I heard some statistics the other day that about 4% of the next generation will be Christ followers when their older.  This is really quite alarming.  I often think of the possible reasons, this is just one of them.

I really believe that the next generation wants a place to BE.  Our culture moves so fast there is not much time for the important things.  How many teens don’t have relationships with their parents?  How many teens have had the encouragement they need to feel confident in who they are and whom they belong to?  How many teens feel disconnected?

God intended us to be part of a family, a community, where you can BElong.  It seems that teens are looking for temporary fixes in all the stereotypes like drugs, alcohol, sexual relationships, video games, and any other thing that helps them feel part of something.

The only way we can change the statistic is offer that place:

• BE the parental/mentor figure to someone younger than you.  Give back.
• BE the encouragement they need to determine who they are and whom the BElong to…JESUS!
• BE the place where they are accepted regardless of their look or their background.
• BE the one who loves them.  Jesus told us to Love God & Love People.

We CAN make a difference.  I WILL help them find a place to BElong.

Kim’s birthday was right before Christmas this year and I wanted to take her somewhere fun for her special day.  One of my co-workers was telling me about this great website where you could get tickets to all kinds of shows for 1/2 price.  Who wouldn’t want tickets for 1/2 price?  So I went to GoldStar.com where you just create a free account and you have access to tons of events.  This is where I found tickets to Medieval Times, 1/2 price.  They regularly sell for $59.99 and we got them for $29.99.  I would recommend the site to anyone.

So Medieval Times was so much fun.  Dinner was really good, Dragon (Tomato) Soup, Garlic Bread, 1/2 of a Chicken, Spare Ribs, Potato, and an Apple Turnover. We were cheering for the Yellow Knight and he won the whole tournament. Most of all Kim loved her surprise and we had an amazing evening.   Here are some pictures from our event. We want to go to the Pirate’s Dinner Adventure next, which is also 1/2 off…

Medieval Times

Christmas lights as my nephew Brandon would say are “beautiful”.  Kim & I had the opportunity to spend two nights (Fri & Sat) looking at them. We have decided that someday when we have the house and the bank roll we would like to show our Christmas spirit through an over the top house.  We went into a housing track in Brea, Ca. (right off the 57 & Lambert) where almost all houses were overly decorated.  There is nothing like waiting bumper to bumper to see the next amazing or beautifully lit house.  If you have a chance to get out this season to look at lights, check Brea out, it is definitely worth it.

So yesterday we had a surprise birthday for my nephew Brandon.  Kim made one of the most amazing cakes ever and she continues to surprise me with her creative ability.  Brandon was so excited that he had his own Backyardagains Bounce House.  He probably bounced for 3 hours outdoing any of the adults. Below is a pic of his cake and if you click on it, it will take you to other pictures from his party.

Sometimes life can just fly by you in a second. I have heard it described as a whirlwind and I definitely can relate with that. When I first got engaged everyone told us to just elope because it is so much easier, but I would respond by saying we want to an actual wedding where we can share it with our friends and families. I guess we had to learn the hard way; sometimes it takes that to learn, possibly even learn something about ourselves. Well, we are about 30 days out from the wedding date and it seems like we have everything still to do (check out our wedding website here). How did weddings go from something simple for friends and family to something that is so complex and can I mention, expensive!

You might be thinking how is that a whirlwind? I will fill in the blanks, what have I been doing the last couple months? I have launched four websites (www.fafc.org, www.uturnjrhigh.com, www.theavenuela.com, & www.kidzonepreschool.org), I am redoing the network infrastructure here is Florence Avenue from a copper back bone to a fiber back bone, and preparing and the technology for our new building, which happens to open the day after our wedding. I almost forgot the fun task to juggling four companies and contractors’, making sure everyone is on the same page and can complete all their responsibilities by the time specified.

I would almost say that I have been on an unintentional spiritual journey over the last six months. I know God put me here for a specific purpose but I never expected what it would require for me to accomplish all of this. I have definitely been learning to rely on him more for the strength that is needed to get through tough times. Thank you God!

There is just something about this song that intrigues me. I don’t know if its the lyrics or the music, or even the video itself. What do you think?

Here are the lyrics:
V1 – I close both locks below the window.
I close both blinds and turn away.
Sometimes solutions aren’t so simple.
Sometimes goodbye’s the only way, oh.

