Joseph F. Radosevich

I was thinking about the books that I've read this year. One theme is commonplace dangers. Not the dangers of a terrorist threat. Not the dangers of a car crash or airline flight--the chances of those are still very small. These dangers are online, in animals, and in the future of our environment. Online Dangers In Future Crimes  by Marc Goodman, we see the dangers that lurk online for us all. Stolen money out of our accounts, hacks that lock us out of our devices, etc. are so common now. I was talking with a friend about problems that my parents had with their computer fraud and he described the exact same situation with his parents. It's all over and will continue to be all over. This book has some super intense descriptions of criminal activity. You probably should skip the section on how organized crime uses and makes money from online sex trafficking. But Goodman explains what can happen with technology and some simple and easy ways to stay safe online. Health Dan...

If you want to know what passes for excitement in my life: I've been waiting like a comic book fanboy for 2 years to try the new Cosmic Crisp apple. And it releases in stores next week! I went home the other to tell Emma and said, "you wouldn't believe what I found out today!" She rolled her eyes when she realized what I was so excited about. I heard about it a couple of years ago and have been reading about it and waiting ever since. You wouldn't believe how excited I am to try it.

I passed a kickboxing-style fitness gym while running errands the other day. I've seen them for several years and always wondered about them and what kind of workout they give. I actually started thinking that it is a gimmick and not a very good workout. I imagined the workout was a gimmick. When I was a trainer, I knew the perfect workouts. I worked hard on learning the best principles and figuring out the perfect method for each client. For some people 20 minutes was all they needed for the right workout. But my workouts were at least 45 minutes. They were perfect. Now, I don't live in a gym. Working out has to fit around other priorities. And a 45 minute workout doesn't work or sound fun anymore. I've had to adjust my workouts. I've had to stop letting the perfect workout be the enemy of a good workout. I used to be paralyzed planning my workouts because I knew what should be in a perfect workout. Now, I just plan for good workouts. What's in a good w...

The average church is 73 people. If you pastor a smaller church or a church plant, resources and money can be tight. Here is a list of cheap digital tools. Last week, I posted 4 free digital tools for small churches. Soundstripe--This is a yearly subscription for music that you can use for videos and podcasts. We pick theme music for each new series and then put that as the background to a sermon bumper, series trailer/invite, podcast introduction, and sermon quote videos. Having professional music that you are licensed to use is awesome and totally worth $135 per year. If you make your own creative, then this makes everything fast, professional, and short. Above is an example of a sermon bumper we did this fall. Breeze ChMS--This is a simple, powerful, and cheap Church Management Software. This helps you keep track of people, events, giving, etc. A few things we do with it: plan volunteer schedules, track attendance, keep a list of guests so we can invite them back at holidays o...

Here are a few digital tools that I love. They help me as a solo pastor of a small church to do ministry. I'm not always in my office. Even when I am, there are a lot of things to juggle. And cost is always an issue. Chrome Remote Desktop--This allows me to control one computer from another location. This is useful for setting up the service slides and presentations without having to be in the building at the tech desk. This morning, it allowed me to fix the text for the sermon without having to run up to the building to do it. You can give the login info to a volunteer and they can set up the presentation without having to be in the building. This empowers volunteers. Google Cloud Print--This allows you to turn a simple printer into a network printer that you can print from any office or from home. If you have volunteers that need to print something, you can give them access to the printer and what they need can be ready when they get to the building. Planning Center Serv...

Small church websites are different than websites for larger churches. Here are the four things that a small church website needs.  You need a picture that shows the inside of the church. If I guest comes to a small church, they want to know what the inside of the church will look like. Don't show them the stage. Show them the sanctuary. One of the special things about a small church is the congregation. Show that.  You need to explain how, when, and where to attend. Don't assume that guests would know where to go, when to be there, or how to dress. Make it easy for them.  You need to show the pastor and tell a little bit about him. People want to know who the pastor is. It's one of the most visited pages on any church website. Don't make it hard for people. Show it on the front page. Use a recent picture. It's easy to have somebody who's good at taking photos take a photo of the pastor. You need to share what you believe. A page that explains the church's b...

Noah Rothman wrote this week on "ghosting" in the workforce. Ghosting is when someone does not show up or communicate when expected. They just disappear. It happens in relationships. Rothman wrote about how it happens at work. He said that it comes from conflict avoidance and is typical of Millennials. Let's just be clear; Millennials are between 20-40 years of age. So when someone says Millennial, think of the 30-35 year-old you know as the middle part of that group. I just want to respond with a couple of takeaways. For millennials: On one level, conflict stinks. It is really hard and feels like your guts are being pulled out. But it can be an opportunity to grow personally. When you face conflict and hard conversations or difficult people, try to see it as an opportunity to prepare for the next 50 years (you do expect to live until you are 90, right?). Learning to address conflict now means that you will be better prepared to deal with it in the future. Becau...

I've got some history with church planting. I have a failed plant and what seems so far to be a successful plant. I've been through some trainings and read a bunch of books. Let me tell you the best church planting training I've seen: The Basic Training system taught by the Central Region of the Christian and Missionary Alliance.  Today, I had a lunch with a prospective planter thinking about planting a church in Wisconsin, and I gave him an overview of it. I cannot say good enough things about it. The biggest difference it makes is that it gets the focus off of having a larger-than-life church planter as your leader. I've had lunch with so many church planters who told me stuff that was absolutely not transferable. I am not the amazing leader that they are. I cannot drum up support and followers like they can. I'm just a normal guy who loves people and believes that God changes people through his word.  Basic Training strategy and methods took 2 year...

