I Love Wednesday Nights!!!!!!!!

Wednesday is my favorite day of the week. All the planning, preparation, and prayer that is invested in Wednesday night comes to a pinnacle at about 6:40 every single week. Tonight I announced several things we have coming up and we were flooded with people getting on board with what is going on. I am so excited to be here with this group of students that I feel like I am going to explode. I love what I do, I am so lucky to get paid to get up and come to work at Brookwood Church. In May we will begin a new series called "How To Deal"and it is going to be absolutely amazing. I can't wait. By the way, Dawson just laughed out loud for the first time and it really cracked me up.

Back to Work

I have been out of town for five days and I am so glad to be back at work. I think I gained three pounds while I was gone which makes me want to jump off a very tall building (just kidding). We went to Charleston yesterday to see a ENT doctor for Dawson. He thinks we should be able to start the process of removing Dawson's trach six weeks after the heart surgery. I cant wait until that thing is out so I can hear him talking again. I really miss that sometimes. Anyway our date for the surgery is May 18 and we have peace about this, so we know it is God's plan and Dawson is going to do great. However, it does not make the process any easier. It seems to me that while growing in our faith we are constantly presented with opportunities to trust God. These opportunities vary in difficulty, like the beginning of a video game where you choose the level at which you would like to compete. The crazy thing is there is no easy, normal, or difficult buttons in our spiritual life. We face each day not knowing what the next moment may bring. Sometimes we respond with great faith during the hardest places and other times we have a panic attack while flying in a perfectly good airplane(that really happened to me). I am learning that the thing we never stop doing is finding new places to trust God. My desire is that no matter what I face in this life that I will respond with trust. I know that there are lots of things I cannot trust, but the one thing that I can trust is God.

Family

I have been gone for two days and I really miss my wife and little boy. I am coming home tomorrow and I have decided to wait until I get home to post some of my notes from the conference. I will arrive in GVL at 10 :30 at night which makes me want to scream but I cant wait until I see my family. There is nothing like that moment when I see my wife after being gone for a few days. I am pretty sure I am co-dependent, but that is ok. I love you baby if you read this before I get home!

Tulsa, OK

I am in Tulsa, OK and I am not dead. I am having a great time and Mike's mom and Dad are great. Tonight I heard one of the greatest messages to student pastors in my life by Pastor Willie George. The building there at oneighty is unreal. I am so jealous. I will highlight some of the notes from tonights message on tomorrows post.

Wednesday Night

Tonight was absolutely amazing, you can really feel the holy spirit beginning to change our student ministry. The worship was great and the message was on serving. We announced our partnering with the children's ministry and also our mission trip to Gulfport, MS. The students responded with an overwhelming desire to get involved and be challenged. I am so proud of you guys. You are the greatest group of students in the country. Remember we are changing the way we think and you guys are going to impact this community in an unbelievable way. You Rock!

Leaving On A Jet Plane

Elevate 07 here I come. I am so excited about getting to see one of the greatest student ministries in the country. The building cost about ten million so it will probably stand up to my expectations. I will let you guys know how the plane flight goes, I am believing for total freedom from this irrational, annoying, debilitating, jacked up fear.

On My Way

After about six years of trying different diets and eating plans, I have finally realized that you cannot loose weight by eating. I have tried so many fad diets that I am pretty sure there are about five different things I will never eat again. On the top of the list is the nasty soup that I ate on the soup diet. Who made that up anyway? But my point is that without real life change you cannot reach your goals. In the past several months I have made some big changes in my life. Portion size and exercise are two things are part of my life everyday. I have currently lost 77 lbs and am on my way to my goal of loosing 160 lbs. I saw an old friend last night who had not seen me in years and he kept telling me how proud he was of me and how skinny I was. (I am using the word Skinny very loosely). So I am well on my way and very excited every time I can fit into a size I have not worn since the third grade.

Airplanes

Thursday morning I will board and airplane for Tulsa, Oklahoma. I am very excited about the conference we will attend at Oneighty student ministry. Elevate 07 will be amazing. But the thing I can't get off my mind is this crazy fear I have of flying. It is really annoying. Why can't I just get on a plane like the rest of the world and not think another thing about it. Being afraid to fly makes about as much sense as being afraid of wearing shoes. I am really trying to identify the root cause of this fear so I can move past it. My goal is not just to get on the plane and fight through my fear. I want to get on the plane and leave the fear behind. I might be way off base but my desire is to be set free. So it is Monday night and I am asking God to set me free. There I said it.