I try this all the time, I know I would love to blog more, but I don't.  I'm guessing there are more blog posts written around the world during the first part of January every year.  I felt there was too much to my list for a simple Facebook post, so I wanted to share here.  I challenged our church to focus on the positive things God had done in their lives over the last year rather than just focus on where improvements needed to be made (aka resolutions).  This is my list.  It is no particular order because I don't think I can rank most of them in importance.  Some are obviously more important than others, but most are the same or close to it.  I also decided to not use any blessings that happen all the time, no matter how great they are.  Things like church growth, safety for family, love of friends, and other things that are definitely blessings I am no listing because I wanted to focus on special things specific to the past year.

For those who don't care to read descriptions, here is my list.  I will write more after the list.

Wes accepted Christ

Baptizing Jayden

Wes and I finding an activity special to us (Battle Block Theater)

Jayden surviving first year in Middle School

Brother engaged to what seems to be the perfect girl for him (just happy for him)

Triplet Thanksgiving Vacation

Disney Vacation

Lake Vacation

Mexico Mission Trip

Spiritual growth of people who were thought to be lost causes by most

Building Occupancy done

Jeep

Missed October sickness I have had for the last several years

Cowboys have a good season, Harvick earns his first championship in style

To say I have been blessed in the previous year is a gross understatement of what actually happened.  I'm pretty sure I could not have asked for anything more.  Thank you to all the people who were involved in making my 2014 so wonderful, I pray yours was as good or better.  

Wes accepting Christ was obviously the most blessed thing in the year.  The fact that he did it on the same date Jayden did just a few years ago made it even more special.  I don't push my kids to make that decision.  I leave it to them to hear the message from us, from their friends, and from their teachers (Thanks Mrs. Kirk and Mrs. Miller).  Jayden was talking to Wes instead of them going to sleep and Wes asked Christ to be his Lord and Savior.  We talked to him afterwards and let him explain exactly what all that meant and he did a great job.  Nothing worried more as a parent than the eternal destination of my kids, now I know they will be with me and Jesus.  I am blessed.

I love baptizing believers, especially now that I do it in the river like Christ did.  This was a huge year for the people who got baptized, but that is an occurrence that God keeps repeating year after year.  Getting to baptize the Jaydster was extra special though.  It's a real perk of my position that I didn't take for granted.

I work to find things that are special for me and each boy individually, I think the time I spend with them on an individual basis is always special.  Finding a stupid game that Wes loves and we can play together, just the two of us, was special.  My hands have been in pain all year from all the high-fives I have received in celebration.

Our school system decided to put 5th graders in middle school, which is in the same building of the high school.  Like any parent, we were a little worried about dropping our 10 year old off at school where the seniors were hanging around their cars making out in the parking lot.  He has always rolled with the punches though, and seems unfazed by the enormous responsibility being forced upon him.

Nathan found himself a wonderful girl, and is now engaged.  My blessing for next year will be getting to do the wedding.  He is a good guy and I couldn't be happier for him and them.  His happiness is a blessing to me.

I love the triplets!  I enjoy the presence of my sister and brother-in-law also.  I don't get to see my family often, and the triplets I had spent less than a week with over the last 4 years.  This Thanksgiving we got to spend a week with them, and have a terrific Thanksgiving with tons of family and friends I don't get to see often.  The kids turned 4 yesterday, and I am amazed at how wonderful a job Charlotte and Nick are doing with them.  Not that they aren't capable, but the kids are triplets and AMAZING.  I joke with people that the first child is a trick to make parents think they should have a second because they will be just as good, then the second kid is a warning to not have any more.  The Barkleys solved this problem by having all three as first children.

Jess gives up a lot of things to be with me in the ministry.  Anything I can do to make her happy is worth it.  I was against going to Disney this year and I was WRONG.  We had never taken a family vacation with just us.  We decided to do it this year because we felt the boys were the perfect age and it wouldn't be the same if we waited much longer.  We were right.  It was the perfect vacation.  Perfect from top to bottom.  Everything from the weather to plane rides.  I doubt my boys will ever again have the perfect seating at events, the perfect location for the hotel room, the perfect timing for Star Wars at Hollywood Studios, timing for crowds, timing to get to fight Darth Vader on stage.  The boys will never forget their vacation, and will probably be disappointed if we go there again because it cannot be as perfect.

Speaking of things Jess gives up, none is more hard on her than being away from family.  Every second she gets to be with them is crucial to her survival.  We see them pretty much every summer, but almost had to miss out this year due to our Disney vacation.  The family came all the way out this direction to where I was able to take the extra days off and hit the lake with the family.  Jess needs this more than people can possibly imagine.  Thanks to her family for working so hard to spend time with her (I know you all love her just as much as she loves you).

I haven't been on the mission field in a long time.  Returning to Mexico was a huge blessing to me, and a reminder of how blessed I actually am.  Getting to do rock work and carpentry because people don't know how untalented I am with tools was fun.  Getting to know the people I was with was a real blessing.  Getting to know the Swicks better and crossing the border with my buddy Garrett every day was a blessing.  Knowing that God in his infinite wisdom decided to allow me to live in America was a humbling reminder of how blessed I am.  I can't list living here as a blessing because it happens every year, but people should stop complaining about our amazing country or go somewhere else.

As a pastor, a lot of the spiritual blessings happening in the church are more personal to me.  This past year I got to witness many people come to Christ, or back to church, or make real decisions to grow that people had been praying about for a long time.  Getting to see God work miracles in the lives of individuals and families that were "lost causes" this past year was a huge blessing.

We finally finished enough of the building to get our permanent occupancy.  We are fully legally able to use the building.  I never expected to be stuck in a building project my first year as pastor, but I have been through enough of them over the last 16 years that I know I don't really enjoy them.  They are stressful to all involved, cause tons of dissension, cost lots of money, and always leave you with more problems to fix.  It was a huge blessing to have the government decide we were good to go and up to code so that headache is gone.  Next year's blessing will be our final payment of the debt and be debt free again in March.

Not much explaining necessary, we were starting to look for a new vehicle when out of the blue God led someone to give us their Jeep because they were upgrading to a larger vehicle.  Within a month the car died we would have been in a major bind.  The Jeep being listed near the end of this list is a reminder that I did not put this in order.

I can't say good health for the last year, because it really happens relatively often.  The past five or six years though, I have come down with an bad upper respiratory sickness around October that seems to last most of the winter.  This is the first year in a while I did not get that.  I may get it again next year, but it was a real blessing not to have it in 2014.

It may seem a insignificant to some, but I care about da boys.  I have watched them fight through mediocre season after mediocre season.  Getting to smile while thinking about them this year was a blessing.  Hopefully they continue the amazing season they had through the playoffs, but that is 2015.  Along the same lines, I have been a Harvick fan for Nascar since he entered the sport.  He has been close many times over the last few years, but came up short.  He won race after race to win the championship and he deserved it.  I don't care near as much as I will if the Cowboys can win Super Bowl in 2015, but it was a blessing to see someone rewarded for their hard work.  Although I didn't put these blessings in order, the sports blessings would probably be last, as they should.  If you read all of these, you have a lot of time on your hands, or you actually care about my life.  Either way, thanks for letting me relish in the wonderful year God gave me in 2014.  I can't wait to see where he'll take me this year!