What If...

Do you ever play "What if...?" What if you had made different choices in life? What if you had gone a different direction?

I watched a movie on TV last night that looks at the 'what ifs' of life. The movie follows an investment banker who gets a second chance at the life he could've had as a small-town preacher. The movie's main character, Ben Walker, believed he was called to preach and planned to go to seminary. Along the way, he became sidetracked and ended up in the business world as a very successful banking tycoon. He then takes a look back at 'what if' he had gone the other direction.

I guess we all have 'what if'' moments. I have. I've often wondered what I might have been if I hadn't been born with cerebral palsy. How would my life be different? I've also wondered what if I hadn't gone into journalism. With my passion for politics, maybe I would've been a congressman or senator... or maybe.... president! OK, maybe not.

It's natural to wonder 'what if' sometimes. But God doesn't make mistakes. He has a plan and a purpose for each of us.

Still, God's plan always involves choice. He gives us freewill to make choices in life and sometimes we choose to go our own way, like the man in the movie. Even when we walk away from God, He can turn it around for our good. He never gives up on us.

It's real easy to get sidetracked from what God wants for our lives. In the Bible, we see men and women say "no" to God's call — and then we see God work his will in their lives and lead them back. He goes on to do great things in their lives. He will do the same in us. No matter what we've done or where we've been, God will take us just as we are and put us on the right path.

When I have missed the mark in my life, I sometimes wish I could have a "do-over." But God doesn't want us to hold on to our mistakes or live in the past. Instead, He wants us to come to Him. If we have sinned, we should repent. If we have gone our own way, we should surrender to Him. He'll make all things right and give us a new start.

In Philippians, Paul says, "Forgetting what is behind and straining toward what is ahead, I press on toward the goal to win the prize for which God has called me heavenward in Christ Jesus."

Instead of asking "What if...," ask "What now?" Then allow God to lead you onward to the prize, which is heaven and an eternity with Him.

Merry CHRISTmas!

Merry Christmas to all you good little boys and girls.... and to you liberals, too!

I hope you all have a special Christmas and remember to celebrate the true meaning of Christmas. I read it again this morning in Matthew: Jesus came to save His people from their sin. It's always so amazing to stop and think about that.

While you're with your family and friends this weekend, take some time to thank God for sending His Son.

This will be a special Christmas for my family. We're anxiously waiting for my niece and her family to arrive. They drove most of the night from Corpus Christi and should be here this afternoon. I'm excited about meeting my new great-nephew, Kayden, who was born in November. I like all the food and, of course, the gifts, but for me, one of the best things about Christmas is being with family.

I took Mom to look at Christmas lights last night. Downtown Pampa is all lit up with new lights this year. It's good to see downtown coming alive at Christmastime again. It used to be that way every year.

I think we'll still have some snow on the ground to technically have a 'white' Christmas. We may even get a little new snow overnight! There's just something special about waking up to snow on Christmas morning. I love playing in it, too, but don't tell Mom.... she'd just worry.

So I wish you all a very Merry Christmas and hope you have a happy and blessed new year!

Tebow Mania

Tim Tebow is one of my new heroes.... and I don't even like football. Tebow is the Denver Broncos quarterback who's been criticized for kneeling on the field after a touchdown to give thanks to God. People criticize him for being too open with his faith, but I think it shows courage.

The Bible says, "In everything, give thanks." And that's just what Tim Tebow is doing. He's thanking God for helping him on the football field. What's so wrong about that?

"Saturday Night Live" did a despicable skit, mocking Tebow and Jesus. It was shameful.

Tebow is an example of a positive role model in the sports world. With so many bad role models in sports, it's great to finally have someone like Tim Tebow for kids to look up to. He's an example for all of us really.

The "tebowing" craze is catching on among some athletes, including Olympic gold medalist Lindsey Vonn. Several high school students showed their support for Tebow by staging a tribute to him. During an entire week, the students would jam the hallway and kneel Tebow-style for about a minute. School officials found the act unacceptable and penalized several students by giving them one day suspension each.

That is unbelievable to me. In a day when kids need good role models, the school punished the students for their tribute to Tebow.

This is just another example of intolerance toward Christianity. Society thinks it's all right for atheists and other nuts to speak out, but it wants Christians to remain silent. We need to stand up and be bold for Christ in our world!

Matthew 10:32 says, "Whoever acknowledges me before others, I will also acknowledge before my Father in heaven. But whoever disowns me before others, I will disown before my Father in heaven." That should inspire all of us to share our faith in Christ wherever we can and whenever we have a chance.

I heard this saying the other day, and it really sums everything up: "I'm just a Nobody, trying to tell Everybody about Somebody who can save Anybody!"

Words of Wisdom

The Bible tells us to "think about the things of heaven, not the things of earth." I was looking back over some notes I'd jotted down this year of sayings that have helped me. I didn't come up with most of these sayings. I read them on Facebook or got them from sermons or books. I hope these thoughts will bless you, too, if you will stop and think on them:

"We see who we are; God sees who He wants us to become."

