A Few Thoughts About Coach Farnham (0)

The Blue Ridge area was shaken this week by the passing of Coach David Farnham. Coach Farnham was more than a football coach. He was a outstanding husband and father, and a role model for everyone who ever crossed his path. Most importantly, he was a Christian. Not just a church attender, but a sold-out follower of Christ. His lifestyle was an example of the Christ-life.

I want to take this opportunity to remind the family how much we love them. My prayer for you is to remember God's promise to us in Isaiah 41:10, "So do not fear, for I am with you; do not be dismayed, for I am your God. I will strengthen you and help you; I will uphold you with my righteous right hand."

To others who will read this blog: Is your life making as much of an impact as Coach Farnham's did? God has challenged me as I have watched features on TV, read newspaper articles, and talked with others to make an impact on people's lives, and like Coach Farnham, "finish strong!"

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WRAPPED (0)

Its amazing how people get into Christmas. I'll give you a great example. In the town of Pelzer, there is a section of the "mill village" that goes all-out with Christmas decorations. I'm talking about thousands of lights on houses, fences, cars, and people (not exaggerating). The crazy thing is that its not just a couple of houses that do this. There are entire streets that illuminate the Saluda River during the month of December. That's what I call being wrapped-up in Christmas.

Beginning next Wednesday (12/5), we will begin our Christmas series WRAPPED. We will be studying through the Christmas story (the one about Jesus, not Ralphie), and delving into the participant's roles. From these story lines, we will learn how to get wrapped-up in Jesus, and not a holiday. Here are the weekly topics:
12/5: Obedience - Joseph
12/12: Availability - Inn Keeper
12/19: Excitement - Shepherds
12/26: Commitment - Wise Men

Along with our study, we will be giving away gifts each week! Trust me, you don't want to miss one week of WRAPPED. Labels:

A Look Back at the Thanksgiving Weekend (0)

I have a ton of stuff to be thankful for, so get comfortable.

A Loving Savior - To think that the Creator of the universe would desire a relationship with me so much that He would die for me continually blows my mind.

An Incredible Wife - What would life be like without Michelle? I don't know, and I don't want to know. I love you!

A Loving Family - Spending Thanksgiving with my family has been one of the highlights of my year. We genuinely enjoy being around each other, although the good-natured ribbing could indicate otherwise.

An Amazing Job - I'll call it a job, but its really a calling. I'm still blown away that God lets me share the Gospel with students on a day to day basis. Being a youth minister rocks!

A Healthy Life - In the last few months this has become more precious to me. God opened my eyes to my physical condition, and I've begun to take it more seriously. 20 lbs lighter in 3+ months...God is good!

A Winning Football Team - I just threw this one in to aggravate any Gamecocks who read the blog. 366 days of bragging rights (its a leap year)!

An Early Start - This one relates to "Black Friday." Had I not left the house at 4:40 AM instead of 5:00 AM, I wouldn't have gotten the great deal on the TV for the Youth Game Room.

Inflatable Decorations, Huge Light Bulbs, and Plastic Santas - I love living in the south!


God has blessed all of us in so many ways! Let's make sure we thank Him everyday. Labels:

He Sees You When You're Sleeping (0)

I must admit that I am stoked about Thanksgiving and Christmas! With this in mind, I want to talk about Santa Claus. I would talk about pilgrims, but they don't really work as an illustration. We all know that Santa "...sees you when you're sleeping, and he knows when you're awake." We also know that God does the same. As a matter of fact, He was the originator of this concept, so Santa is a thief, but I digress (nice word). We tend to forget that other people also see us whether we realize it or not. They see us at our best and worst, yet we never give our actions a second thought. They read about our lives on Facebook and Myspace, but we don't think about our cyber-lives being an open book.

In recent months, I've learned more about some individuals by reading a "wall post" than any other means. Hey Christians, lost souls can read! So can impressionable new believers. And believe it or not, your online testimony makes a difference in their lives! Matthew 5:16 has become my life verse: "Let your light so shine before men, that they may see your good works and praise your Father in heaven." I must realize that every aspect of my life should reflect my Father. Whether its a face to face conversation, or a blog post, my actions as a Christian should direct everyone to Christ. Do I fail? Absolutely. We all do, but the beauty of grace is the ability to start fresh everyday!

With this in mind, are we more worried about the list that Santa is keeping, or are we more concerned with the eyes that are looking for a glimpse of the Savior? Labels:

NYWC (0)

Sorry for not posting the last few days. I was in the ATL for the National Youth Workers Convention, and my hotel (discount price of $119/night) did not have free WiFi! Are you kidding me? Pay for WiFi. What makes it worse, is the fact that the "free data lines" in the rooms were not opperational; therefore, no blog for four days. I eventually got over this horrible injustice, and proceeded to have an incredible time with Michelle and the Conwells (Christopher and Stacy).

