My Bowl Predictions

As promised here are my bowl predictions for the College Bowl season:

Poinsetta Bowl: TCU over Northern Illinois

Las Vegas Bowl: Oregon over BYU

New Orleans Bowl: Rice over Troy

Papajohns.com Bowl: East Carolina over South Florida

New Mexico Bowl: San Jose State over New Mexico

Armed Forces Bowl: Utah over Tulsa

Hawaii Bowl: Arizona State over Hawaii

Motor City Bowl: Central Michigan over Middle Tennessee

Emerald Bowl: UCLA over Florida St.

Independence Bowl: Alabama over Oklahoma State

Holiday Bowl: California over Texas A&M (This one will not even be close)

Texas Bowl: Rutgers over Kansas State

Music City Bowl: Clemson over Kentucky

Sun Bowl: Oregon State over Missouri

Liberty Bowl: Houston over South Carolina

Insight Bowl: Texas Tech over Minnesota

Champs Sports Bowl: Maryland over Purdue

Meineke Car Care Bowl: Navy over Boston College

Alamo Bowl: Texas over Iowa

Chick-fil-A Bowl: Virginia Tech over Georgia

MPC Computers Bowl: Nevada over Miami

Outback Bowl: Tennessee over Penn State

Cotton Bowl: Auburn over Nebraska

Gator Bowl: West Virginia over Georgia Tech

Capital One Bowl: Arkansas over Wisconsin

Rose Bowl: Michigan over USC

Fiesta Bowl: Boise State over Oklahoma (I know this one is out on a limb, but I cannot stand OU)

Orange Bowl: Louisville over Wake Forest

Sugar Bowl: LSU over Notre Dame (Another team I cannot stand)

International Bowl: Cincinnati over Western Michigan

GMAC Bowl: Southern Miss over Ohio

BSC National Championship game: Florida over Ohio State. That's right you heard it hear first Florida beats Ohio State for the National Championship.

Okay, let me know what you think about the picks or if you even care. There are so many bowl games these days. I think I may try to get Mike Tolleson to sponsor the CiCi's Pizza Van Alstyne Bowl next year and invite two teams with losing records to play in it since almost everyone goes to a bowl these days.

In case I do not post again before Christmas I want to wish you all a Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year. I pray that each of you will be richly blessed and that God's goodness will be abundant upon you in 2007. I love you all.

Scared of Santa...

Just fyi there are only nine shopping days left..

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What a week it has been. Let me start with last Friday morning. The family got up early to have family photos done in Frisco and then to go see Santa. Last year Bonnie wanted nothing to do with Santa so we have been talking him up to her. For the last several weeks she has been running around saying, "I love Santa and I am going to sit in his lap!" We get there Friday, point out Santa ans what does she say, "Oh, that's Santa and I don't want to see him!" We spend the next hour trying to talk her into it. Danna even tells her, "You needs to go tell Santa what you want. for Christmas." My daughter is so smart because she quickly replied, "Momma, I don't want nothing," as she gives Danna the safe signal with her arms. However, after seeing Brennen march right up to Santa and jump in his lap, she was ready to see Santa.

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I want to vent about our local "Village idiot" for a moment. I admit I did not hear the T.O. interview but to that he feels alone and frustrated really bothers me. Then to hear him say that he "he kind of fakes it" at times tells you all you need to know about him. When is Bill and Jerry going to stop defending him, slap him with a fine and tell him to grow up? This guy is a disgrace to the game and needs to go. If I can quote his publicist said after his suicide attempt, "T.O. has 25 million reasons to live." The guy had better find 25 million reasons to catch a pass, be a good teammate and close his yap!

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While I am on the sports topics. I love the Rangers, I really do. I am not so sure that Eric Gagne is worth 6 million a year? They need to go get Mark Mulder and Barry Zito. Yes, I said "and" meaning sign them both. Yes it will cost a ton of money but as I look at the list of free agent pitchers they are the best available. Plus it would be a reunion for Mulder and Zito. Hey, if they are looking for a pitcher who can pitch like "Ball Leave Park aka Chan Ho Park" I am their man. I can lay a meat pitch up there with the best of them. Plus I am cheap! Mediocre starting pitchers are going for $9-10 million a year. I'm a steal at $5 million a year. Mr. Hicks, Jon Daniels my phone number is listed in the phone book!

