I’m going to borrow a tradition from my wife’s great blog. Jenni regularly posts her “thankful Thursday” list. On this great Thanksgiving Day, we all have so much to be thankful for. I’m thankful for …

• My wonderful wife – I continue to fall deeper and deeper in love with her. She is an amazing woman. We started dating 18 years ago and our love is stronger than it has ever been.
• My happy children – I had so much fun just playing with the kids today. They are all so special and fun to be around. Jenni and I are blessed to have such great kids.
• My extended family – it was great having Jennifer’s mom and dad, my mom and dad, my brother and his wife, and Jennifer’s uncle all over for Thanksgiving dinner. It is great to have family that actually gets along and that enjoys getting together.
• My church – I am blessed to have a church that actually believes we can make a huge difference in our city. I am thankful that they believe enough in me to actually pay me to do God’s work. I pray that God will continue to bless our efforts and help us as individuals to grow closer to Him.
• My health – I am thankful that everyone in my family is healthy. For me personally, this has been the longest time period in several years that I have been clear of psoriasis. I’m truly praying that God will heal me and that I won’t have to go back on the biologic treatments again. But if that isn’t his will, then I’ve enjoyed a great spring and summer with no pain and problems.
• Our Thanksgiving meal – I am embarrassed by how much good food we had today. From the juicy turkey, to the mashed potatoes made with cream and 2 sticks of butter, to the pumpkin cheesecake, to the great southern gravy and rolls – everything was over the top awesome. It did make me stop and think about how blessed and spoiled we are in this country.

I realize that we live an incredibly blessed and comfortable life. I pray that God will continue to disturb us and challenge us to live our life fully devoted to Him. To everyone reading this post, I pray that you had a great Thanksgiving and I ask that we all take time to thank our maker and creator for our many blessings.

We got back home last night from a week of vacation at Isle of Palms near Charleston, South Carolina.  It was a great week of food and fun with the family.  Here is a quick list of some of the big events of the week.  We became tourists for  a couple of days and checked out the following

• We did an eco-tour of the island.  This was a 3 hour boat trip that took us around the inlets and let us get out on an undeveloped barrier island.  It was both educational and fun and the kids really enjoyed it. We want to teach our children a love of nature.  You can see the hand of God in so many different things.  Just looking at the native wildlife and plants, the power of the ocean, and how the ecosystem works gives them an appreciation of our creator.
• We visited Patriot’s Point and went through a WWII submarine, a Destroyer, and the aircraft carrier USS Yorktown.  The kids had a great time climbing through all the ladders and doors, and they even learned a little history in the process.  It definitely gives you a better appreciation of what our soldiers go through in war.   I am thankful for my freedom and for those who have fought to keep it.
• On our way home, we stopped in Columbia, South Carolina at Riverbanks Zoo.   It is much smaller than the North Carolina zoo in Asheboro, but it is also much more manageable for a day trip with kids.  You are close to the animals and you can see the whole park in a half day.    

Overall, we had a great week.  The weather was great and we were able to spend a lot of time on the beach.  I always have a tough time unwinding and this trip was no exception. It usually takes several days for my body to truly relax, but I felt like I never really got to that point this time.  Remind me not to schedule a planning meeting the day before a vacation.   I had several church things on my mind throughout the week that I simply couldn’t get past.  I still had fun, and I was able to really play with and enjoy the kids, but it was a tough week mentally since I had so many things on my mind.  Now it’s time to get back in the swing of things and catch up from last week. 

We had a good service at church yesterday.   Attendance was down, which surprised me since school has started back, but I think many were enjoying the incredible weather this weekend.  And for those of you in the service, I FOUND MY WALLET.   

I woke up and couldn’t find my wallet before I left for church. It was on my mind all morning and then right before I started to preach, I remembered where it was.   It was awesome to have the relief and peace knowing that it was found.  Why don’t we feel the same burden and concern for people who are lost?  If I get upset and consumed by a wallet, then shouldn’t my response be the much greater for people.

After church, I made the 5 hour drive by myself to join Jenni and the kids at the beach.  I am typing this while listening to the waves crash on the ocean.  We’re staying at a condo with Jenni’s parents at Isle of Palms near Charleston in South Carolina.  My brother-in-law Chang is a chef here in Charleston and he came over last night and cooked up an incredible meal.  We had low-country shrimp and grits with andouille sausage, shrimp cocktail, and pan-seared grouper with an incredible mustard sauce.   It was awesome.

We slept late this morning and we are planning of having a busy day doing absolutely nothing!   I am definitely unplugging this week and plan on taking a lot of time just to read and refocus.  I may check email if I feel like it, but my family is my focus this week.