Last December, I went to a Miami Dolphins game with my dad, and I teared up as they sang the National Anthem before the game. Spending the 4th of July in the United States means a lot to me, especially since I spend a lot of my time outside of the country. After almost 5 years of living in Mexico, my thoughts on freedom have changed dramatically.
We are truly blessed to be Americans. Although you may not agree with everything our country does or stands for, one thing is for sure: The United States of America is a country of great opportunity. Regardless of what you think about the reasons for it, the United States is a blessed country.
When I travel with my blue passport, I am reminded of the opportunities I have simply from being born in this country. I can travel freely to pretty much anywhere in the world. I know people who must receive permission from their country to visit another country. I can write (even here) exactly what I think about any issue. I can speak my mind (even against the very freedoms that allow me to do so). I can practice my religion freely, and the government cannot limit what I say about my personal beliefs.
So today, we celebrate freedom. As you see the stars and stripes, remember all of the freedoms that you have. And remember to cherish them. There are many who would love to have the freedoms we have.
Over the years, we’ve taken lots of pictures of our friends the Torberts. This one was taken of them today at their good-bye party.
I can’t believe they are leaving. We’ve lived 2 streets away from them for the last 3 years, and we’re over their house at least twice a week. We’re going to miss them a lot.
They’re moving back to Nashville. We wish them the best and will keep praying for them as they move on to a different type of ministry.
Here’s a video I made of them back in 2004. It always makes me laugh.
I was talking with Janell about productivity, and I told her that I needed a timer to keep track of my work during the day. I was thinking that I needed to use an egg timer to focus myself on one task. Then I got to thinking about how cool it would be to have an egg timer on my computer.
The idea is to set the timer to a certain amount of time and get working on something for that amount of time. When the time is up and the alarm sounds, I can feel free to focus on something else. I think having a timer like this would help me with my time management. (I tend get distracted a lot during the day).
Anyway, so I began working on a countdown timer in flash, and I have finished it. I’ve put up a special page specifically for the timer. It can work in the background while you are on the computer or reading or whatever else you need to do.
Anyway, I hope it helps me get work done, and I hope it can help some other people as well. If you use it, please let me know in the comments. Thanks. Please feel free to leave suggestions to make it better, too.
I will never make money blogging. Although making money would be great, it’s a good thing it’s not the purpose of this blog.
Besides, I just don’t have it in me. Suzie over at abundance highway asks a great question about how many topics should be covered in a blog. It seems that many people who have made lots of money on their blogs say to stick to one topic and write about it constantly.
Those of you who read this know that I deviate often from one consistent topic. I could talk about youth ministry one day. I could talk about missions the next day, and you know I’ll throw something about Mexican culture or global youth ministry into the mix.
These things interest me. They are my life. They are my passion. They are what I feel God has called me to do with my life. It is this mix that makes what we do unique.
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