I collect tickets. I've got just about every ticket I've had since the first MLB game I went to as a kid (Texas Rangers vs. Seattle Mariners). When I was about 15, I set up the sound system for an Andrew Peterson concert at our church. When we were tearing down and cleaning up, I found his set list and put it in with my tickets. The paper in the picture above is that set list. I've followed Peterson's career and enjoyed his creativity ever since. At Christmas, I play his song "Deliver Us" from his Behold the Lamb of God Christmas Opera. We knew we belonged at Southern Seminary when we pulled up to the campus hotel at 12 am and found the desk guy reading "Monster in the Hollows." We've worn out his copies from his Wingfeather Saga (we almost gave one of our kids a middle name from those books). Now, I'm excited to dig into his book on Christianity and creativity. The title has so much depth. This reminds me of Flannery O'Connor...

I noticed a yard yesterday. The house had continuous mow lines with the Catholic Church next door. I imagine it's the parsonage. I imagined the life of the priest who likely lives in that house. Growing up there was a Catholic Church behind our church. I never met the priest. But I heard of his reputation. He was well-educated and well-read. I believe he knew 7 languages. His learning was like a myth to me. And a goal. When I was younger, I never planned on marrying. Part of it was that I knew as strange as I am, I was unlikely to find a woman to put up with me. But a large part was what I wanted to accomplish. I didn't want to be a priest, but I wanted to be well-educated, well-read, and accomplished. I planned on being single because I imagined how productive my life could be. I could be like that mythical priest. When I noticed the house yesterday and imagined the life of a priest living in it, I compared it to my life with my family. Our little Ivy Jo More Radosevich...

Two gymanstic-based exercises that I really like right now are: Hanging Knees-to-Elbows--This is a new one that the army will be testing for their combat readyness test. Seeing it included caused me to take a second look at it, and I love it. To do it right, you have to work on shoulder stability, engaging your back muscles, and using your stomach muscles to pull you into position.  L-Sits--I've been bored with my Dip Holds for a while, but I like to work on stability in my shoulders. L-Sits give me something to work on at the same time I work on my stability. These two exercises make me feel strong. Some workouts and exercises leave me beaten up, but these build me up. Here's a workout that I do that I really love because it is gymnastic-based and hits all my priorities. Hits all 6 of the big movements (squat, hinge, push, pull, rotate, carry). Includes warm-up, strength, skill, and conditioning. Warm-up: 2x Squat and Curl, Glute Bridges, Kettlebell Halos St...

What is social media for? What's your social media for? One thing that I work on now is having a target for my social media use. It's too easy to just consume and to put up whatever comes to mind. But social media represents who we are, what we love, and how we want to contribute to the world. My social media targets: Facebook--photos and quotes documenting my family and life. Representing what we do to friends and family. I try to show what we create and how we have fun without money. Too many Christians (pastors especially) show only extravagant places that cost a lot of money. I think that shows the world that if you become a Christian or a pastor, then you can have a lot of money too. That's wrong and we shouldn't give that idea. Instagram--this is my public profile, so I don't post family photos. I post things from my life that will give a true idea of what I do and what I'm about. I want people who search for me to find this profile and find the ...

On vacation in September, we did a taste-test one day of different newer varieties of apple. It was inspired by the ad at Meijer that promoted their apple harvest. I remember when Meijer did really big and cool apple displays. This looked no bigger than a normal display and without any variety I hadn't tried. We bought 3 apples anyway and tasted them against each other. Rave was my favorite. It was crunchy and juicy. It tasted like Apple Juice. Nothing spectacular in the taste department, but it was good. Sweetango is a daughter of Honeycrisp. It had a lot of crispness to it, but little flavor or sweetness. The main flavor was tart. I didn't care for the extreme crispness of it without anything besides tartness. Ambrosia was all texture and no flavor. I didn't care for it. Totally bland. I like my apples sweet, and Rave was the sweetest of the three. I much preferred Sweet Sixteen from the orchard up near Crivitz, WI.

I've taken to writing to people about all sorts of things. Thank you cards, emails to authors about books I enjoy, letters to let my politicians know what I think about an issue, journalists about their work. Last week, I was emailing with a journalist and he commented that he had questions for my "boss"-- a Democratic presidential candidate. I knew exactly who he thought I was because I had googled my name and found the same Joe Radosevich. The most relevant "Joe Radosevich" you find when you google my name is a democratic political staffer. That reminded me why owning your name and having a public profile is so important--people google you and they believe what they find. That is why I started this website and why I opened my Instagram account up to the public. It is why LinkedIn is important to keep updated. People believe what they find on the internet. It goes for businesses, churches, and individuals. So pay attention to it.

I finished Shaftesbury: The Great Reformer by Richard Turnbull last week. The Earl of Shaftesbury was his title; Anthony Ashley Cooper was his name. He was a British politician and reformer in the 1800's. He was a committed Christian who used his position in government and his influence in society for good. I wanted to point out one detail: He spent 25 years fighting to protect and free children who were forced to clean chimneys for master chimney sweeps. 25 YEARS! Children fit into the chimneys better than adults, so they would force children, usually boys, who worked for them up into the chimney. It was dangerous work. They were often burned, choked, beaten, or fell. Even after he helped pass laws to protect boys from those jobs, the master sweeps would ignore them and the laws would not be enforced. Even when there were machines to do the cleaning, rich families who did not want a loud machine in their house would employ sweeps who still had boys to do the work. I was i...