Religion & Faith

By far, one of the easiest ways for couples to kill their marriage is when they stop pursuing one another.

Your goal everyday should be to work just as hard to keep your spouse as you did to win him/her in the first place. Let me explain.

Before marriage you put a LOT of effort into trying to win your future husband’s/wife’s love and trust.  You spent hours communicating. You sent cards, gifts and flowers regularly. You pursued your future spouse and made it your goal to win them to be yours.

Sadly, as I’ve seen too many times, a few months (or sometimes years) after the marriage, you quit pursuing one another as you once did. For some reason couples quit dating one another, pursuing one another and putting the other first. Maybe it’s because you get lazy. Maybe it’s because deep down you think, ”I’ve won him. He’s mine, so why must I continue to do all those things and work as hard as I did?” Personally, I think it’s because couples just get “comfortable” in their marriage … and that’s not good.

When you stop working to bless your spouse … problems begin to arise, cracks begin to form and the marriage relationship begins to break down. Due to frustrations you begin to close up and close one another off. You go from being soul-mates where intimacy was felt, to being simply roommates who just live together. When all this happens, needs quit being met and a couple is left wondering … “what happened to our marriage,” and “where did the person go that I married?” 

LISTEN … it is by far one of the most damaging things you can do in your marriage … not pursuing your spouse as hard to keep them as you did to win them!

Want to bless your marriage? Every morning when you wake up, ask yourself, “What can I do today to bless my spouse?”  THEN DO IT! Don’t get complacent in your marriage.

Husbands and wives … pursue your spouse … today!

“A man’s greatest treasure is his wife, she is a gift from the Lord.” Proverbs 18:22

The wildfires in Colorado are so dangerous that officials in Colorado Springs can’t get close enough to assess the damage.  More than 32,000 residents were forced to evacuate the city, as were students of the U.S. Air Force Academy.  Surveying the damage, Colorado Gov. John Hickenlooper said, “It was like looking at the worst movie set you could imagine.  It’s almost surreal.”  Colorado Springs Fire Chief Richard Brown called the blaze “a firestorm of epic proportions.”

Meanwhile, wildfires in Montana have caused hundreds of families to be evacuated, while a blaze in central Utah has destroyed 56 structures and burned 72 square miles.  Federal support is being provided to officials battling fires in Alaska, Arizona, California, Colorado, Montana, Nevada, New Mexico, Utah and Wyoming.

Just want to say a BIG thank you to all those who sent boxes of supplies for our trip to Honduras. We were overwhelmed with boxes and will have so many things to share with the poor in Honduras.

You have blessed out trip. Again, thank you SO much.

~Trey

What is the status of illegal immigrants the day after the Supreme Court’s landmark ruling?  The Court rejected Arizona’s law that made it a crime for illegal immigrants to seek work and that authorized warrantless arrests of those suspected of committing deportable offenses.  However, police are still permitted to check the immigration status of individuals they suspect of being here illegally; those who lack legal status can then be deported.  As you might expect, both sides are claiming victory today.

This is the second major immigration story to make headlines in recent days.  On June 15, the Obama administration announced that it would stop deporting some illegal immigrants who were brought into the country as children.  The president and his supporters call this action the “right thing to do for the American people.”  Critics accuse him of currying favor with Hispanic voters and claim that he exceeded his legal authority.

Yesterday afternoon our family received the news we’ve been waiting since January to hear: our oldest son no longer has cancer.  Ryan was diagnosed five months ago with acinic cell carconima, a cancerous tumor in a salivary gland on the right side of his face.  Surgery in February removed the tumor, but malignancy remained in the nerve and in a lymph node.

Ryan underwent six weeks of proton radiation in March and April, then was given an MRI on Wednesday.  Yesterday he received the good news from his oncologist.  Since his cancer has a high recurrence rate, he’ll receive another MRI in four months and ongoing tests for many years to come.  But we’re thrilled with the news so far and grateful beyond words for every one of you who have prayed for our son.

Secret Service members saved the lives of presidents Truman and Reagan.  They have long been venerated as the best of our protection personnel.  Then came the scandal in Colombia last April 11, in which 11 Service members were accused of bringing prostitutes to their rooms.  Five days ago, the Department of Homeland Security released new details of other allegations involving serious misconduct dating to 2004.

Now we’re hearing that members of the Service have apparently earned an “Animal House” reputation at Martha’s Vineyard.  According to local residents, wild parties involving Secret Service members have become commonplace there in recent years.  Police were called in to break up one party at 2:30 AM; antique furniture has been destroyed; a child found a spent shell casing on the front lawn of one home.  On another occasion a Service member lost his ID at a bar.

Egypt’s Muslim Brotherhood is claiming this morning that its candidate has won the Egyptian presidency.  Mohamed Morsi Isa al-Ayyat is now a critical figure on the world stage.  Who is he?  What does he believe?  Why would his election matter to us?

Morsi received a Ph.D. in engineering from the University of Southern California in 1982 and worked at NASA on the development of space shuttle engines.  He returned to Egypt in 1985, where he was arrested several times by President Mubarak’s regime for protesting governmental policies.  He once spent seven months in jail.

I remember the day as though it were last week—the hospital room, the doctor, the nurses, our excitement.  On that morning in 1988, our second son was born.

Actually, he was God’s child long before he was ours.  Before the Creator of the universe made the first man, he knew he would one day make Craig Wayne Denison.  David could say of himself and our son, “Your eyes saw my unformed body.  All the days ordained for me were written in your book before one of them came to be” (Psalm 139:16).  Before I met Janet in college (she walked into sophomore English smiling, a moment I’ll never forget!), our Lord knew we would marry and that we would be parents to two sons.  And he knew they would be his greatest gifts to us.

Want to know who holds the record for fathering the most children by one wife? It’s a Russian father who has 69 children. Unbelievable? Nope, it’s true. This Russian father has 16 sets of twins, 7 sets of triplets and 4 sets of quadruplets. Humble yourselves dads – you’re not as prolific as you thought you were!

I also read where NFL running back Travis Henry has 9 children by 9 different women. I’m not sure that’s anything to be real proud of. And just incase Mr. Henry ever runs across this post I’d like to say … Dear Mr. Henry, a real man doesn’t love a million different women, a real man loves one woman a million different ways. Sincerely, Me

Father’s Day is this Sunday and it got me thinking about what makes a real dad … and it’s not just sperm. It takes more than sperm to be a “real” dad … it takes time. Your manhood should never be measured by the amount of children you have, but what kind of father you are. It takes a man to be a real dad (Ephesians 6:4). Here are a few things “real” dads do:

• Be there for your kids.
• Read to your children.
• Be a good role model.
• Spend time one-on-one with each child.
• Treat the mother of your children with respect.
• Pray together.
• Play together.
• Help with your children’s home work.
• Set clear, consistent limits.
• Listen to your children.
• Know your children’s friends.
• Go with your children to church.
• Take your children to work with you.
• Be affectionate.
• Read the Bible together.

A real dad simply doesn’t produce children, but a real dad is committed to his children. Because there can be no “real” fathering with out commitment.

Don’t just produce kids, be a dad.