I know this seems too good to be true.  That’s why it only lasts 144 hours and then it’s over forever.  There’s only a few hours left so I hope you’ll consider getting this for your church.  The folks at ONLY144.com are a mix between Groupon and Woot, only for ministry resources.  It’s actually pretty cool if you’re on a limited ministry budget.  This is their first WORSHIP MEDIA resource deal, and it’s exciting.  There’s over 13 producers who’ve pitched in resources to make this happen, so don’t miss it. Visit www.only144.com.  It ends forever at noon tomorrow, Thursday, November 10th!

So, we sparked some legit conversation the other day when I brought up The Elephant Room Round 2.

I told you we’d be partnering with them to have some heated discussion of our own. So answer me this:

What topics would you love to see on our Elephant Room/Ragamuffin Podcasts?

What blunt conversations can we have about current church and ministry? I know you’ll shoot straight with me.

So, bring it.

She is the perfect person for an opportunity with the Phoenix Suns. Yes, she lives in Phoenix. We’ve only met in real life a few times. And yes, I’ve tried to convert her to become a Hawks fan, but she won’t have it. The Suns are hiring a Social Media Sideline Reporter. First pro-team to have a position like this. And of course, you know how we Ragamuffins love our social media- seems only fitting that my assistant landed that job. If we can get my son to beat out that Double Rainbow guy, we can get her this gig.

Watch her audition video for the role of #socialsideline reporter here.

Here’s a video of her taking it to the streets.

@Metromom #socialsideline from IRIS MEDIA on Vimeo.

How can we help? Post links to these videos on your social media channels with the hashtag #socialsideline and her twitter handle @metromom.

The task is huge, but Craig’s vision and passion to fix it are HUGER. (a lot like my biceps.)

Straight from the dashboard of my car today:  here is STEP 2.

Become a member.

It’s simple.

It’s tangible.

It’s something you can do today.

So, will you?

One statement is true no matter what your political slant:

If the church would be what Jesus asked us to be. If the church would do what Jesus asked us to do- the need for government to step in and care for the poor, the hurting, and helpless would be nearly non-existent.

Live 58 knows this is possible and is calling us to action.

Hunger, disease, death from poverty is on the decline.  Thirty years ago 52% of the world’s population lived in extreme poverty. Today, that percentage is 26%.

Live 58 believes that together, not one ministry, or one church,  but the Church (yes, Catholics, Baptists, Pentecostals) has the power to make it happen.

I love the talk Scott Todd gave at Q.

I love that it can’t be done alone it has to be done together.

Us working in CommUNITY.

God intended that his Church be the hope of the world.

Live 58/ is audacious enough to believe that is actually true.

Do you?

I got this tattoo of Saul because it started conversations.  I have not see clothing that I would EVER wear that was aimed to do the same…

When I came across what my friend Hunter Harrison is doing with his brand Mendmark, I knew this was a win. He sent me some of their swag.  Their stuff is legit. I am proud to be sporting their gear. And truly, the conversations began almost immediately.  Wearing the shirts or bracelets literally invites the questions.  And the conversation begins.

Conversations of sacrifice. Because the entire brand is built to tell the greatest story of Christs sacrifice.  The scars he took on, so that our hearts could be mended.

Conversations of love. Because they understand that the story continues when we use the sacrifice, the love we’ve received to mend the lives of others.

Conversations of hope. Because when you buy one of their products you are buying clean water for someone who does not have it. Mendmark partners with LWI to build water wells and bring clean water to villages and countries who desperately need it.  They just finished one in Nicaragua.

So follow them on twitter, check out their stuff, buy some gear because:

A) Your cool factor will increase

B) Your conversations will take on a new dimension

C) Someones gets to hear about.

39 Lines from Mend Mark on Vimeo.

For many of you, this could be a game changer. The Ragamuffin community is a bunch of people who aren’t afraid to get after it- to put feet to the gospel and do some good. Adoption, missions, clean water, sex trafficking, poverty- you guys are about action.

And I love that.

That’s why I know you’ll love what Razoo is doing.

The two things I loved most about this idea are:

1. It’s simple.

A team captain creates the team on Razoo, then invites the team members to join the team by creating their own personalized fundraising pages. The team stays connected through the whole process of fundraising. The best news for the churches and non-profits: eliminating paperwork. Razoo handles it all.

2. It’s spreadable via social media.

Fundraising used to involve letters, stamps, checks- um, it’s 2011. That’s just not the way we communicate any more. Razoo enables team members to create customized fundraising pages with photos or videos. Every Razoo page is built to share on Facebook, Twitter and email, making it easier to connect with your people where they actually are.

Man, I love technology. But you already knew that.

Thanks Justin and Razoo for making it easier for Ragamuffins to get off their….