Happy Birthday Mom!

Thank you for all that you have done and continue to do for me. Thank you for all the prayers that I know you have prayed for me. Thank you for nurturing me, teaching me, preparing me and challenging me. You have been a true blessing in my life and I love you.

Is it OK to gamble with play money? Last night, I attended a Casino Night event put on by one of our vendors. Luck was with me for awhile and then the tide turned and in a blink of an eye, $4,000 in play money was gone. Poof! Nada. Zilch. Goose-egg. Now, the devastating thing about it is that the big prize I wanted were two seats at the Final 4 this year in the vendor's suite. If I could have turned 4-grand in funny money into prime seats at the Final 4, I'd be walking on air today. I hope people who do have gambling addictions get help. It was amazing how fast that money can disappear.

I have been impressed with the messages our new preacher has delivered since coming to our church. One that has really stuck with me was the message to pray boldly to God; to ask boldly for what we want. People close to me have cancer, people I care about are having marriage problems, people I know are dealing with emotions that are hurting them, people close to me are dealing with problems. I am boldly asking God to heal those diseases, heal the hurt, heal the wounds. I have a running battle with Satan daily. It's not an easy battle so I pray boldly every morning that God will push Satan out of my way today, that He will crush the devil's spirit in trying to get to me and that He will give me the strength to crush Satan when Satan is in my path.

I know God hears me. I know He may not answer my bold prayers in the way I want but I trust He will answer them the way He knows is best. I hope that my boldness will never cease, that my heart will always be open to His will and that my ways will be His ways. Yet, I remain ever so thankful that I can boldly approach God, that I can ask for exactly what I want and that He will hear me. An incredible Master is one who will hear those subject to Him. An incredible Lord is one who will do what is best in my life because He knows me so well. An incredible Savior is one who will love me when I fall. I have all 3.

I'm having one of those days where it feels like it should be a couple of days later and I can't seem to finish a thought or idea. That does not bode well for blogging so I will just mention a few random thoughts from the morning so far.

1. Have you seen a video clip of the Nebraska meat packers that won $15.5 million each from the lottery. They were really funny. I hope they use the money well.
2. Is it just me or does anyone else find themselves wanting both rain and sunshine this week? The weather we are having is dreary.
3. I'm going to Tyler this weekend and will get to watch my dad coach a girls basketball team. I trust it will be fun and hope he doesn't disagree with a referee like he did in one of my games many years ago. Memories can make you laugh and cry. This particular one really makes me laugh.
4. Baseball season is fixing to start for my son and my daughter is going to give volleyball a whirl this year. I look forward to watching them but wish gas was $1.50 again (back when we thought it was expensive).
5. My basketball team finished 4-2. We should have been 6-0. Just goes to show what a couple of off days can do to you. Still, it was a great group of kids and a fun year. I'm already planning for next year.
6. I have been off-and-on with the Olympics. I keep hearing about the low ratings and just wonder why the lack of interest seems to be growing.
7. I keep hearing about the lady who is on trial for cutting off the arms of her baby and killing her. Her attorney is using the insanity defense but a lot of the testimony seems to hinge around her pastor and religious teaching. I can't imagine any sane person would do something like that but I worry, if the reports are true, about what this guy is out teaching to other people.
8. Last night at church was another study on the life of David. He did things that we look back on and think "how stupid" and then I look back on things I've done in my life and think, "hey, that was really stupid too." I read the Psalms and hear some of my pleas to God, only more eloquent. I see David return to God time and time again and know I can do the same. Whenever I make a mess of my life, God is there for me.
9. Kids are funny. Employees are mentally challenging. One good reason to be a coach.

I hope you have a great day! I'm going to try and get my brain engaged.

I wish I had a quarter for every time I heard while growing up, "just wait until you have kids and then you'll understand." If I had all that money, I'd be able to hire a nanny! Raising children is an awesome responsibility and an incredibly eye-opening job. I think of things much differently now that I have my own kids. All the while, I continue to realize my parents weren't as crazy as I thought they were at the time (although, watching them with grandkids, they have become people I never knew growing up).

I am blessed to be able to drive the kids to school almost every morning. It's a short ride but often entertaining and/or enlightening. Sometimes I can get a glimpse into their world, their thoughts, their worries, their joy. It's those brief moments that I love and I am thankful I have them.

