Great Chamber Barbecue! Go Warriors!

We had a wonderful time as a family, getting out of the house, and going down to the Worland Community Complex for the annual Chamber Customer Appreciation Barbecue- 2010. This is something I look forward to each and every year! Instead of being on the grass in front of the Washakie County Courthouse this year, it was held at the WCC for the first time. There was a lot more room for Worland citizens to sit and enjoy a hot served meal by chamber members which included, juicy hot roast beef sandwiches, great hot dogs, tasty potato salad, thirst quenching Pepsi products (of course!), and sweet desserts.

As we enjoyed laughing and visiting with family and friends, and eating our meals on the sidelines of the youth football field, the athletic directors, coaches, and teachers, introduced our student athletes and band members from Worland High School. Of course, the Worland High School Marching Band played a few tunes for us too. It is always a proud moment for us parents as our Worland kids are introduced to the community. I was also thankful that the sound system was adequate for all to hear the announcements; it is usually difficult to hear when you have over half of the town present. I was also thankful that most of the little kids, including my youngest son, had plenty of room to run around and play, especially in the playground area across the street at Sander's Park.

Thanks Worland-Ten Sleep Chamber for having this event each year. I look forward to meeting and greeting our friends and family each year at this event, kicking off the new school year, including all the athletic events. Thanks for supporting our kids! Thanks for the good food! Thanks for making our community a safe place to raise kids!.....and GO WORLAND WARRIORS!

Lord, please direct the paths of our children!

Proverbs 3:6 "In all your ways acknowledge Him, And He shall direct your paths."

This is the first day of school for our children in Worland, Wyoming, and not just my children, but the children of our community. Let us, as Christian parents, pray for the well being and direction of our kids. Let us pray that our kids will acknowledge the Lord in all that they do in worship, because we want to see the Lord direct their paths. My prayer is that they will make good godly choices in every activity in class, in sports, and in travel; before, during, and after school. My they be the "salt of the earth" before their peers!

I pray that people who see them will see a glimpse of Jesus Christ Himself by the Holy Spirit. We all know the worldly influences that are out there. I pray that our children will stand firm in their faith in Jesus Christ.

Paul writes in Philippians 1:27-28a, "Whatever happens, conduct yourselves in a manner worthy of the gospel of Christ. Then, whether I come and see you or only hear about you in my absence, I will know that you stand firm in one spirit, contending as one man for the faith of the gospel without being frightened in any way by those who oppose you."

Our kids do face opposition to their faith, whether we realize it or not. My prayer is that they too will have opportunities to share their faith in Jesus Christ and invite fellow classmates to church. I also pray that our youth ministries will continue to grow, discipling our young people. I pray that God will bless Pastor Jess Rollema, his wife Heather, and the rest of the First Baptist Student Ministries Team in this new school year, 2010-2011.

Kids, have a great year at school and all the activities that are involved with it. Parents, may God give you peace as you send them off. Be actively involved in their education...remember the TRUTH has been revealed to us! It is our responsibility as Christian parents to raise our kids, not the schools.

Have a safe and blessed school year!

Shout to the Lord!

Psalm 98:4 "Shout joyfully to the LORD, all the earth; Break forth in song, rejoice, and sing praises."

Thank you for allowing my family and I to lead singing and praises in worship at the Nowoodstock Music Festival in Ten Sleep, Wyoming yesterday morning. I was approached by Frank and Vicki Ley earlier this summer and asked if I would be willing to lead a short worship service at the festival. We are so glad that we did. My sons Caleb Garza and Jacob Garza, and also, Hannah Compton joined me as we drove to the festival, getting there at 8:00 am.

After an extensive setup and practice, we started singing worship music and sharing scripture at 10:00 to 10:30 am. Thank you Lord for allowing us to lift up your Name! You are the Creator of music, and how fitting it was to lift You up at the beginning of the day on Sunday at the festival! I was blessed to see many folks clapping and singing to the music about our Lord Jesus Christ. All glory goes to the Lord! I was also able to speak to several of the people afterward. We hope to partner with them and start an outreach using praise music in the future.

A big thank you goes to Roger Pomeroy for leading worship yesterday at 1st Baptist, filling in in my absence. We are blessed to have Roger on our worship team. He is a good man of God!

Thank you Frank and Vicki (Shaffer) Ley for providing the invitation and clearance to be able to lead the worship service. Congratulations on your new marriage! May God richly bless you!

A special thank you to Hannah Compton for all of your extra help setting up equipment, tearing down, taking pictures, and your sense of humor!

Finally and getting all of the credit, once again. Thanks again Lord for this event. We were truly blessed by it. We pray that you were also blessed and glorified.

I pray that You will continue to allow us to "shout joyfully to the Lord"! Amen.

Husbands Love Your Wives!

Ephesians 5:25 "Husbands love your wives just as Christ also loved the church and gave Himself for her"

This is so important, men. Do we really understand the importance of this in marriage? Do we really understand how much we are to love our wives? Christ demonstrated his love towards us even by giving His life. Here in Ephesians we are to love our wives by Christ's example. This verse tells me that I need to give 100% in my marriage. It's not a 50/50 compromise. Marriage is not for just what "I" get out of it.

Marriage is not something that we do one time in a ceremony and then put it on a shelf somewhere. We need to build our marriages and nurture them in the Lord each and every day. No matter how busy our schedules get, it is important to spend time with our spouses.

Lord, thank you so much for my beautiful wife, Sandra. She means so much to me. Life would be pretty tough without her. I thank you that she is also a believer in Christ. How special that is! Help me never to forget our vows that we took so many years ago. I thank you for the 20 years of marriage that we will celebrate this Thursday, August 5, 2010. Wow! August 5, 1990 seems just like yesterday!

I was so glad that we could spend some time together over the weekend. It was great being able to take her and the family to Mexican food over the weekend in Thermopolis, Wyoming to Las Fuentas. We were also able to do some shopping, which she enjoys, even if we don't spend any money. After church on Sunday, it was nice to just be able to talk and then watch a movie together later. Although, I need to work on talking and communicating a whole lot more.

Lord, please bless our marriage and the other marriages of your people. Protect our marriages, dear God. Grant us the ability to follow and listen to the Holy Spirit as we work on our marriages. You are a Holy and just God. Please grant us peace, love, and safe keeping. In Jesus' name, Amen.