Let there be "Thanks"

Hello everyone!  It's that time of the year again!  Halloween is over and now the big push begins into the Holiday Season.  Before you know it, we will be singing "Jingle Bell Rock!"  OK, I won't jump the gun yet.   (Even though I must confess, I have already listened to some Christmas music). 

Seriously though, as we begin to dive head strong into this Holiday Season, let's not forget what the month of November is all about!   Sometimes, Thanksgiving gets overshadowed by the Christmas holiday.  It appears that it almost gets "Skipped" when you go into stores, the immediate change from Halloween to Christmas without what seems to be skipping a beat. 

So with that in mind, I know I don't want to forget what November is all about and that is being thankful!  So each day this month, I want to list one thing that I am grateful for each day.   Are you with me?  You will be surprised as you list something specific that you are thankful for.  30 days is just not enough!  I hope that that this little challenge will make you think and reconnect with what is important and really matters.

Are you ready?  Here we go!  Day #1 (2013) I am thankful for my Salvation!

Whoever knows me, knows this.  What is most important to me is my faith in my Lord and Savior Jesus Christ!  I am nothing without Him!  He is my strength when I am weak, He is the treasure that I seek, He is my all in all!  It is my personal relationship with Jesus that keeps me going!  I know without a shadow of a doubt that He is the one that I can run to and He is the one that will never fail!  Even when I mess up and miss the mark, His love for me is unconditional!

Thank you Jesus for your love and salvation!  To you be all the glory and Honor!

 

I Blew it!

Hello Everyone!  I hope this blog note finds your day going well?  For me, now it's great, but last week it was not so great.  Yup, Mr. Happy-Go-Lucky was not his usually bubly and happy self.  I had a bad day, wait let me rephrase that...I had a bad week!  Most of my friends and family know that I am just a overflowing bubly case of joy.  I usually don't let anything get to me and I am just an all around nice kind of guy.  Well, this past week, I BLEW IT!  Yup, I had a very stressful and bad week at work.  It was a particulary long week, we had some systems fail and and I am the lead on these systems.  So needless to say my hours were very long, about 12-14 hour days for the last week.  Not to mention the stress load that goes along with trouble shooting and trying to come to a resolution.  Well, I let all this stress get the best of me. 

I try never to bring the stress and issues of work home with me.  I try my best to leave them at the door when I walk out for the day.  However, that was definately not the case this past week.  I brought all that stress home!  OK, now you can see where I am going with this.  Not  a good thing!  I found myself all that week withdrawing from the family.  I found myself getting very quiet and not wanting to talk or letting little things get to me that normally I would not even bat an eye to.  That should have been the warning sirens right there.  MAYDAY MAYDAY...ALL HANDS ON DECK...but I was so consumed in my stress and the issues of the week that I did not see the forest for the trees so to speak.  Well this all came to a head on Thursday this past week.  I came home and was very quiet and not talking very much.  I was also letting all the little things get to me.  This is where my reality check came in.  THANK GOD for a spouse who loves me so much that she is willing to tell it to me straight.  My wonderful wife called me out!  Guess what, I still did not see it!  I said that I was not stressed and that I just had a very long week.  I tried to deflect and push back everything on her.  Well, needless to say once again, THANK GOD for a spouse who loves me and tells it to me like it is, she told me that she did not like this Joe that she was seeing and that I needed to change my attitude.  Well that night, I did some self-reflecting and praying, and YES I did now see exactly what she was saying.  I had let all the stresses of work come home with me and took all that baggage from work and off loaded it at home.  Not a good thing to do!  So I did apologize to my wife and told her how sorry I was for bringing the stress of work home and makeing my family take the brunt of it!

I say all this for everyone out there that may be stressing out and bringing all that junk with you to your familes or significant others.  Take stock in what they have to say to you.  Once again I am greatful that I have a loving spouse who is willing to tell it to me like it is.  She gave me a great reality check and a well needed attitude adjustment!

I sure thank God that His mercies are fresh and new every day.  I thank God that I can get up in the morning and know it's a new day.  I thank God that I can run to him and ask for forgiveness and it's there for my taking.  Because I know that I sure need it.  I also thank God for my wonderful wife that He has placed in my life.   She is a wonderful and loving spouse whom I truly appreciate.  She is so full of unconditional love and has the boldness to tell it to me straight.  Thank you Lord.  My prayer is that you have someone like that in your life.  Someone that is there for you.  Someone that can tell it to you straight and put you back on the striaght and narrrow.  Someone that can give you an attitude adjustment when needed.

A Proud But Challenged Daddy!

