Welcome to Friday 1.22.16

Be merciful, even as your Father is merciful - Luke 6:36

Welcome to Friday!

Earlier this week Ava glanced out the front of the car and noticed the sun.  It was so bright and beautiful that it actually looked like a sunset.  She was so excited to see the sun.  We have had a number of over cast mornings, cloudy days, and rainy nights.  The sun was a welcome sight for her earlier in the week.  Today of course, the rain is coming down and the cold and chill are starting to set in.

Welcome to Friday!  How are you doing and how are things working out for you in this weird season of weather?  How was your week and how did things go for you during the course of the week?  Did you get to see the sun in your neck of the woods this week?  Are you expecting and anticipating snow this weekend?  I hope and pray that you are doing well and that things have gone well for you so far. 

This week has been filled with so many blessings and joys.  Last weekend, we enjoyed another great date.  The Friday before we went to Kiki's Chicken and Waffles, and that date was excellent.  The food was really good.  The waffles were fantastic and the chicken wings were more than enough, and absolutely delicious (hot, crispy and well seasoned).  This past date night, Trish and I took advantage of a Christmas gift and went out for dinner.  I had a great time with Trish all to myself.  That alone is the best part of the date.  We got a chance to just chat, reflect on the kids, laugh about memories and moments of the week, and just be together.  The food was really good too, but the conversation and the company were the best part of the night as usual.

On Saturday I spent time with my parents and my sisters.  We worked on a little wall that reminded me of the good ole days when I worked with daddy.  Only in most of the good ole days I used a mortar mixer and not a mortar hoe, and on the day after I wasn't realizing that certain muscles hadn't been used in years.  After that Trish and I took the girls out for a surprise and had a nice family lunch at Fatz.  The best part was the fact that we all got to enjoy the food without the younger two putting on a show.  Ava and Emma were well behaved, ate their food (or in the case of Emma, politely sampled her siblings' food).  There were no issues, just conversation, fun, food, and a good time.

After lunch we headed out for dessert.  For dessert each of the older four had to recite Psalm 100 and Hebrews 11:1, and then we went for ice cream at Marble Slab.  The girls got to pick their own ice cream and toppings.  Gabbi wins the award for the strangest combination, Cotton Candy Milkshake with sprinkles.  Cassarra came in second with coffee flavored ice cream with cookie dough.  I shared with Sydney and Ava.  Sydney had sweet cream and cookie dough, and Ava had cotton candy.

Sunday the girls and I took a trip up to a great housewarming.  It was so much fun to ride up together and laugh on the ride.  They watched, and I listened to, Kung Fu Panda on the drive up and on the drive back.  Plus on the drive up Cassarra talked about a number of stories and things to keep me entertained and get me caught up on her thoughts and concerns.  On the way back we stopped to see my friend and her husband in Rockhill.  We stayed just long enough for Paige to get comfortable on the couch, and Ava and Emma to get comfortable bouncing around everywhere else.  All of the girls loved the visit and kept remarking about their house, especially the pool.  Why they were so fixated on the pool in the winter beats me, but okay.

On Monday Cassarra and Gabriella took a trip to look at Anderson College.  Cassarra enjoyed the trip and the visit to the campus.  She likes the program, the school, and the opportunity.  She even warmed to the idea of a school dress code and chapel attendance.  Gabbi wasn't thrilled about having to go, but as it turns out she actually got a good bit of insight and information out of the trip.  While Trish and the older two girls were off on their road trip, I had the four younger girls.  I spent a good bit of the day contemplating the question my cousin asked, "What are we doing to engage in the modern political landscape?  Are we doing our part in shaping the youth?"  Sydney and Paige shared what they knew about MLK Jr., why it was a holiday and the importance of his life and legacy.  I was happy to know that they thought of it as more than just a day off from school.  Ava and Emma enjoyed having their sisters home.  We managed to make good use of the day.  We had lunch together and then played games at Frankie's Fun Park.  Somehow we all managed to play games without arguing, without overspending, and without complaining.  And, we even navigated a bathroom break for the little people despite the crowded arcade.  I enjoyed watching Paige nearly hit the jackpot on a fishing game, watching Emma barely get the ski-ball over the hump and into a scoring hole, and especially watching Sydney and Ava play "Connect Four."  Ava won by the way.  Sydney did really well on some toss games, even outscoring my high score with ease.  For that matter so did Ava and Paige.  The game is fixed, so it didn't really bruise my ego :)

