Count Down

Our time is coming to an end here in Natchitoches. Today is Monday; we're pulling out in a U-Haul Saturday. It's bitter sweet, but mostly sweet. I'm cleaning out my office right now at work. It's bringing a lot of memories over the past 2 years to mind. This Thursday will be 2 years that I've worked at the paper mill. So, Friday, my last day, will make 2 years and a day for Weyerhaeuser.

I can't wait to move to Dallas! I can't wait to start our new lives. I miss our friends that have already gone before us. I can't wait to see them. But the absolute worst part, the part that I am most sad about, is leaving behind who I consider my best friend. I don't think I'll ever find a friend like I found in Jason Hughes. Man, I'm gonna miss the coffee discussions that we have. The prayers. Walking into the Church building and seeing him, or being bummed out when he has to work during worship. Chatting to each other over Yahoo Messenger about Reformed Theology or the forum. My heart hurts when I think about not being able to spend these times with him anymore. He and I have come so far together. He's strengthened me when I needed strengthening. He's encouraged me when I needed encouragement. I tried to talk him into packing up and coming with us; I think it's a great idea! haha! I hope God has it in our plans to be located close to each other one day. God is clearly working in Jason and Jessica's lives. Praise God! I pray that they will always serve God with all of their hearts for every second of their lives.

Time goes by so fast. When I pulled into Natchitoches for the first time in 1999, my plans for my future and what has become of my future are like black and white; complete opposites. The Lord our God is so amazing and sovereign! He, being so rich in mercy, has brought me to places I never would have dreamed that I would be. He has changed my heart from being a hard, black rock, to a living heart of flesh that desires Him with its every particle. Thank You, My God! Thank You for bringing me here and not to where I had planned in 1999. Thank you for my beautiful wife and children!!! I devote my life to You Oh Lord! Use me!

Green Day - Good Riddance (Time of Your Life)
Another turning point
A fork stuck in the road
Time grabs you by the wrist
Directs you where to go
So make the best of this test
And don't ask why
It's not a question
But a lesson learned in time
It's something unpredictable
But in the end is right
I hope you had the time of your life

So take the photographs
And still frames in your mind
Hang it on a shelf of
Good health and good time
Tattoos of memories
And dead skin on trial
For what it's worth
It was worth all the while
It's something unpredictable
But in the end is right
I hope you had the time of your life

It's something unpredictable
But in the end is right
I hope you had the time of your life

It's something unpredictable
But in the end is right
I hope you had the time of your life

I Love Thee By Eliza Acton

I love thee, as I love the calm
Of sweet, star-lighted hours!
I love thee, as I love the balm
Of early jes'mine flow'rs.
I love thee, as I love the last
Rich smile of fading day,
Which lingereth, like the look we cast,
On rapture pass'd away.
I love thee as I love the tone
Of some soft-breathing flute
Whose soul is wak'd for me alone,
When all beside is mute.

I love thee as I love the first
Young violet of the spring;
Or the pale lily, April-nurs'd,
To scented blossoming.
I love thee, as I love the full,
Clear gushings of the song,
Which lonely--sad--and beautiful--
At night-fall floats along,
Pour'd by the bul-bul forth to greet
The hours of rest and dew;
When melody and moonlight meet
To blend their charm, and hue.
I love thee, as the glad bird loves
The freedom of its wing,
On which delightedly it moves
In wildest wandering.

I love thee as I love the swell,
And hush, of some low strain,
Which bringeth, by its gentle spell,
The past to life again.
Such is the feeling which from thee
Nought earthly can allure:
'Tis ever link'd to all I see
Of gifted--high--and pure!

To Kelli by me

My day gets so bright,
When I see your pretty eyes.
I love our Hello’s,
But I hate the goodbye’s.

If I could hold you all day,
It would be all that I need.
To see your face all day long,
Pure sweetness, indeed!

Never in My Life by me

Never in my life
Have I seen something so great.
Some would call it a miracle,
Some would call it fate.

A miracle is what I lean towards,
That’s the only answer to be.
Because only God could grant a blessing
As perfect to someone like me.

The miracle that God performed
Is greater than water to wine.
Thank you God for the perfect miracle
Of making Kelli mine!

Skating With Eli & Kai

SOLD OUR HOUSE!!!