I really have a ton of stuff that I want to talk about, but I don't have time to go into most of it right now. I will say this: God reaffirmed and confirmed so much in my life over the course of the weekend. We serve an awesome Savior!

That's it for now. I have to go to a Thanksgiving event for Greer Community Ministries. Hopefully, I'll post again later today. Labels:

An Elected Official (1)

Last night we had our annual property owener's association meeting for our subdivision. The stupid thing dragged-on for two and a half hours! Come on! How much time do we need to spend discussing lake beautification, property management, etc.? Michelle and I had not eaten, and we were starving. By the time nine o'clock rolled around, we had enough people to form a coup, and overthrow "the man," but we stuck it out until the end. I guess it was a good thing because your's truly was elected to serve on the Board of Directors for the p.o.a. Michelle thought it was hillarious. So did Chet (another youth minister who lives around the corner) until I threatened to nominate him too. That shut him up pretty quickly (jk Chet). My first official meeting will be the second Tuesday in December. At this time, the board will elect officers. I'm going to laugh if you guys have to start calling me "Mr. President." Labels:

The Top Twelve Things You Should Never Say to a Baptist (0)

This is a cut-and-paste from another blog that I read. I thought it was great, so I decided to share it too.

#12 - Lottie who?
#11 - What is a covered dish and why must everyone who gets sick in our church have to have some sort of casserole?
#10 - I love it when my wife has her own opinion!
#9 - For God so loved the world that He did not send a COMMITTEE!
#8 - “Were either going to Disney or Vegas for vacation this year…”
#7 - SHE did an incredible job with the message today.
#6 - Why do you keep calling me “brother?”
#5 - “Got a light?” Unless, of course, you are a deacon…then this is a perfectly valid question.
#4 - Can we please sing the third verse!!!
#3 - Hold my beer.
#2 - May I have this dance?
#1 - Ante up!

Please! This list was just for fun, the reason I can say this about Baptist is because I am affiliated with them and love them–trust me, my heart is built on nothing less than Lottie Moon and Broadman Press! (If you didn’t get that then you are probably Presbyterian and were predestined before the foundations of the world not to understand it!) Come on people–LAUGH! Labels:

Weekend Reflections (0)

The weekend that was:

-Thanks for the prayers on Friday. I began feeling a lot better around 4pm. Now, I'm battling a cold. I'm beginning to feel like I'm writing a medical journal here.

-Blue Ridge lost a heartbreaker Friday night. Those guys fought their tails off, only to have Greenville kick a field goal with 5.3 seconds left in the game. Congratulations to the coaches and players on a tremendous season.

-It was great to see Coach Farnham at the game. The crowd, BR and G'ville, went nuts when he was presented his Shrine Bowl jacket. I know that the entire night meant a lot the entire family. Please continue to remember them in your prayers.

-Saturday was great. Another win for Clemson, and we're in the ACC Championship Game! Of course, the day only got better with Florida hanging 51 on the Gamecocks. If Tim Tebow ran crazy on them, I can't wait to watch JD and CJ on the 24th.

-Mark continued his series on the Gospel in Genesis, and he preached another killer sermon! He focused on Noah's obedience. I didn't realize until yesterday that Noah never opened his mouth the entire time that God was telling him to build the ark. He kept his mouth shut, and went to work. That reminds me of Joseph...oops, I almost gave away an entire night of our Christmas series, "WRAPPED."

-Our college Bible Study, SHIFT, met on Sunday night. We grilled hamburgers (most of which I burned), and had a great time of fellowship. We followed that up with a study of John 10, and Jesus portrayal as shepherd. Good stuff!

I guess that's it for now. I need to find some cough drops. Labels:

If That's a Day Off, Then I'll Go Back to Work (0)

I'm posting now for one reason, and one reason only: to ask for prayer. I had my third migraine headache in a year and a half yesterday. If you've never had one of these things, I don't wish it on you. The pain is horrible, my vision gets screwed-up, and it debilitates you for pretty much the entire day. I feel better today, but my head is litterally sore. I'm not talking about a headache, I'm talking about sore to the touch. Not fun! Anyway, I wouldn't be overly concerned except these migraines were my first in over 5 years, and now I've had three in 18 months. Please pray that I feel better because I really want to go to the Blue Ridge-Greenville game tonight, and I have a ton of stuff that needs to be accomplished today. THANKS! Labels:

An Efficient Home Security System (0)

When we bought our house, a woman called us about purchasing a home security system. She told me that the company had such a good reputation that the sign in the yard would be a deterent. My response: "Can we just have the sign? It sounds like that's all we really need."

In retrospect, we didn't even need the sign because we have a great security system: Gizmo. Gizmo is a six year old Jack Russell Terrier. This dog had ADHD worst than I do. His energy level is ridiculous. As far as the security system goes, he has developed a specific bark when he sees something that he perceives as "questionable."

