Do I Make God Laugh?

Last night, we took Emily to see Santa Claus and possibly get some pictures taken. Both of us knew that actually getting Emily to take a picture had a one in a million chance. For whatever reason, she is in a phase where she just doesn't want to take pictures. It doesn't matter if they are family pictures, mommy & Emily pictures, daddy & Emily pictures, just Emily pictures, you get the idea. Then you add the fact that she is still not sure about Santa Claus in general and that just makes this worse. So instead of taking pictures, we just talked to Santa Claus since nobody else was in line at the time. (Just a side note. I recently read an article and the author asked the question why do we take our children to a strange place, shove them onto the lap of a stranger dressed in weird clothes, and say smile.) Maybe next year she will be ready for pictures with Santa again.

After visiting Santa at the mall, we made our way to mom and dad's house to drop of Emily for the weekend. Theresa had planned this "work weekend" several weeks ago so that we could get some things done around the house before baby arrives. She is having a great time and we have already gotten quite a bit accomplished. There is still a long list waiting for us tomorrow that I'm sure will keep us both very busy.

All of that to give you a little bit of background of our weekend plans. Today as we were going over some plans for decorating the house, setting up the nursery for Callie, and other miscellaneous tasks, God threw a wrench in our well-thought out plans. Even though we know that in all reality Callie can come at any time between now and January 7th, our other plans seem pretty much set in stone. That is when God steps in to quietly remind us that He is in control. Even though we think we have good plans, He has the best plans for our lives. I have often heard that if you want to make God laugh just show Him your plans. I can't tell you exactly how our plans are being messed up because we are still praying about His leading and are trying to not get ahead of Him. At one point tonight I did have to just laugh to myself as I pictured God saying "don't worry, I've got it all under control." While it is scary and uncertain waiting for God to reveal His plans, there is no other place that I would rather be than in His will. Hopefully I will be able to write more about what is going on with my family in the next few days. Until then, I am happy knowing I might be making God laugh.

Ice Storm 2007

Alright, I don't know who all reads this but for those of you who are wondering, we are good. I know that Oklahoma has been all over the news recently because of the ice storm. We never lost power and we don't have any more ice here in Purcell. However, just 15 minutes up the road is Norman, which was very hard hit. There are still alot of people in the Oklahoma City area and the Tulsa area who do not have power. Please pray for them because we have snow coming this weekend. Emily noticed today that we didn't have leaves on our tree and I told her it was because it was fall. That reminded me that it is not even winter yet and we are dealing with this cold weather! I was not made for this. Being from Louisiana, I do not care for cold weather. I told Jason that I think God is calling us to live somewhere below I-10. He said that reduces our choices down to Florida. My response? That sounds good to me!

Staff Christmas Party

Tonight we had our annual Staff Christmas Party. This is one of several parties my family and I attend during the Christmas season. Some parties I'm expected to attend, so parties I can attend, and other parties I have to put on myself. I actually enjoy most of the Christmas parties I get to be at during the month of December because they are usually relaxed in nature, contain good food, and being with family/friends. What I find ironic is the feeling everyone has toward Christmas parties. Every year it seems that we try to out-wit others by having their party early or by simply having a set date every year. My extended family on my mom's side begins the "when do we meet" debate around Thanksgiving. We have finally begun to just set the date and realize that some may have to work or are simply not available on that date. Today as I was getting some supplies from Wal-Mart for our finger food dish, I ran into a deacon and his wife. When I told them where I was going, they said "aren't you tired of parties?" I wanted to say, well, not really. By the look on their faces and the tone in their voices, I knew not to even suggest my true feelings. I have found myself asking others if they were stressed out due to holiday stuff, but I am really trying not to say that anymore. The reason, we live in a world that is constantly stressed out! Our pace is greater than ever before and there never seems to be an end to the madness. The reality is Christmas does add different stress (in the form of parties, gift giving/receiving, decorating, etc.) than we experience the rest of the year, but we all seem stressed out. Maybe you have found a secret to living a more simple life that the rest of us need to learn.

Ice Everywhere!

