Check out Steve's New Look

Look what Wess Foreman can do! My artist buddy did this cool picture of me since I am now a contributor on his blog Popularblur. You should also see his online art Gallery, he does some really cool stuff. Jill and I used to be one of his top art collectors, but I think we have been surpassed.
Also if you are into sci-fi reading. Check out his Robot Graveyard online episodic story. It was a lot of fun being apart of the brainstorming for some of these.

Thanks Wess for making me look so cool. Actually I keep laughing everytime I look at this picture. Not sure why :)

FPU #2

Well, I am about start coordinating my second Financial Peace University class. If you haven't heard of Dave Ramsey check it out. Last year was such an incredible experience. Here are some of last years stats. Of the 33 families that took the course the average amount of debt paid off per family was $4969.00 during the 13 weeks. The class as a whole saved about $31,000 dollars total. We even collected all those credit card and loan offers we all got in the mail and added up how much credit was marketed to our class during the 13 weeks. It was 3.3 million dollars. So we avoided 3.3 million dollars worth of debt.
I am hoping that we have a great turn out for this years classes. I have put up fliers all over the church, and passed them out around town. Actually did an interview with my friend Richard Raue who went through the class last year. Be sure and watch his story.
Richard has paid off $22,000 of debt since starting the class last January. He only has about $3,000 to go and he will be debt free!
It is exciting to be apart of so many people lives and making a difference. Pray for us. It is my dream that the community of Ruston, Louisiana would be free from debt and becoming good wise managers of all that God has provided. So they will be able to live life not in bondage to money, but free to use it to God's glory. I get excited to think of what would be possible if every Christian family in Ruston were debt free and living on a budget. We could use our freed up resources and energy to impact Ruston in amazing ways!

Back in the saddle again

Well, after going with MawMaw and PawPaw up Farmerville Hwy heading to D'Arbonne to picnic and fish. It got me reminiscent of all my bike training I did going up and down Farmerville hwy. So I got on my bike today to take a ride by myself. Well, here is the evidence.




I was feeling all confident while riding. Feeling like I was really cranking it up those hills, and really flying on those downhills. I knew it was a short ride, but I was going for speed. Well, the numbers brought me down to earth. I feel out of shape. My legs are all wobbly feeling and I only averaged 15mph. BUT it was great to get on the bike and really ride. I love riding with my family it is fun and relaxing (even with towing Ethan in the Trailer), but it is not the same workout. I am hoping to start keeping this up again.

Murphy Picnic

Well, the weather wasn't perfect, we caught no fish.... BUT we had a great time!!! Cooking out at D'Arbonne state Park. Thanks MawMaw and PawPaw for coming up!!! It was a great day!

Click here to go to the Web Photo Album

Book #1 For The Life of the World

Well one of my goals was to read 4 "spiritually challenging" books this next year. One down and 3 to go.
Here is my Book Report.(of sorts)

Here is a thought from the 1st chapter: "The fall is not that he preferred world to God, distorted the balance between the spiritual and material, but that he made the world material, whereas he was to have transformed it into "life in God," filled with meaning and spirit."

Ch2 "For, behold, I bring you good tidings of great joy" - thus begins the Gospel, and its end is: "And they worshiped him and returned to Jerusalem with great joy." (Lk. 2:10, 24:52). And we must recover the meaning of this great joy.
Then he goes into experiencing that great joy by describing the beautiful liturgy of the Eucharist. This was really cool.

All things must be transformed to glorify Christ. And the first gift he says we have been given is Time. So along with all things material we also must take time and give it real meaning - redeem it.

Flipping through these pages again... he talks alot about JOY.

Then he goes on to talk about Baptism and the use of water(not talking about how much is needed to make baptism work) then marriage,

My 2nd favorite chapter was on Death. How we have done everything to remove ourselves from the reality of death. We make Funeral homes look so lovely and do everything we can to remove ourselves from the images of death. instead of looking in the face and acknowledging Christ's defeating death. And even Christianity has "adjusted" its thinking in how it deals with death. If Christ came that we might have abundant joy, why do we at a funeral so ofter hear the thoughts of death being a release from a life that is all valleys, pain and suffering. "To comfort people and reconcile them with death by making this world a meaningless scene of an individual preparation for death is".... a tragedy
FOR CHRIST DIED FOR THE LIFE OF THE WORLD, AND NOT FOR AN"ETERNAL REST" FROM IT.

Then he talks about missions... "Christian mission is not to preach Christ, but to be Christians in life.

Then to close- "... to live in the world seeing everything in it as a revelation of God, a sign of His presence, the joy of His coming, the call to communion with Him, the hope for fulfillment in Him. Since the day of Pentecost there is a seal, a ray, a sign of the Holy Spirit on everything for those who believe in Christ and know that He is the life of the world - and that in Him the world in its totality has become again a liturgy, a communion, an ascension."

"A Christian is the one who, wherever he looks, finds Christ and rejoices in Him, And this joy transforms all his human plans and programs, decisions and actions, making all his mission the sacrament of the world's return to Him who is the LIFE OF THE WORLD."

This was a great book(and this was a late night quickie review I hope it made some sense) - and now on to "Knowing God" by J.I. Packer
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