The rest of the week was packed with blessings and joy as well.  Especially Thursday when I met with Gabbi's guidance counselor.  She raved on Gabbi's grades, potential, PSAT scores, and all the good things she has heard about Gabbi from her teachers.  Gabbi just smiled and looked unimpressed with her own outstanding body of work and >4.0 GPA.  If you see her please applaud her work and ask her about her future plans for high school and college.  After the praise fest, we worked with her counselor on her upcoming schedule for next year, and the counselor encouraged Gabbi to start preparing for school because she was  definitely college material.  Then, later that afternoon Gabbi was inducted into the Spanish Honors Society at her school.  I am proud of all the girls and definitely had a lot to be excited and proud of for Gabbi during today's ceremony and parent conference.  Thursday also included Paige showing off a remarkable report card.  She was awarded recognition for her accomplishments on Friday morning.  It was also great on Thursday to hear Sydney and Cassarra reporting that their grades will be good as well.

In addition to all the other amazing blessings, I also received a tremendous blessing at work.  All the details aren't final, but I am so grateful to have a number of new opportunities coming my way.  And I'm so thankful for the prayers, encouragement and wisdom of friends and family that allowed me to thrive in 2015.  I'm praying that in all things involved in this new role I will be able to serve with wisdom, depend on God for guidance, receive his favor and glorify His name. 

Well, I hope you are well.  I hope that you are having a great day and that you have had a great week.  May the blessings of the Lord continue to pursue you, catch you, and create for you opportunities for breakthrough, crazy praise, and wild success.  May the God of peace give you refreshment and renewal.  Have a great weekend and as always,

Welcome to Friday!

I am so thankful for

• Friends and family
• Date nights
• coffee
• My friend buying me lunch on Thursday at Bible Study
  
• Time off with the girls on Monday
• Celebrating the life and legacy of MLK Jr.
  
• fun at the arcade
• Pizza
• Laughter (even in the not so funny moments after midnight)
• Emma doing her nails
• Emma doing her hair (the amount of grease used was epic)
• Ava taking foreverrrrr to get out of the car at school and then asking Paige to pick her up
  
• Chicken and macaroni dinner that Trish made
• Cassarra making dinner
• Ice cream at Cold Stone
• Lunch at Fatz
• Spending time with the girls
• Spending time with my parents and siblings
• The house warming party
• Sleeping late this morning
• Helping co-workers
• finally getting me email inbox down to a manageable number
• A new coat and gloves
• Watching Kung Fu Panda
• Fixing dinner for the girls on Monday

With love,
Cassius

Welcome to Friday! Christmas '15

Merry Christmas. 

I am glad that you are up and enjoying a wonderful day.  We are up and about with presents opened and unwrapped.   The dynamic is so interesting.  The big three seem so hard to impress with the 1st round of "Santa gifts."  Barely a smile cracks their stoic faces.  But the little 3 are giddy.  Ava sees her first gift, a toy dog in a pet carrier and the rest of the world disappears for hours.  She opens everything with exuberanceand excitement.   Paige got a 1st steps guitar.  She was thrilled to get it, but it was soon replaced by a Ken doll.  A $9 Ken doll stole the show.  And Emma rexeived a toy Barbie horse.  Her actions and reaction waslike she got the real thing.   It was great.

The older three perked up when they received clothes and more age appropriate fifts.  Cassarra got a coat she was after, Gabbi stock piled her movie collection and some much needed shirts.  Sydney asked and received clothes and a watch.  I wonder about our wisdom in giving a "white rabbit" a watch.  
I think Trish enjoyed the kids even more than ahe enjoyed her own gifts.  She was showered with boots, shirts, PJ's, and pictures. Plus a few staples for her audio collection  (Adele and Kirk Franklin).

