Happy Birthday, Janet!

Today is my wife’s birthday.

A few months ago, a twenty something year old Christian man asked me who the most influential person was in my life. Without hesitation, I said, “My wife.”

He seemed surprised. He told me that of all the people he had asked that question to no one had answered the way I did.

Janet is my friend, my best critic, my helper, and so much more.

Proverbs 18:22, “He who finds a wife, finds a good thing and receives favor from the Lord.”

Thanksgiving is my favorite holiday.

Here is the history of this great holiday from David Barton, of Wallbuilders.

The tradition of Thanksgiving as a time to focus on God and thank Him for His blessings dates back almost four centuries in America. Colonists held Thanksgiving services in Texas in 1541, in Florida in 1565, and in Virginia in 1607 and 1619, but it is from the Pilgrims that we derive the current tradition of a Thanksgiving that includes prayers to God, a meal with friends, and a time of athletic competition.

The Pilgrims arrived in America in December 1620 and experienced a harsh winter of extreme hunger and starvation in which half of them died. The following summer, the Pilgrims reaped a bountiful harvest. As Pilgrim Edward Winslow (who later became their governor) affirmed, “God be praised, we had a good increase of corn. . . . [and] by the goodness of God, we are far from want.”

The grateful Pilgrims therefore declared a three-day feast in December 1621 to thank God and to celebrate with their friends. Ninety Wampanoag Indians joined the fifty Pilgrims for three days of food (which included shellfish, lobsters, turkey, corn bread, berries, deer, and other foods), of athletic games (the young Pilgrim and Wampanoag men engaged in races, wrestling matches, and other athletic events), and of prayer. This celebration – America’s first Thanksgiving Festival – was the origin of the holiday that Americans now celebrate each November.The first national Thanksgiving was proclaimed in 1789 by President George Washington, but after Washington, national Thanksgiving proclamations were sporadic; most official Thanksgiving observances occurred at the state level. In fact, by 1815, state governments had issued no less than 1,400 official prayer proclamations, almost half of which were for days of thanksgiving and prayer.

In the first half of the nineteenth century, Mrs. Sarah Josepha Hale, the editor of Godey’s Lady’s Book (a popular lady’s books containing poetry, art work, and articles by America’s leading authors) began to lobby for a national Day of Thanksgiving. For nearly three decades, she contacted president after president until Abraham Lincoln responded in 1863 by setting aside the last Thursday of that November.

Over the next seventy-five years, presidents faithfully followed Lincoln’s precedent, annually declaring a national Thanksgiving Day, but the date of the celebrations varied widely from proclamation to proclamation. In 1933, President Franklin D. Roosevelt celebrated Thanksgiving on the fourth Thursday of November and maintained that date year by year throughout his presidency. In 1941, Congress permanently established the fourth Thursday in November as the national Thanksgiving holiday.

As you celebrate Thanksgiving this year, there are several ways in which you can enhance the celebration of America’s oldest holiday:

You can Review the full HISTORY OF THANKSGIVING at the Walbuilders website.

This Wednesday, since Nate, our great worship leader, is on vacation, I have the honor of dusting off my guitar and leading the body of Calvary Kendall in worship.

Here’s the songs we’ll be doing:

Mighty to Save
I Will Stand
Hosanna
We Are Hungry

Sweet Sweet Jesus – communion

I love the Lord. He has done so much for us. It will be great to strap on the guitar, get the band together, and sing to Him.

Hope to see you there!

Tomorrow night Janet and I will be worshipping with Matt Redman and Casting Crowns. I believe Matt is a gift to the Body of Christ. His songs are sung in churches all over the world. God has used them in my life in big ways a number of times. He is one of my favorite songwriters and worship leaders.Here is a recent interview he did.

Thank you.

For freedom, for security, for life.

Thank you for your sacrifice, it’s immensity I can only imagine.

Thank you for your example, your honor, your duty.

Thank you Dad. Thank you Uncle Jeff. Thank you Oats. Thank you to all who loved this country to put your life on the line and to your families who endured uncertainty and even loss.

Because of you, I and my family have the freedom to worship and to live.

Thank you.

Over a year ago, Calvary Chapel Kendall welcomed Nate Meyst as our new worship leader. It came after several conversations with Pastor Pedro about the fact that I didn’t really sense that leading worship was the calling that God had for my life. We prayed and watched the Lord work.

It was a joy to watch God bring Nate and use him. I’ve told Nate that I think the way we did the transition was perfect. I hung around, went to the first few rehearsals and was around to help Nate however he needed. I got out of the way and Nate took the reigns perfectly, while I was available on the sidelines

I believe it is crucial for organizations going through a leadership change to pass the baton while the one doing the passing is still around to help and can serve as a coach to the younger leader. It seems like Focus on the Family has done this. James Dobson has stepped down while they have transitioned to new leadership.

Here’s the quote I read that stimulated this post:

“One of the common errors of founder-presidents is to hold to the reins of leadership too long, thereby preventing the next generation from being prepared for executive authority,” Dobson said in a statement earlier this year.

It’s all about having the big picture of discipleship in mind.

What do you think?

Isaiah 41:10 says, “Fear not, for I am with you; Be not dismayed, for I am your God. I will strengthen you, Yes, I will help you, I will uphold you with My righteous right hand.’”

What a great verse for all the issues of life that we deal with on a daily basis!

Upon receiving some not so encouraging news recently, I turned to this verse and read it aloud to my wife.

Who could ask for a better helper than the Lord Almighty, the King of the Saints!

Just downloaded Logos 4. Looking forward to watching the Mac version of this program improve.

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