Why should the devil have all the good . . . web sites?
Martin Luther is quoted as having said "Why should the devil have all the good music?" While this is debatable, it has spawned a song and a movie and has been used as a rallying cry for those who believe that Christians should use their God-given artistic talents to their fullest in the creation of music. While it is questionable that the results (Contemporary Christian Music) are actually good art, the point is still valid: God has given Christians unique talents and gifts that should be used to their fullest, which should culminate in art that is of the highest class and beauty created. As Christians, we should never be satisfied with "good enough".

In fact, this should be true in every area of the life of the Christian. In Colossians 3, it speaks of "doing your work heartily, as for the Lord rather than for men" (NASB). I can attest: this is very difficult to do. With five kids, two jobs, and serving in several areas, it is always tempting to do "just enough" to get by and not be excellent. It is a constant struggle.

So why the title "Why should the devil have all the good web sites?". As I stated in an earlier post, I believe that I was not killed in my accident because He has more for me to do here first. Besides the things mentioned in a previous post, I believe God has uniquely positioned me for another task: developing a research base on how Christian ministries can effectively accomplish their mission via technology. God has laid on my heart a desire to see technology used to reach the world for Him. We have all seen church web sites that have fallen by the wayside and are no longer maintained. It is embarrassing to me as a Christian to see this happen - if you are going to do it, do it well.

How am I uniquely positioned? I have a Ph.D. in Information Systems and Technology. My research interests are in the effective design of social systems. I work at a job that will encourage and reward me for research. I have worked in the IT industry for 15 years and continue to do consulting there, keeping my eye on the "pulse" of the latest technology. I have a deep desire to see churches and other Christian ministries use technology to accomplish the mission God has laid out for them.

When I talk about this research, I do not simply mean "I will show them how to make good web sites". There are already many people out there doing that, most notably the Heal Your Church web site run by Dean Peters. What I am talking about is an academic look into what makes some uses of technology by churches and other ministries effective, and why some fail. It is not the selection of particular technologies I am concerned with, it is the processes used by these organizations that should be analyzed. It is quite simple to put up a web site these days - it is much more difficult to create an Internet presence which leverages the church or ministry and increases its reach manyfold.

What will be the result of all this research? I don't know. A book, a web site, seminars, training classes, consulting - maybe a mix of all of these. My first step is just to understand more fully the issues facing churches and other ministries when using technologies and looking for common patters. This will be followed by a more explicit research proposal and possible grants. The process may easily take more than a year, but along the way I hope to impact the world in the way God has gifted me to.

I will use this blog to communicate my progress as I go along - I hope you'll check in once in a while to see how it's going.  ¶ 6:44 AM 1 comments

  My Music One of the ways I cope with hard times is by getting absorbed in my music. Ever since I was young, I always found refuge in listening to meaningful songs. I find that there are two sorts of people in the world: those that find music meaningful and look forward to experiencing music just for the pure joy of the music, and those who see music as something to have in the background. How can you determine which kind of person you are is simple: would you be happy to spend an evening by yourself listening to music and doing nothing else?

So, for me, during this time of stress and troubles, I have latched onto a couple of bands whose music really has said some of the things that I myself cannot verbalize; songs which lift my spirits, bring me to tears, and make me think. The first band is The Lost Dogs, a group I have written about before. As a big fan of this group, simply posting links to the lyrics of some of these songs does not do them justice, but it is one way I can support the band. Three of their songs that have been a blessing to me these last eighteen days are: Jesus on the Shore, Crushing Hand, and Blessing in Disguise. I cannot say enough good things about this group: each of the members individually and all of them together are so talented, in a musically just world they would all be superstars.

The second band is The Violet Burning, a group I stumbled upon while keeping up with the Lost Dogs. Several songs from the Faith and Devotion of a Satellite Heart album are so worshipful and heartfelt that whenever I hear them I feel refreshed and purified. What is so amazing is that these two groups are almost exact opposites: the Lost Dogs play a progressive country/Americana style while the Violet Burning are much more Alternative or Modern sounding.

