Today I turn 30 …. but as Danny says … My Best Days Are Ahead Of Me.

Blowing out the candles
on another birthday cake
Old enough to look back and laugh at my mistakes
Young enough to look at the future and like what I see
My best days are ahead of me

Life hasn’t always been a party
but mostly it’s been good
There’s only one or two things that I’d change if I could
I dont get lost in the past or get stuck in some sad memory yah
My best days are ahead of me

Age ain’t nothing but a number
Sometimes I have to wonder
What does it really mean
But heeeey im still putting it together
I keep getting better
if I keep getting better
I can be whatever I want to be
My best days are ahead of me

Age ain’t nothing but a number
Sometimes I have to wonder
What does it really mean
But heeeey im still putting it together
I keep getting better
if I keep getting better
I can be whatever I want to be
My best days are ahead of me

I’ve got sunsets to witness
dreams to dance with
beaches to walk on
and lovers to kiss
there’s a whole lot of world out there
that I can’t wait to see
My best days are ahead of me
My best days are ahead of me

Have You Seen It?

UPDATE: Just got home from the movies. It was a great movie! Lots of laughs. Wouldn’t be that great of a movie if the minions weren’t in it. Worth seeing … especially in 3D.

Several weeks ago I got a call that made time stand still for a few seconds. One of my mentors in children’s ministry became deathly ill. I got the call around 9:30pm at night that she was rushed to the hospital and they didn’t think she was going to make it through the night. She had infection that was really bad, her blood pressure was super low, her body temp was super low and her kidneys were shutting down.

As I drove to the hospital I thought about her life and the impact that she made in my life and how she was that force that pushed me when I wanted to back up. How she was that person who would always ask me to go to the children’s ministry conferences. How she has always been there for me as a support even when she didn’t agree with what I was doing. She has made a huge impact not just in my life but in the lives of hundreds and even thousands of kids AND adults.

Sometimes our thinking and purpose in life get’s so messed up. Life becomes all about us and not about Him. We do things for ourselves and not Him. I personally have caught myself on many occasions doing things for people but not really for them or for Him but for me. Kinda selfish to be real and I am not saying that we can’t do things to better ourselves however I think that sometimes we can get caught into making life about us and not Him.

Matthew 5:16 tells us to “Let your light so shine before men, that they may see your good works, and glorify your Father which is in heaven.”

I want to live my life For Him … Not Me. I want to make an impact. I don’t care if people know my name. I don’t care if I make 60 grand a year. I don’t care for a title. I just wanted to be used by Him to reach the world. My life is not for me and things I do in life shouldn’t be all about me either. Let’s make an impact!

A Guy’s Guide to Life: How to Become a Man in 224 Pages or Less is a teenage guy’s handbook to becoming a man with a healthy mind, body, and soul.

Society has created a harsh image what a man should be. The author, Jason Boyett, calls it a stereotype. Our society demands that men never be sensitive, never to cry, and to always be rough and tough. The realization is that that is not what God created. God created us in his image, if you want to know how to be a real man then follow the example set in the Word of God.

This book is really aimed for young men (aka teenagers) and I would encourage any and all young men to get a copy of this book. This book is a guidebook that asks and answers the questions that others a reluctant to discuss. This book addresses the myths of manhood with a straightforward approach that teenage guys will appreciate and absorb. Author Jason Boyett understands what many fail to realize—that somewhere between the awkwardness and braggadocio, the goofiness and the developing body, there is a real person struggling to make his mark on the world.

I personally enjoyed this book because I grew up as a momma’s boy. I am not the rough and tough guy that the world expects a man to be. I am that sensitive guy. I am that guy that would hide when I needed to cry because I didn’t want anyone to see me cry. I wish I had a book like this 15 years ago.

If you have a teenage son or know of one who really needs a good book about becoming a real man I encourage you to pick up this book. It’s available on Amazon.com by clicking here. (Starting at just $8.01 NEW)

Disclosure of Material Connection: Thomas Nelson Publishing provided a copy of this Bible for my review. They have asked me to post a review about the book with my honest opinion whether positive or negative. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255.

– Many of you may have heard me talk about some tax junk. Well, to make a long story short. The Dept of Rev thought that I owed them a bunch of money, I ended up proving them wrong (thanks to my awesome tax accountant) and they ended up owing me a lot of money ((which is always a good thing)).

– I have applied for college. I haven’t made the decision on which college I am going to attend yet as I applied at two but my plans are to get a Bachelor of Arts in Religious Studies with a minor in Christian Counseling. I am really excited about this. It’s something I have talked about for several years but haven’t taken the leap until now.

– I am currently looking into buy a new car. Really exciting cause the car I have now … well let’s just say … it’s a great car but …. it’s not exactly a car I would trust on a trip or anything like that. I am very blessed though to have a vehicle.

– I am currently reading a couple books. I got a brand new one in the mail today from Thomas Nelson Publishing called ” A Guy’s Guide To Life” … looks like a great book so be watching for that book review soon.