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On a serious note. Tuesday night we went to the Mesquite Dayschool Christmas program and it was so much fun. I love to see little kids get up on stage and get stage fright. They are just so cute as they stand there with their eye wide open, staring at everyone. They did a great job. It was so good to see friends who are very dear to us. I miss getting to see the Moore's, Folsom's, Langford's, Smith's and others we miss.

Right now I am preaching a series titled "Christmas Carol Theology". It is not an original idea. I know several ministers who have done a series on Christmas Carols. Everyone seems to like it so far. I am already starting to think about next year and I am excited. I love preaching every Sunday! I will never understand why I waited so long to get into ministry. I am truly blessed far more than I deserve.

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I love all of you who read my blog and even those who don't read it. Next week I will give all my bowl predictions for the NCAA bowl season.

The Countdown Begins...

There are only 23 shopping days left to get your Christmas shopping done (I say 23 because Christmas eve falls on a Sunday). All you guys out there need to go out now and start shopping for your wives. If you need help finding the perfect present do not call me. I still have to shop for Danna and my Mom. I pray your holiday is filled with the reminder of God's special gift to each of us and may His richest blessings be poured out on you!!
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This is a big weekend for me, Arkansas and Florida for the SEC championship and the right to go to the Sugar Bowl. After a loss to LSU at Thanksgiving. I am still smarting from the loss. However, a win on Saturday will make me feel so much better. If by chance we fall to Florida (which I do not think is a possibility) what will my prize be? Probably a trip to Dallas to play in the Cotton Bowl against Nebraska or Texas. That would be fine by me since I go to the game every year. Go Hogs!!! Piiig, Soooie, Raazoorbaacks!!! Go Hogs!!!
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Now a word about my beloved Tampa Bay Bucs... Never mind no need to take up space when I cannot say anything nice except, our helmets look good.
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I am excited about the things going on at church. We hosted a special service the Tuesday night before Thanksgiving and 61 showed up. It was a great night of worship and everyone loved it. On Sunday I am starting a Bible class on the Gospel of Matthew and a sermon series based on Christmas carols. I am really looking forward to sharing both of these with the congregation, especially the Matthew series. Next year ought to be a big year for us here at Van Alstyne. My prayer is that God will bless us richly with growth, numerically and more importantly spiritually. I look forward to seeing what God has in store for us.
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Finally...

Two pastors were on their way to Alanta, Ga. for a large Christian men's gathering. One of them had never been in the south before. After staying in a motel overnight, they stopped at a nearby restaurant for breakfast. When their meal was delivered, the pastor who had never been south before saw this white, mushy looking stuff on his plate. When the waitress came by again he asked her what it was. "Grits", she replied. "Ma'm I didn't order it and I'm not paying for it". "Sir, down here you don't order it and you don't pay for it, you just get it." Just like God's grace!

I was reading in Grace for the Moment, a daily devotional by Max Lucado today and Max asked if we would still serve and love God if all He gave to us was His grace? If our child was sick, we lost our job, our marriage was on the rocks... How would our relationship change if His answer was, "My grace is sufficient for you." It may me think about all the blessings I have been given and taken forgranted: my wife, children, family, friends. God's grace has been showered upon me over and over again. I have been given far more than I will ever deserve. Father, I pray that you will give to me a spirit that finds comfort and rest in your grace. May I always live a life that says, "Your grace is sufficient for me!" May I always bring glory and honor to your name!

Catching Up!!!

