The Other Jeremy Lin Effect

photo by teamstickergiant

If you are a fan of the NBA and of Jeremy Lin, no doubt you would have followed the numerous amount of articles and videos created about Lin.  Two of the more humorous ones are the Fung Brother's The Jeremy Lin Effect and The Jeremy Lin Effect 2 (Linsanity).

However, as I follow this great story, I can't help but speculate of the other Jeremy Lin effect - the effect it can have on world missions.  Lin is a follower of Jesus Christ and is not afraid to say it in front of cameras.  Combine that and basketball's worldwide popularity and Lin's Asian (non-Caucasian) heritage and we have a great opportunity to start gospel themed conversations.

Having gone to two Asian countries for missions, my experience is that sports is a great common topic to start conversations around.  Most countries are sports crazy and basketball is usually near the top of the list.  With Lin's rise to fame, it can be very easy to talk him and bring up his faith in God and Jesus.

Here are some intros to get the discussion going, keeping in mind that some people are in various stages in their journey of discovering Jesus:

• Jeremy Lin thanks God and Jesus in some of his interviews.  What do you think God and Jesus has to do with Lin's success?
• The general population seems to like underdog stories like Lin's.  The Gospels in the Bible seem to paint a picture of Jesus as an underdog.  Do you think Jesus is an underdog?  How would you describe Jesus; who do you think Jesus is?
• Lin so far has stayed humble and focused on being true to himself during all the media attention.  He attributes it to the reality that his identity is found in Christ (1:50) and not in basketball.  What/who do you find your identity in and does it help you stay grounded and focused?  What would your life be like if your identity was found in Jesus? 

Even though some of the questions people may have no clue as to how to answer (ex/ the last question above), I think they would be great conversation starters, even here in North America.

Other suggestions on how to segue into gospel-themed conversations with the Jeremy Lin effect?  

Whether Jeremy knows it or not, I think his play on the court can increase the opportunities to help others discover Jesus. 

Using Calendar Invites to Save Time in Setting Up Appointments Across Time Zones

photo by photosteve101

My wife recently shared to me the difficulty of scheduling meetings over different time zones - especially with people who travel over different time zones and set meetings without specifying which time zone they will be in on the day of the meeting.  After 2 missed meetings, my wife finally was able to connect with this person, but that certainly can be frustrating a time consuming.

How to overcome this confusion?  Send a calendar invite.  I use calendar invites within Google all the time and especially with co-workers to take the advantage of the "Find a Time" feature as it shares their busy/free times on their calendar.

Find a time, create the appointment and send it away and the request goes out with the right time zones.  When the team member receives the request, it will translate to whatever his/her time zone is.  It clears up confusion and gets saves missing appointments and re-scheduling.

How have you overcome the confusion of setting up appointments and meetings cross time zones?