A brother and a sister

Yesterday was a beautiful day. In our church we had a sister in Christ who repented. She confessed to not having God first in her life. I praise God for her soft, humble heart. She admitted that the thorns of life had surrounded the word of God in her heart and were choking the spiritual life out of her. It was humbling for all of us to hear her words and I know it made many reflect on their lives. I hope more of us will repent in public and private ways!

Also, last night, a new brother was added to the body of Christ. I got the call about 9pm and a small group of us went up to the building I got to baptize this new brother. He's a quiet guy but it's fun to try and get him to talk or smile and the few words he said were just right. Our little group gathered around to encourage him and pray for him.

I think I know what Jesus meant when he said, "I saw Satan fall like lightning from heaven." I think I saw Satan fall twice yesterday. Satan lost two battles...and God won two battles!! Awesome!

A Greater Birthday!

Even more impressive than me blogging three days in a row, is the fact that it is my beautiful wife's 30th birthday! Happy Birthday!!! I'm proud of Trace for looking at her 30th more with hope and excitement rather than gloom and doom. Her family makes a big deal out of special birthdays (ones that end with a "0" or a "5"). Of course they are all special but these always seem to mean a little more. It's hard to spend a lot of time celebrating her birthday tonight because of our spiritual commitments, but we've actually gotten to celebrate it several times since late last week and we'll celebrate some more this weekend. I like spreading the happiness over several days!

She is the only woman for me and truly the one on earth who makes me feel loved the most. She deserves more than one special day, but for sure on this day, I want her to be happy because of all the happiness she gives me.

A great birthday

I'll try and not toot (that's a funny word!) my horn too much, but today is my birthday!  It is so hard to think back on a day I can't remember.  But it is also wonderful to consider the implications of that day.  To think that I made two people parents and made another two sets of people grandparents.  I made people aunts and uncles and cousins on that day...just by being born.  And now the torch of celebration has been passed on.  My beautiful wife is the one who primarily makes my special day special.  She e-mails me a sweet e-mail and writes about me on her blog.  I can't thank her enough for wanting to make my birthday memorable and meaningful.  We'll get to see my parents, brother and grandma this weekend and celebrate both our birthdays with them.  I guess my birthday is most meaningful because it means that it's been another year of faithfulness.  God has been faithful to me, my wife has been faithful to me, our church has been faithful to us.  And by God's spirit and grace, I have been faithful to all these as well.

I hope your birthday is great...whenever it comes around.  God has been so good to me.

Pray in the Grove

Have I told you about Thursday nights yet? A group of 10-12 college students meet at the Grove stage about 9pm. I usually bring a Frisbee and we throw it around in the dark for a few minutes. Sound dangerous? It is not nearly as risky as what we are trying to be on these nights. We are trying to be a people who pray to God on campus, asking him to soften hearts, open eyes and unclog ears. And that includes our hearts and eyes and ears too! We want to pursue God on these nights and we want him to change us first! We gather in a circle and pray as a group about a lot of our personal and spiritual concerns. Then we prayerwalk as a group down a particular street on campus. Last week we went down Sorority Row. We just walked and talked with each other and then twice we stopped to pray as a group. We had an awesome time. Sometimes it’s hard to get out of the house at 9pm, but whenever I come back home, I am refreshed by the Spirit of God as it works in me and our college students because we desire that God’s will be done in Ole Miss as it is in heaven.