Im all Giddy

Well it's Christmas Eve and only a couple more hours until we make the drive to T-Ville. I am so excited, i can only describe it as "Giddy". Kind of like when you were a little boy standing in line to meet your favorite athlete or band. That weird tingle in my belly and my heart starting to beat faster and faster, you know that feeling. I am excited to see my boys play with their new toys, I am really excited to see my family and spend the next 10 days with them. I am praying for surf! I am also very excited to celebrate my Jesus on his birthday. Well as you can see I am giddy an a little excited about going down to Titusville to be with our family. I hope and pray that anyone reading this has a very blessed and Merry Christmas. We will be down in FL. until Jan. 4th so Happy New Year too. 

MERRY CHRISTMAS! From me... Barry.

MERRY CHRISTMAS! From me... Barry.

Isaac's first camping trip

last night was a really fun night. I took Isaac camping for his very first time. He did really well, he even helped set up the tent and ate a hot dog cooked over the fire. He did really good sleeping all over the tent, and I mean all over. He is a wiggle worm. he made it until about 4:30am before he said he wanted to go home. Well that is it for now, cant wait until the next Manfest trip because this one was great.

a little less

Today has been one of those days. Not to far out of the norm for a Thursday, tired from the crazy night before, ready for my day off Friday and rushing around trying to get some work done before the weekend. But there was one thing different today. Today as a church staff we participated in a day of fasting and praying. Though I am really hungry right now and my stomach sounds like a pack of wild lions I am encouraged. I am encouraged of the amount of people participating in a day of fasting and prayer for our church. I am also encouraged that God hears are prayers and cares about our requests. When i first think of fasting my stomach immediately says "no way". But I have seen and experienced God's goodness when we take steps of faith and discipline to grow in Him. Today has been one of those days. One of those days when I got to depend on God more than the norm and as a church right now that is where we are too. With our weekly offering not matching what we anticipated our budget to be we are depending on God more than normal. I kind of have mixed emotions on it. One part of me thinks back of when we had $$$ in the bank and we never worried about our pay and we all got Christmas bonuses and all was good. But the other side of me longs for a deep connection with God, a connection where I find myself on my face before the Lord crying and pleading for Him to show up in a God size way (a way that only God can do). So I share this because i am encouraged by what God is doing in me and my church and I want to invite you to pray and fast for what ever it is that you have been asking God to do. Here is a cool verse that I heard this week.  

Isaiah 62:6-7 says

I have posted watchmen on your walls, O Jerusalem; they will never be silent day or night. You who call on the Lord, give yourselves no rest, and give him no rest till he establishes Jerusalem and makes her the praise of the earth. 

What a cool verse! I hope it speaks to you and encourages you to PRAY and continue to pray until God does something. It says "give him no rest" and as a church that is what we want to do. Pray and ask God to provide and we are going to give him no rest until he does.

Santa Claus, Easter Bunny, Tooth Fairy, The Stork, Jesus, What Next?

Growing up I am sure i enjoyed Santa Claus and all the other fictional characters that we all participate in. You know Christmas Eve night my brothers and I would all crawl into one bed and wait for "Santa Claus" to deliver what ever it was he was going to do. I also loved the Sunday afternoon Easter egg hunt and the occasional tooth under my pillow for my dads last dollar. But I am at the place as a parent where I need to know what to tell my boys. I love the idea of Santa Claus and the fun he brings to the Christmas season. Who doesn't like a fat guy who eats your cookies and brings you toys? My dilemma is how do I tell Isaac and Eli about all of these characters and Jesus at the same time, and then all of the sudden when he is old enough to know it is his mom and dad putting the presents out and the money under the pillow and the stork never has held a baby in its whole life. Yet Jesus is the only one who is real and worth knowing. As a dad i feel it is my responsibility to teach my sons about Jesus and the gift he is to us everyday, the salvation he brings to all. I also want my sons to be able and enjoy a good story and make believe session here and there, but this Christmas I am going to say Santa is apart of the decorations of Christmas and Jesus is the reason for the season.

Wow my 1st blog, never thought i would say that

I have to admit I have been sneaking around a little bit. When no one was around and I knew no one would know, I would sneak a peak at a blog here or there. Now that confession is off my chest I can start this new journey as a blogger. 

I want this blog to be a way of Worship. I mean that by I want everything to come from it to glorify my Jesus and boldly shine the light of the Gospel. I also want people (well if anybody will) to read it, be encouraged and challenged by it. Sure this blog will highlight all the crazy things going on inside my head and all new and funny things my boys are up to and of course you will get the inside scoop on my beautiful wife. 

Well thats all for my 1st entry so tune in soon for the next update.