I am walking in prep for eating twice at dinner (mom and my mother-in-law's).  The food will be epic, the fellowship excellent, and the memories legendary. 

As always, have a very Merry Christmas! 

--

Cassius 

I dare you to believe that God is who He says He is, and that He can do all He says that He can do. If only you will believe!

The Lord's will be done.   Acts 21:14

In case you didn't hit the Powerball

In case you didn't win the lottery:

Let me remind you and help you remember that all of Fort Knox, the Swiss accounts, the stock markets, and even Powerball cannot compare to the riches we find in wisdom, the joy we find in the fear of the Lord, and the radical, relentless and unending love we have through Christ Jesus . Prov 16:16 ESV

We have already hit the jackpot - enjoy the best payout ever! 

Welcome to Friday 1.8.16

O Lord, our Lord, your majestic name fills the earth!  Your glory is higher than the heavens.  Psalm 8:1

Welcome to Friday!

The brilliant, excellent, holy, Grand Artist, Perfect Weaver, Awesome Creator, and Sovereign Lord has hand crafted, planned and designed a beautiful day.  Outside of my window the sky is a bright mixture of grays and whites, powder blues, and just a pinch of sunshine here and there.  The rain drops like tears, and a crisp and jolting mist hangs in the morning air.

Good morning!  How are you doing today?  Are you having a great new start to a brand new and exciting year?  Did you make resolutions this year and if so how many?  How are they going?  Have you already started?  Do you have someone encouraging you to keep at it, work at it and meet your goals?  How was your first full week of the New Year?  Welcome to Friday!

We are doing well.  We are off to a really great start to this year.  We have good health, laughter, joy, God's favor and kindness, a wonderful and beautiful family, a bevy of extended family, and the best friends you can find.  We have had celebrations of success, new accomplishments and some good times at the dinner table already.

Sydney is off to a great start, getting acknowledged at school for motivating others, volunteering to read the school announcements, and continuing to serve in student government.  She has tremendous leadership skills already.

Paige returned to school and set a goal to learn cursive writing.  Her teacher was proud of her goal setting process, and so are we.  Paige also managed to complete her reading assignments over the holidays so she is ahead of the game in class.  She continues to be the good big sister coaxing and comforting a sometimes reluctant Ava out of the car and into her class.

Ava has only asked if she has to go to school once this week.  I think the thrill of getting yogurt in the morning, combined with sleeping late has helped with the back to school blues.  Not to mention we found this video series on "What's in the Bible" that she likes to read on the way to school.  Today she is excited because I told her that I would be here at home when she got home from school.

Gabbi and Cassarra are doing well.  They made it out to the Y with Sydney and Paige earlier this week.  The time is ticking down on our big senior.  She seems to get more and more excited each passing week.  In fact the other day she mentioned just how quickly things would really end for her.  They both have wasted no time getting back into the swing of things, with studies, practice, and routines.  

Emma is doing well.  She managed to sleep through the night a few times without coming into our room, a true blessing.  She also managed to go back to sleep and stay asleep a few times when I took her back to her room.  Emma is entertaining me this morning with dolls, books, trying to help me type, and asking me when will we go to lunch.  We were having a really good time until Trish got ready to leave the house.  Once Trish got ready to head out, the party and fun with Emma came to a halt.  I was clearly given my rank in the pecking order.

Trish has been working on a lot of new projects including filling up scrap books, and making calendars.  One project includes so many memories that I can't wait to see the final product.  It was fun looking at the pictures she has collected for this project and thinking about the memories that were behind each photo.  It was also so amazing to see how much attention she puts into details, and how much she can do with photography.  In fact we took pictures after church on Sunday and she was able to point out little details in the colors on the wall that I didn't notice.  She turned on and off features of the camera and showed just how drastic the color variation can be between simple settings.

Psalm 7:17

I will praise the Lord according to his righteousness: and will sing praise to the name of the Lord most high.