"God put his very best gift on the tree, not under it."

The Christian life is more than simply giving up bad habits. It is acquiring a newness of mind which comes from setting your heart and mind on Jesus and having the mind of Christ.

"Salvation is a blend of faith and grace."

No matter how bad we were before we were saved, and no matter how bad we've been after we're saved, HIS GRACE IS SUFFICIENT!

If you have God, you have everything. Me + GOD = Success.

God accepts us before we accept Him.

We do what we can; God does what we CANNOT.

No matter what cards I'm dealt in life, God will see me through.

God doesn't always change our circumstances; sometimes He changes us.

"Don't give up; Go to God!"

Keeping the Faith

TV news commentators are saying Rick Perry's latest ad, touting his faith, is a last-ditch effort to revive his campaign. They say he is desperate, so he has resorted to talking about faith and God. These pinhead liberals are so wrong.

Rick Perry is talking about faith because that's who he is: A man of faith. He should talk about it. I wish more politicians weren't afraid to speak out like Perry has.

In the ad, Perry says, "I'm not ashamed to talk about my faith." He's never been ashamed of sharing his faith. Remember the prayer rally he organized in Houston earlier this year? That was before he even decided to run for president. He didn't do that as a "show" to attract voters. He did it because America is in need of prayer, and he believes in the power of prayer.

Perry didn't come out with this ad as a "show" either. He really believes, "Faith made America strong, and it can make her strong again." I believe it, too... IF this country will repent and turn back to God. Then, God will bless us and heal our land.

The ad angered a lot of people because Perry dared to tell the truth when he said, "you don't need to be in the pew every Sunday to know there’s something wrong in this country when gays can serve openly in the military but our kids can’t openly celebrate Christmas or pray in school."

That may not be a popular stand these days, but it's the truth.

Rick Perry may not gain a lot of popularity with this ad. He probably won't even win this race. But at the end of this life, he'll be able to say what the apostle Paul said: "I have fought the good fight, I have finished the race, I have kept the faith."

And that should be what life is all about...keeping the faith!

'Tis the Season

This weekend put me in the CHRISTmas spirit. Pampa had its parade on Saturday, where if you blink you'll miss the whole parade. The parade was good, just short. But it was fun to get out and watch the crowd. Afterward, we got soup and chili from Mrs. Claus.

On Sunday, American Idol star Phil Stacey sang in our morning church service and then entertained at the CHRISTmas banquet last night. I hadn't heard of him before (I'm not much of an American Idol fan), but he can really sing! He sang several of the Christian songs that he wrote and did some CHRISTmas music, too.

I got home in time to watch most of a great new CHRISTmas movie. "The Heart of Christmas" is inspired by the true story of a family's quest for their terminally-ill 2-year-old son to experience an early Christmas, and how an entire community came together to make it possible, before the child dies. One of the messages in the movie is "cherish every moment" and encourages people to make the most of every day you have with your family. Life is short, and you never know when a loved one could be taken from you so cherish the time you have.

It's a really great movie. You should try to catch it if you can. It will be on several more times before CHRISTmas on the GMC cable network. Just make sure you have a box of Kleenex when you watch it. It's a real tear-jerker.

Finally, to really put me in the CHRISTmas spirit, I woke up this morning to SNOW!! It's not very heavy, but it was really coming down. I love to watch it snow.

I hope all of you have a good CHRISTmas and are enjoying this wonderful season. Merry CHRISTmas, everyone!

Playing Politics

Politics are like a soap opera, especially these days with money scams and alleged affairs. I guess that's why I like politics so much. Someone said the Herman "Cain Train" needs less steam on the windows and more in the engine!

A lot has been happening in the Republican race, with Newt Gingrich now leading in the polls. Who could have ever imagined that just two months ago? Things can turn around so fast.

I think any of the Republican candidates would be infinitely better than Barack Obama. But it's going to be a tough fight for whoever wins the GOP nomination.

I pray that he's wrong, but I read an article by conservative economist Walter Williams, who predicts that Obama CANNOT lose the 2012 election. Don't let this scare you, but here's what Williams says:

Blacks will vote for Obama blindly. Period. Doesn't matter what he does.

Liberals will vote for Obama. He is their great hope.

Democrats will vote for Obama. He is the leader of their party, and his coattails will carry them to victory.

Hispanics will vote for Obama. He is the path to citizenship for those who are illegal and Hispanic leaders recognize the political clout they carry in the Democratic Party.

Most other minorities and special interest groups will vote for him. Oddly, the overwhelming majority of Jews and Muslims will support him because they won't vote Republican. American Indians will support him. Obviously, homosexuals tend to vote Democratic.

Nearly half of independents will vote for Obama. And he doesn't need anywhere near that number because he has all of the groups previously mentioned.

The media love him. They may attack the people who work for him, but they love him. After all, to not love him would be racist.

I hope Walter Williams is wrong. It shouldn't even be a close election, but because some voting groups have always voted Democratic, Republicans face a tough fight in 2012. Conservatives and Christians need to come together to pray for the outcome of this election. America depends on it!