Thanks to everyone who continues to ask how I am doing: I am still sore and unable to do anything to exert myself. I am going to physical therapy and seeing my doctor to determine the best course of action. Continue to pray for my wife, my healing, and wisdom on how to best deal with insurance and health care management.  ¶ 7:27 PM 1 comments

  Shannon's Story Many of you have heard that the car right behind mine in the accident was a student of mine, Shannon Reeve. I was not aware of this until amazingly, the afternoon of the accident, I got an email from her saying she was right behind me! Shannon was in my MIS class during Interterm earlier this year. I have asked Shannon to "tell her story" and I am including a picture of her poor car as well. Take it away, Shannon...

Now I'm sure you're all a bit played out on this story, but imagine seeing a big rig fall on top of your car and not thinking you're going to survive and then you may understand why it's nearly impossible to stop talking about it!

Monday morning, (don't you hate those?!?)... I have a big day ahead of me and am trying to get to school a few minutes early so I can have one last glance at my notes before I take a BIO test. As I am exiting on Lambert from the 57 freeway I see the big rig, turning in conjunction with my car, start to swing out into my lane and seemed like it was going too fast. As I try to make the turn as wide as I possibly can, I hear the squealing of brakes and see the big rig toppling on to my car. There is no where for me to go, so I hunch my shoulders and try to semi-duck, but brace myself for the for the worst. After the crashing, bending of steel, shattering of windows, ect. (sounding amazingly like any car crash you see in the movies) I open my eyes and to my amazement I am alive! My car is nearly crushed by the semi, but thanks to God's outrageous protection, where I am sitting is still in tact! I see a few people run over from their cars across the street and ask me if I am OK. I say yes, tell them I just need to get out, then ask if everyone else is OK. Someone asked me if I had called the police, and I, of course, said no... I was in shock I was alive, the last thing I am thinking about is calling the police! So, as they call 911, I reach for my phone beside me and call my parents to tell them what had just happened.

I tell my dad I was just in an accident, a truck had flipped and was stuck on top of my car. "I don't know how I'm alive!" Is what I said that must have made his stomach turn, but he tells me he's on his way and I tell him to be careful because there might be traffic now. haha!

Long story short, the firemen use the jaws of life to get me out. The roof had hit my head, but to my amazement... not even a scratch! My back and neck are sore, but nothing immobilizing. Now some people call me the "miracle girl" or say that they could see that an angel covered me to protect me. All I know is that God's protection and control was more real to me that day than ever before. No one was seriously injured in an accident that the coroners office was called to come on scene. God still does miracles today, and I believe what the devil intended for evil God has used for good.

I thank God for his protection of Professor Bourgeois and myself, as well as everyone else involved. It is hard to cope with the fact that you are okay while other people die from accidents like that daily. All I know is God is awesome, and I am thankful to be alive to fulfill the purpose He has for me... whatever that may be!


-Shannon Joy

Labels: accident

  ¶ 5:00 PM 0 comments

  Why me?
People die in traffic accidents every day. Why did God allow me to survive when so many die in similar accidents every day (see here, here, here, and here) ? I know that this is a question many survivors ask, and many chalk it up to "luck" or "karma".

As for me, I truly believe God has a plan for His creation and His will is going to be accomplished through those of us here. This plan is laid out in the Bible for all to see. Some hear the plan and choose to ignore it, some don't bother to look, and many have never heard. We will never fully understand the role each of us plays in this plan without first seeking it out:

Therefore I urge you, brethren, by the mercies of God, to present your bodies a living and holy sacrifice, acceptable to God, which is your spiritual service of worship. And do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind, so that you may prove what the will of God is, that which is good and acceptable and perfect. (Romans 12:1-2 NASB)

I will never know all the reasons why I survived this horrible crash while others die every day. I do know that I am part of God's plan for this world and I must do my best to fulfill my role in it by continually "renewing my mind": meditating on His word daily, praying to Him for wisdom daily, and then seeking out counsel of those wiser than myself. And then going out and doing it.

