Are you willing to fight?

"War is an ugly thing, but not the ugliest of things. The decayed and degraded state of moral and patriotic feeling which thinks that nothing is worth war is much worse. The person who has nothing for which he is willing to fight, nothing which is more important than his own personal safety, is a miserable creature and has no chance of being free unless made and kept so by the exertions of better men than himself." John Stuart Mill

A few days ago, there was an email that circulated cyberspace about the fact that at 4:05 and 6 seconds, on July 8, 2009, it would be 04.05.06.07.08.09. The email spoke of how that would never occur again. I thought a lot about this idea, and came to the conclusion that every moment is one that will never occur again.

If you are waiting for some special moment in time to see something spectacular, you are missing it. That special moment is right now. Take a look outside, and see all that God has made for us to enjoy.

My Little Ladies

I just wanted to post a picture of the two prettiest little ladies in the world. Yes, of course they're mine! ;) Sarana and Kaitlyn really are the lights of my life. I can't believe how fast time flies. "Savor each moment like you would a last meal, fore just like the last meal, once the moment is swallowed, one can never relive it." -SJM

A Pearl in His Hand

“A Pearl in His Hand”

One day
I sat and talked
with a man that held a
pearl in the palm of his hand.
He talked of life, and love, and the sea.
I knew that the words he spoke were
of me. For I was the pearl he held
in his hand. I was the jewel,
and not as I am. I was the
hope that carried
him on.
I was the luster that inspired his song.

He
spoke
of a
gem
that
was
precious
and rare.
He said
that
the search
had brought
him to there.
He opened his hand, in His palm was a scar.
“The price,” He said, “has brought me this far.”
I stand
here
today,
and
all
that
I am,
Is a
pearl
that
God
can
hold
in His hand.

By Steven J. McDaniel

My Twin Brother

I have never formally introduced my twin brother. Don't we look alike?

Not really, right? Well, he is not really my twin. Big surprise, huh? This is my brother, Jimmie Charles McDaniel, Jr. He is three years older than me, and I try to never let him forget it. (He never let me forget it when we were growing up, so I thought I would return the favor. :)

In all seriousness, this is one great guy! He looks mean, but he is a big teddy bear. I can call on him anytime, and I know that he will be there for me. I thank God for him every day.

Sometimes we lose sight of the most important things in our lives. We find ourselves chasing the wind, thinking that we have to make another dollar, get something else done, or impress people that really don't matter. I want to make sure that the most important things in my life are not neglected, because I found out that all too soon, those precious things slip away.

Thanks for being the best big brother that I could ever ask for.

Playing in the mud

These are some pics from our recent trip to California City. We played in the mud with the Jeep and the GMC truck. It was fun!

It was all fun and games until the Jeep rolled off the mountain!

This is the jeep still in the ravine. Thankfully, no one was hurt.

My Calendar

At the first of the year, I usually think about things that are going to happen during the year. I start thinking about special services, youth events, jr. camps, and promotions. It doesn’t take long for the calendar to fill up. Suddenly, I find myself rearranging to accommodate “unplanned” circumstances.
But today, I stopped to ask myself if I had written into my schedule any time for Jesus. I went back through my calendar and found that there was not one entry titled “Prayer time” or “Study God’s Word.” I also noticed that I had not set aside any time to spend with my family. I came to realize that prayer time and time with family are often things that happen as a result of little “gaps” in our calendars.
How much greater would our relationship with God be if we penciled Him into our calendars, and then kept those appointments? In 2009, let’s write Jesus into our datebooks. I think we will find those will be the most valuable moments of the year.

Just a little thought...Steven J.