Happy Birthday Mom!!!

Happy Birthday to my mom, who is in Lee's Summit, MO, enjoying the cold weather. I hope you have a wonderful day and know that I love you for all that you have done for me.

Tough Times but we must never forget that God is in control!!!

These days are very tough for me and my family right now. As an independent contractor and entreprenuer, it has been a long road filled with many setbacks and now with a bad economy. Thanks to God, we have been provided with what we need to survive and live a comfortable life. 

I am praying for my father in-law, Claudio, who is currently in the hospital dealing with a variety of ailments. I am faithful that he is in God's hands and he will come out of this better than ever. Unfortunately, this brings up the painful memory of the loss of my father last year. This is a rough time for my wife and I will support her in any way she requires.

Here is my prayer:

Lord, please place your healing hand and bless a man who truly loves you. He is a man of faith, a father, husband and grandfather who is still full of life. I pray that you heal him just as Jesus healed many during his time here on earth. Nothing is impossible for you and thanks to the teachings of my pastor I can pray for the big things and know that nothing is too great for you handle.

Happy Valentine's Day

Let these flowers show that you mean the world to me and their beauty cannot match yours. I am eternally grateful that we found each other and that our love will only grow in the years to come.

Love you, always. 

New Testament Challenge - Days 3 - 8

I fell behind but I caught up last night. It was quite a bit of reading, however it was very enlightening. I learned quite a bit about Jesus and his disciples, how they traveled and spread the word without regard for their own lives. I read quite a few parables and it is very interesting how he used common things to get his point across. It has been an intersting read and I look forward to continuing this challenge and see how it ends up for me. 

Lifegroup tonight was awesome. Tonight, my wife and I led the group. We had a good time playing 2 truths 1 lie and learned some funny things about each other. The lessons itself were reflective and really brought up some great debate. My wife closed the group with a fanstatic prayer (look out Travis, she just might replace you!!!!) and showed just how committed she is to Jesus and the mission at Life Pointe Church.

National Signing Day

The official sigining day for new recruits begain today, and with a frenzy and much anticipation we began to see the commitments to Miami Football. Lamar Miller, pictured above,  was 1 of 19 recruits to sign their L.O.I. (Letter Of Intent) to play for the hurricanes. It was a mixed day as there were a few players who backed out of oral commitments and decided to go elsewhere. I am diappointed in their choices but I am happy that I see this team moving back to where they were in previous years, and that is in the national spotlight. I can't wait for this season to begin and watch these kids take this school back to the top. 

With the new OC (Offensive Coordinator), Mark Whipple, this team will return to its roots as a pro-style offense. I am grateful he is the OC and I can look forward to watching this offense score some points!!!!

Here is the list of new players:

	Malcolm Bunche	OL	6-5	315	Newark, Del.	Newark HS
	Jared Wheeler	OL	6-6	305	Miami, Fla.	American Heritage HS
	Lamar Miller	RB	5-11	205	Miami, Fla.	Killian HS
	Luther Robinson	DL	6-3	281	Fort Pierce, Fla.	Westwood HS
	Billy Sanders	TE	6-4	235	Coeur d'Alene, Idaho	Lake City HS
	Jamal Reid	DB	6-1	175	Mayo, Fla.	Lafayette HS
	Shayon Green	LB	6-2	235	Tifton, Ga.	Tifton County HS
	Cory White	OL	6-5	235	Jacksonville, Fla.	Fleming Island HS
	A.J. Highsmith	QB	6-0	190	Fort Bend, Texas	HightowerHS
	Dyron Dye	DE	6-5	230	Sanford, Fla.	Seminole HS
	Aravious "Ray Ray" Armstrong	DB	6-4	215	Sanford, Fla.	Seminole HS
	Prince Kent	DB	6-3	195	Norcross, Ga.	Norcross HS
	Stephen Plein	OL	6-6	250	Fort Myers, Fla.	Fort Myers HS
	Mike James	RB	5-11	220	Davenport, Fla.	Ridge HS
	Jermaine Johnson	OL	6-6	304	Fort Lauderdale, Fla.	Hargrave (Va.) Military Academy/St. Thomas Aquinas HS
	Brandon McGee	DB	5-11	180	Plantation, Fla.	Plantation HS
	Curtis Porter	DL	6-0	344	Charlotte, N.C.	Victory Christian HS
	Olivier Vernon	DL	6-2	247	Miami, Fla.	American HS
	Brandon Washington	OL	6-4	354	Miami, Fla.	Milford (N.Y.) Academy/Northwestern HS

New Testament Challenge.... Day One and Two

I have accepted the challenge and began my quest today to complete the 63 days. I read Matthew 1-4 and Acts 1-6 and I learned quite a bit. In Matthew 1 I learned that the genealogy of Jesus is very confusing and as many times as I read it, it was still hard to follow. I learned about John the Baptist, how he preaches the word in such a convincing fashion and without fear. I learned more about the temptations offered by Satan to Jesus and how he rebuked every one of them with a perfect argument. 

From Acts, I learned something I have been wondering about for some time now. What happened to Jesus, where did he go? I am not well versed on the bible (my own fault for not reading like I should) however these first few chapters have answered just about every question I had. I learned about the fate of Judas (very graphic!!!) and what happened to a couple who tried to cheat God out of his offering (both dropped dead after being confronted). What I really learned is that with faith, any situation can be overcome and there are numerous passages that describe this in detail, no matter the circumstances we need to just have faith in God and he will watch over us and protect us. 

Super Sunday

        VS      

The final game of the NFL season has arrived. The Arizona Cardinals will face the Pittsburgh Steelers tonight in Tampa. Arizona is the cinderella story of the year, going from perrenial doormat to NFC Champions and a possible first NFL Superbowl championship. On the other side, the storied Steelers trying to win their sixth championship and be the first NFL franchise to do so. This game is hard to guage, as the Cardinals are mostly and offense oriented team and Steelers rely on their defense to win their games. I think the game will come down to if the Steelers can pressure Kurt Warner, if not then it will be a long day for a defense that will have matchup problems against the best crop of receivers of any team. I predict Arizona will stun the Steelers and pull off an improbable season. Final score: Arizona 38 - Pittsburgh 28