Wow a lot has happened since my last post. First, the obvious the kids and Danna returned from their time with her parents and I was so glad. To the surprise of everyone the house was not a wreck when they got home! We took the kids out at Halloween the businesses in downtown VA all get together and pass out candy in front of their business, which is neat. Then a member called us and ask us to come by her house because she bought something special for the kids. Anyway, several weeks ago I challenged the congregation to consider how and what they give in consideration of what we can do for the community if we gave of our first fruits. Contribution has been up the last three weeks and I think they really want to give and grow. Last Wednesday was my birthday and Danna surprised me with a trip to Tulsa to see the Mark Schultz concert. All I can say is AWESOME. Mark is my favorite single performer, while Third Day is still my favorite group. Bonnie and Brennen gave me Third Day's new Christmas Offerings CD, you will like it. Last Friday after we picked up the kids from Danna's parents we had dinner with my parents. My mom is going through withdrawals because she has seen the kids a total of one hour since we moved. Anyway, we kind of overstayed our welcome at On the Border because the waiter kept telling us he had a twenty-topper waiting to be seated. It never dawned on us what he was really saying (GET OUT NOW!) until he sat down and basically spelled it out to my parents. Needless to say were not to happy about how it was handled. Finally, this Tuesday night we are having a special Thanksgiving devotional service at Van Alstyne. We have been running announcements in the paper and tomorrow I am going to walk through town and personally invite everyone as I see them. I am real excited Jason Reeves is coming up with his family and he will be doing part of the devotional talk along with me. I am really looking forward to that night and I hope we get a ton of visitors.

I'm on my Own

Thursday Danna and I drove into Mesquite so I could perform a wedding Saturday night. The actual rehearsal was Thursday, the rehearsal dinner on Friday and the ceremony on Saturday. We stayed with Danna's parents and had such a blast. My mother-in-law is such a sweet lady and my father-in-law is hilarious! Danna sometimes dreads for me to get around him because she knows we are going to play off each other and laugh it up. This weekend was no different. To be honest E.W. was on the top of his game. My in-laws love having their grandchildren there. Of course they let them do and have anything they want. The best part of the weekend was Saturday as a sat with E.W. watching football and talking. I really had a great time. He has always been a real blessing to me. When I was a kid he was the Deacon over benevolence and I remember him coming to my home bringing food or money to help my family out. As long as I can remember he has always been a man who loved to help. I love E.W. but would never tell him. I'm sure he knows without my telling him.

I came home last night so I could preach this morning. Danna and the kids stayed behind in Mesquite to spend time with her parents. The house is so quiet. I feel like throwing some of the kids toys just so it sounds like the kids are here. I even thought about getting on Brennen's little truck and riding it across the floor. I wasn't sure the tires could take it so I opted against it. I spoke with Bonnie on the phone today. She told me, "Daddy I have a new bow in my hair see." Then I heard all this static. Finally, Danna said, "Bonnie, Daddy can't see your bow." She was rubbing the phone on her head to show me her bow. She is so cute. Brennen spoke to me but didn't say much. Probably because Bonnie wasn't on the phone to speak for him. They are coming home on Wednesday and I can't wait for them to get here.

The World Series has started. I love fall baseball. The Tigers and Cardinals ought to be a good series. I am pulling for the Tigers. Some of my friends who are Cardinal fans, and very proud of it, have encouraged me to root for the Tigers. It doesn't hurt that there are a couple of former Rangers on the team. The Gambler is on the mound now and doing well. Anyway, go Tigers.

As for my other sports teams the Buccaneers and Razorbacks both won this weekend. Arkansas wiped out Ole Miss 38-3. ESPN said the game was over when Felix Jones returned the opening kick-off 100 yards for a touchdown and Mitch Mustain played well for a freshman QB. Tampa Day beat Philadelphia on a 62 yard field goal with 4 seconds left in the game after Philly scored to take the lead with 33 seconds left. What a great game. For any of you who missed it the NFL network will replay the game on Tuesday night.

Have you ever thought about those people who have influenced you. My Advanced Preaching graduate course asked about preachers who have influenced my preaching. I like Randy Harris' style. I'm just not sure what it is and I don't think he does either. Mike Cope has always been great with stories in his preaching, Jeff Walling is dramatic, Jim Harrington is always passionate and Rick Ross is always a careful student of the Word. Now in my first full-time preaching ministry I have been greatly influenced by Rick. I try to be as careful as he is in my approach to the Word. I always loved listening to him at Mesquite, he is a gifted speaker. Yet, from it all it was his careful study of the Word that influenced me most. I know the others influenced me but, with Rick I got to see it firsthand. Thanks Rick. Take some time this week to let someone else know how they have influenced you and say thanks.

