I'm Thankful

Thanks to all those who left comments on my last post Ring I appreciate your words and well wishes.

While I am very excited about what is ahead, I am just as excited about the things happening at our church. I am so glad that things have worked out where I will be here until the beginning of summer. The extra time allows us the opportunity to get some things off the ground and running and to finish up some things that we have been working on. God has been working in all our lives and it has been wonderful to see. God is so good!

God has brought some good people into our lives. We have made connections with people in the church, at the local community theatre, and within the general community that will not end once we move from this place. What a wonderful blessing. As if God has not been good enough, He is giving us the opportunity to meet even more people who will undoubtedly impact our lives.

So, I say thanks to God for giving us the opportunity to be in a relationship with Him and man kind. I say a special thanks also to Laura and Victoria who make my life so wonderful, and I say thanks to all of you who have walked with us on our journey.

Now you know why I'm thankful.

Ring...

Ring...(Caller ID 301-677-XXXX)

Last month I received a call from my recruiter telling me my application had been approved but for Reserves not Active Duty. I decided to send my packet before the December Accessioning Board for consideration for Active Duty. The Board was meeting yesterday and today.

Ring...Ring...
Okay, here is the call I have been waiting for. Take a deep breath...Hello...

I must confess it was as though I was dreaming. I do not remember the name of the man I was talking to or exactly what he said, but his reason for calling was to welcome me to the Chaplaincy. Yes, I was approved for Active Duty. Phew! Thank you God! Today, God not only confirmed His call into the Army but a call to Active Duty.

What was the best Christmas present of 2007? A phone call confirming and affirming God's plan for the Dawson family.

Financial Hope

I was talking to someone recently and we were discussing my last post My Black Friday Is there hope for those of us who are in the deep red hole (debt)? Yes, there is hope!

My sister-in-law was doing Financial Peace University through her church. She and her children were visiting and she had to do some homework. Part of her homework was to watch one of the video lessons for her class. I happened to be sitting on the couch as she was watching and it peaked my interest. I saw how this course was helping her and I wanted help too. So I bought the course and Laura and I started going through it in April. May was our first month "on the plan".

So what is Dave's plan? The centerpiece is a written budget. Yes, I know the "B" word. I have to confess that I did not like the idea of a budget and was not certain about this zero based budget Dave Ramsey was promoting. Now, I LOVE IT! Basically the written budget is just the plan of action. With the zero based budget you spend every dollar on paper before you ever get it. You make the plan and then work the plan.

For a full explanation of Dave's "plan" you can pickup his books Financial Peace Revisited or The Total Money Makeover: A Proven Plan For Financial Fitness Both resources will help you no matter what your financial situation may be. For a wealth of resources and helps you can also go to Dave Ramsey's web site

God has blessed Laura and me through Dave's Financial Peace University. I believe God is using him, his life story and his ministry to give hope to all who will listen. Dave gives good sound financial advice based on Biblical understanding.

Can you have hope in the midst of debt? Yes! How? Make a plan and then work it. We personally have about $17,000 more dollars in debt to pay off, but we have a plan and we are working it every day, every week, and every month. You may think that you have too much debt and not enough income. Read Joel Maxwell's Story and you will be encouraged on your journey! There is HOPE!

My Black Friday

It has become a yearly ritual that Laura, Victoria and I go shopping on Black Friday. We live about an hour away from Richmond so we have to get up really early!! This year the alarm clock went off at 3:15 a.m. Of course the early wake up call was worsened by the fact that we did not go to bed until after midnight. We did decide to sleep another hour and then get up. So by 4:30 we were on our way!

Normally there are "have to get" things on our list but not so much this year. Because of upcoming expenses related to our call into the Army, we are having a "small" Christmas. Our shopping plan for Christmas: to buy Victoria one nice gift, three small gifts from Santa, modeled after the gifts the three wise men brought to Jesus (Yes, Victoria knows about "Santa" :-), and stocking stuffers. To buy Laura a few small gifts and stocking stuffers. To buy me stocking stuffers.

Stores on our list to visit while in Richmond: JCPenny, Target, Michael's, Pier One, Circuit City, Kohls, and breakfast at Chick-fil-A. Yummy!!

Here are a couple of differences about this Black Friday.

1. This year we were not standing in line for me. Usually we have to stand in line at Circuit City or Best Buy for something that I wanted. Not this year! It was great; I loved it!

2. I noticed that retailers were getting into the black while others were going into the red. So many people were using credit cards. We spent cash that we had been saving for Christmas. Wow! Cash, what a concept! (Dave Ramsey would be proud!)


Overall, Black Friday was a wonderful day despite the lack of sleep. Blessing to you and yours, and I hope your Black Friday was written in black not red!

Thanksgiving

Since we have Thanksgiving and Christmas Eve services at our church, it makes it hard to go home for the holidays. Since we were going to be in town for Thanksgiving, we were invited to Glenn and Joy Evans' home. We know Glenn and Joy through the Westmoreland Players, our local community theatre. Joy's brother, Mike, and sister-in-law, Missie, were also there.

We got to their house about 2:00. They live right on the Potomac River, so their home is in a very picturesque location. We walked along the grounds admiring the flowers, trees, and waterfront. After returning to their home, we sat on the back deck enjoying the beautiful, unseasonaly warm weather, a family of swans, getting to know each other better, and lite appetizers consisting of crackers with a mild bleu cheese spread, hummus, and a garlic and herb spread. Yummy!

After enjoying appetizers and each other's company, we gathered at the dining room table and had our second course, soup. Missie had made Butternut Squash and Cheese Soup. Okay, so maybe it does not sound so good, but it was DELICIOUS!

For our third course, we had a green salad with dried cranberries and walnuts. For those who know me well enough, you know that I do not like cranberries. However, I have to admit that I really liked them on my salad. I used a light cranberry and walnut vinaigrette to add the final touches to my salad. There was also a choice of a poppyseed dressing. Is your mouth watering yet?

Our fourth course was filled with other wonderful dishes. Glenn and Joy had brined the turkey giving it a wonderful flavor and then spread herbs under the skin for even more flavor. It was nice and juicy. We also had sweet potato souffle topped with marshmallows, cranberry fruit salad, cranberry sauce, sweet corn, green bean casserole, dressing made with apples and roasted chestnuts, fresh broccoli out of Missie's garden, and rolls. I hope I am not forgetting anything.

For our fifth and final course, we had a choice between Missie's pumpkin pie or Laura's apple crisp. I chose a little of both. Don't forget the whipped topping on the pumpkin pie!

It may sound as though we stuffed ourselves. We did not. Since we took about 5 hours to do all this eating, we did not leave feeling like we were the stuffed turkey. Yes, I did say 5 hours. Laura and I agreed that we will have Thanksgiving meals like that in the future. We were able to enjoy each course, enjoy the fellowship and not worry about the time. It was a Thanksgiving memory for the books.

What am I thankful for this Thanksgiving? I am thankful for family, for friends who treat you like family, for good food, for good fellowship, for salvation, for having a life of purpose, for God bringing to mind all that I have to be thankful for. Thank you God for all the blessings you bestow on me and my family!