I believe that one of the reasons God spared my life at this time was so that my wife and I could continue to raise our five children. My desire for them is to learn to love the Lord and serve Him using the gifts He has given them. My wife still needs me and we are blessed every day by the thought that God allowed me to continue to work alongside her in this task.

I also believe that another of the reasons I survived this accident is so that I can share this story and my faith with others. I'm not one to push religion on everyone I meet, but if at least one person changes their heart and turns to God because of my experience, it will all have been worth it to me. We are all here for only a temporary time, some longer than others. Are you going to be part of God's plan? Or are you just doing your own thing, looking out for number one?

I am also coming to the conclusion that there is another task God has left for me. I will share that in an upcoming post.

Labels: accident

  ¶ 8:31 PM 0 comments

  Fifteen years My beloved, amazing, beautiful wife and I celebrated 15 years of marriage last week. Since I was too self-absorbed and busy last week I was not able to get her a card or gift. Finally, last night, I gave her my gift: a simple gold ring with five diamonds in it, one for each of our children. Thanks to our parents (both my mother and Marne's parents) for watching the kids, we are going to be able to go away to Vegas this weekend kid-free to celebrate and relax. Of course, Marne will have to do most of the driving now because of my condition.

I just wanted to use this space to celebrate my wonderful wife, my beautiful family, and all the other blessings that God has given to me.  ¶ 1:43 PM 0 comments

  A total loss Just received confirmation from my insurance company that the Mustang is a total loss. This is no surprise, but it is starting to hit home that it is never coming back. We're not sure what we're going to do about getting another car. We have been blessed to have another car that I can drive while we decide what to do.

The insurance company has yet to get back to me with an offer, but I am not sure getting a new car makes sense. On one hand, it would sure be nice to replace the car with another classic Mustang, maybe even another 68. On the other hand, trying to raise a family of seven living on one person's income in Orange County, it really isn't the best use of money. Opinions?

Labels: accident, Mustang

  ¶ 9:40 PM 0 comments

  And now for something completely different . . . I have been concerned about the involvement of evangelical Christians with politics for some time. It seems that we wholeheartedly support what the "good guys" do (read: Republican agenda) and condescendingly shake our heads at the agendas of the "bad guys". I gave up on the Republicans a long time ago and don't feel at home in any of the political parties.

A man named David Kuo has written a book describing his first-hand account working in the Bush Administration's "Office of Faith-Based and Community Initiatives" and it deserves a read by Christians of all stripes who are concerned about the intertwining of faith and politics. The book is called Tempting Faith: An Inside Story of Political Seduction

From the book:

I have no anger towards my former colleagues or towards anyone else. Part of what made this so difficult to write is the amount of respect I have for my former colleagues. I like and respect them.

It was also a real challenge to try and tell the entire story, my own intimate story about what happens when you struggle with God and politics—and politics wins. I think one of the things that drove me was feeling the urgent need to tell people, particularly Christians, I suppose, that politicians look at any constituency with very cold eyes. They form constituencies to form a governing coalition. That isn’t a bad thing; that’s just what they do. And I think Christians have come to this notion that this White House is somehow their fellow parishioners with them, and that is simply not the case.

... and those of you looking for more posts about my accident, stay tuned, they will continue over the next few weeks.  ¶ 3:06 PM 1 comments

  One week ago... It was about this time one week ago that it all happened. I just wanted to take this moment to praise the Lord for all He has done in the past week and thank everyone for their continued support and prayers. As for me: pray for healing as my body still hurts. I am feeling better every day, but I still can't lift anything heavy or stand for long periods of time. Also pray for wisdom in dealing with insurance companies and legal issues. Thanks.

