In the first edition of this series, I named 5 of my favorite places to go for downloadable videos for youth ministry and Christian education settings. Here are six others I would suggest checking out...

SermonSpice is chock full of video clips appropriate for sermons and talks; unfortunately, it's also got plenty of clips with less-than-desirable theology, so be prepared to search a while. Most clips cost $10-20.

WingClips offers clips from Hollywood movies that can be used in any church setting, even if your church does not have a CVLI license. The free subscription just gives you a very small video; to get the bigger sizes, you'll have to pay $139 a year. Still, if you use a lot of video clips in worship or CE settings, it could be a bargain and very convenient.

Summer is an ideal time to look at the toys in your church nursery or other classrooms and to evaluate if it's time for them to stay or go. You'll obviously want to dispose of any toys that are broken, unsafe (e.g. potentially made with lead paint), or used for play violence (e.g. toy guns). Additionally, it's a great time to clean and wash all of the toys (though we're sure you're already doing this regularly!)

However, another thing to look for is whether or not a toy is open-ended or closed-ended. An open-ended toy is one that is open to a child's imagination. Blocks are great for making a castle, creating obstacles for toy trucks, or even learning some basics of mathematics through counting games. Soft and squishy balls can become food items, game accessories, or pet turtles. Art supplies (at least those that don't come in a 'make an item that looks like this' kit) are tremendously versatile. Open-ended toys make imaginative and purposeful play more possible.

Bloggers around the world have been weighing in on a common theme, "The Inconvenience of Change," sponsored by a great Gen-Y blog called "Life Without Pants." To help encourage people to take part, the great folks at Cool People Care are giving away copies of their book, New Day Revolution. It's not too late for you to take part! After you read my thoughts, write your own blog entry on this topic. Join the conversation, encourage your congregants to do so too...and be a creative force for change!   ~ Tim

Unless you read a lot of tech blogs, you likely missed this nugget a couple of weeks ago: Microsoft is discontinuing its Encarta product. Encarta was the first computer encyclopedia produced for a mass audience, but it's about to go the way of cassette tapes and station wagons. Encarta never quite took off as expected (I'll admit that a copy of Encarta I got with a new laptop was not used even once) and now Google and Wikipedia are the first stops a student makes when working on a research paper. According to Tom Corddry, a former senior manager at Microsoft, "The ["Encarta"] editors overestimated the way students would say, 'This has been carefully edited! And is very authoritative!' "

Once a month we give our “blogger-in-chief” a Tuesday off and for our weekly Technology offering I recommend a website. I recently discovered the site The Story of Stuff. I often receive good-natured kidding from my family because I did not get the “shopping” gene. It’s true; I do not like to shop (much to the dismay of my teenage daughter). Yet, even with my reluctance to be a consumer, I manage to accumulate quite a bit of “stuff”.

Today's email could be a bit risky for us. I'm going to help you think thru your email subscriptions, and that could lead to some people unsubscribing. But the truth is, while we're very grateful you read our daily words of wisdom, we know you likely get an email inbox full of stuff. Here's a process to sort thru and deal with that digital clutter.

1. Decide - First, give a little thought to your current email habits. Do you file ezines away without ever reading them? Do you read everything that comes in, delete everything, then wish you had kept certain items for use later? Do you feel overwhelmed with the amount of email you get? Once you are clear about your ezine usage, decide on how much time you are willing to devote each day or week to reading your subscriptions.

Even if you are a total tech geek, it's easy to start losing control of all of the cables, power cords, and remote controls in your midst. This is especially true when you work or serve in a church, because often those various tech-bits are handled by many people. Here are 10 steps to getting those wires and remotes organized.

Supplies needed: Electronic labeler (if available); some sort of attachable cable label (I like to use something similar to these, but if you have any of those old dot matrix labels lying around, they'll work OK); thin-tipped permanent black marker; rolling cart; clipboard with paper/pen; two cardboard boxes; cable ties (or garbage bag twist ties); technically-minded teenager or two. (Even if you are a gadget guru, it's a great way for a teen to share his or her knowledge with the church.)

A digital voice recorder is a small device that allows you to capture and replay audio. Better quality devices add additional features, including file transfer to computer and compatibility with computer transcription software. After my laptop and my cell phone, my digital recorder is the tool I wouldn't want to live without. (Actually, I have two of them. My cell phone, like many cell phones, has a basic voice recorder built in, and I have it set up to be activated with the push of one button.)

The uses of such a device are numerous, once you get in the habit of using it (and then replaying your messages) regularly. Here are 10 ideas to start with...

I remember when my father got his first computer. Today that computer would be rejected for being too slow, having too little memory and not having a color monitor. But at the time, it was a momentous occasion! We’d never had a computer in our house before.

My children will have no such memory. They, like their peers, the children of the electronic age, have grown up with computers – at school, in the grocery check-out lane, and at home. These children are comfortable and familiar with technology. For this generation, computers are an integral part of how they learn and experience the world.

Congregations bring in funds for their operating budgets or for special projects in many ways--offerings, fundraisers, coffee shops, small bookstores, and more. Another way a church can raise funds is through affiliate sales. Ever seen a blog that had a book cover with a link to purchase it at Amazon? That's an example of an affiliate promotion.

An affiliate relationship simply means that you (individually or as an organization) market another company's products to your members or email list.

If someone clicks on the link and makes a purchase, you get a portion of the sale price. Affiliate programs range from about 4% (of the purchase) on the low end to 90% on the high end, though most tend to be in the under 10% range. So, for example, if I provide a link to the book I'm currently reading and you purchase it, Different Voice would receive a small percentage of the sale price.

Some time ago in The Daily Voice, I talked about how and why to start your own listserv. Even though IM and Twitter are becoming more popular for short communications, listservs are still one of the best ways to have two-way discussions among a group of people. What are the secrets to a great listserv and being a good moderator? Here are some tips I have learned over time.