PathToHoliness

As a University of Florida graduate I was as shocked as anyone to hear about head football coach, Urban Meyer, announcing his resignation yesterday. Now it sounds like he may just be taking a leave of absence. In any case, it sounds like he’s doing it for the right reasons and I’m hoping his players and fans will learn from it. He’s at the top of the game but decided his health and faith were more important than the job. Stress apparently plays a key role in the decision.

I know it’s easy to say that your health and faith are more important than your job but it isn’t easy to actually do something about it. I respect his decision and hope more people will make one like it.

We’re living in a society that seems to place constant pressure on people: to make money, to succeed, to buy things, to look a certain way and on and on and on. The reality is that none of that is as important as your faith and I think taking care of your health goes right along with it. God gives us our life and our health. I look at it as something to take care of as a way to honor Him. I’m also as guilty as anyone for not taking good care of my health and I’ve suffered from stress so I know what this is like.

My wife and I have our own business. We’ve had some good success with it and we’re very grateful for that. This year has been stressful. As we’ve become more successful with the business it has impacted our time and schedules. This summer I had to deal with a major health problem. So, we’ve been talking about it and making decisions based on it. Basically, we started the company to get away from the stress of corporate life. We don’t want to create our own. So, it’s time to look carefully at what we’re doing, how and why.

The new year promises to be a good one and my prayer is that we make good decisions and I pray the same for you and Coach Meyer.

Although a blizzard was forecast, it didn’t happen here and we made it to midnight Mass at the Cathedral. It was a beautiful Mass and best way to celebrate the birthday of Jesus Christ that I know of.

Of course family is also a very important part of Christmas and our daughters were home to go to Mass with us. After Mass we went up in front of the tabernacle for photos.

Then it was home for unwrapping presents and a very early breakfast before taking a long nap. I’m pretty sure I’ll be taking another one today too.

We all went on a great vacation this past week to Panama City Beach and on the way back visited my brother, Mark’s family. He and his wife have a beautiful baby boy we got to see for the first time. Of course we shot video and pictures like this clip of him with Carly’s iPhone.

So, it’s a beautiful day in mid Missouri. The snow finally got here so we’ve got a white Christmas. Merry Christmas to you and your families.

Hello from Panama City Beach, FL. It’s family vacation time and this morning we attended Mass at St. Bernadette Church. This is a view of the Altar before Mass.

After Mass the day care kids all got up in front of us and said a prayer and sang a song and presented the priest with a nice Christmas present. They were very cute.

I pray that you will all have a wonderful Advent week leading up to the birthday of our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ.

I just got home yesterday after a 12 day trip to Morocco, Egypt and Jordan. Let’s just say that going to Mass presented a big challenge. I was in Cairo over last weekend and had been assured that there was a Catholic church next to the hotel. It proved to be an Episcopal Cathedral after a couple of the guys in my group and I went there on Sunday for a 6pm Mass in English. There was actually supposed to be a Catholic church nearby. We walked for almost an hour trying to find it until we became uncomfortable with the neighborhood we were walking in at that point.

So, I didn’t make it to Mass and was highly disappointed. The closest I came to a church that I could identify as Catholic for the rest of the trip was the one pictured here that we passed on a highway in Cairo.

I am seriously looking forward to attending Mass today!

I’m currently on a trip with the U.S. Grains Council in Morocco with stops still to come in Egypt and Jordan.

Today I talked my group into stopping by a Catholic Church. This is Notre Dame de Lourdes de Casablanca. Unfortunately my schedule didn’t allow me to attend Mass.

Morocco is a mostly Muslim country but there are quite a few Catholics that are helping spread the faith.

One of my goals in traveling internationally has been to come home with an image of Mary from each country I visit. I was really thinking that wouldn’t happen in Morocco. However, in the back of the church there was a very nice plaster image of Mary holding Jesus. I bought it and made and hope I can get it home safely! That’s my miracle of the day.