I am praising God and grateful for this week an these and other blessings:

• A beautiful family
• Great friends
• Taking family photos on Sunday at the house
• Trying to get Emma to sit still was a challenge
• Some fun candid shots
• Lots of blurry or silly photos due to laughter
•  A great start to the New Year
• Spending time in worship and service at Manna Station
• Fun and laughter at the dinner table
• Taking photos with Trish and the girls
• Time spent with my sister chatting, catching up and just talking
• Coffee with Trish
• Working out at the Y 
• Once with Sydney and Paige this week
• Once just working out earlier on my own
• Catching up with my neighbor and talking about schools, family, friends and children
• Getting a day off from work
• Delicious Philly Cheese Steaks from my cousin
• Eating a Philly Cheese Steak that was so good you had to really debate sharing
• Generosity and kindness of my cousin
• Winning 4 of 5 games of basketball this week
• Experimenting with zucchini pasta
• Making smoothies with Paige
• One morning Paige and I made smoothies to share
• When I returned back from upstairs she was sipping the final drops
• Laughing at Ava and Emma, especially Emma's mispronunciation of the Nut Cracker
• Chef Sydney making breakfast
• Gabbi made dinner on Wednesday night
• She made the most delicious macaroni and cheese
• She also made meatloaf that was awesome
• Watching the girls play with dolls, laugh and mimic what they see and hear
• They get so creative and serious

This has been a really good week.  I have had laughter, joy, help, encouragement, fun and love.  I am praying that you are doing well and that you will have and absolutely blessed and joyful day.  I hope that you are able to enjoy the rest of the day, and that you are then able to get some rest, refreshment and time with loved ones this weekend.  May you have a thrilling and adventurous weekend, and as always, 

Welcome to Friday!

God of comfort and strength, God of hope and love, God of power and eternal life - 

hold us tight and give us the comfort of your presence, the strength of your Spirit, 

the hope of your promises, the joy of your love, the power of your Word, 

and the gift - oh the precious gift - of eternal life!

Welcome to Friday! - 1.1.2016

May God be gracious to us and bless us and make his face to shine upon us.  Psalm 67:1 (ESV)

Welcome to Friday!

Happy New Year!  O yeah, with great excitement, eager anticipation, and high hopes I am entering this New Year with joy, faith, and a powerful, happy, blessed, and stubborn belief that the God of all creation, the Eternal and Everlasting, is doing great things for us this year.  Welcome to Friday!

How are you doing?  How was your Christmas holiday weekend?  How was your week that followed the joyous and blessed holy day of Christmas?  How did things go for you this past week? What were you up to and what were you able to get done?  Did you have fun with family and friends during the week?  Were you able to get ready for the end of the year?  What did you do to ring in the New Year?  Did you watch the ball drop, watch your eyelids, watch in prayer, or some other family tradition?  

As you look back on the last week of 2015, what was your favorite part?  What was your greatest spiritual blessing, and what was your biggest accomplishment?  Where did you experience an answer to prayer?  What did you learn about yourself and about God this year?  

This has been a great week, a fitting end to an absolutely blessed year.  I spent most of the week on vacation.  I had to work on Wednesday, but otherwise I have been at home lounging, enjoying Trish and the girls, eating (too much), sleeping later, and watching movies.  My one day at work was quick and enjoyable.  I was able to catch up on emails, complete a few year end tasks, close up the books on the team projects, and get off on time.  

At home Ava and Emma have seemingly enjoyed our time together.  I've played Connect Four, Candyland, and hide and seek.  They were a blast.  Ava won most of our games of Candyland.  Like her father, she doesn't mind sharing with you that you did not win.  Trish and I got to do some after Christmas shopping, took a few coffee dates, had some quiet time and a nice dinner together this week.  Cassarra, Paige and Sydney enjoyed some extra time in Georgetown.  Gabbi, Ava and Emma enjoyed their post Christmas time back in Columbia.  Gabbi and Emma had appointments with the dentist after Christmas, so their stay wasn't as long.  We tried to make their week fun by taking them with us shopping and also with a few treats here and there.