Getting Back in the Groove!!

What a difference a change of scenery makes. It has been a little over a month since my last post (Sorry! This move and new ministry has kept me busy!) and about a month since I started my ministry here in Van Alstyne. I love the little town and the members of the congregation are great! They enjoy having Bonnie and Brennen running around the church building. One of the members actually got on to me for telling them to stop running in the building. She told me, "This is their building and we are watching out for them!" We feel right at home here. Sunday night we invited everyone over for a little fellowship with sandwiches and desserts. It was awesome. Everyone just enjoyed being able to see the house and how Danna has decorated. Which by the way she has done a fantastic job decorating.

Last Thursday I spent the morning going around the town meeting folks and passing out business cards. I met the High School football coach, Brian Polk. Great guy! He went to Harding and this is his first year at Van Alstyne after coaching in Allen last year. He has a great offense, but they are still working on the defense. The biggest surprise of the morning came when I went into the American Legion. I walked in and there are all these men sitting around the bar drinking. I just walked up handed them a card, introduced myself, shook hands, and told them to call me when they needed me. I sure I raised a few eyebrows when I came walking out of the place. I could hardly see or breathe from all the smoke!!

Friday, the whole family drove into Mesquite to take my mom out for her birthday lunch. I wish all of you could have been there to see my dad pour a glass of Dr. Pepper all over himself. It was without a doubt one of the ten funniest things I have seen in my lifetime. I know it sounds goofy but if you had been there and seen his face and watched him jump around you would understand.

Tonight Bonnie and I went shopping for Danna's birthday present. After I stopped to buy a pair of shoes for myself (Sorry Dan!) we took off to go buy her presents. Bonnie was all excited. She was in the back waving her finger around saying, "Daddy we must get my mamma's present!! Let's go Daddy I must buy mamma's present!!" She is so stinking cute!! I ended up paying for it. All that talk about her needing to buy her mamma a present and she has no money!! Go figure!! She and Brennen are two of my three real treasures in this life. Thank you God for a wonderful wife and two sweet children. Danna's birthday is Thursday and for her birthday she is taking me furniture shopping. I pray I will survive the night and live to see my birthday next month.

Again I am sorry for not posting sooner. I have been extremely busy with moving, family, work, and school. I hope you will make the time to come up for a visit soon! We would love to have you. If you call ahead of time I might even have Danna make you lunch after worship if you come on a Sunday.

It is Finally Over!!!

We finally have a job! The Jackson family will be moving to a new ministry in Van Alstyne. It is a small little town with great growth potential. Danna has already started redoing the house. We plan on getting started on September 3rd and look forward to the new position. Bonnie and Brennen have already been out and looked at their new rooms. They are excited!!! Tomorrow I will delivery my farewell sermon at the Mesquite church. I will miss the people at the Mesquite church. That family has been good to me and my family. We look forward to getting back when we can to visit with them. They will be missed!! I am really excited about this opportunity, but not all the packing and unpacking! I look forward to giving you updates and info as we get it.

Random Thoughts from a Fried Mind

It has been a rough couple of weeks and my family is exhausted. After an interview in Arkansas Danna and I left for camp on the 9th. We got home that Saturday morning shortly after midnight and left Saturday morning for our interview in Oklahoma and then returned home Sunday. This week the kids have been attending VBS at Meadow View and love every bit of it. This weekend we are going to a different congregation in Arkansas and have a seven hour trip awaiting us! I am hoping to meet with the elders from a congregation in west Texas next week and then preach/interview in East Texas the weekend of the 30th. This process has been very tiresome and we are ready for it to be over. It would almost be easier to return to secular work but I know that is not what I am called to do nor what I want to do. I love ministry even in the rough spots. By the way does anyone know how to blow up a car? My car has broken down again. The gauges just shut down while your driving down the street so I have no idea how fast I am going. Do you think the cops will let me slid on that one? (Richard I know you would, I rode with you!) Anyway, nothing profound or exciting just something to update my blog. I almost forgot Bonnie is getting potty trained and went several times yesterday. That is exciting! Now if Danna could just get me trained!