My son told me about something he did in school yesterday that just made me one proud Daddy.  He told me about how he told one of his friends that they needed to ask God for forgiveness and ask Jesus into their hearts.  He told them that Jesus forgives and that he could take the junk out of their lives. (I'm paraphrashing here, but you get the idea) 

WOW!  That is what I have to say.  He is not ashamed of the Gospel and telling other people about Jesus.  We told him that he is being bold and we are proud of him for standing up for his faith in God! 

The boldness of a child that will stand out and have no fear about telling someone else about Jesus!  That makes me take a step back and ask myself "Am I that bold in my faith?"  Could I be as bold to tell my friends or coworkers about Jesus and the plan of salvation or would I just let the opportunity go by?  Lord help me to be as bold!  We should not let our fears about what others will think or say when we step out and share our faith with others.  Is that not what Jesus commands us to do?  "Go into all the world and preach the Gospel"  It is the Great Commission, not the "Great Suggestion".
So as I write this, I am a very proud Daddy but also a challenged one...Will you be bold?   Will you take a stand and step out and be a witness for Christ no matter what?  Lord help me to do that!

Valentine's Day-What is love?

Hello Everyone!  Happy Valentine's Day to you!  I hope that everyone is geared up and has spoiled their significant other with wonderful pleasantries and expressions of love today.  Valentine's day is a great and wonderful day set apart for "Love."  However, this got me to thinking, what is true love all about?  We immediately think of love as being that deep down warm fuzzy feeling that we get when we see our significant other or we get that box of chocolates or gift from them.  Love though is more than just a feeling, it goes much deeper than that.

 I go back to 1 Corinthians Chapter 13:4-8, better known as the Love chapter to get the meaning of love.  It goes like this.

4 Love is patient and kind. Love is not jealous or boastful or proud 5 or rude. It does not demand its own way. It is not irritable, and it keeps no record of being wronged. 6 It does not rejoice about injustice but rejoices whenever the truth wins out. 7 Love never gives up, never loses faith, is always hopeful, and endures through every circumstance.
What an amazing picture of Love.  Now the REAL challenge....Substitute the word love with your name and that will bring it all the way home.  These are questions that I ask myself all the time...Is Joe patient, is Joe kind, is Joe not jealous or boastful, is Joe not proud or rude?  Is Joe not demanding of my own way (in other words...A Cry baby!) is Joe not irritable, (Sometimes tough after a long day of work), is Joe not keeping a record of wrongs, is Joe rejoicing about the injustices,  or is Joe rejoicing when truth wins out?   Will I never give up, never loose faith, always be hopeful and endure through EVERY circumstance?  Now that is "True Love!"  Challenging isn't it?  Are you up for it? 

Happy Valentines Day everyone!

Getting Back To The Basics

I watched a movie last night that really made me grateful but also made me think. The  movie was about a family who's son had a serious illness and how they came to learn how to cherish every moment that they had with their son.  Well, that got me thinking, do I take for granted what I have?  Am I cherishing every possible moment that I have with my family?  Am I taking the time to stop and take moments out from my busy schedule and just enjoy my family?  I am a very blessed man and God has blessed me with an awesome wife and two wonderful children.  I should be making sure that I take every opportunity that I have to spend with them, to love them to cherish them.  We are not promised tomorrow, so we need to take every possible moment we have to pour into our families! 

If you have not taken the time, especially during this time of the year, learn to cherish your family.  See what is truly most valuable in your life.  Don't take them for granted.  Live and love for today!  I believe you will be a better person and be glad that you did!  It's time to "Get Back to the Heart of Christmas!"  Are you with me?  Let's do it!  Merry Christmas everyone!

Christmas Family Traditions

Hello everyone!  I hope this post finds you well?  As we get ever so closer to Christmas day, I am wondering what every one's favorite family tradition is or was?  December is the month to remember all the good times that we have and have had with friends and family.  I know that in my family, being of the Hispanic culture, we have many traditions.  The best one that I love is on Christmas eve looking forward to the tamales and menudo!  Yummy!  I know, for most of you, the menudo part is an acquired taste, but I think everyone can agree upon the tamales!  Every Christmas Eve my family and I would go around and visit all of the extended family.  I would not eat all day knowing that at every stop there would be some good food awaiting me!  My favorite stop was at my Nana's.  I knew she had been hard at work all that week preparing all the tamales and menudo!  We would walk into her house and the smell would just grab you!  You knew you were in for a feast!  My Nana is gone now, but the tradition of tamales and menudo on Christmas Eve lives on. 

Again, this is just one of many great memories and traditions that I have for this time of the year.  So what are yours?  I would love to hear them.  If you don't have any traditions, I encourage you to start one!  I believe you will be glad  you did!  Enjoy the Christmas Season everyone!

