2010 was truly a blessing to me and my family. Our local community threw several fund raising events to help us get a wheelchair van for our youngest son Avery. We were able to get one, which will make life much easier, getting in and out of Children’s Hospital, in Boston. A great big Thank You to everyone that was involved!
2011 is upon us now and like most people, I have a few resolutions for the coming year.
1. To cultivate my relationship with God, by reading the Bible daily and reading the day’s corresponding chapter from Proverbs.
2. To be a better Husband to my Wife Grace.
3. To be a better Father to my four children.
4. To use my time more wisely and efficiently, at work.
Those are the top four priorities for the coming year. I won’t go in to detail about all of them, but I do know that I will be successful in every one of those areas.
How do I know? How do I know, that I won’t do like I always do and give up after a short period of time?
Well, I’ve stumbled upon a method for achieving whatever visions that I feel are worth reaching. I have found a Biblical Mentor in a person by the name of Steve Scott. You may have never heard of him, but I’m sure you have seen some of his work. Ever hear of the Total Gym, with Chuck Norris and Christie Brinkley? Yup, that was Steve’s brain child. How about Deal-A-Meal from Richard Simmons? Steve was involved in that too. He has been involved in many such ventures and even rubs elbows with one Steven Spielberg, on occasion. How about Gary Smalley, who is a very popular Christian Author? He is one of Steve’s very best friends and is actually the one who inspired him after many initial failures, after college.
Okay, so how do I know him? Well, I don’t personally, but I found a book one day, while in a local Christian book store, that Steve had written. It is called The Richest Man Who Ever Lived. The book is based on the life of King Solomon and how he used the one gift he asked God for to achieve seemingly impossible success. It is estimated that King Solomon would be worth over a Trillion dollars, in today’s money!! That puts Bill Gates to shame! Here is the book, if you are interested:
![71976: The Richest Man Who Ever Lived: King Solomon"s Secrets to Success, Wealth, and Happiness](http://ag.christianbook.com/g/tiny/7/71976.gif "71976: The Richest Man Who Ever Lived: King Solomon"s Secrets to Success, Wealth, and Happiness") |
The Richest Man Who Ever Lived: King Solomon’s Secrets to Success, Wealth, and Happiness
By Steven K. Scott / Random House, Inc After Steven Scott flunked out of six jobs in his first four years after college, his best friend, Gary Smalley, offered one simple suggestion that would transform his life: study a chapter in Proverbs every day. Two years later, using the amazing strategies he gleaned from Solomon, Scott started a small business. In this life-changing book, Scott reveals Solomon’s often-overlooked wisdom for achieving breakthrough success in one’s work, health, marriage, and relationship with God. |
So I’m reading this book and become curious to see what else Steve has done, and I found a REAL GEM! Steve is a Christian, who became a Billionaire, by following the advise from the Book of Proverbs and he has a wonderful set of videos that will show you how to apply those same principles in any area of your life. Now money isn’t everything, but it is a necessary part of life. Steve doesn’t focus on the money aspect of it, as that just takes care of itself as you learn and apply these biblical principles throughout your lifetime. Success isn’t measured by the amount of money you have or the number of things you have either. Success is a whole-life assessment of who you have become. I believe that if you are not a successful spouse, parent, coworker and/or friend, then you’re not successful in that are of your life. These principles help you to become successful in ANY area of your life that you apply them.
If you are interested in this video series, please contact me directly and I will send you some introductory videos, to get you started.
Thanks and I pray that God blesses you this year!
Tags: biblical mentoring, Bill Gates, Christie Brinkley, Chuck Norriss, Gary Smalley, Richard Simmons, Steve Scott, Steven K. Scott, success, wisdom
The Jesus Football League is a creation, made by me, to combine two of my passions. I love the Lord Jesus with everything I have. I really enjoy watching my favorite team in the NFL as well. These products are just an expression of my combined passion that I thought some of you might enjoy. And with the Christmas Season upon us, what better time to display the new wears? We have produced all sorts of great items, from T-Shirts, Mugs, Bumper Stickers, Mouse Pads, and many, many more items, you’ll be sure to love.
You can see all of these products and others that I have created at The Bold Christian’s Zazzle store, at the following link: http://www.zazzle.com/jhaustin*
If you like what you see and have an idea for other such products, then by all means post here or send us an email and we’ll be sure to be in touch.
Join the Winning Team and follow our fearless leader into the Eternal Super Bowl, where the outcome of the game is already known.
God bless!
Depressed and Discouraged
After a flurry of activity, from June to August of this year, the past month has been rather uneventful.
Prior to June 2010, I had been feeling a bit discouraged, because I didn’t feel that I was impacting the world for Christ at all. I had communicated a few times with some non-believers, as well as people early in their walk with Christ. Some of these encounters had okay results, but most of them felt like no difference at all was made. It was a bit depressing, so I prayed for encouragement and direction. Well, the encouragement came, fast and furious! From speaking at church on Father’s Day, to applying for Extreme Makeover Home Edition in June, to an awesome fund raiser in August, my family and I were jubilant, to say the least. Even the Facebook support page, Move that Bus for Avery!!! had been rocking and adding thousands of people at a whirlwind speed. The excitement and encouragement were sometimes overwhelming and we were brought to tears on many occasions.
