Holiday Top Tens..

When I think of all of the fun things about this time of year one of the first things that come to mind are all of the tv shows and movies. Here are my top ten lists for Christmas movies and Christmas tv shows.

Movies:
10. Home Alone
9. Scrooged
8. The Santa Claus
7. The Santa Claus 2
6. The Grinch
5. Polar Express
4. It's A Wonderful Life
3. Christmas Vacation
2. Elf
1. A Christmas Story

TV Shows:
10. Rudolph's Shiny New Year
9. Frosty Returns
8. Little Drummer Boy
7. A Charlie Brown Christmas
6. 'Twas the Night Before Christmas
5. A King of the Hill Christmas
4. Frosty
3. How the Grinch Stole Christmas
2. Santa Claus is Coming to Town
1. Rudolph

Let's hear your opinions....

We had a hoe-down tonight at The Merge. It was a hoot. We had a bluegrass band, and a square dance caller, along with 76 people square dancing, yee hawin, and whatever else you do at a hoe down. It was a lot of fun. I'll have pictures up tomorrow.

I'm out....

jumping back in..

Well.....it's been a while since my last post. We had a great Thanksgiving, and have enjoyed hanging out together over the last week. The kids go back to school tomorrow, Kelly goes back to work, and things get back into our routine. It's been really nice to kind of slow down and chillax a little bit.

This time of year is so awesome. It's cold outside (at least for now), Christmas lights are going up, there are football games at every level every weekend, parties to go to, gifts to give, it's just awesome! We went to Houston for Thanksgiving, and had a great time with my mom, my brother, and his family. Then last Friday I went to Ft. Worth to shoot some man on the street type video stuff for our Christmas services. I was there with 5 other members of our staff (Keith, Gerry, David, Jay, and Harp) and we didn't know until we got there that it was the night of the Ft. Worth Christmas Parade. 250,000 people for us to interview. It was so much fun. The weirdest thing was that the very first people I walked up to to ask if they would let their small children sing "Jingle Bells" for our camera happened to be a girl that I went to junior high and high school with, and haven't seen in about 12 years. It was really weird.

We had a great group of students at "The Net" Sunday night. Wednesday is our jr. high hoe down. We've got a live bluegrass band coming, and a square dance caller. It should be a lot of fun. I'll make sure to take a lot of pictures.

Sometimes it's hard to jump back into things after having some time off, but not at this time of year. There is just so much to be thankful for, and it's just fun. Speaking of fun, I couldn't write tonight without mentioning Monday Madden Madness. My buddy Harp and I got to play today, and, in his words, it just wasn't in the cards for him today. That's all that needs to be said. He did get a freakin' awesome new tv for Christmas.

That's it for now....I'm out...

My favorite time of year...

It is here....my favorite time of year. The weather's getting colder, we're doing Christmas shopping, the Cowboys play 3 times in 11 days, and there is lots of food involved.....AWESOME!!

You know, it sounds cliche, but it is so true. There is really so much to be thankful for, and it takes me slowing down, and getting away to realize it sometimes. As I put my kids to bed tonight, their smiles, their voices, and just their overall well-being reminded me of the things that make my life incredible.

My dad died 5 years ago this week. He actually died on Thanksgiving Day 2000. I remember that day very well, and each Thanksgiving I'm reminded of the 32 years I had with my dad before Thanksgiving 2000. As a kid I remember looking forward to the parades, the games, the food, and just hanging out with our family. I want my kids to look forward to these days for more than just the presents and gifts they will receive in a few short weeks. We're going to my mom's in a few days and I look forward to it for many different reasons. Reasons that make this my favorite time of year.

Happy Thanksgiving......I'm out

Cowboys 20 Lions 7..........SWEET VICTORY!!!

What do we do with out time?

Life is so fleeting....a friend, and former colleague passed away yesterday. Sandra Reeves-Blackmon was a business teacher at Rowlett High School. My wife and I had worked with her for the last 4 years. She was my wife's department chair, and her husband, Stan, is the head basketball coach at Rowlett. She was at school when she had a heart attack and passed away in her classroom. When I got the phone call from a friend at the school telling me about this tragedy I began to think about our time here on this earth and how I choose to spend it.