Vacation and a Whirlwind tour!!

I know it has been over a month but we have been so busy that I just have not made time to blog. I need to work on doing it more often. Anyway, here we go. Bonnie and Brennen have both celebrated birthdays since my last blog and both received a ton of cool presents that I am enjoying playing with. Brennen and I enjoy playing catch in the house (Thanks Mel!) and baseball. He is hitting the ball well! Bonnie loves dressing up as a princess. She says she is a Queen but there is only one Queen in my home! We returned from our week of vacation in St. Louis and loved every bit of it. We did so much and I will never forget the four hours I spent in jail!! Its not what you think, I rode with Deputy Richard, and we arrested someone. Anyway, while we were there Richard and Melanie introduced us to Bratwurst. Yummy! I had never tried it before because the "wurst" in the name reminded me of "Liverwurst" sandwiches. We returned and took off for a job interview in Arkansas, came back last night, will leave for camp on Sunday, leave for an interview the follow Saturday, and more interviews through the first of August. I cannot wait to get settled in a new job and start preaching every Sunday. I really cannot wait to get back to St. Louis or just get to spend time with the Wigs anywhere! We had a great time, we love you guys.

She Asked the Question!

I wrote this as a bulletin article a couple of weeks ago, but I keep going back to it to read it and thought I would share it again.

All of you know how precious my children are to me and I would not take anything in the world for them. Bonnie and I have always had this little game we play with our “I love you’s”. I tell her “Bonnie I love you!” and she replies, “No, I wove (Bonnie pronunciation) you!” as she raises her voice. I reply getting a little louder, which she responds louder and then finally I whisper, she whispers and she gives me a hug and kiss before she goes to play. I started the game the other day. This time she didn’t play along, she looked up at me and asked the question, “You wove me, Daddy?” I was shocked for a moment and didn’t know what to say (imagine that). I picked her up, held her close and told her, “Yes, Baby, Daddy always loves you!” She smiled, kissed me and went on her little way. I just sat there and thought to myself, “I wonder how often she asks herself that question?” I wonder if there is ever a time where she wonders or doubts my love for her and Brennen. If there is one thing any parent wants their child to know it is they are loved unconditionally. I never want my babies to ever wonder how much I love them. Then I thought about it. I wonder how often God gets asked the same question, “God do you really love me?” Everything in scripture points to resounding “YES!” There has never been a time or place where God was not madly in love with us. As much as I love Bonnie and Brennen, I will never be able to love them more than God does. If you have ever wondered or thought about asking God the question let me save you the time. The answer is “YES!”

I know, I know, you've been waiting...

I know it has been over a month since my last blog but I have been a little busy. What a weekend my family and I had this weekend. Our dear friend came in from St. Louis for my graduation. Thank you Melanie. We had a quick visit, but we will take every minute we can with her and her family, when she brings them. By the way Melanie thanks for making my wife cry not once but twice last weekend. The shoulders of my shirts are permanently stained I think.

Last week in the midst of the excitement I lost a dear friend. Byron Butler was one of the greatest Christian men I have ever known. He was always encouraging and upbeat. He was my friend, mentor, and most importantly my brother.

Friday night as I sat through graduation I could not help but think of the different people who have helped me get to where I am. Thank you Jerry and Judy for blessing me with the knowledge that I could be so much more than what I was settling for. Thank you David and Merilee for allowing a trouble making kid to stay on your bus because you knew he needed your love. Thank you Gary and Mindy for constantly telling me to just let my light shine! Thank you Mom and Dad for loving me unconditionally. Thank you Danna for your support and that occasional push or shove to make me be the man I am suppose to be. You always find a way to remind me that I do not have to settle for anything less than my dreams. You are the best, I love you! Most importantly, thank you God for allowing someone like me to be your child. I can never express my love in words, so I pray my life will reflect will testify to the world that You are alive and active.

Much Ado About Nothing!

