road trip part 3

Well we got back from Chi town Fri at 6:30am. We drove straight through this time no nap. We left at 1:00pm Thurs and stopped for dinner at Lambert's Cafe in Sikeston, Missouri. Neat experience "Home of the Throwed Rolls." As soon as we walked in the door they "throwed" rolls at us. We had good food, but way too much!!!!! I said I would never eat that much again - we will see how that goes. As soon as we got home we crashed!!! And now we are preparing for one more trip. Yes, as you have learned from our blogs we are CRAZY!!!!! This is a short jaunt north to "the land of the red man". Oh I got a great joke about Oklahoma - Why is Oklahoma so windy?? Because Kanasas blows and Texas sucks!! That joke will always be funny to me!

We will be going to see my family in the OKC area. We are really looking forward to hangin' with our nephews and giving them their Christmas gifts (better late than never).

This trip should end the "Faircloth Whirlwind Tour of the US". In case you are interested our next scheduled trip will be our annual trip to San Antonio for the TMEA Convention in Feburary and then we will be traveling to Big Cedar Lodge in Branson for Spring Break in March.

road trip part 2

Well we all survived the Virginia trip, but we were very tired rolling into Dallas around 5:30am. You can get more detailed info about our trip on Misty's blog - even a video!!

We decided that we did not have enough time together so Danny, Melody, Misty, and I took a short trip to Houston on Friday to the Bigler Christmas party. We had a good time, but I was pretty crabby most of the time since I was still recovering from my nose job (septoplasty) the day before. Below is a pic after the procedure, the doc says the swelling should go down in a few weeks.


Well if Misty and I were not tired enough we decided to take a trip to Chicago (non stop in a car) I know we are crazy, but it was not as bad as you may think. We took turns driving through the night and morning with a little nap time when we needed it. We left Sunday @ 8:00pm and arrived at my sister's house Monday around 3:30pm. It was worth it!! We are having a great time in Chi town!!!

road trip part 1

Well we finally made it! Our road trip to Virginia has gone pretty good so far. We have been having a great time with Mason and Sarah.

We left Dallas around 4:30pm on Wednesday and arrived in Mechansville, Virginia at 3:00pm Thursday. How in the world did we do that? We drove straight thru in a motor home. We had 5 drivers that rotated about every 4-5 hours. We only stopped for fuel and driver changes. The best part of the trip was being able to play Madden 08 and Guitar Hero while on the road. No, the drivers were not able to play video games, but believe me I wanted to! We will be headed back home on Sunday morning. Hope the trip home goes as well as the trip here!

gloria in excelsis deo!!

At this time of year we hear Christmas songs and hymns with the words “Gloria in Excelsis Deo”, which means glory to God in the highest. These words from scripture show us that the angels recognized the glory and majesty of God. In this familiar passage the angels were telling the shepherds about the birth of Jesus.

The angel said to them, "Do not be afraid. I bring you good news of great joy that will be for all the people. Today in the town of David a Savior has been born to you; he is Christ the Lord. This will be a sign to you: You will find a baby wrapped in cloths and lying in a manger." Suddenly a great company of the heavenly host appeared with the angel, praising God and saying, "Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace to men on whom his favor rests."

Luke 2:10-14

We can see in these verses that the angels were praising and worshiping God, because of His glory and majesty. Like the angels we also should recognize God’s majesty and glory. Like the angels we were made to worship God. During this Christmas season we should praise and worship God and thank Him for the awesome grace and mercy He has shown us through the birth of Jesus.

Gloria in excelsis deo!!

sinking in mediocrity!!

Sorry this is so long, but it has been bottled up in me for a while. If you know me very well you know what has prompted this rant. Enjoy!

Our society in sinking in mediocrity!! We are are surrounded by people who are in a rut and don't want change in their lives. We are surrounded by people who are afraid of striving for excellence. You can see it in our workplaces, in our schools, and even in our churches. As Christians we are called to a higher level of living. We are called to do everything we do to the best of our abilities. Here are two examples from scripture that tells us how we should "strive for excellence" in our lives.

Whatever you do, work at it with all your heart, as working for the Lord, not for men, since you know that you will receive an inheritance from the Lord as a reward. It is the Lord Christ you are serving. - Colossians 3:23-24

And whatever you do, whether in word or deed, do it all in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through him. - Colossians 3:17

You can see mediocrity everyday in the workplace in people who come to work just to get a paycheck. These people do not see the purpose in what they do. God has called us to serve Him in everything we do, which includes our workplace. The bible does not exclude any type of work or activity. We are told to work at "whatever" we do with all our heart. The workplace is a mission field that God brings to us daily.

You can see mediocrity in our schools where students are content with just a passing grade not striving for top marks. You can see mediocrity in our teachers who just teach their students how to take a test in order to make themselves look good. Even school district administrators are striving for mediocrity by preventing teachers from giving zeros to students. What are these students going to learn if we continue to "protect" them from the consequences of their laziness or irresponsibility? What are they going to learn if we only teach to a test? Again, God calls us to serve Him in "whatever" we do, which includes striving for excellence as a student, teacher, and administrator.

You can see mediocrity in churches that are content with methods that used in the 1950's, but do not reach today's society. We see it in churches that are afraid to change because "that's not the way we've done it in the past." We see mediocrity in churches that are afraid to take a stand against immorality in their community and in our world today.

I am well aware that there are many churches that are doing what God has called them to do. If you are part of one of these churches, get plugged in to what is going on and see how God will bless you. However, even in these churches there are Christians who stand back and let others do the work of God's church. The bible does not tell us that God only call us to serve Him if we are pastors, worship leaders, youth ministers, deacons, or sunday school teachers. We are all an integral part the body of the church. God calls ALL OF US to worship and serve Him and to lead others to do the same.