Around midnight, Michelle and I heard this bark. We knew that Gizmo had seen something, but didn't think much of it. After all, he has barked like this when he has seen possums, skunks, other dogs, etc. We were both up watching tv, so I decided to look out back. I didn't see anything, but Michelle did. She was still on the couch, and saw someone walk through our front yard. I proceeded to go outside in shorts and a t-shirt while carrying a phillip's head screwdriver for protection (seriously, it was the first thing I saw). I never saw the guy, but decided to drive around the neighborhood where I did see someone walking around. We believe that the guy was trying to get into the toolbox on the back of neighbor's truck. When Gizmo heard the noise, he started barking and the guy ran-off. We're not too concerned about it, but it was a little nerve racking.

The whole incident got me thinking about the Holy Spirit. Just like Gizmo barks differently when he perceives danger, the Holy Spirit specifically tells us when we're deep in sin, or even in the process of being tempted. The key for Christians is to recognize this conviction, and check it out. Now that's a security system. Labels:

As Promised (0)

Here's the intro video for our next series: WRAPPED. Its pretty vague, but it has some great music. Hope you enjoy!


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An Early Chirstmas Gift (0)

I cannot even begin to tell you how excited I am about Christmas! I know that we're more than a month and another major holiday away, but I'm ready for December 25th. Don't get me wrong, I'm stoked about Thanksgiving too because Michael, my brother, is bringing his girlfriend, Erica, to SC for the week. Why does this excite me? The answer is simple: Granny. I'll blog about this later since I'm getting off of the subject.

You're probably wondering, "Why are you so excited about Christmas?" Well, it all has to do with our upcoming Christmas series with our students. I've been doing a lot of studying in Matthew 1-2 and Luke 2, and God is showing me some incredible stuff. Since He's given me an early Christmas present, I thought I'd share a little with you.

The biggest revelation that I've received deals with the shepherds. These guys are out in a field, minding their own business, watching their sheep when God decides to completely rock their world. When the angel appeared that were scared out of their minds, but what's really crazy is what came next. The heavenly host disappears, and the shepherds are like, "Dang, we gotta check this out!" Wow! That's what I call an encounter with God! He says do something, and these guys jump at the opportunity. Am I always that available? Am I always that excited about God speaking to me? Deal with those two questions for a while, and you'll receive the same early Christmas gift that I did. Labels:

Weekend Reflections (0)

The weekend that was (in my little world anyway):

-Blue Ridge High School has a pretty good weekend: Football won it's opening round playoff game, Jordan Plumblee and Sarah Turman (2 of my students) were named All-State in Cross Country, and the girls CC team finished 8th. Way to go guys!

-CSS has horrible coverage of football games, but at least I was able to watch Clemson collect another "W." Thanks to the Conwell's (the younger ones) for letting me spend the afternoon on my old chair.

-Papa John's has great pizza.

-Mark had an incredible message Sunday morning. He has been doing a series that deals with the Gospel in the book of Genesis: awesome stuff. Check-out his message by clicking on the MLBC link on the left side of the page, and go to sermon videos.

-Did some work on our next series for WASIMACHO. Its Christmas-themed, and will begin on December 5th. I hope to work on an introductory video this week. I'll post it when we're finished. I'm really excited about this series.

- Remember this date and time: November 4, 7:28PM. I saw my first Christmas tree of the season! BTW...a house down the same street still had Halloween decorations in its yard. I love South Carolina!

- I witnessed a first in Michelle's life: using a paperbox. What a sheltered life my beautiful bride has lived. She's going to kill me for posting this. Labels:

Wednesday Recap (0)

Sorry for the delay in posting. I took full advantage of having a day off yesterday, and stayed away from the computer. Here's my take on week 2 of RESET.

- We lost a good number of folks from week 1 to week 2, but still had a great crowd. Only 2 more weeks until we give away the Wii!

- I've come to the conclusion that spiritual apathy is genetic. Well, maybe I'm wrong, but parents who don't care about growing their relationship with Christ will often have children that feel the same way. Hey parents, help us out a little here. Set an example for your students. You'll be surprised at the difference in their lives.

- Week 2's theme was "Be Strong." We talked about why a believer should be scripturally baptized, and why he should be bold in sharing the Gospel with others. We had one student realize that she needed to follow through in Believer's Baptism, and another accept Jesus as her Lord an Savior! This young lady has been here the last two weeks because she wants to win the Wii, but has gained something much more important. Anyone still feel like we're manipulating students, or is one soul worth $250?

- The band did a great job. They were missing two regular members, but Chris did an incredible job of pulling everything together. Thanks guys for setting the tone in worship.

- I almost forgot...I was the only person who wore a Halloween costume on Wednesday. I wrapped a blue sheet around me, and put cotton balls on it. When someone asked what my costume was, I would say "Partly cloudy with a chance of showers" and spray them with water. It was great!


Gotta get some work done. Thanks for stopping by. Labels: