Steadfastness Through Trails

2 Count it all joy, my brothers,

when you meet trials of various kinds,

3 for you know that the testing

of your faith produces steadfastness.

4 And let steadfastness have its full effect,

that you may be perfect and complete, lacking in nothing.

(James 1: 2-4, ESV)

Why I believe I am a Successful Man?

1) God – With God in my life I have success. He walks with me through all the ups and downs of my life. He has always been there with me and it is because of my God that I have all the blessings in my life.


2) Parents – My parent too, have been with me through ups and downs. Through victories and defeats in sports and schooling. I believe that I see God as a great heavenly father, because he provided me with a great earthly father. While I continue to learn to be a father myself and am leaning you my dad. I lack patience, but I see a considerable amount of this in my dad. So, I hope that I will eventually develop more patience.


3) Wife – God has given me an amazing wife. She supports most of my decisions and judgments while helping me through others. She is always there for me and provides me with unending love.


4) Daughter – God has given my wife and I a beautiful daughter that can light up a room with her smiles (already as a five month old, I will need a lot of restraint in 15 years.) Have a child has showed me how much I lack in patience, but because of the above three I will get better with this and come out all the better.


5) Family and Friends – My wife and I have a great circle of family and friends that would do almost anything for us and that we would do almost anything for. Through my friends I have been pushed to grow as a person, a husband, a father, and a follower of Jesus. For these friends I am extremely thankful.


No where do I consider money, job, titles, or social standing part of success. I have these things, but tomorrow I may not, but I will always have my family and friends. But, most importantly I have God who holds me up through all that life brings. I am extremely thankful for all my life has brought me and I look forward to a future full of faith, hope and love.

Number Our Days

9 For all our days pass away under your wrath;

we bring our years to an end like a sigh.

10 The years of our life are seventy,

or even by reason of strength eighty;

yet their spant is but toil and trouble;

they are soon gone, and we fly away.

11 Who considers the power of your anger,

and your wrath according to the fear of you?

12 So teach us to number our days

that we may get a heart of wisdom.

(Psalm 90:9-12, ESV)

The birth of Jesus foretold

Luke 1:26-38 ESV

In the sixth month the angel Gabriel was sent from God to a city of Galilee named Nazareth, to a virgin betrothed to a man whose name was Joseph, of the house of David. And the virgin's name was Mary. And he came to her and said, "Greetings, O favored one, the Lord is with you!" But she was greatly troubled at the saying, and tried to discern what sort of greeting this might be. And the angel said to her, "Do not be afraid, Mary, for you have found favor with God. And behold, you will conceive in your womb and bear a son, and you shall call his name Jesus. He will be great and will be called the Son of the Most High. And the Lord God will give to him the throne of his father David, and he will reign over the house of Jacob forever, and of his kingdom there will be no end." And Mary said to the angel, "How will this be, since I am a virgin?" And the angel answered her, "The Holy Spirit will come upon you, and the power of the Most High will overshadow you; therefore the child to be born will be called holy—the Son of God. And behold, your relative Elizabeth in her old age has also conceived a son, and this is the sixth month with her who was called barren. For nothing will be impossible with God." And Mary said, "Behold, I am the servant of the Lord; let it be to me according to your word." And the angel departed from her.
(Luke 1:26-38, ESV)

The Good Shepherd

7 So Jesus again said to them, "Truly, truly, I say to you, I am the door of the sheep.8 All who came before me are thieves and robbers, but the sheep did not listen to them.9 I am the door. If anyone enters by me, he will be saved and will go in and out and find pasture.10 The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy. I came that they may have life and have it abundantly.11 I am the good shepherd. The good shepherd lays down his life for the sheep.12 He who is a hired hand and not a shepherd, who does not own the sheep, sees the wolf coming and leaves the sheep and flees, and the wolf snatches them and scatters them.13 He flees because he is a hired hand and cares nothing for the sheep.14 I am the good shepherd. I know my own and my own know me,15 just as the Father knows me and I know the Father; and I lay down my life for the sheep.16 And I have other sheep that are not of this fold. I must bring them also, and they will listen to my voice. So there will be one flock, one shepherd.17 For this reason the Father loves me, because I lay down my life that I may take it up again.18 No one takes it from me, but I lay it down of my own accord. I have authority to lay it down, and I have authority to take it up again. This charge I have received from my Father." (John 10:7-18, ESV)

Make strait the paths

during the high priesthood of Annas and Caiaphas, the word of God came to John the son of Zechariah in the wilderness. And he went into all the region around the Jordan, proclaiming a baptism of repentance for the forgiveness of sins. As it is written in the book of the words of Isaiah the prophet, "The voice of one crying in the wilderness: 'Prepare the way of the Lord, make his paths straight. Every valley shall be filled, and every mountain and hill shall be made low, and the crooked shall become straight, and the rough places shall become level ways, and all flesh shall see the salvation of God.'"
(Luke 3:2-6, ESV)