I'm kind of a big deal-- or at least that is what the faceless bureaucrats at Facebook insist. They tell me that I cannot have any more friends beyond my current 5000. And, if I want to have more friends, they have to become "fans."

Needless to say, I was not pleased. I don't want "fans," I just wanted more friends.

I have found great value in social networking, with Twitter and Facebook in particular. In the beginning I wasn't easily convinced that it would be worthwhile, but I have really enjoyed connecting with friends all over the world. Earlier this month I shared my dilemma - Facebook has a 5,000 "friend" limit, and I was maxed out. Of course, I realize that many of those friends are not people who know me personally, but I was using facebook as a means of broadly communicating with others and interacting around my Facebook "Wall" and "Notes." I have substantially more interaction on my Facebook wall than I do here on the blog.

The options weren't great, and I wasn't really sure what I was going to do, but my publisher went ahead and created a Facebook "Fan Page" for me-- without asking. This allows for as many fans/friends as desire to connect, and so I am reluctantly moving all discussion from my personal Facebook page to my "fan page."

For the record, I didn't make this move because I think "I'm kind of a big deal." Let's be honest, being a big deal on Facebook is sort of like being the Dungeonmaster in a game of Dungeons and Dragons. It really doesn't matter. This fan page is simply the best way to continue discussion on Facebook while allowing others to join in. And, all of my Twitter updates will now go there (and I have discontinued the feed on my personal page as that will soon go away).

So, if you are "friend," and want to connect, you'll need to become a "fan." I know; I hate the word "fan," so let's not even use that. Let's just be friends on a different kind of page!

I hope to see you there!

P.S. If you do not get the pop-culture reference, "I'm kind of a big deal," please forgive my attempt at self-deprecating humor. I read about it in one of my many leather-bound books. ;-)

This is a slow couple of weeks for travel, which means I will be catching up on some things at the office. Sleeping in your own bed for a whole two weeks in a row is quite an accomplishment. ;-)

I will be doing some local church speaking. For the next three Sundays, I am in different churches-- and also preaching at one church on a Monday.

Earlier this Spring I was preaching through a series called, "Lies We Believe." This is Part 6, and the lie is, "All the church needs is programs."

Lies We Believe: Pt. 6 from Ed Stetzer on Vimeo.

Here is a sermon I preached a couple of weeks ago at my church on living a "God-imitating life."

From May 22-May 30, 2009 I will be hosting a vision trip with Darrin Patrick and some of my friends with the Upstream Collective to Rome, Italy and Marseille, France.

While each of our vision trips are unique we want to incorporate the following elements into each tour:

Recently, Philip Nation (my former co-pastor) and I completed the manuscript for a new book. It will be published in English and Spanish next April.

The folks at One News Now were gracious enough to write my next post for me...

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Ed Stetzer, director of LifeWay Research, says the study shows that parents may not be passing on a vital Christian faith and commitment to church attendance to their children. The church, says Stetzer, must do a better job of stressing the importance of church attendance and involvement.

"I think we have a very casual approach to that covenant community called church," he suggests. "Ephesians 3:10 reminds us that God has chosen the church to make known His manifold wisdom in the world -- and I think we have to help people connect better to the church."

According to the Christian researcher, many young people today are simply reflecting a "church culture" created by modern-day believers -- a culture he says is very consumer-oriented and that encourages an attitude that says "if you don't meet my needs here, I'll go somewhere else."

"And when you do that," he adds, "you create a culture where people can say 'I love Jesus, but I don't love his wife'" -- which Stetzer points out is the bride of Christ, the church.

"I think we need to begin to see that this covenant community called church is not an option in the Christian life," he continues. "But to be fair, that's what we've made it in North America today -- and perhaps these young adults are reflecting to some degree the church culture in which they were grown and discipled."