The Fellowship of the Unashamed

"I am a part of the fellowship of the Unashamed. I have the Holy Spirit Power. The die has been cast. I have stepped over the line. The decision has been made. I am a disciple of Jesus Christ. I won't look back, let up, slow down, back away, or be still. My past is redeemed, my present makes sense, and my future is secure. I am finished and done with low living, sight walking, small planning, smooth knees, colorless dreams, tame visions, mundane talking, chintzy giving, and dwarfed goals. I no longer need preeminence, prosperity, position, promotions, plaudits, or popularity. I don't have to be right, first, tops, recognized, praised, regarded, or rewarded. I now live by faith, lean on His presence, love by patience, lift by prayer, and labor by power. My pace is set, my gait is fast, my goal is Heaven, my road is narrow, my way is rough, my companions few, my Guide is reliable, my mission is clear. I cannot be bought, compromised, detoured, lured away, turned back, diluted, or delayed. I will not flinch in the face of sacrifice, hesitate in the presence of adversity, negotiate at the table of the enemy, ponder at the pool of popularity, or meander in the maze of mediocrity. I won't give up, back up, let up, or shut up until I've preached up, prayed up, paid up, stored up, and stayed up for the cause of Christ. I am a disciple of Jesus Christ. I must go until He returns, give until I drop, preach until all know, and work until He comes. And when He comes to get His own, He will have no problem recognizing me. My colors will be clear for "I am not ashamed of the Gospel, because it is the power of God for the salvation of everyone who believes..""
author unknown

Imagine All the People

6,457,513,023 = the population of the world today. It climbs everyday.

So many people. It's hard to imagine so many people existing, living their lives, experiencing joys and hardships, being driven by evil or being driven by good, and being born and dying. It's hard to imagine 6 and 1/2 billion of anything. I had never realized how many people are actually in the world until I started traveling for my job.

I went to San Francisco a while back. Oh what a beautiful place! It was amazing; the Golden Gate Bridge, Alcatraz, the mountains, the sea lions, Chinatown, Pier 39, the food, and of course the ocean. So many people just in the one city, living separate lives while I live my life way down in Louisiana.

Then, it really hit me when I went to New York City. It was an amazing trip! I loved it. The buildings that I've seen on TV and in magazines, Times Square, Empire State Building, Trump Tower, the Statue of Liberty, Chinatown, Fox News, ABC, MTV, and of course the solemn Ground Zero of the terror attacks. The minute we arrived it was complete chaos. We got to our hotel, which was in Times Square, and immediately went out to Times Square to find a restaurant. I've never in my life felt so insignificant! A germ among millions. One ant in 100 acres. One grain of sand on Galveston Island. But the most overwhelming feeling was that of being amongst so many obvious dead people. I was walking in the world's largest morgue.

We made it to Applebee's, of all places, it was least crowded. We sat on the second floor by the window so we could watch all of the people. I just can't describe the feelings I had while there. Imagine thousands upon thousands of people, "living for today", living for work and working for life, praying to the god of money and money being their god, waiting for the next fix and fixing their problems with white powder or green grass or sex or nothing at all but wasting time walking.

Though I enjoyed being in New York City and seeing all of the sites that I've always wanted to see, and meeting a couple of celebrities, and being on Fox and Friends, and being on People's Court, haha!, and remembering 9-11 at Ground Zero, I couldn't help being overwhelmed with a depressing feeling. I was depressed by thinking of not only NYC's population, but the world's population, and how many of the world's population were actually living life spiritually dead. Most people claim to be a Christian where I'm from, but stepping into a place where suddenly most people would rather lose a limb than be called a Christian was heart breaking and eye opening.

I would love to visit NYC again. I love to travel. But, this time, I think I would have a new agenda. Although I would probably be mocked and ridiculed and thought of as one of the thousands of crazies that walk the streets in NYC, my agenda would be to bring one of those millions of dead people in the great morgue to life. I pray that God will use me to bring some of the dead to life throughout my years.

So, imagine all the people, living life in peace because God has brought peace into their lives making them alive in Christ Jesus our Lord. Imagine all the people no longer worshipping their god known as the Franklin, but worshipping the God who created the world in which they live and are even able to worship at all. Imagine God using us to change the hearts and minds of all the people.

Praise God! Use me Lord. Use me.