merry christmas!

The Word made Flesh, God with us, Emmanuel in the form of a helpless baby who came to save the lost and reconcile them to Himself. It is unbelievable, unfathomable and awesome. He was born under the shadow of King Herod's rule and the announcement of His birth was made first to peasant shepherds. This is the story of a different kind of King. One who came to turn the world upside down and in the process redeem and reconcile all of His creation to Himself. I pray that you enjoy the truth, joy and peace of Jesus this year.

internet & email fast...

Starting Monday, I am proclaiming an internet and email fast. This means no access to email or the internet for a week, until the following Monday. The reason I am doing this is because I was talking with a friend tonight about how much I complain about being so busy yet I waste hours most evenings surfing the internet or obsessively checking my email. Since I have the next week off, I am now ensuring that I spend it playing with my daughter, hanging out with my wife and catching up on some reading.

advent challenge...

Well, my wife started us on a family challenge to not eat out for a week, so I guess that got me in the challenge mood. Either that or I'm just bored; maybe a little bit of both. Honestly, this is an idea that I got from a bunch of guys at Mars Hill. I have committed to NOT shave for Advent (Dec. 1 - Dec. 25). This may sound kind of goofy; it probably is, but I am always looking for an excuse not to shave. So here's the challenge for me and anyone interested in joining me. I figure I save 10 minutes each day by not shaving, so for each minute saved I will set aside 10 cents for a worthy cause. This works out to $1.00 a day. So by Christmas, I will have set aside $25.00. This isn't that much, but my thought is that if more people are interested in participating or sponsoring me, we can raise more. To me, it's not so much the amount of money but it's an opportunity to intentionally prepare for Christmas and celebrate the greatest gift ever, the gift of a Savior, by giving a little back. So when I see my scruffy face each morning, hopefully it will remind me of the blessings God has given me and His desire for me to use those blessings to bless others.

So what's the cause?

Some acquaintances of mine have teamed up with the Mission Society and they are working to provide aid to orphans in Egypt and Lebanon by building new orphanages. Because of the sensitive nature of this work, I encourage you to contact me directly for more details.

Here's a pic of me a few days in...

Here's the update. Updated image: 12/18