– Last week (or maybe two weeks ago) I got a new laptop. Love it. It’s got a huge screen … and it’s got Windows 7 which rocks.

– KidZone has been awesome. Always growing. Always going to the next level. Never a step back!! There is just something about watching a child give their life to Christ that gets me every time. Especially to hear their prayers and see them in worship. I love it!! It’s the reason I do what I do.

– Been working on a website for a friend of mine that should be launching soon. Not really into website design anymore but thought I would take a stab at it.

– Excited to be going to the rodeo again this year. To be flat out transparent with you all … I love the rodeo. Just something about the “Country” feel of it all. Sometimes I wish that my parents continued in the farm business. I miss the days of dodging bats and throwing pigeon eggs at the cattle (Never would sweet innocent Nate do this) oh and don’t forget the sound of the mule making sure the world knows he exists. LOL

– My friend Betty Wilber was recently in the hospital. Betty was my first “real” Sunday school teacher back in 4th grade. As I grew up she was the one that always pushed me to reach for my dreams. Kept me involved in the children’s ministry and always was one of the mentors that I went to conferences and such with. I got a call last Wednesday that she was in the hospital and they didn’t think she was going to live through the night. Her kidneys were shutting down and her blood pressure and body temp was really low. She had gotten a bad infection in her ear and it’s just took her down for the count but let me tell you this … we serve and awesome God. I am thankful to say today she is back home and on the road to a full recovery. God is an awesome God. ((Post coming within the next couple days about how this situation has changed my life))

I hope this gives you a small glimpse into everything going on in my life right now and hopefully you are as excited as I am about the future. God has great things in store for all of us. I am pumped!!

You broke the night like the sun
And healed my heart with Your great love
Any trouble I couldn’t bear
You lifted me upon Your shoulders

Love that’s stronger
Love that covers sin
And takes the weight of the world

I love You
All of my hope is in You
Jesus Christ take my life
Take all of me

You stand on mountain tops with me
With You i walk through the valleys
You gave Your only Son for me
Your grace is all I rely on

I love You so, and I give up my heart to say
I need You so, my everything

Wow! I love it. Don’t really care for the song but man … to have a dance team that could dance like that would be awesome.

The Voice Bible is unique in the fact that it is written as a screen play which makes it easy to understand who is speaking when. (Something that can sometimes be difficult in the KJV Bible). This is also an awesome resource if you are a children/youth minister and want to reenact a story from the Word.

Now, would I suggest anyone to make “The Voice” their main scripture source? No. I personally am a KJV nut. Sorry, it’s just the way I am however I do have a LARGE selection of different translations of the Word of God including the Message (2nd fav) and the Amplified (3rd fav). Really, The Voice will be resource for me when preparing lessons and studying scripture.

One really awesome thing about The Voice translation is the people who translated it. The translaters included traditional academic scholars, pastors, writers, musicians, poets, and other artists. The collaborator list includes heavyweights such as Brian McLaren, Sean Palmer, Todd Littleton and Leonard Sweet.

So, the translation is well written but how true is the translation to the original scripture? This is the most important part of this review.

Check this out
1 Timothy 4:12 (King James Version)
Let no man despise thy youth; but be thou an example of the believers, in word, in conversation, in charity, in spirit, in faith, in purity.

1 Timothy 4:12 (The Voice Version)
Don’t let anyone belittle you because you are young. Instead, show the faithful, young and old, an example of how to live: set the standard for how to talk, act, love, and be faithful and pure.

Acts 2:38-39 (King James Version)
Then Peter said unto them, Repent, and be baptized every one of you in the name of Jesus Christ for the remission of sins, and ye shall receive the gift of the Holy Ghost. For the promise is unto you, and to your children, and to all that are afar off, even as many as the LORD our God shall call.

Acts 2:38-39 (The Voice Version)
Reconsider your lives; change your direction. Participate in the ceremonial washing in the name of Jesus, the Liberating King. Then your sins will be forgiven, and the gift of the Holy Spirit will be yours. For this promise of the Spirit is for you, for your children, for all people – even those considered outsiders and outcasts – the Lord our God invites everyone to come to Him.

As you can see in the examples above it’s literally just a different way of saying the same thing. I cross-referenced a good portion of the “The Voice” and found nothing that was out of context. I personally believe that the translation team did an awesome job of translating the hard Greek and Hebrew into modern day English.

If you would like, you can download the Book of John by clicking here so that you can review it for yourself.

Once again, this is a great translation and I think it has the potential to not only be a great resource for those in the children/youth ministry but could also be the translation needed for many people who really want to read the Word but get confused or bored reading the KJV.

This translation should be available at your local christian bookstore or can be purchased on Amazon.com by clicking here!

Disclosure of Material Connection: Thomas Nelson Publishing provided a copy of this Bible for my review. They have asked me to post a review about the book with my honest opinion whether positive or negative. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255.