My hope is that my investments into my own family will far out live my existence here on this earth. Are my kids learning from me in ways that will assist them in their lives without me? I hope so.

I've seen many churches and ministries fall apart when their leader leaves. Where, then, was the focus to begin within that ministry. It should be on Christ, and any pastor, or church leader should want their ministry to live on when they are no longer part of that particular congregation. If it does not, then who have we led these people into following in the first place.

Think about your life, and how you spend it. What is your time being invested in, and will it last beyond you? My prayers are with Stan Blackmon, Casey Reeves, and the rest of Sandra's family. She was a wonderful lady, and will be missed.

I'm out...

Wow...I didn't realize it had been 5 days. What a game last night. My boy Roy picks one off and runs it back to give the Cowboys a huge win against the Eagles. How bout them Cowboys? We're not going to talk about my last place fantasy team....just let it go...

You know........I was thinking about friends, relationships, and stuff today. Sometimes keeping things together can be really hard. Fights, arguments, bad choices, and conflict are just a part of life that most of us do not like dealing with at any time. Whether it's a husband and wife, or just a few friends, keeping things together can be very difficult.

I'm sure the disciples completely got on each others nerves at times. Twelve guys hanging out together, trying to learn from Christ, and interpret His lessons....you know there were differences of opinions. Peter may be my favorite apostle. It seems that he was constantly sticking his foot in his mouth, jumping the gun on something, or reacting without thinking. I can just see Christ kind of shaking his head and saying good help is sure hard to find. You know they got fed up with each other. But they did hold one another accountable for the things they had been taught by their Master. They were men who had given up everything to follow Christ. I'm sure there were times they thought about going back to the things they knew best. There were days Peter just wanted to go fishing. I think Paul was probably an athlete, or at least a fan of sports. Many times when things don't go just right, we retreat to what we know best. There are also times that we make bad choices, and surround ourselves with people doing the same thing so we don't feel inferior or out of place. That's much easier than facing our shortcomings head on.

We need friends that let us know when we're screwing up. It can hurt to hear it, but there are times we need it. Jesus loved his disciples. He loved them enough to call them out when they were wrong. When they doubted, when they denied, and when they betrayed, he still loved them. Making them confront the bad choices they sometimes made did not change the fact that He loved them more than they could imagine. As Christ followers, we need to encourage each other in our walk with Christ. But we also need to call attention to the things that might be a "stumbling block" to others. I have friends that I count on to keep me in line. I have a wife that does not hesitate to remind me of whose I am, and why I'm here. She's awesome!! Think of the people in your life that God has given you to help you in your walk. The friends that love you enough to watch out for you, and love you unconditionally. Most of the time the pain of what they say is due to truths being revealed that we'd rather forget or ignore.

Thanks Kelly (my wife)....thanks Greg, Michael, Harp, Gerry, Bob, Ray, Keith, Jay, just to name a few of my honest buddies.

I'm out...........here are some pics from the Jeremy Camp concert w/The Afters, and Bethany Dillon...what a great concert...

Pennies, Hermit Crabs, and other confusing things...

So everything at our student snack bar is priced at $.50 and $.25. How then do we end up with .$21 in pennies after "The Merge," our junior high service on Wednesday nights? It's just one of those things that confuses me. And what about the hermit crab kiosks at the mall? Someone has taken it upon themselves to paint the homes of these poor crabs who chose the shell as camoflage and protection. Suddenly they're thrust into the life of "rockstar" crab because of the peace sign, smiley face, NASCAR logo, or any other of the grafitti that someone has tagged on to their humble abode. Not only that, but people actually buy these for their kids and allow them to bring them out into public. The thing is called a hermit crab for a reason....they don't like attention!

What about the "pull my finger" pen that the lady who works the counter at my favorite morning diet coke stop uses on me everyday. With a smile on her face she looks me dead in the eye and says "pull my pen"....everyday. One day I'm gonna turn the tables if you know what I mean.

My daughter's junior high had a Homecoming game. What? No one wants to go back to junior high. One time through is plenty. Bad hair, voice changing, stinky feet, jacked up teeth, drastic weight changes......no thank you. I guess that will happen again here in about 40 years if I live the normal life cycle.

