Stay Strong - Run Long

Thank you to all of you that have sent me emails wanting to know more about the Run the State. I am currently getting a website set up for everyone to donate. As I have not gotten this set up yet, I ask that you continue to watch for future updates on this blog. Until then if you would like some more info, please send me an email at this (click this) email address. Thanks again, Tha Messenjah

So here we are in 2009. I know, it has been 10 days that we have been in the new year, but this is really the only time that I have had the chance to sit down and write. With all of the bad news of 2008, I must say that I think that it was such a great year. My marriage is possibly the best it has ever been, I rededicated my life to serving my God, I decided to be baptized (for all of the right reasons), and I decided that I was going to take on one the most challenging things I may ever do. As noted in some of my other posts, a group of crazy people (myself included obviously) have decided to run across the state of Iowa to raise money for an orphanage in South Africa. I know that this is old news to most of you but as we get more into 2009 it is starting to get more real for everyone involved. Don't get me wrong, I am not regretting making this decision one bit. It just got real when I met with one of the pastors that is involved with it yesterday. We started talking sponsorships...

I am sitting here with just 3 days until one of the greatest days of the year I figured that I would write one more blog of the year as I don't know when or if I will be able to write until 2009. As I am taking a little break from work sitting at my desk and just kind of reflecting on how great my life is, I hear two of the most annoying, selfish statements I have heard this Christmas season. "I will be really disappointed if I don't get (________)" and "What did you do about Santa?" Wow. What a shame that still 2000 years after we received the greatest gift that man will ever know someone says that they are going to be disappointed if they don't receive a certain gift and asks about Santa. Now I am not playing some "holier than thou" kind of thing here. I know that I have said the same thing about being disappointed about not getting a particular gift, but this is a grown woman. I don't know if she knows our Lord or not. It isn't somet...

I have always heard the phrase "What a difference (fill in the blank) makes" but today I am going to make the statement, "What a difference a year makes." Why you ask? Well it was about this time last year that I made a couple of commitments that have changed my life and the life of my family. It was exactly one year ago today that I heard the service at church that changed my perception of my place on earth. Many of you have heard my testimony, if you haven't click here  and go down to week 5 of the WhyI series. But on this day one year ago God infected me and even though there was some resisitence I couldn't shake it. I was a broken person that had no direction in my life. I lost my job earlier in the year, I was lucky enough to get something quickly, but it was different and I wasn't happy. I was working a second job that took A LOT of my time from my family that had a new member. I felt like I didn't know myself, my wife, my kids. I made a commit...

So due to some, what is being called "gentle prodding" (thanks Becky), I am writing a new blog entry. I haven't written anything lately because honestly I don't have much to talk about. Life is really good. I took on a new role at work. I am now on a committee that I have been wanting to get on for quite some time and home life is rolling right along. If I have one thing to talk about it really is the power of prayer. We here stories all of the time about how people have been affected by the power of prayer. I can honestly say, before I was "born-again" I didn't really believe it. I would do it just when I needed something. Most of the time it was prayers like "...please let me pass this class..." or "...please let me get this job..." but that really isn't what prayer should be about. I am reading a book that most consider the next book in line with the Bible called Purpose Driven Life and it talks about how this life is not abou...

This is one of my favorite spots in the world and one of my favorite foods

Hey everyone, Most of you have wanted to know what my route is going to look like for the run below. Here it is: Stay Strong, Run Long, Tha Messenjah