Last night at a basketball game, I listened to some young men sitting behind us talking and it seemed they found it hard to go more than two or three words without adding a cussword. I wondered if that's the way they talk at work or around their parents. I wondered if they ever thought about what they were saying. I wondered how they would change or if they would as they grow and mature. I wondered what my kids will do when they are on their own, away from mom and dad.

No parents are perfect and I certainly make my fair share of mistakes with my kids but I know their mother and I are trying to train them for the world that awaits them. I know they will do some things they shouldn't but I hope we will do our part to give them all they need to make the better choice.

Children are precious jewels. If you are a parent, you understand. If not, "just wait until you have kids..."

There are mean people in the world. I read an article today on the Internet about a "Reverend" that goes around spewing hatred towards homosexuals (the pictures in the article and the interview I heard with him on the radio once pretty well confirm that hatred is accurate). My kids tell me about other kids at school who say mean things. We see meanness exhibited between people so often.

I wonder why. What makes people act that way? Why do they think being mean and showing hatred to others will make things right?

In a conversation I had with my daughter on the way to school, the song that goes "...this little light of mine, I'm gonna let it shine..." popped into my head. What happens when we are light to others? How do we feel when we are light to others? If you have ever had that feeling, would you ever want anything else? To be light, to help others see the path to God is a gift He gives us. Talk about your warm-fuzzies. Be light today. Help someone see the path to God today.

Many of you surprise me. I keep thinking I write this blog in relative obscurity, something to do just for the fun of writing, yet I receive comments from people who mention I haven't written in a couple of days or that they agreed with something I said recently (for those of you who disagree, thanks for not saying so!).

Last night, I had to teach a class on why God let's us experience pain. It's a tough class because the question is always out there. Why does God let a 10 year old have cancer? Why does God allow a tsunami wipe out thousands of people? Why does God let a 90+ year old hang on even when quality of life is gone?

Who said God let any of this happen? I find it odd that most people would not want God to control their lives yet they expect Him to control the things they don't like. Why is it that too often, the things we should be thankful for are the things we forget to thank God for but when something bad happens, people turn around and want to know where God is. Why did God let this happen? Why did God do this?

Pain can be good. Pain can provide healing. Pain often turns us to God yet we must be the one to make the choice to accuse Him or seek Him. God will not chase us down. He will not make us come to Him but He will always accept us, He will always open His arms to us, He will always hear us. When God asked Adam and Eve "Where are you?" after they had eaten from the tree they were not supposed to, He knew where they were but He wanted them to want to seek Him. When He asked "Why did you do this?" He didn't want their excuses that someone else made them do it. He wanted them to want to seek Him.

We have to seek God, in good times and bad. He doesn't cause our pain and hurts but He is always there to help us heal.

It's Friday and very cold in Decatur, Texas. I hope the chances of freezing rain stay away. Our last basketball game of the season is tomorrow and I don't want to be cancelled and have to reschedule. I do enjoy the cold weather though and look forward to a burst of artic air.

I've been watching some of the Olympics but it doesn't seem to be as big or important as it did when I was younger. I think it's too much figure skating but that's just me. I do enjoy some of the speed sports, especially the crazy new skiing and snowboarding events and the short track ice skating events. It must be incredible to be there competing and to win a medal would be awesome.

Have a great weekend - enjoy the change in weather - remember to be thankful.

As I was leaving the elementary school after dropping my son off today, it struck me that I will only be taking a child to that school for just a few more months. I've been driving to that school during the school year almost daily for 7 years and it will be over soon.

It just reminded me of how fast life goes by and how insignificant our lives can be. We really aren't around for a long time when you think about it. Just yesterday I was 15 and starting to drive and now I'm...older, with arthritis in my back. My children have changed so dramatically since it was just yesterday they were in diapers.

Our lives can be insignificant - if we allow them to be. Time swallows them up and if we do nothing, the time can be meaningless. Yet, I have had a vast number of people in my life who have been very significant. I would have to start with my mom and dad and go from there but the point is, there have been people throughout my life who have served me in so many ways. Some may not have known it, others were intentional in what they did.

God calls us to significance. Not an overinflated ego, not blown up pride but significance is service to others. I trust that I and my wife through our teaching, nurturing and love for our children will have a profound significance in how they live their lives. Their grandparents, uncles and aunts, teachers, older kids, friends and on and on will also have significance in their teaching, nurturing and love for my children.

