Have you had to make any decisions lately? Yeh, me too. Our days are filled with decisions. Some decisions are of everyday details like work, what to eat for dinner, what shoes to wear with that outfit, etc. You know the drill! And some decisions can be more important and even critical to your life. Regardless of where they fall in the balance of importance, they still have to be made. The outcome of the decisions we make depends largely on the values we make them from.

One of my favorite scripture verses is Proverbs 3:5-6. It says "Trust in the Lord with all your heart; and lean not unto your own understanding. In all your ways acknowledge Him and He will direct your paths."

Do we really trust God with all the details of our lives? All too often we don't trust Him completely so we make our own decision and chart our own way. We make decisions based on what we think is best and we get what we asked for, our own best wisdom. When we make decisions based on what God says we get God's best wisdom and what He can do for us.

Today is Thursday, January 25. It looks and feels more like March and the beginning of spring. Kind of makes me wish it were spring except for my hold out for one good snow. If I knew it were not going to snow I would be wishing for the 75/80 degree days when it's just right on my motorcycle. But, there is still that anxious, hoping childlike spirit that wants to see a snow dump. You know the kind that when everyone hears the weather report they run to the grocery store in a frenzy to stock up on soup and chili. The kind that makes your world slow down for a day or two because it's to dangerous to get out on the roads. The kind that makes you huddle up by the fire or under a blanket and watch movies all day with your family. I am holding out on spring for a few more weeks just in case a big snow is in the picture. Maybe if we all sang "Let it snow, let it snow, let is snow!" it would help. All together now, Oooohhhhhhh the weather outside is frightful.......

It is good to be home after spending last week in the hospital with my mom. I am thankful to everyone who prayed for her during her recovery and to those who called to check on her. A little abdominal discomfort ended up being the sudden removal of her appendix and a short section of her colon. She is at home doing very well. God has been faithful all along the way. His hand has been evident as she has all but breezed through the surgery and recovery.

I had hoped to write some entries to the blog while I was sitting with her, using some of the spare time between walks down the hall, fluffing pillows, grabbing more ice chips, etc. There was no internet assess anywhere in the hospital. I couldn't believe a public place as large as this hospital had no place to log on. I somewhat went into withdrawals! Well, it's not like I am addicted or anything but it showed me how much I depend on the ability to write/check e-mails, do internet searches, write in the blog, stay connected to the office, etc. Of all things, I had to drive across the street to Starbucks, drink coffee and get my internet fix there.

Oh well, I was reminded last week that I can get by without much of the technology and "stuff" we have and use each day of our lives. It is a huge help and convenience and I could not imagine going back to "business as usual" without the benefits of the technology but absolutely necessary...not really. The most important things are still our relationship with God, health, family and friends. I am a very blessed man!

We have been getting positive feedback from all the available podcast. Podcasting is a relatively new form of communication and dialoguing that is going to be around for a long time, especially for younger generations. That is why we want to produce various styles of podcast.

Be sure to first, subscribe. Go to the iTunes store and search First Baptist Lavaca. It will take you the 3 available podcast from First Baptist Lavaca. Click on the subscribe button. Once you have subscribed it will automatically download the most recent podcast and give you the option to download any past editions. Then each time iTunes finds the new edition of the podcast you have subscribed to, it will automatically download it for you. iTunes is an Apple program but it is a free download for people using PC's with Windows XP and 2000. You can get it at: http://www.apple.com/itunes/download

Secondly, stop by the iTunes store where you subscribed to the podcast and write a short review. iTunes rates podcast in it's directory based on the number of subscriptions and reviews written. We want our podcasts to be seen by the public. Tell people about it! Help us get the rating up so it might be shown in the iTunes directory.

Thirdly, post comments on the site. The podcast and the blog (our website) are for dialoguing. We want to hear from you. We want to "dialogue" with anyone who has a thought about something they read on the blog (site) or hear on any of the podcast editions. Let us hear from you!