Peer Pressure

Okay. So I'm not to fond of these things, but I feel that out of loyalty to friendship (and fear of backlash from the Bluebirds) I submit to you the following:

What were you doing 5 years ago?
1. Looking to buy our first home.
2. Working as a Missions Pastor/Facilites Director/Technical Director (computers and sound) and also a Student Pastor.
3. Building Mach Games Ramps at 3:00AM and still editing all night videos.
4. Buying our first house on Sandybrook.
5. Spending way to many hours away from my wife.

What are 5 things on your to-do list today (not in any particular order)?
1. Rehearsal @ 7pm
2. Brown Bag staff lunch at 11:30pm
3. Write a short script for this weekend's services
4. Email about 10 students
5. Locate a certiain DVD and make arrangements to pick it up to use it this weekend.

What are 5 snacks you enjoy?
1. Diet Dr. Pepper - it's great and reminds me of Sugar Free Dr. Pepper that I drank as a kid at the bowling alley, Lufkin Lanes.
2. Babybel Cheese
3. Bananas and granola
4. Chocolate Chip Cookies
5. Chicken in a Biskit crackers

What 5 things would you do if you were a billionaire?
1. Drive to every debtor personally and write them a final check
2. Start about 3 nonprofits; job placement, orphanage, AIDS victims
3. Buy serval businesses, including something to do with hydrogen powered cars
4. Create a Thinktank in Washington DC, centered on Student Ministry, with all their findings made available on the web.
5. Move my family to Maryland.(and Rachel's if they'd come!)

What are 5 of your bad habits?
1. Staying up to late
2. Seeing injustice, feeling convicted, becoming aware, then doing nothing.
3. Seeing others do great things and not thinking I can do great things. (If I get on to my students for thinking that can't do great things, it has to be wrong when I do it too!)
4. Law and Order
5. Knowing my ways the only way. (Notice I didn't say thinking. I can only see it my way.) - Sorry everyone.

What are 5 places you have lived?
1. Nacogdoches, TX Rachel's Parent's Home
2. Douglass, TX Our Trailer Home
3. Lufkin, TX 103 West
4. Lufkin, TX Sandybrook
5. Reisterstown, MD

What are 5 jobs you've had?
1. Poultry Farmer
2. Cabinet Maker
3. HVAC Shop Helper
4. Storeroom Clerk for MHMR
5. Pastor - Missions, Student

Tags:
I'm afraid to tag anybody. Some of the ones I would haven't blogged since Windows 95.

AAAHHHHHHH, Yeahhhhhh!

Well, we did it. Rach and I ran a 10 miler. Ouch. It was hard. But we did it!

Yep, it's my birthday!

Okay, it's been forever since I've blogged, so instead of hiding on my birthday, I will just own up to it. I know it sounds conceited to blog about your birthday, but come on it was pretty conceited of me 33 years ago as well. I mean, I made quite a fuss back then with all the attention I was demanding. At least I'm not demanding attention this time, barging in and expecting everyone to answer to my beckon call! (Wow, was I rude when I was born.) I mean, I expected so many people to drop whatever plans they had and come see me, and then there's my mom and dad, who gave up so much just to make me happy. Wow! Do I owe them alot! Thanks mom and dad for giving me such a firm foundation of family and a genuine love for Christ!

So on this birthday, I turn this whole thing around. Not Happy Birthday to me, but thank you to everyone else! I know it sounds trite, but I really am thankful to so many that have invested in me over the years, and now I'm grateful for those that have settled down to call themselves friends! You people are great! Not everyone has friends, but I do and so for that I say "thank you for being a friend."

I turn 33 today. That's roughly the same age that Jesus was crucified. Me being a pastor makes me look at Jesus and His ministry in a new light considering my new age. It makes me think of something weird. Jesus completed his ministry in 3/3.5 years. It makes me wonder about what God has in store for me in the future in regard to influencing people for eternity. I want to make everyday count. Toward that end, I've decided to change a few things. Rachel and I are running more. Notice the Nike+ pic up top. Yep, it says 8 miles. We did 6 the week before. That seems crazy. I know it's not "ministry," but I sure enjoy spending that time with Rach. I've also vowed to read more. I've even taken the extra step of rearranging furniture so I have a "reading chair." We'll see out it goes. I'm looking at this birth day as a wake up to guard against insignificance. No, I haven't lost purpose, vision, hope or am I even depressed. I just want to start finishing strong, whether I'm a 1/3 to the finish or over 1/2, and there's no better place to start again than on a birthday.

Thanks friends!