Making it Matter

I love the beginning of a new year.  I think it is funny to see who many people write the previous year's date.  I wonder how many times I will write 2011.  I have never been much on setting resolutions, but I googled "funny new year's resolutions" and there were among my favorites.

1. Watch more cute and cuddly kitten on youtube.
2. Check my work e-mail account at least once this year.
3. Switch my user name to "password" and my password to "username" to make each a lot harder for      hackers to figure out.
4. Watch less TV...in standard definition.
5. Stop buying worthless junk on Ebay, because QVC has better specials.
6. Start using Facebook for something other than Farmville and stupd quizzes.
7. Help kids stay safe by not texting on my cell phone while eating McDonald's and speeding through crosswalks in school zones with a frost covered windshield.
8. Start a blog about how I would write more often if I had something important to write.  Only make one blog entry and leave it published for years.
9. Talk with a robot voice all the time.
10. Stop drinking orange juice after I just brushed my teeth.
11. Buy new clothes big enough to account for next year' holidays.
12. Lose weight by inventing an anti-gravity machine.
13. Lose weight by living on the moon.
14. Find a more accurate scale
15. Build biceps by increasing reps of Ding Dong curls to 3 sets of 15
16. Stop buttering my doughnuts.
17. Eat more fruit...snacks.

You may decide to begin the New Year with one of these or other resolutions,  If you have not considered it, let me encourage you with this one thing.  Make every day matter.
It has been rumored that King George III of England said on July 4, 1776, "Nothing of importance happened today".  Whether King George realized it or recognized it, something significant happened that day.
The same is true of our lives.  Every day matters!  We should make the most of every encounter with people in the grocery story, at the gas station, on busy Saturday mornings at Wal-Mart.  We should make the most of every interaction with our family, and friends.  Make it Matter!  We go through life so often from one day to the next without realizing  that something significant is happening around us.  Whether we realize, or recognize, God brings different situations into our lives to influence us or for us to be influential.
So, accept the challenge and Make it Matter!

My First Post

I never thought I would actually see this day.  Tricia has been encouraging me to blog for a while now, and today is the day I decided to walk the plank and take the plunge into the wide world of blogging.  At this point, I have no idea how often I will post.  I have friends who blog often and some that blog every now and then.  It is interesting to see a post begin to form in Tricia's mind.  I can always tell when a "post is coming on".

This past summer our teenagers attended Fort Bluff Camp in Dayton, Tennessee.  One of the first messages that we heard that week spoke to my heart very deeply.  The preacher was talking about what it means to truly follow Jesus Christ.  Preaching from Luke 14, he said that to be a true follower of Christ you had to love Jesus more than People, Possessions, or Places.  When we returned from camp, I continued to study this theme.  My Pastor told me about a book called Not a Fan written by Kyle Idleman.  The book has challenged me deeply and caused me to examine my Christian walk.  I look forward to sharing more about the book in future posts.

For now, let me encourage you to examine your love for Jesus Christ.  Do you love People more than you love Christ?  Do you love Possessions more than you love Christ?  Do you love Places more than you love Christ?  Our desire as a family is to be completely devoted followers of Christ.  That is why this blog is entitled Simply Follow.