Chorus – And the sun will set for you
The sun will set for you.
And the shadow of the day,
Will embrace the world in gray,
And the sun will set for you…

V2 – In cards and flowers on your window,
Your friends all plead for you to stay.
Sometimes beginnings aren’t so simple.
Sometimes goodbye’s the only way, oh.

According to a good friend of mine (Jon Cobler), you can actually post a blog directly from Word 2007. So I wanted to get it a try because when I write a blog, I first write it in word so that I can take advantage of the grammar and spell check tools. So having the ability to just write a blog and press publish directly from Word is extremely useful.

For those who do not know already, I am engaged to the beautiful Kimberly.  Some of you may wonder how I proposed.  Well, here is the story…

If you know Kim, you know she is very creative and will make just about anything for her friends, just to make them smile if they are sick or for their birthday.  So I knew I had to do something that was as creative as she is.  The typical ideas that people use propose really just would not cut it with her, so that eliminated a sunset walk on the beach and a ring on a desert plate at a restaurant.  I got the feeling that she was expecting a proposal soon because her birthday, Christmas, New Years, and our 2 year anniversary of being together were all within a month.

For Kim’s birthday, all she asked from me is to take her shopping.  So I did just that, on the 17 of December, the day after her birthday, I arrived at her house with 2 dozen red roses which she assumed were for her birthday.  I informed Kim that I was making her a birthday present and she had no idea what it was.  I put about 15 hours into making a homemade scrapbook of our past and present.  Some of the images were from winter camps, weddings, birthdays, and our travels.  I kept telling her that my gift really wasn’t all that special or great so we needed to do something to make it that much better.  She suggested that we set the ambiance.  So with that in mind we decided to wait until later in the day to open the gift. So we had lunch at Red Robin and went to Brea Mall for her birthday shopping spree.  Around 4:00 pm, we finally left the mall and decided that it was time for her to open the gift.  We were off to set the ambiance, I asked her to direct me to a park that we had been to in the past, though I know exactly how to get to the park.  This made it seem more spontaneous even though it was planned.  If you have ever been to Summit House in Brea, there is a small park on the corner off of Bastanchury Rd & State College Blvd.  The mood had been set, sunset over looking the city of Brea.  We walked over to a park bench, sat down, and Kim opened the gift.

As she went through the scrapbook we laughed at all of the inside jokes and when she turned to the last page she expected it to say, “will you marry me?” , but it was not there and she was a little let down.  She then noticed that there was a small envelop on the back of the scrapbook that was all folded up.  So as she opened it, I got on my knee, pulled out the ring box out of my sweatshirt pocket and told her how much I love her and that I wanted to spend the rest of my life with her.  I then asked, “Will You Marry Me?” And of course she said yes or else I wouldn’t be engaged.

If you look at the pictures, the image of the ring is the one that I got here.  The setting of the diamonds is called Past, Present, & Future.  So the scrapbook represented our past, our present, and our future.  I know it’s a little sappy but was perfect for Kim.

Images of the Scrapbook

Now that Thanksgiving has passed, Christmas is rapidly approaching. One of the things that really make it feel like Christmas to me, is Christmas music. In the movie The Rookie, with Dennis Quaid, there is a scene in the movie where Christmas music is being played the summer. Someone comments on it and the lady that’s playing the music says Christmas music is too good to only listen to one month a year. This is exactly how I feel. Thanks to XM Radio, I have had the opportunity to listen to the holiday favorites for the last three weeks. On top of that, they have five stations dedicated to the Christmas music.

• XM103 – Holly
• XM104 – Holiday Traditions
• XM105 – Music City Holiday
• XM106 – Classic Christmas
• XM107 – Special X-Mas

XM Radio has a free trial if you want to check it out. If you are like me and enjoy Christmas music, what is you favorite Christmas Song? My favorite song is “Carol of the Bells”.

Transiberian Orchestra – Carol of the Bells

I have heard a ton of rumors about a Google phone and how it was going to change the way the the wireless business does business. From their track record we could expect nothing less. Thanks to Terry Storch who found this video, I am really happy and really sad at the same time. Sad because there will be no Google phone but stoked on the Google Mobile OS.