Lots To Be Thankful For

Mmmm...that flavorful smell...you know what I'm talking about!

Some things I'm thankful for:

- God's amazing grace

- My beautiful wife

- My awesome kids

- My loving family

- My wonderful friends

- My great church family

- And of course, a Fantastic Meal to enjoy with them tomorrow! : )

Tonight, my family and I are joining another family in the privilege of serving at a huge meal with our friends at the Greenville Rescue Mission. I am always blessed when I get to hang out there. These guys will touch your life in a way that no one else can.

God is amazingly good. He gives us far more than we possibly deserve (we don't want what we really deserve!) in blessing us with all the above mentioned items- the important things in life!

Happy Thanksgiving!

Remembering

Here we are at another November 11 marking the brave who went through unspeakable hell to be the instruments of war to secure the Freedom that we enjoy today.





We can never understand the brutality that was experienced by mere boys who shouldered responsiblities no boy should ever have to. Yet, this is the way of this old world...



Throughout history, man has bloodied the continents with the lifeblood of the young. If you ever think that evil does not exist in this world, take a moment and read up on a little world history. It's not pretty.



Scripture reminds us that war is nothing new:



Revelation 12:7
And there was war in heaven: Michael and his angels going forth to war with the dragon; and the dragon warred and his angels;



Numbers 31:6
And Moses sent them, a thousand of every tribe, to the war, them and Phinehas the son of Eleazar the priest, to the war, with the vessels of the sanctuary and the trumpets for the alarm in his hand.


Daniel 11:10
And his sons shall war, and shall assemble a multitude of great forces, which shall come on, and overflow, and pass through; and they shall return and war, even to his fortress.



Matthew 24:6
And ye shall hear of wars and rumors of wars; see that ye be not troubled: for these things must needs come to pass; but the end is not yet.


James 4:1
Whence come wars and whence come fightings among you? come they not hence, even of your pleasures that war in your members?



This old world will continue to war because of the sin curse, Wars without and Wars within.



But...



That all CHANGES!



Because of Jesus...

The Power of the Shared Meal

Every now and then, I get the urge to do some baking and cooking. With fall weather upon us, it certainly felt like a homemade potato soup and yeast rolls kind of day!

I love the endless examples of meals shared in the Bible. Most of us love to eat, and there is something special about sharing a meal with family, friends, and even strangers. Meals bring us together and I believe God gives us so many instances of meal sharing to demonstrate the kind of intimacy and fellowship he desires to have with us.

God is even now preparing a feast for us - called the Marriage Supper of the Lamb. And if it's anything at all like the feasts found in the Old Testament, it will last a LONG TIME!

Jesus ate with those who were strangers to normal society and through it he connected with them. He was criticized for it, but he would not be deterred from it.

Embrace the shared meal. It can help make your family stronger and closer, and bind ties with friends, old and new.

Bon Appetit!