Our service is what makes "our mark" on the world. We see the Trumps and Bushes and Rockefellers and think they will make history yet we all make history every day because of our love for God and, in turn, how we treat others. We make their history and I know there are many, many more quiet history makers than the prominent names we read about in the paper and in books.

As my children move on through their lives, I hope I will make a positive impact on them and pray that God will bring many people into their lives and help them grow and, in return, become significant in the lives of others to share the love that Christ shares with us.

I think the big news this week will be Dick Cheney shooting a hunting partner on a quail hunt in South Texas. I can only imagine the press having a field day with this. First, the guy he shot was a lawyer so let's cut him a little slack. (My apologies to any lawyers reading this, I was just kidding.) So far, I've only seen one station report that the guy was walking up behind Cheney from chasing down another bird and didn't let him know he was getting near Cheney. One of the main rules of hunting is to let other hunters know where you are. Maybe other stations will pick up on this or I just missed it but the story lends itself well to the liberal-bias of media and their ability to blow it way out of proportion. I'm sure we will also see plenty of cartoons with a gun-toting Cheney. Oh my.

I don't have much to say today. Little sleep and a bad back don't make the mind sharp. For those of you out there thinking my mind has never been all that sharp, put a sock in it. :)

Have a great day. Remember that God loves you and has given you love, mercy and salvation. Live for Him.

The last few years have brought me a deeper understanding of mercy and forgiveness and I feel like I have a grasp and appreciation of it that is changing my life. I know many people wrestle with forgiveness. Through Bible classes, conversations and my children, I have experienced how hard it can be to forgive and be forgiven. It struck me last night as one of my own was being reprimanded, then forgiven and said "I don't deserve to be forgiven." Oh, how I know that feeling. The pain we cause others is so often a pain that never goes away. It's intensity may lessen over time but I don't know that it ever goes away and there are times when we cause that pain, we do not feel like we can be forgiven, that we do not deserve forgiveness. Therein lies the beauty of forgiveness. We don't deserve it but it is a gift we are given and, that we give. It is a gift of the highest magnitude. It is a gift more valuable than all man's riches.

When I am wronged and when I do wrong, I can only grasp forgiveness by looking at God. My gracious Father, He forgives me and He wipes away my sin. Even after giving His son on the cross, he still forgives me. How can I not gladly give what He so lovingly give me time and time again? I have learned that I cannot forgive adequately without approaching forgiveness through God and then, and only then, can my heart open up to forgive or to receive forgiveness. What an amazing gift I have received. What an awesome gift to give.

A question I heard recently was "how do we forgive those who don't seek forgiveness?" For me, all I can do is look at God who sees us when we sin and I believe hopes to see us change, hopes to see us seek His forgiveness. I think I have to have that same hope for those who have wronged me but don't seek my forgiveness. God gives us the gift of hope, the gift of openness to return to Him if we will.

I certainly don't know all the answers. I'm no scholar who can point to one thing or another to make my case. Yet I am a sinner and a child of God. I fall for the traps of the devil but have come to know I can seek my God and his forgiveness and comfort. I know that even when I don't deserve forgiveness, He willingly, openly, lovingly gives it. He gave His son and He still gives me forgiveness. It's a gift I cannot fully grasp but one I will not turn loose of. His gift is beautiful and awesome and peaceful.

Driving down the road, do you look out ahead of you or do you look at the hood of your car? Seems like a crazy question, right? If you only look at the hood, you can't see what's happening and you are going to wind up crashing. It may be a small crash or you might run head-on into a train. That's why you have to look ahead, to see what is going to be happening seconds or even minutes before you are there in your car.

In life, do we look ahead or just to our eyelids? Do you look to see God, to see heaven? Satan doesn't want us looking that far. He wants us focused on the hood of the car - on something that isn't important - so that we will have a crash before we reach our destination. Oh, he knows that we will have some little fender benders but Satan wants us to keep our focus on the unimportant hoping we will have that big crash, the one that will destroy us and everything around us. God wants us to look to the future, to see the bigger picture, to see the road ahead so we can navigate around the problems. By looking to Him, we can see the obstacles that are in our way of reaching our destination. By looking to Him, our focus is on what is truly important. By looking to Him, the devil suffers loss.