I am so excited for this coming year.  We rang in the New Year with our own celebration at home.  We had some finger foods and snacks.  The girls watched the ball drop, but I missed it.  I was awake, but... long story.  I worship God and give thanks for so many wonderful things in 2015.  My favorite moment of 2015 was spending time with Trish at the Weekend to Remember marriage conference in Hilton Head.  It was a powerful renewal weekend.  I had my beautiful, gorgeous and awesome wife all to myself.  We explored scripture, learned about marriage and grace, experienced forgiveness, enjoyed conversation, watched sunrises and sunsets over the water, and slept late with no kids waking us up.  It was... great!  I can't wait to do it again this year.  I enjoyed the lessons on marriage, scripture, forgiveness, covenant commitment to fidelity, hope, and legacy.  But, even more than these I enjoyed the time with the "one my heart loves."  

I'm not certain what I would consider to be my greatest accomplishment.  At work it was finishing my first year as an interim manager of the new team, surviving numerous changes, and completing a difficult certification.  At home I'm not certain what I'd say either.  The biggest accomplishment might be completing a Bible study plan for myself, with Trish and one with the girls and then realizing that there is so much more I should be doing with my family.  I'd also count as a major accomplishment getting Ava to school and out of the car on her first day of this school year, and her last day of this year before Christmas break.  

Like you, I have countless places that God has done something amazing and answered prayers.  One of the greatest spiritual blessings was seeing "War Room" and watching it motivate Cassarra to pray.  Seeing Trish's Thanksgiving tradition spur Cassarra to create a collage of turkeys and leaves decorated with words of gratitude.  Another place of great blessing was having the opportunity to serve as a part of an Emmaus of the Midlands team.  There I watched God's answer to frequent prayers for softened hearts and open minds.  He turned burly, emotionally private men, into a caring, teary eyed group receptive to grace and the love of Christ.  Sometimes, I am amazed at the end of the year when I look back and think of all of the prayers and answers.  We had countless spiritual blessings and answered prayers.  A few answers that stand out in my mind are: 

• A prayer that a friend and his wife would stick it out and fight for their marriage, and right now they are doing the hard, but promising work of staying together and working it out.
• A new car.  Okay, so Trish was really the lead prayer warrior and researcher on this one, but it was an answer that I witnessed.  
• An AC unit.  We had the second AC unit go out on us in as many summers.  This time, we prayed for the right company and technician.  In the process I met a man who believed in God, gave us a discount on the unit and installation, and shared his faith, prison ministry and prayer ministry with me.  Not to mention he later did some work for our company office.
• Back to school shopping.  At the end of the summer we needed a way to pay for car repairs, home repairs, medical stuff, life in a family of eight and back to school clothes.  Trish must have jump started the prayers, because when I joined her the battle was nearly done.  I received a financial blessing two weeks before the kids needed clothes for school

I learned that worry creates more problems and solves none, and to trust God more.  I should say, I learned and I am still learning to "not worry about anything, but in everything with prayer."

I am so thankful for:

• joy
• hope
• love
• friendship
• parents
• siblings
• in-laws
• nieces and nephews
• co-workers
• vacation from work
• a job
• a home filled with peace and love
• fun and laughter
• dates this week
• dinners at the table
• babysitters and date nights
• devotional time, even those that go horribly wrong
• daddy/daughter time
• spending time with my parents
• talking with my daddy and hearing some of his life story
• looking through old photo albums
• getting a book from my nephew about one of his heroes
• seeing my siblings at Christmas
• visiting with family over the holidays
• Christmas cards
• Christmas sights, sounds, prayers, and study
• Christmas joy and presents
• watching the girls open their gifts
• Ava and Emma's laughter
• Sydney's smile when she opened one of her gifts
• playing with a remote control drone
• setting up my model Mustang collection in the office
• working out at the Y this week - trying to offset some of the holiday treats
• great holiday treats
• holiday candies and homemade cakes
• turkey, ham, stuffing and trimmings at Christmas dinner
• safe travel to and from Georgetown
• the girls having time with their cousins and family in Georgetown
• a sunny day this week
• seeing friends over the holidays
• coffee
• peppermint
• peppermint milkshakes

I hope that you are doing well and that you had a great week and an absolutely excellent holiday (Christmas and New Year).  I pray that the spirit of joy, love, and peace will continue to abide with you throughout this season and the entire year.  May God work wonders in your life.  Happy New Year, and as always...

Welcome to Friday!