Today was a great day because I got to be at home due to a major ice storm that has come through Oklahoma. Even though our roads aren't bad at all here in Purcell, everything else just looks frozen. From tree limbs, to the grass, to power lines, everything is encased in ice. Since schools state-wide were shut down and with many businesses not having power, I was able to stay home today with my girls. We had a lot of fun building a fire in our fireplace, watching TV (Emily always calls it watching a movie) reading, and just hanging out. I do have to admit that on days like this, I am a bit jealous of my sister. During our ice storm in January, she and her roommate got to sleep in, watch their own movies, read, surf the web, etc. Life with a two year old means everything has changed. This is especially noticeable when you have a day like today with endless possibilities, and you wind up riding a "cow" from our pull-out couch to the floor. Hey, don't knock it until you try it! Of course you have to yell "go cow, go cow, go, go" the entire time. As soon as you hear your daughter laugh uncontrollably because mommy and daddy are riding her "cow," that is when it really doesn't matter that you don't get to watch your movie, or sleep in, or do anything else you want to do when all you can see outside is ice. Theresa was quick to remind me today that someday when our children are old enough to play with each other, we will be begging to join in. Needless to say, today was another great day with my family and I know that all of the things on my to-do list will still be there later.

PS Maybe I'll get to do it all again tomorrow!

Getting Ready For Baby

Well, Emily is officially growing up. She has moved into her new room and into her new bed. It is a toddler bed and is so cute. She loves it! She "sleeps" in it all day long. Her thing right now is spending the whole day in her night-night clothes so that she can rest whenever she wants. Jason got her toys and books moved in today so her room is starting to come together. We are also getting ready to go through all of Emily's old stuff and pick out things for the baby. Emily is so excited!

I do have to tell one cute story. On Sunday she learned about Mary and the angel telling her that she had good news, that Mary was going to have a baby and his name would be Jesus. We have a stuffed nativity set that Emily plays with and so after telling me about what she learned in Bible school, she acted it out. She had Mary and the Angel and then she had the Angel tell Mary, "I have good news. You will have baby Jesus." She then put baby Jesus underneath Mary's shirt so that she was pregnant with him. This was one time I wish I had the video camera right there.

It is amazing how much they pick up on and understand at such a young age. I think with my belly being as big as it is, she is able to comprehend that Jesus was born to Mary and that He was special. I pray that we never forget that.

Good Times At Chili's

Today was a fun day for my family and me. Thursdays are always relaxing for me church because Wednesday night has already been taken care of. This means that I have another entire week before our MidWeek Bible study. Sunday will always be a big deal, but as a youth pastor I have much more responsibility on Wednesday nights, so the pressure is on because it's all me. When Thursday roles around it is very nice and it also means that my two days off will soon start. What made this Thursday extra special was getting to have lunch with some friends of ours from New Mexico that recently moved to serve at a church here in Oklahoma. Ben and Elizabeth are a great couple and we really hated not getting to see them when we left New Mexico. Who knew that we would be serving in the same state almost one year later?

Ben, Elizabeth, and I attended a youth worker conference right before Thanksgiving and made plans to get together for lunch before the baby comes in January. Knowing that Christmas will soon be here and Theresa's due date is quickly approaching, we decided to join up in Norman for lunch at Chili's. None of us had eaten at Chili's in quite a while so this was a real treat. As far as I'm concerned, we could have gone to McDonald's today. Nothing against our Chili's food because it was great. I just mean that having lunch, no matter where it was, made it a good day. Not only are Ben and Elizabeth great people our age, but they are also "get us." By that I mean they have gone through and are going through many of the things Theresa and I have experienced in youth ministry. We don't have a lot of young couples at our church so it was just nice to talk to someone my age. And no offense to those who do not work at a church, but it is really hard to understand and "get" this lifestyle. The reality is most people look at pastors differently than they do other Christians. I'm not complaining, just stating a perception of mine.

A day filled with relaxation at work, good food, and definitely time with good friends is special in my book. I don't know what kind of day you had today. I hope that you had a good day or maybe and even better day than I did. If not, grab some friends and head to Chili's. I recommend getting the chips & salsa, and the Triple Dipper!

Oh, the Irony!

Okay, it has been a while since I posted anything, but I decided I couldn't pass on this one. As most people know now, LSU has made it into the National Championship game. (If you didn't know or don't care, I will pray for you.) So, anyway, I was REALLY excited about this. However, last time we went to the doctor, we scheduled to have the baby induced. The funny thing is, the baby will be induced on January 7th. Unless she comes before then on her own, that will be her birthday. What makes this really funny is that LSU will play for the national title on, you guessed it, January 7th. I think God does things sometimes to remind us of what truly matters in life and so if I don't see it, I guess I will just have to settle for the highlights.