Steve and Jenny Valentine

Proverbs 19:21 (ESV) Many are the plans in the mind of a man, but it is the purpose of the LORD that will stand. I’ve always been the type of person that has a plan. I keep my “planner” close at hand in case something comes up throughout the day to plan a time and date. I plan all day long in my job… I plan meals for dinner… I plan how bills will get paid on time… I plan the budget… I plan the best way to get to there from here… I plan my day and make a checklist… I even plan how better to plan! I think you get it…I’m a planner! I’ve come to learn that being a planner isn’t a bad thing, especially when it's not your spouses strength…we complement each other well. Steve has the ideas, dreams and pursuit; I have the plan on how we are going to get there or get it done! So it’s not a bad thing, HOWEVER, I have learned that my interesting intricacies that God has placed within me, can be a drawback as well. Especially in light of what Proverbs 19:21 tells us. I can make al...

I’ve really been learning the importance of and joy that is found in the Truth of God’s Word lately. Not that this thought hasn’t ever occurred to me before, but something seemed to stir my affections for the Lord the other day about God’s Word. I was sitting in church and the pastor said something that stuck with me. He said we need to be “preaching to ourselves daily about the truths found in God’s Word”. This thought really changed the way I read scripture in the days following. I’ve known the importance of God’s Word for a long time and have thought that I need to be in the Word, studying the Word, meditating on the Word and saturating my life with the Word…BUT…if I’ve made a point to do that, how come in certain times of difficulty I say things like, “I know God is faithful but…”? If I truly did understand His promises that He talks about in Scripture, would I doubt Him and follow that statement with ‘but’? Most likely, as human, I would doubt at certain times in life…but ...

A few days ago a friend of mine asked me if I would help him change the oil on his car. Its been a while since I have done much work on a car but I figured that a simple oil change wouldn't be to hard. I was all in and a bit excited to be able to work on a car again.  It might sound strange, but working on a car can be quiet relaxing for me. After a rough week at school, the idea of relaxing and working on a car was sounding great. I met up with my friend Will at his place and found out that we would be headed over to one his friend's apartment so we could use his set of car ramps. As we pulled out of our apartment complex (Will and I live in the same complex) and headed north, I quickly noticed the change in scenery.  Our apartment complex is tucked in a nice little area just north of Downtown Dallas. We are actually less than 5 minutes from a very upscale mall and many fine dinings, such as the Cheesecake Factory and Magiannos. We truly live down the street from million...