I'm sailing away...

Ok - maybe not sailing and no- I'm not on that midnight train to Georgia or any other expression - I'm on the long flight to China - Ok not as of this blog - but by Saturday afternoon.

Appreciate your prayers.

Talk at you soon.(oct 15)

Wins and Losses

Life is full of victories and losses - but it's how we handle those moments on either of side of the transaction that matters. We can't win them all and we won't lose them all but we can do our part, have the right character and no matter the outcome prepare for the next chapter/fight/battle, etc.

Speaking of which - I am heartbroken - but joyful - my beloved Redskins lost a game they should have won - and in the fantasy football world I won in one league and lost in another - see that's life.

Leaving for China this Saturday - I appreciate your prayers.

Talk at you soon

Seasons

I love the change of seasons - I guess I really like change in general, but the change in seasons provides us with a reminder of the natural rhythms that God has given us here on planet Earth. My tomato plants are reaching the end of their fruit bearing cycle and it reminds me of the necessity we all have to have seasons of growth, rest, fruit bearing and pruning. So, as fall approaches think about where you are right now - what season of life are you in, maybe you're in different seasons in different areas of your life- that's how it is for me right now - different seasons for different areas.

This past weekend was our church picnic and week 2 of our Heroes series - it was a very cool church picnic - in more ways than one - but especially because (slight smirk on face as he makes this comment) because Paula and I won the badminton tourney! Ah, the sweet smell of victory.

Speaking of which, how 'bout those Redskins - 2-0 which is the same record I have in both my fantasy leagues (some boys never grow up) :)

Talk at you soon.

We Win

At the end - we win(also a great Crowder song- btw- he has a new album coming out the 25th of September, so pre-order now - well, not right now, but after you read the rest of this blog). Still it is a great thought -WE WIN! We may not win every battle but we will win the war. Isn't great to know that God has you in the palm of His hands and that because of what He has done - we have victory.

What stirred this up - My Redskins won on Sunday(in dramatic fashion), and I started in both of my fantasy football leagues with wins and we had a win on Sunday - it was the first week of Heroes and just another example of the grace of God - didn't fell like I did a great job preaching - had some issues during the service and yet 3 people committed/recommitted their lives and a lot of positive energy during the ministry fair and after service - so thanks for your prayers.

Vacation continued- all good things must come to an end and after the cruise - we spent a few more days in London visiting Castles and then we had to come home -overall, it was an amazing time with the family - lots of great memories with family and friends.

Talk at you soon

God Loves You

Just think - whenever God thinks of you - He thinks about how much He loves you. We often don't love or even like ourselves - but God does. Like today, I had to go and get a picture taken for my visa application for a mission trip to China (I don't like my picture being taken and my girls often make fun of me when I try to smile for a picture so you can imagine how much fun it was to have the girl taking the picture start making fun of my lack of smile in the photo) anyway, when I looked at the picture it was ughhh - but then I thought, well, God loves me :)

Vacation update - on the first day of the cruise we visited Nice, Monte Carlo and Monaco and that was cool, but the second day was incredible - Rome - the Vatican City and Colosseum - how incredible it was to see those sights and to think about Rome's influence on the early church. More to come.

Remember, God Loves You.

Talk at you soon.

Labor Day

We went away last weekend -to visit my in-laws in Ohio - or should I say my wife's family in Ohio and my grandparents in WV - my Papa(grandfather) will be 90 next year - pretty cool!

Every time we go to Ohio - my allergies act up - I often say that I'm allergic to Ohio - and in some ways that's true. Home now and the allergies have calmed down. But it wasn't pretty last Sunday Morning - lots of kleenex.

Vacation - ahhh! :) how I wish for vacation - miss that -so where were we - that's right Barcelona Spain, so we landed in Barcelona and then off to a hotel for the night - we ate late at a tapas restaurant, if you've never been before, you should go - not to Barcelona(although what a great place and if you get the chance then go) but to a tapas restaurant. If you've never been then stop right now and say it out loud and just imagine if someone were to misunderstand what you are saying. Always have to make sure people understand what you say - anyway - in Spain, they eat breakfast, then go to work and take off about mid-day for a big dinner and a rest and then go back to work and then eat a late meal around 10pm that often includes tapas(which are small plates of food). Really good stuff - more vacation stuff in a later post.

Today has been a challenging day - all I can say is that I know God has a plan

Talk at you soon