No it is not a mispelling, the title comes from a movie my wife loves, but I could never get into to understand. There is not much going on here. Danna, the kids and I have returned from Tulsa and are refreshed even with our eventful weekend. We never found our "Farkel" game case (Just fyi for you Melanie). Now we are back to work, school and daily living. I bought two books in Tulsa that I am looking forward to reading: Together Again by Rick Atchley and Bob Russell and Before Stones Become Bread by Chris Siedman. It was great to see you Melanie, and the kids too! We miss you guys and cannot wait to see you again. My softball team won our first game last night, 1-0, the perfect season, so far!We are putting our youngest in a big bed this weekend. Well, we are putting him on the floor to start and then moving him to his bed. It will be so cool to see him out of the crib and in his own bed. Well, I'm going to run we are going over to see the Flood's baby and get dinner.

The Inseparable Jesus!

Yesterday I hit the jackpot! I love seeing new things, especially when new dollar bills come out. Over the last couple of weeks I have looked for the new $10 bill and yesterday I got one back in some change. It is such a cool looking bill and I could not wait to get to my office and home to show everyone. I was so excited yesterday that I refused to turn loose of it. I bought tickets to a youth group dinner and the total: $10. I gave the youth minister a $20 and asked for change so I would not have to turn loose of the $10. What is really strange about this whole story is this, eventually that newness of the bill will wear off and I will cash it in for something else that carries a newness feel to it. As I was preparing for our devotional tonight and thinking about the inseparable Jesus I could not help but think about how the newness of me to him never wears off. Paul writes these words in Romans 8: 38-39, "For I am convinced that neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons, neither the present nor the future, nor any powers, neither height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus our Lord." Do we see the message Paul is giving to us? There is absolutely, positively nothing in this universe that can pull, take, or snatch us out of God's love. The cross is God's message that says you can run and hide, you can deny and reject it, but I am telling you that I am not letting you go, you cannot get away from me, do what you want but I am always going to love you! Hear what He has to say to us today: "I have not come to judge you, I have today to save you!" God has this unquenchable lust for us and He will not let us go at any cost, even at the expense of his Son.

Father, I hurt at the pain and anguish I have caused you because I know your love for me never fades or goes away. I praise you for loving the unlovable, who did not want to be loved. Thank you for rescuing me from Satan and myself. I pray that you will continue to instill within my heart a burning, unquenchable thirst for you. May your Spirit reign in my life and may I always bring glory and honor to your name. In the name of my Savior, Amen.

Just One of those Days!

Everyone has them and I guess today is my turn. I have been bombarded with people looking for answers to things I knew nothing about and are out of my control. Then since they found no satisfaction with my answer they called a co-worker to get him involved. It is one of those days where I want to stay in my bed and tell people to leave me alone today or come back tomorrow when your problem matters!(I don't really feel that way but there are times I want that feeling!) Last night my wife and I had a wonderful conversation with our friends, Richard and Melanie, and I wish every conversation I had could be that relaxing and peaceful(Thanks Rich and Melanie). Truth is I am just venting today because it has been hard for me today. You know I know Jesus had His hard days too!! I wish my attitude today could have been more like His was everyday. I just never get the picture of Him telling someone to get away, leave me alone or I do not have time for your problem today. My heart breaks because I know today I have not been the reflection I need to be because of a few phone calls filled with complaints and my own frustrations.

Father, forgive the hardness of my attitude and heart today. Send a spirit of humility to me that I may apologize to those who I was unkind to today and heart that is more like Jesus'.

I just wonder...

Now that life has settled back down after the holidays and other things going on. Life is back at full speed and it seems the next few weeks will fly away quickly. My precious children are growing up so fast, I don't know how I feel about that. I find myself going in their rooms through out the night just looking at them. It's not that I am actually checking on them, I just want to see them, be around them, touch their little hands and cheeks, I miss them at night. I can't help but think how wonderful it is to see them grow and discover new things. At the same time my heart already aches because I know before long they will be off to college or starting a family of their own (Bonnie when she is 40 and Brennen whenever he is ready!). I notice Bonnie becoming a beautiful young lady and Brennen a strong young man. I wonder how their lives will change over the next 20 or 30 years. Truth be told I wonder how their lives will change over the next 2 or 3 days. So many things go through my mind at night when I look at them. I am so humbled that I get the honor of being called their daddy! No big thought here but I just wonder what God says when He looks in on us at night? I just wonder...