yesterday, dana, my brother-in-law scott, and i went to holiday in the park at six flags with the CABC youth group. there were probably about 50 people total with adults and kids. we had a blast, and it wasn’t too cold, unless you didn’t wear enough clothes. if you haven’t been to HIP, then i suggest you go. the crowds were low, the park has a very Christmassy feel with lights, trees and campfires, and it’s just plain fun.

some of the memories include:

• griff‚Äôs little tango with the garage door that joe will have to fix
• josh deaton eating his way through the park. ask him if he likes fried twinkies!
• a bunch of adults watching spongebob squarepants
• seeing odd people in 34 degree weather with short sleeves and shorts
• riding the Titan 3 times and getting 85 mph windburn
• catching the cell phone of the kid in front of me on the Titan. luckily it hit me low and fell to the floor.
• riding the Shockwave and trying to decide how long it has been there (1979!)
• watching a group try to imitate 98 Degrees with dance and Christmas music
• topping off the night, getting serenaded by brianna deaton singing (trying) AC/DC‚Äôs Back in Black and her getting schooled by Sir Scott on the actual words. she never got them right. i‚Äôll have to get her the correct lyrics.

i hope you all have a very Merry Christmas and happy holiday season. remember the reason for the season - we would not have Christmas without His birth!

saw this article today via drudge report and found it very interesting. i can understand city folk not wanting to have a silo of corn in their yard to heat their house and save $1500 a year. now the mastin’s might hide one down by the creek behind their house, but i don’t think any of them would find it fun to hike down there to get it!

if you pitch your tent near Sodom…”

it’s funny how the Spirit moves. for me, it took two seemingly dissimilar things and linked them together to make me think deeper.

in BSF we’re studying Genesis. this last week we studied Genesis 13, where abram (soon to be abraham) gave lot the choice of land. i know you know the story, but have you ever thought how that applies to our life. are we more like abraham, or are we more like lot??? are we attracted to the lights, money, lush green grass, and worldly aspects of life (read lot), where we think we can get close, but not too close. or are we attracted to the rougher path, but a path where God promises us riches in heavan beyond our wildest imagination.

today i got an email from relevantmagazine.com that i get weekly. there was an article entitled Christian Love: Giving up the Fantasy. in it, the author talks about similar ideals that abraham exhibited. among many, one quote that caught me:
“First, it‚Äôs important to rediscover the unsexy unselfishness inherent in biblical ideas of love. We have to remind the world (and ourselves) that love involves sacrifice. Somewhere along the way, the “otherness” that love demands gets lost. In a generation where self-gratification reaches new levels through erotic mass media and a dangerously casual dating culture, the idea of abstaining from indulgence sounds almost puritanical. Yet such an attitude is completely contrary to a 1 Corinthians 13 kind of love that is defined, not by feelings or emotions or sensuality, but by matters of will, of choice and of sacrifice.”

i know i’m guilty many, many times of treasuring worldly things. how close are you to pitching your tent near sodom?

i’m sure most of this list comes as no surprise to anybody, but i’ve got to express it.

of course, i’m thankful for my Lord Jesus Christ and all that he has done for me. in fact, all the things i’m thankful for He gave me.

i’m so thankful for my wife and daughter. they are such a joy for me. dana does so many great things for me and shows me so much love. she does such a great job taking care of hannah and teaching her so many things. hannah’s sweetness is directly attibuted to the time dana spends with her. my favorite thing in the world is the way hannah greets me when i get home. i could go on and on.

in no specific order, here are more things:
a great loving family
a church that is alive
some great friends
a job that i love to go to
a good home to live in
my health

it’s thanksgiving week! a time for food and a time for fun. i took the two days that baylor does not give us off and will be spending time around the house with my girls. there will be much playing and also time spent catching up on little projects i have ignored.

on some of the blogs listed to the right, especially brithood, there has been talk of ebenezers. in my family, we usually have cards we turn in each year listing things we’re thankful for each year. mom called them ebenezers, thinking of the passage in samuel. in the next couple of posts i will be listing some of the things for which i’m thankful. have you thought about those things for which you are thankful?