How about the single pop tart that winds up, unwrapped, back in the box because someone just wanted one. Or it could be sitting in the frig unwrapped, either way, why? Along those lines.....half full canned drinks, glasses of what used to be milk, trash on top of the trash can or beside it, and the question that most parents have heard....why do I have to bathe, I didn't sweat today?

Some days I just get confused and search for answers. Sometimes answers come, sometimes they don't. Oh well, at least the Eagles finally suspended Terrell Owens and ended some of the confusion as to why anyone with a brain would put up with him. But then again people pay $5 for a football hermit crab that just wants to be left alone, but will surely have to endure being used as an actual football by my junior high students.......why?

I'm out.....

A big thank you....

Last night we, as a staff, had the opportunity to thank the many volunteers that help the ministry of SCC. It was a great night, and everyone seemed to have a great time. Abuelos provided great food, Tim Hawkins was incredible entertainment, and the night was a success. I don't think there is anyway that we can fully thank all of the people that help this church. They are really an incredible group.

I thought I was going to bust my gut during Tim's part of the program. He is one of the funniest people I've heard. I've had the opportunity to work with him a little, and he gets funnier every time I see him. If you have never heard him, check out timhawkins.net. Hilarious!!

Monday night...8:00.....are you ready for some football? Patriots v. Colts...greatness!

I'm out.......

lunch-n-stuff

After a 15 year teaching career, you'd think I'd have school cafeterias down, but each is so different. Honestly, I could probably count on my two hands the number of times I ate a school lunch in the 5 different schools I taught in over that 15 years. I either brought mine from home, went somewhere off campus, or went home.

Sunday night I gave away free lunch coupons to everyone who brought their bible with them to "The Net." It gave the bearer the opportunity for me to bring them lunch from any fast food place they wanted one day over the next month. I've made three deliveries this week, all to Naaman Forest High School here in Garland. I wondered why my Naaman students were so quick to turn in their coupons. Most of the school cafeterias I've been in here are not bad. North Garland has a great bakery, and burrito stand. Rowlett High School and Sachse both have great deli, snack bar type lines. I have not made it to Garland HS, but my students there say it's not bad at all. Our schools in Richardson and Plano have actual restaurants bring in food on certain days. But watching the stuff that came out of the line at Naaman made me feel sorry for those kids. I was there on chicken nugget day, and with a good dose of gravy (a beverage at most schools), or ketchup, they are doable. But watching Amanda and Nadia put away Sonic and Chicken Express on Wednesday, and Meghan with her Panda Express Chinese today, I realized that there was some serious ministry happening. Hearts were being reached through the stomach, and it was a sweet sight.

For those of you who may find yourself in a school cafeteria at lunch time, I've developed some helpful hints....

1. A-lunch (10:30), while more like breakfast from a timing standpoint, has much better
quality than D-lunch (12:30). The lunches in between are okay, but quality definitely
decreases as the day moves forward.

2. Avoid shepherd's pie at all cost. While this an age old staple of most school cafeterias, the
recipe remains a secret. Frightening.

3. The red juice is always the best.

4. Pay no attention to the kid that puts hot sauce, gravy, or ketchup on his pizza. He/she is
simply disguising whatever is disgusting with his condiment of choice. Gone are the days
of the square pizza with cubed pepperonis.

5. Anything that says "special" acutally means "we need to get rid of this by this afternoon or
we're going to have problems with the health department."

Well, I'll update as I find new and exciting dishes at the schools I go to next week. For now, it's the weekend...and I'm out.

Trick or treat..

Bob, I loved your stuff on Halloween. I've been through all those phases myself, and can identify. I still think the look on "the boy's" face would be worth lots of money when he heard the words "get in the car son." I myself sit down with my kids and go through the candy and make sure that I take away the stuff that they may not like. I see it as my responsibility to test the things that are in their bags for taste, and quality. Who wants to bite into a pack of Starbursts that have lost their burst, or a not so jolly rancher. My personal favorites are the 3-pack of SweetTarts, and Now-N-Laters. But the mother of all catches are the boxes of Hot Tamales. I'm happy with our take this year......

I'm sitting here mind numbingly blank as to what I should write about tonight. My son just took a shower with the curtain open.........I'm out.