I received an iTunes gift card this week!  I am so excited, but I need some help.  What would you recommend me downloading?  It can be a full album or individual songs.  Let me know…help me!

Today, I spent a couple of hours cleaning up my yard. I cut the grass, raked leaves, cleaned out the flower beds, and cut some limbs off of our only tree, a Bradford Pear, in our yard. I have to be honest and say, that I was getting very frustrated with the whole leaves issue. I am not a fan of raking leaves in the slightest form. It makes it even worse that I only have one tree in my yard, but it is on the side and I had to clean leaves from all over my yard.

While I was in the yard raking the leaves and trying to bill them up at the street, I had a thought in the midst of my frustration. Sadly, I asked myself this question, “Can I give a bill to my neighbors for the time and energy it took me to clean their leaves out of my yard?” Of course, I can’t do that, but it did make me work a little harder.

You see, I became very frustrated with the mess in my yard because it was not “MY” mess. I was having to clean up leaves that did not come from trees in my own yard. I had to take time out of my day and spend it raking leaves out of my yard. I really wanted to do something else with my time instead of raking leaves. After wanting to charge my neighbors for their leafs in my yard and being very frustrated, I had this thought: “I wonder what mess (sin) in my life is affecting others?”

That question made me think about the people closest to me and how they are affected most, which is something that they do not deserve.  So I challenge you, ask yourself that question and understand that we affect others, even when we do not think we are. What mess in my life is affecting others?

I came across this interesting article, well the first part of the article, the other day:

Miley Cyrus, Hilary Duff Make Forbes’ 20 Richest Under 25 - MTV News

What would a person do if they were on the Forbes list of richest people under 25?

I might:

• Tithe to the church
• Buy a new car
• Buy a new house
• Pad my retirement account heavily
• Help NewSpring or just pay off the the most bang-a-rang buildings to be built in the upstate of S.C.
• Take flying lessons.
• Give it away!

Any thoughts?!? What would you do?

Yesterday, I got home after our Student Ministry Service and went to check the mail. There was a box in there along with some crazy bills, etc. I went into the house started looking at the box and nothing told me who it was from.  The only thing I could tell was that the package was shipped from Michigan.  Regardless, I opened the box to find a brand new copy of the book, “unchristian” by David Kinnaman and Gabe Lyons.  I was stoked!  This is a book I have wanted to read and really dive into…matter of fact, this book was on my birthday and Christmas list!  So sweet…now I get to add something else to my list! Thanks Baker Publishing!

Has anyone else read this book? Has it been a great read? Horrible? Thought provoking? Off Base? Give me your thoughts
…I would love to hear what you have to say! I will post my thoughts as soon as I finish the book!

Such faith and such prayer…

The Stallings family is a family that Deanna and I that were very close to while we served at F.B.C. Florence. Terry and Carrie were very active parents in the ministry and Garrett was one of my boys that I spent a lot of time with! While on driving to Florence for vacation during the Thanksgiving Holidays, I received the news that Terry had been diagnosed with cancer and they were going to do surgery the very next day! I tell you…that the news hit like a ton of bricks. I could not even imagine the thought process for Terry, Carrie, Garrett, and Matthew. I mean, it is not everyday that you find out that a close friend has cancer (on his colon and pelvis) and they know it is serious enough to do surgery the next day.

I can honestly say that I was a little nervous, but I had three hours to think and pray about it on the way to Florence. For the next couple of hours that I was in the car I prayed for Terry, Carrie, Garrett, Matthew, doctors, nurses, and the rest of the family! After praying for sometime I felt the spirit over me saying, “I got this! I am in total control of this situation!” This was not a cocky, arrogant thing, but a very peaceful feeling in my spirit.

I spent the next morning with the family and friends that had gathered for the close to four hours during the surgery. The spirit in the room was heavy and light all at the same time…really hard to explain. We finally received news that he was out of surgery and that he was going to be fine. What relief and peace fell on the room. The doctor talked to the family explained that he had a mass on his pelvis the size of cantaloupe. They removed both masses on the pelvis and colon…he would have to undergo some chemotherapy and radiation, but the outlook was very positive, although a long road.

After a couple of hours, I had the privilege to visit with Terry in the T.S.I.C.U., Trauma Surgical Intensive Care Unit, for a couple of minutes. Unbelievable visit with an awesome man. We talked and talked! I proceeded to tell him that I really felt that God was going to draw his family even closer together and that his sons were going to fall even more in love with Jesus because of His great miracle he had on Terry. This is the response that Terry had, “Alden, if that is what comes out of this ordeal, I would be willing to undergo the this, along with the pain, anytime!”

WOW!!!! I was blown away. Here is a man in extreme pain, but could honestly say in faith that he would go through it anytime, if God would use this for His glory and honor!

Thank you Terry for ministering and challenging me when I was trying to comfort and minister to you. I love you man! Keep giving God the glory and the honor and He will use you in some amazing ways…He has already used you to minister to a big, crazy, goofy youth pastor!