Christmas 2012: Counting My Blessings

One of my favorite scenes from Bing Crosby's movie:  'White Christmas'  is the scene where he is in the kitchen with his lady friend and he sings:  'I fall asleep counting my blessings.' to her.

I have been considering for some time now how blessed I am.  As 2012 draws to a close I am taking inventory of what all my Lord, God, and Savior has done for me.

• I have been blessed to have a career playing and coaching tennis for most of my life. I have further been blessed to be able to leverage my coaching opportunities as a vehicle to present the gospel of Christ to those within my sphere of influence.

•  It seems that nearly every month (the past few years) my precious wife and I have faced struggles both financial and spiritual.  BUT GOD has always provided for those needs, many times in dramatic, miraculous ways.

• I know this sounds crazy:  But I praise God for these constant 'storms' in our life because these storms have shaped  us and have kept us constantly seeking Our Lord's Face.

• Over the course of the past two years I have shed over 60 pounds.   My diabetes and high blood pressure conditions have virtually disappeared.  It's all by the grace of God that this has been accomplished because I have been heavy for close to twelve years and have not been able to lose weight under my own power.  God has answered my prayers and restored my health.

• God has given me a completely new heart regarding some difficult relationships in my life and I have learned to truly love with the love of Christ this year.  I am still a work in progress as we all are.  But Praise God we are a NEW CREATION in HIM.

•  I have an amazing wife who loves the Lord as I do and has dedicated her life to serving HIM by caring for her family and all those around her.  She IS the hands and feet of Christ.

• God never allows both Monica and I to be discouraged at the same time:  We constantly lift each other up.  My wife is SUCH a blessing to this family. I love her dearly and thank the Lord for her daily.

• I have two precious boys in my life:  Connor and Elijah.  God has blessed me with the opportunity to mentor them and impact their lives FOR HIM and I am not taking this opportunity lightly.   

•  I have recently been blessed with a circle of Godly men that I meet with on a weekly basis to study God's Word in fellowship and prayer.

•  God has connected us with a sweet precious network of families who love us and encourage us.

• There are numerous other blessings in my life, but the GREATEST BLESSING of all is that in the beginning was the WORD and the WORD was WITH GOD and the WORD WAS GOD..  And then the WORD was made flesh and dwelt among us.

Today is the day we celebrate the birth of our Lord and Savior: Jesus Christ.  We recognize that today is probably not the exact day Jesus was born, but we choose to celebrate Christ's birth today.  This is the day that the Lord hath made:  We shall rejoice and be glad in it....!

Happy Birthday, Jesus.   God:  have mercy on us and bless us...!  We look forward to the day YOU will come again, riding on the clouds, shining like the sun, at the trumpet call.

Praise You, King Jesus.  YOU are the Lord of Lords and the King of Kings.   Our Hope, our Rest is in YOU.  You are Our Strong Tower and Our Refuge.  You are the Prince of Peace.  We Love You Lord and Praise Your Holy Name Forever and Ever:

AMEN.

A Message to my Brothers and Sisters in Christ Jesus

The need for a constant and fervent prayer covering over America grows daily. 


Dear Friends,

Do not give up hope and sink into despair over the course of our country.  Call upon the name of the Lord...!

What, You have been?   Good, Keep Calling...!  Be Steadfast.

'BE' the letter mentioned in 2 Corinthians 3:2-6.

God IS a rewarder of those who diligently seek HIM.  Do not faint and lose heart.  I love you, brothers and sisters, and Jesus does, too:  STAND WITH ME...!

'ARMOR UP' today and everyday.

We MUST stand in the gap for our families, each other, and our country.

Tell God constantly how you feel:  Pray without ceasing!   1 Thes 5:17

Listen for God's reply:  Read the bible day and night.  Psalm 1:2

God's Words are LIFE and TRUTH.

Your brother in Christ,

~ Coach Sam

Lamentations: Trying to make sense of it all a day later...

Woke up still deeply disturbed by the events of yesterday.  Thinking how I would feel if I would have lost  any of my precious family at that school in Connecticut.  Today I am grieving along with those who tragically lost a loved one yesterday.  God reminded me of a verse in Lamentations that tells us His tender mercies are renewed daily. Sadly, I do not feel renewed.  But I know the disconnect is not on God's end, but mine. Pray for me.


 Dear Friend, please consider the following verses:


21  This I recall to my mind, therefore have I hope.
22  It is of the LORD'S mercies that we are not consumed, because his compassions fail not.
23  They are new every morning: great is thy faithfulness.
24  The LORD is my portion, saith my soul; therefore will I hope in him.
25  The LORD is good unto them that wait for him, to the soul that seeketh him.
26  It is good that a man should both hope and quietly wait for the salvation of the LORD.




I read all of Lamentations 3.  Verse 3:57 was also particularly comforting... Thou drewest near in the day that I called upon thee: thou saidst, Fear not.

Friends, we must not fear.  We must not despair.  We must humble ourselves, get down on our knees, and humbly SEEK HIM.

Normal day to day operations can cease for a while.  Life can at the very least slow down a bit while we take stock at what has just transpired in the past 48 hours.

It is good that a man should both hope and quietly wait for the salvation of the Lord.

Yesterday was a dark day on many levels. But the bible tells us to not fear, to not be discouraged, but to have hope and quietly wait for God's salvation.

TRUTH WINS in the end.  Truth wins.

So lets 'armor up' for another day of spiritual warfare, my friends.  I am praying for you.  I ask you again, please pray for me.  I love you, and so does Jesus.

Heavenly Father,

Lord take our burdens.  Lord lift us up out of the despair that is closing in around us.  Renew our hearts, Lord.  Father God, Thank you for loving us and for sending Your son, Jesus to our rescue.   Comfort us and give us rest during this dark hour.  Lord please bless the families of the victims with your tender mercies.

Father God, let us be forever changed by this wound.  Let us love harder, deeper, and stronger.  Let us never take our loved ones for granted for one single second.  I love you Lord, and I praise You in this storm.

And I pray these things in the power of the precious holy name of Jesus.

AMEN.



TO BE CONTINUED....