What does picking 6,000 avocados teach you about being a spiritually fruitful person? For starters, climbing ladders, snipping avocado after avocado, and getting on your knees for low-hanging fruit can teach you a lot about being spiritually fruitful…if you’re willing to listen the Master Grower. For the past two days, I’ve been down at our 12 acre organic lemon and avocado grove that is owned by The Grove Center for the Arts & Media, the non-profit ministry I serve. It’s picking season and the trees are covered with fruit. Picking fruit by myself and enjoying the beauty of countryside around me gave me a lot of time to think about my own life. Snipping one avo after another made me wonder, “What would my life be like if I was THIS fruitful?” Read on…

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Last January, I shared that one of my 2012 goals was to train and complete in the multisport world of triathlon. I’ve been a runner for years, but as you might have read in my earlier post, Learning to Swim, my swimming skills were less than adequate for triathlon competitions. After several years of being tired of going to the gym and the inspiration of my good friend, Scott Rigsby (the first below-the-knee double amputee to complete the Ironman World Championship in Kona) I decided I needed a new challenge to push me mentally, physically and spiritually. Whether or not you consider yourself an athlete, an artist, a follower of Christ, or someone who is just interested in living well, there are plenty of things triathlons can teach you about life. Read on…

Click here to watch a funny video of Joey’s son mocking his running shorts.

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Note from Joey: If you missed my short story, The Monkey, The Banana, & The Bamboo Cage, you may want to read it first to see where our story began.

Once the monkey was plopped into the brown burlap sack by the owner of the banana plantation, he found himself in quite a conundrum. If you remember correctly, our little monkey wanted that banana in the small wooden box so bad that he grasped it tight and refused to let go. If he had had any monkey brains about him, he would have simply let go and freed himself from the cage that surrounded said banana. Now, imprisoned inside a scratchy burlap sack and all caddywompus upside-down, our monkey became quite angry. Infuriated was the word, though he could care less about word usage or proper English diction. He was an Indian monkey and not an English monkey. Not that any of this matters at this point. Read on…

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An architecture graveyard can teach you and I a few important lessons about life. Though I grew up running around graveyards and casket rooms in my father’s mortuary, most normal people I know prefer not to visit any kind of graveyard. So it was only until last week when my daughter Ellie and I visited Cal Poly’s “architecture graveyard” while on a tour of the campus. Ellie was recently accepted into the SLO School of Architecture and we’d heard much about the famous “architecture graveyard,” also known as the Design Village. Although we didn’t come across any tombstones, I soon discovered there were several things an architecture graveyard could teach me about life. Read on…

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Even if you’re not an artist, at bare minimum, you should at least consider yourself creative. Why? Because you’re far more creative than you think you are. You do have an artist inside of you, though you may never become a writer, a painter, a filmmaker or a poet. Or you just might surprise yourself…

For most of my life, I considered myself an athlete. A jock. Definitely not an artist. Though I wrote a lot of books, I still didn’t consider myself as artistic or even necessarily creative. But if you and I went back back to the beginning of time, we might be surprised by what this notion of art and creativity is all about. Hell, being called ‘creative’ is one of best compliments you could ever receive…and considering yourself creative is one of best compliments you could ever give the Chef! Read on…

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In case no one has ever told you, Good Friday is the day to think about the depth of Jesus’ love for you. On Good Friday, the innocent, sinless Son of God was whipped, beaten, insulted, and nailed to the cross as payment for the sin of this world so we could be restored back into relationship with God the Father. So today is Good Friday, 2012. A day to stop. Think. Remember. Examine our hearts. I’d like to share with you some simple Good Friday thoughts with you from the Book of Common Prayer. Read on…

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For Easter Week 2012, I want to share one of the most beautiful Good Friday and Easter songs I’ve ever heard–In Christ Alone. Written by Stuart Townend and Keith Getty, the lyrics of In Christ Alone are packed with amazing, life-changing Truth and deep theological thought.  Focused on the life of Jesus Christ from cradle to grave to resurrection, this song offers hope, comfort and perspective to the challenges of life. It offers so many wonderful insights into the benefits of walking with Christ every day. Tell yourself this Easter, “In Christ alone…” It just make all the difference in the world. Here are a few creative ways you can use In Christ Alone for your family and friends this week.

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Here are the Top 10 Posts from my Art, Life & Faith blog for March 2012. In writing about the arts, creativity, spiritual growth, writing and relationships, my goal is provide you with relevant, practical and inspirational content. In case you’re wondering where I found this cool infographic, visit Wordle! See what people enjoyed reading here on Art, Life & Faith…

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Note from Joey: Welcome! Everyone who posts a comment in the next 48 hours for this story will receive a free copy of I Love You Unconditionally…On One Condition or The Longing: Embracing the Deepest Truth of Who You Are (ebook…you pick…enjoy!)

Once upon a time, there was a monkey, a banana and a bamboo cage. One afternoon after a long nap, the monkey was hungry and wanted something to eat. So he set off for a nearby banana plantation that he and his monkey troop would frequently raid. Walking along a dense jungle trail, the monkey suddenly eyed a banana. But this banana was in a sort of contraption that the monkey couldn’t quite name because monkeys have a very limited monkey vocabulary. Suffice to say, the banana was in a small bamboo box with long wooden slats. The box was fastened to a chain, which was tied to a nearby tree. Read on…

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Can Joseph O’Connor, a 15 year old teenager from San Clemente, California catch Joseph Kony? Watch the new Invisible Children Kony 2012 video and you just might find yourself voting for Joseph O and the millions of other teenagers just like him. But really, can a 15 year old really catch Joseph Kony? I say, “Why not?” David slew Goliath, who I’m sure was much taller than Joseph Kony. Just two days ago, Joseph watched the Invisible Children video and now he’s on a freaking manhunt. This powerful video inspired, outraged and moved him so much that he’s taking on the Uganda warlord by galvanizing a small army behind him.  I love it. The video instantly went viral and in three days, at last count, it’s already at 40 million hits on Youtube. If you haven’t seen it, it is well worth the next 30 minutes of your life.  Watch the video and read what Joseph O is up to…

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