Whatever you do, work at it with all your heart, as working for the Lord, not for men...

grace for breakfast

Our former youth minister and good friend came to visit us today at our men's breakfast. He had an awesome message to share with us and he made me think about this verse in Romans.

"Therefore, there is now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus, because through Christ Jesus the law of the Spirit of life set me free from the law of sin and death. Romans 8:1-2

There is no condemnation for those that are in Christ! Wow, what an awesome statement! We are no longer condemned by our sin, but forgiven of our sin through Christ Jesus.

I also found this in Romans 6:14 “For sin shall not be your master, because you are not under law, but under grace.”

The “law” brings condemnation to us because it points out and condemns sin. However, as Christians we are no longer “under the law”. This does not mean that Christians are free to do whatever we want. It means that we are no longer “under the “law” in the way that God’s people of the Old Testament were “under the law”.

We are free from the law of sin and death. We are forgiven and God's awesome grace frees us from our sin.

Thank you Lord for your awesome and amazing grace!!

summer is finally over!?!?!?

It appears that summer in Texas is finally over. (I hope it is anyways) If you have read my profile, you will notice that I am not too keen on the lack of seasons in Texas. I have been told that if you don't like the weather in Texas, then wait and it will change. Well I have been waiting for a real winter for 8 years.

Hello....Mr. Winter where are you?!?

They should have told me if you don't like the heat and humidity, then wait and it will get worse. I guess the thing that bothers me the most about Texas weather is the fact that my hair gets so frizzy because of the humidity.

Now don't get me wrong I have loved our time in the "Lone Star State". We have made some lifelong friends and had some great experiences, but I would like to migrate north for some cooler weather.......and soon.

Speaking of heading north, I am really excited because we are going to try to go to the Chicago area around Christmas. I love the weather up there and love to visit the city. Now that my sis and her familia live there it gives me a good excuse to visit my favorite city at my favorite time of year.

it's official!!!!!

Friday November 9th will be our last football game.
Our Bulldogs have fought the good fight, but no playoffs this year.

two more games

Only two more football games!!!
Need I say more?

Happy Reformation Day?

Reformation Day is recognized by Christians of many denominations. Unfortunately, I think that many Christians are unaware of Reformation Day or of the Protestant Reformation which it honors.

Many Christians today do not know that on October 31, 1517, Martin Luther condemned the abuses of the Roman Catholic Church by posting his “95 Theses” on the door of the Wittenberg Church.

At this time the Roman Catholic Church taught that salvation was through the sacraments, good works, and indulgences. (An indulgence was forgiveness that could be bought from the Church.) The Scriptural truth that salvation was only by faith in Jesus Christ, was ignored in the interests of power and money.

Before the Reformation, common people were not even allowed to read or interpret the Bible. At this time, the Bible was only in Greek and Latin and priests were the only people allowed to read or translate the Word of God.

In his “95 Theses” Martin Luther condemned the false teachings of the church and called for repentance, asserted salvation by grace, and pointed to the authority of Scripture. This one act began the Protestant Reformation.

Today, thank God for men in our church history like Martin Luther, who followed God’s leading and were able to guide people away from the corrupt traditions of the Roman Catholic Church and to the truths of God’s Word.

east to west

God's Word clearly tells us that once we ask for forgiveness for our sins they are gone. God not only forgives them, but He forgets them.

"as far as the east is from the west, so far has he removed our transgressions from us." - Psalm 103:12

This is an idea that our human minds can not understand. We are constantly fighting our past sins and feeling guilt, yet God promises forgiveness.

I believe there are still consequences for our bad choices, but as Christians we should not worry about our past. John 14:1 says "Do not let your hearts be troubled. Trust in God."

We are forgiven and God's grace washes us clean.

Thank you Lord for your amazing grace!!

"you've just gotta laugh!"

Well it seems like this blog thing is catching on in my family. "You've just gotta laugh!", that is the title of my brothers new blog. My "little" brother is a very funny guy. We are both rarely serious about anything and I think it drives our wives crazy. He is my little brother, but when you see us side by side he is the big brother. I am glad to see he started a blog. It will be fun to keep up with him and his family, since we don't get to see them very often. Check out his blog and "keep laughing".

a little more serious

Ok blog fans here is a serious blog. I know you may not believe that it's in me, but here it goes.

For many years I've been struggling with wanting a career change. So far it has not worked out the way I thought it would or should. I have basically been unhappy in my current career and want a change.

A few years ago my wife's grandparents reminded me of Psalm 37:4 "Delight yourself in the LORD and he will give you the desires of your heart."

At first glance someone might read this and think they should get everything they ask of God. I don't believe that is what the psalmist meant. I think that if we are seeking God, He will place those desires in our hearts.

So holding to this truth I have been waiting for the opportunity to leave my current career and pursue my dream job. Well all this waiting has been frustrating to say the least. Last week I read Psalm 37 again and the Lord reminded me of another part of this truth. The part I often forget is to be still and wait patiently. Psalm 37:7 tells us this "Be still before the LORD and wait patiently for him; do not fret when men succeed in their ways, when they carry out their wicked schemes."

Deep down I know that it will all work out in God's timing, but while I wait it is hard to be still.

Ground Breaking Research

Ok blog fans some of you missed out on the last poll.
Here is another chance to take part in some ground breaking research.

Please take part in my poll and help end hunger.........

Poll

Please take part in my radical life changing poll.

Thanks,

Saxboy

Is there a record for this?

There has got to be some record for longest time not blogged.

Enjoy the third installment from saxboy