It's The Most Wonderful Time of the Year!

Hello Everyone!   I know I have been silent for the last few days, but can you believe it is actually December 1?  Where has this year gone?  It certainly has flown by for me.  What about you?  I am so excited!  We are now officially into my most favorite time of the year!  Christmas!!!  Yes, can you hear it, see it, smell it, touch it?  It is all around us.  So my question to everyone is this.  What makes Christmas special for you?  What are some of your favorite Christmas memories?  When you see all the lights hung and the Christmas trees that are up, what does that do for you?  I know in me it brings me right back to my childhood days!  I have so many fond memories of Christmas time with my family!  I can remember the days of anxiously waiting for December 25th to come around.  Waiting for the day that I could get up and open all the gifts that were under the Christmas tree! 

Christmas Morning Dec 25 1982 (Me & my two sisters)

Christmas is definitely a time for us to spend time with our families!  It should be a wonderful time of getting together and reflecting on the holiday season.  A time to laugh and create bright memories for many Christmas' to come!  So what is one of my favorite Christmas memories?  I have to say that one that sticks out in my mind is it was Christmas Eve and my dad had to work the grave yard shift.  All us kids went to bed anxiously waiting for the night to end and Christmas morning to come.  I remember sleeping away and then hearing that wonderful song....."It's the Most Wonderful Time of the Year!"  My dad was home from work!  He started up the record player (Record Player, now I am telling my age!) and let the wonderful sounds of Christmas fill the house.  Not only was dad home, but there was also a big surprise for us that happened overnight.  We had a White Christmas!  I remember my dad saying "Look outside!"  It was fantastic!  So that Christmas remains one of my favorite memories.

December is truly "The Most Wonderful Time of the Year!"  Merry Christmas everyone!

A Time of Thankfulness -Day #22 A November Challenge

Wow, I can't believe we are at day #22 of the November Thankfulness Challenge.  It seems like my list just keeps growing and growing on what I can be thankful for!  Today I am thankful for my good friends!  You know who you are!  There are some of you that I have not seen in a long time, but I know that I can call you and you will be there for me in an instant.  Also there are my friends that I know that we can get together and it seems like we have never skipped a beat.  Proverbs 27:17 says "As iron sharpens iron, so a friend sharpens a friend."  I love that verse.  The reason being is that I know I have friends that love me and encourage me and are willing to give me the good, the bad and the ugly so to speak.  I know that I can take what they have to say to heart.  That is what I count as great!  I hope and pray that you all have a friend in your life that you can say the same thing about. 

It also amazes me how things can come full circle when you think about it.  I also have a wonderful friend that outshines them all!  I would love to introduce you to Him.  Proverbs 18:24 says "There are "Friends" who destroy each other, but a real friend sticks closer than a brother."  I know I have a real friend in Christ!  He has and always will be with me through the thick and the thin.  I know that I can fully put my trust in Him.  I am so thankful and glad that I can be called a "Friend of God"

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A Time of Thankfulness -Day #19 & #20 A November Challenge

Well, it's coming two days late, but here are days #19 & #20 of the November Thankfulness Challenge.  I will explain on why I am writing these late.  It is because of what I am thankful for during these two days.  For days # 19 & 20, I am thankful for "Family Time."  One on one time is great and we need to have that, but there is something about being together with family and having fun together.  My weekend was filled with just that.  We had a great get together at our church on Saturday and I loved that!  The kids had a great time with all the inflatable slides, jumper, and obstacle course.  Yes, even I took a turn on the giant slide.  I could not resist!  After all the fun of the church activity we were off to our next adventure for the day.  It was now time to go see Santa.  This has always been a Lorenzo tradition since our little boy was born.  Go and see Santa so the kids can give their lists him and hope that they get everything on it.  This time was sure to be an adventure.  Would she or wouldn't she, was the question of the day.  Would my daughter who is age five now, sit on Santa's lap for the first time?  Well, we were so proud of our little angel.  She did!  She even told Santa what she wanted!  She is growing up so fast!  Now that Santa was done, on to the next great family event.  Every year we pick out an ornament for our Christmas tree.  The kids pick one for themselves and we as a family pick a family ornament.  The past years it has been reindeer and snowmen for our family ornament.  This year...Monkey's?  Hmmm...Do I sense a change here???  That pretty much finished our family outing.  

What about Sunday?  Well that is the culmination of our weekend.  We finished off our family time by going to church as a family and then out to eat after church.   What can I say? I love my family and I am thankful for our "Family Time."

So I would encourage everyone to make sure you are spending quality family time together! You will be glad you did.  Who knows, you may just find that you have been missing a lot of fun!  Blessings to you all!