See the Blog Post Intro Here
Faith
As for me and my family, we will serve the Lord. Joshua 24:15
This year, I set out to read through the Bible again…this time using Eugene Peterson’s Daily Message. (The first time I made it through using John Maxwell’s Leadership Bible–where he takes a closer look at the scriptures through a leadership lens–I highly recommend it!) I’m thankful for the simplicity in Peterson’s translation, and I see a difference in my daily life when I’m not in the Word. As of today, I’m on track to finish the year strong…but it’s taken many “catch-up” days to get there! Regular time in the Bible & prayer makes a difference for me. When I’m not close to God, I find that I become more selfish…
We also give of ourselves to support our church—University Baptist Church. We are very thankful for the leadership of our Senior Pastor, Steve Laufer. Dr. Laufer followed Dr. Robert Creech, who was with UBC for nearly 25 years. The track record for Pastors following extremely long-tenured Pastors is generally very short…so we’re very thankful for Pastor Steve and his leadership. This year, I’ve been able to support him even more in my role as Chair of our Deacon Fellowship. I’m thankful for the men and women of our Deacon Fellowship, who have taken our service to the next level in implementing a new role as Weekend Bible Study group liaisons. We are also in good position with our new Deacons who will be ordained next month and come in with a brand-new orientation and mentoring programs! The future is bright for UBC, as we celebrate our 40th anniversary in 2014. And I would be remiss if I didn’t mention how thankful we are to be debt-free as a church, following our “Free by 40” campaign’s smashing success this year—praise God!
Jennifer and I also serve as Sunday School teachers for 4th & 5th graders (Cody’s class) at our church. We are blessed to lead and learn from our students each week. Jennifer also leads the Middle School “Crave” group—designed to build relationships with God and with one another. Jennifer definitely uses her SHAPE (Spiritual gifts; Heart; Abilities; Personality; Experience) there every Sunday night.
Family
Honor your father and mother, so you can live a long life. Exodus 20:12
I am very thankful for our family: my wife, Jennifer, and our kids: Katy (13), Cody (11), and Tanner (7). Two weeks ago, we spent a great week with our family and my parents at Disneyworld…making memories for the kids with grandparents the same way I did 30 years ago, visiting Disneyland at Christmas with both sets of my grandparents!
Extended family relationships continue to be important to us. We start each year, planning visits to Corpus Christi (my family) and Lamesa (Jennifer’s family). Then, we determine our other family vacations or camping trips…but our priority remains on family first…something we want our kids to understand and value. We were supposed to spend Thanksgiving with the Pyle family in Corpus Christi this year, but the flu is running through our family…so we’ll have Thansgiving meal at home, prepared by Cracker Barrell!
Fun
The joy of the Lord is our strength. Nehemiah 8:10
We continue to enjoy life as a family. We spend a lot of time watching one another with sports. The boys watch Katy play Volleyball, Cross Country, and Track. They also listen to her practicing her clarinet. This year, she was named to our Region’s Top Band! Meanwhile, Katy gets to watch both Cody and Tanner play Flag Football, Baseball, and Basketball. When we’re not on the fields or in the stands, we’re often in our cul de sac, throwing a ball, shooting hoops, or just hanging out.
It’s been a fun 2013 for the Pyle Family—Brady’s Bunch!