Stay focused on what is true, what is real, what is good. The true blessing that awaits us is down the road, we just have to keep our eyes on it.

I'm amazed at the rioting going on around the world because of a cartoon depicting Mohammed. It really makes me wonder about the hearts and intentions of people who join the Islamic religion. Then I think of people who label themselves as Christian and go kill doctors who perform abortions. What is in their heart?

I don't know what God will say or do on judgment day. I can't imagine how horrible it would be to sit in front of God and try to explain horrible actions and justify it before Him.

I cannot be tolerant of someone who makes fun of my beliefs, who speaks negatively of God and Christianity, who would try to take away my right to share and exhibit my beliefs yet I must fight against those things with the heart of God, with firmness heaped full of love and compassion. I must remember that in the end, their argument isn't really with me but with someone much, much greater than me and with someone who wields much, much more punishment than me. I must stand up against them to try and win them to God, not condemn them for their actions. Condemnation from God illicits feelings that go beyond what I can comprehend.

They will know we are Christians by our love.

I'm having trouble writing today. I'm wrestling with the fact that companies view TV as being so powerful that they will pay $2.5 million for a 30 second spot. I know that the TV executives are convinced by buying habits that TV is strong in influencing people's beliefs and opinions. Take it one step further and I believe TV executives also believe and want to affect beliefs about sex, homosexuality and other issues that Christians find detrimental to living out God's will. These people can and do influence thousands, maybe millions, that homosexuality is OK because the characters on TV are fun and loveable, that sex between unmarried children/adults is just normal, that alcohol and "recreational" drug use doesn't really hurt people. TV often portrays Christians as being very fallible yet unconcerned about what their mistakes (sin) can do. TV shows religion as just another hobby, not much different than fishing or shopping.

I know I could just unplug the thing and throw it out the window but I'd rather put some effort into expressing my opinion to the people making the decisions, to maybe see this mass medium used for good and building people up than for dumbing us down. I think TV can be a useful tool when used the right way and hiding my face from it won't make it go away. I'm called to service and part of that service is speaking out against the issues that tear people down just as much as I am called to help the poor. I would encourage you to let the networks know when you are not happy with what is on TV. The power of your email can be stronger than you think.

Working on our church mission committee, I rely quite a bit on the church secretary to get information for me, help with banking issues and sometimes serve as a go-between for me, the missionary and the associate minister at our church. She never complains and always handles what is asked of her without the slightest complaint or "I want to pull your eyeballs out of your head" look on her face. I don't know, she may be feeling it inside but she does what is requested efficiently and with much grace. She serves quietly and does not seem to want attention or credit. I love her attitude and her spirit. I appreciate her quiet service.
I may not remember the story correctly but as I recall it, an uncle of mine gave money to a family in his community that had little yet he did it without the family knowing where it came from. I guess he directed it through the church or the minister there but he wanted to serve and to help. I don't think anyone in our family knew it until after my uncle died and the minister shared it with them. Even though I don't remember the all the circumstances, I certainly remember the example.
We are here to give, not to get. We are here to serve, not receive. I know that when I give, I certainly get blessings - both spiritual and physical - returned to me. I know that when I serve, I receive service from others. As long as I do what God wants from me, I will get more than I need returned.
I appreciate my uncle and our church secretary for their examples. There are so many others that surround me in my life and I thank God for blessing me with wonderful people who help me stay focused on Him and the joy I get from being His child.

I'm not a good business traveler. Yesterday, I spent a good part of the day in Dallas for a meeting and even though it was just a few hours, being in Dallas exhausts me. Today, my plan is to head to our store in Salado where I'll stay overnight to work on computers, meet new people and help them however I can. I never sleep well my first night away from home when I'm by myself. I come back even more exhausted than when I went. That stands in contrast to how I sleep when my wife is with me. As long as she is next to me, I can be asleep in minutes. I suppose it is a comfort factor, knowing she's close by. I appreciate and cherish that comfort.

I feel that way with my church family too and I feel it more today than I ever have before. I feel bonds growing, I feel comfort knowing there are people I can lean on and rely on. I feel God working in our church family, I see good things happening and I look forward to what is ahead. I am amazed by the love, the spirit and the talent of the people in our church and the desire to do some great things to the glory of God.