Labels: accident, Mustang

  ¶ 7:49 AM 0 comments

  Angels When I was first struck by the truck, my initial thought was that I could not breathe very well. I immediately began to determine how I could get out of my car. The window wouldn't budget and the door wouldn't open. A gentleman standing outside the car was looking at me and telling me not to move as he called 911. I yelled through the window that I could not breathe and I needed to get out. He told me to turn away from the window and he proceeded to pull on it until it broke. He was pulling out, away from the car, not in towards me. Once the window had been broken, the door opened (I can't remember if I did it or he opened it) and I was able to crawl out onto the center median.

I have not heard from this man again, I don't know who he was, and pictures of the car (see the one posted to the right, taken after I was already out of the car) show that the window was not broken. Several people have told me that he was an angel. I am not one to quickly believe that sort of thing, though I do believe that angels do walk among us. It is possible that the window did not actually break and that this man simply ended up pulling the whole door open. But it comes down to this: either he was an angel who the Lord sent to rescue me, or he was a man who felt compelled to help and then remain anonymous. If the former, what a miracle! If the latter, what an amazing man. It got me to thinking: we can all be angels, of sorts, in so many situations. Have you ever been in a situation where someone has needed help and you were too busy or scared to help? God is so amazing and powerful that you CAN be an angel to that person.

Just a thought.

Labels: accident, Mustang

  ¶ 9:31 PM 1 comments

  On being a media show One of the most amazing aspects of this whole ordeal has been the media's reaction. I have never held a high opinion of the news media, especially local news reporters, but I'll have to admit that they have been nothing but professional, kind, and patient. The pictures here are still captures from interviews I did on local news. See the links from Tuesday's entries to watch the segments.

Within minutes of arriving at the hospital, I was asked if I would be interviewed on the local ABC affiliate. I was stunned! At that time, I was still on a back board and in a neck brace, so my immediate answer was "no - not now". Once they had cleared my spine and removed the brace so I could sit up, I then gave the interview. It was relatively simple and I was impressed with the sensitivity and respect of the two-person crew (camera and interview personality) that conducted the interview. As time passed, I soon began to realize that everyone in LA wanted to know my story and I was being asked to interview for every local station. My first inclination was again to say "no" - I could see no reason why I should be giving interviews. I hadn't done anything to deserve it and I was certainly not looking for any attention. As I was contemplating this, both my amazing wife, Marne, and my good friend, Steve Huff, told me: "Dave, you have a story to tell. You need to tell it." And they were right.

I have now been on all the local news channels and been interviewed by Inside Edition (who has yet to air the piece). Since then, I have received emails from several people telling me how inspired they have been by what has happened:

I just heard from that you had a car accident but you are survive. We watched the news together and I saw God's miracle and your strong faith. It was amazing. Since I was amazed by that, I posted this news on my HP. One of my friends read my blog and watched the news. She has been my friend since high school and an anti-Christian. However, she gave me a comment and said, "It might be accident but since I saw this miracle, I now feel like that God is."

She has never changed her mind even though I talked to her about God. However, you changed her through this accident even though you have never talked to her. I am so sorry about the fact you had a car accident and lost your favorite car but I just want to let you know about this and I wanted to say thank you. I will keep trying to tell the gospel to her from now on since you gave me a chance. Again, thank you.

And this one...

Hi Professor Bourgeois!

I graduated from Biola in Dec '04. You were never my prof, but when I saw you on the news last night, I was astonished to learn that you made it out alive! It was encouraging, because when you recently graduate, its not easy starting your life over in the "real world". And when I saw how strategic God was in saving you, even when you had no idea a huge monster was falling on you, I was amazed.

When you told the reporter that you would always carry God's purpose with you, even more so now, I was touched.

Thank you for your encouraging words!

I have also been receiving encouragement from current students, coworkers, friends, and members of the community. I am humbled and awed by what God has done. And I am convinced He will be doing more. Not just for me, but for many, many others as well.

