Football Is Coming!

Football season is almost upon us! Pro training camps are opening up all across the country and excitement is in the air! Radio commentators are breaking down the pro divisions and the college conferences to see who is going to reign supreme this year. And, if you are from Texas, high school football is gearing up. You have 2-a-days, scrimmages, and in just a few short weeks, Week 0 arrives and the season begins! Everyone starts at 0-0 and believes that this is the year! Can you beat that kind of hope and optimism!?!

One of the things I miss most about Texas is high school football. Friday nights during the Fall become the central focal point of towns and communities all across the state. You have the football players, the band, the cheerleaders, the drill/dance team, and the parents/friends/community members all converging together to root for the home team. From the smallest six-man communities to the largest 5A schools in the DFW and Houston areas, football is something that brings the community together!

Football's approach always reminds me of the new beginnings that Fall brings. We often think of Fall as when the leaves fall off the trees and nature prepares for Winter, and Spring as the time of new birth and new beginnings. But Fall, signaled by the start of football practice, ushers in the new school year. And what could be a better time for a new beginning!?! As the summer winds down to it's last few weeks, I look forward to the excitement of a new beginning that the Fall always brings!

So to all my football teams I say GO! FIGHT! WIN!

GO (Georgetown High School) Eagles!
GO (Texas A&M) Aggies!
GO (Dallas) Cowboys!

BIG NEWS!

Randa is pregnant and is expecting our third daughter in late October! God continues to bless our family! Somehow, I will have to learn how to live with four females!

Back Again!

I'm finally back! It has been months since I've written anything, but lots has happened since my trip to Mississippi in February. Summer is here and for people like me (youth pastors) that means short term mission trips. Many groups are heading down to the gulf coast to participate in Katrina recovery projects. It is amazing that it has been almost a year since Katrina and yet it seems that only a small dent has been put into all the recovery work that needs to happen. I'm still speechless over all the devastation, but encouraged by the spirit of people--people hurting from Katrina and people helping to put things right.

As for me this summer, our group participated in Impact Virginia! Impact is a youth missions opportunity that allows students and adults to participate in the rehabilitation of homes. We participated in the Spotsylvania area. Like past years, this was a great experience for our group. Lives were touched and God's power and presence were felt. Read what the local newspaper had to say about Impact.