P.S. A quick update on me: I am slowly on the mend - not quite as sore and stiff as before, but still in some pain. Pray for healing and a return to normalcy.

Labels: accident, Mustang

  ¶ 2:03 PM 0 comments

  It's just a car... I got to go see what was left of my car tonight. How depressing. As you can see from the pictures, my beloved Blue 68 is dead. Amazingly, I was able to retrieve all my valuables: my PDA, my cellphone, my book, and some items from the trunk. I was not allowed to remove the license plate, but I hope to get that also.

I bought this car in 1985 from some family friends, the Elders. I had grown up with their son in Pasadena and always loved that car. When they told me they wanted to sell it, I immediately asked for it. I was in college at the time and they allowed me to pay them off slowly, about $50 a month.

I had my first date with my wife in this car, we drove away from our wedding in this car, my kids all clamored to ride with me in this car - even my two-year-old son, who knew it was something special. It was part of my identity. I drove it as a student at Biola and now as a professor there. It had been painted several times and I had the engine rebuilt once and overhauled a couple of times.

In the end, it's just a car. But it was also part of our family. My daughter Corinne said that Blue was a hero, it "saved daddy's life". This is probably true, since a newer car would probably have been crushed further under the truck and I would not be here to write about it. Of course, I also believe God had a hand in it, since I almost chose to drive our little Geo to Bible study that morning.

Labels: accident, Mustang

  ¶ 10:00 PM 1 comments

  This isn't how I wanted my 15 minutes of fame... Thank God I didn't die under a ton of hair gel!







Yesterday, on my way home from my men's group, the car I was driving was crushed under the trailer of a truck that had tipped over. One minute I was sitting in my car, thinking about how I was going to be home to see my son get off to school, the next there was a truck trailer six inches from my face. Initially, I could not breathe, but with the help of some other drivers who had come to the scene, I was able to get out of the car and crawl to safety. Amazingly, I suffered no immediate injury: I am not paralyzed, no broken bones, no lacerations. I was whisked away to St. Jude's in Fullerton where I was treated well and quickly and was home before noon! I truly believe God protected me yesterday. I am reminded that He has a plan; there is more for me to do while I am here. I have a wife, five children, a ministry at Biola University and my church, and those things are where I need to be focused.


I am still getting my head around what happened to me right now, and I will write more about it as the days go on. The most amazing thing so far to me is the interest that the media has had in the event. I have been interviewed by all the local LA stations and, just this morning, by Inside Edition. The Inside Edition folks said that I would be on tomorrow's (Wed 10/11) show. Here are a couple of links to stories from the local media:

KCBS TV news Got my first name wrong in the story.
Orange County Register
Fox 11
NBC 4

Thanks to Bruce Chambers from the OC Register for these pictures and to Holly Robaina for encouraging me to blog about it.

Labels: accident, Mustang

  ¶ 11:28 AM 2 comments

  Lost Dogs concert
I went to the Lost Dogs concert last Saturday. Fred Sanders, another Biola prof, went with us, and he has a great review of the concert over at Middlebrow. If you appreciate thoughtful, unique Christian music, this is a group you should check out.  ¶ 8:07 AM 0 comments

  My daily fix OK, so I am going to try to get back to working on this blog again. Don't give up on me!

Every morning when I stumble into my office, I have certain web sites I always want to check out so I can feel "caught up" with the world. I put this in a bookmark folder and then use Firefox's "Open with tabs" feature to open them all at once. A website must be "worthy" in order to appear on this list; some that I have put there have been removed after several days of finding nothing useful in them.

Anyways, here are the sites I currently deem worthy of a daily "fix":

Doug Tennapel's blog
MSNBC news
Hugh Hewitt's blog
Mark D. Robert's blog
Instapundit
Middlebrow
Drudge Report
Lifehacker

What sites do you find you need to review daily?  ¶ 8:54 AM 0 comments