God was moving in our lives and there was NO denying it!
After the fund raiser, in early August, things started to slow down a bit. This was actually okay, at first, because it was a very busy time, with a lot of things going on, and we were getting physically and emotionally drained.
It is now late September and I have found that over the past few weeks, I have reverted back to feeling discouraged again. Within the past few days, I realized what was happening and had to ask myself why? God had done SO much for us and I was back in a funk. It didn’t make any sense. I started thinking about the Israelites, after they had been liberated from slavery in Egypt. They saw miracle after miracle and still they complained. I used to think that I would never do that, if I had seen those miracles. Well, it turns out that I am no better than they were. I have SEEN God working in my life and I now had been complaining again. Why, WHy, WHY!!! It was very frustrating!
I was suffering from that age old disease called “What have you done for me lately?”. As if I deserved ANYTHING from him in the first place. I was feeling entitled to my share. Worthy of all my requests. King of my castle. Yea, not so much …..
It wasn’t until I realized and remembered with a humbled heart, what God had done for me and what he continues to do, even if I can’t see him doing it, that brought me out of that funk.
If I had not been reading God’s word routinely, I might not have made that connection and could possibly still be feeling discouraged now.
There is NO substitute for God’s own word.
2 Timothy 3:16-17 – All Scripture is God-breathed and is useful for teaching, rebuking, correcting and training in righteousness, so that the man of God may be thoroughly equipped for every good work.
Read it consistently, thoroughly and prayerfully and your down times will be temporary too.
God bless you!
Tags: depressed, discouraged, egypt, encouraged, excited, God's word, israelites, overwhelmed
6 Flags New England
Just finished my first week of vacation for 2010. It was a refreshing break.
Having children with severe Special Needs, doesn’t allow for much traveling, but I did get to go to 6-Flags New England for a day, with my sons Andrew and Tyler, along with the church youth group. We had a blast and went on ALL of the major roller coasters.
I also discovered that I needed eye glasses! I knew this day was coming, but had been putting it off. My Wife and kids all got their eyes rechecked, so I decided to have mine checked as well. I must say that I had NO idea how much of a difference they would make. I am near-sighted, so these glasses make reading road signs and such, CRYSTAL CLEAR!! What a shock it was to find out how much I needed them. It’s weird having them on all day long and I think I’m over that disorienting feeling you get, when you first start using them.
All in all, it was a wonderful time and I look forward to my next week, that should be sometime in August.
On another note, the MOVE that BUS for AVERY page is almost at 4800 subscribers, so once again, I thank everyone for their support and prayers. We have been incredibly blessed and humbled by the experience.
Grace just called me, a few minutes ago, to tell me that a local newspaper heard our story and wants to interview us this week. I just have this feeling that we will be chosen for an Extreme Makeover. It just seems that God has been moving this along and I can’t see him letting it fall short of the goal. Of course, I don’t know what his will is for this, but we are walking by faith and not by sight.
If nothing else, this has been a wonderful and encouraging experience that we will not soon forget!
Thank you all and God bless!!
Tags: blessed, Extreme Makeover, glasses, God, interview, Move That Bus For Avery, newspaper, roller coasters, vacation
Good to eat, but not to eMail
You just got to love SPAM. No not the kind you eat, which I actually rather like, but I am talking about the junk emails that everyone gets in their inbox. Ever since this blog started, I have been inundated with SPAM in the form of Comments to these posts that show up as requests in my inbox.
This is just a simple message to all of you would be SPAMMERS, that I will not approve your posts, so you can stop trying.
If you knew Jesus the way I and many others do, you would never even attempt such a thing.
Do you actually think that it works!!
I know a thing or two about how Google ranks web pages and I guarantee you that getting your links on other peoples website, that have nothing to do with what your links are about, DOES NOT HELP YOUR RANKINGS ONE BIT. In fact it HURTS your ranking.
Stop with the SPAMMING already, it doesn’t work!
Tags: google ranking, spam, spammers
Father's Day 2010
Happy Father’s Day! (I know it’s a little early)
Here are a few things that I have learned about being a Dad.
- Share your experiences with your children. Yes, even the embarrassing moments. This shows them that you are human and approachable and will give them, and probably yourself, a good laugh.
- Be affectionate with them and tell them that you love them, everyday.
- Read to them, even if they are older, and talk about what you have read. Bible and/or other books too. Encourage them to ask questions, so that they can defend their faith.
- Study them. Be a student of who they are. Show an interest in what they like to do and ask questions about it. Be involved in their life.
- If they do something wrong, explain to them why it was wrong. Don’t just give them the “Because I said So!” remark. They won’t learn from that.
- Go to church, read the Bible and be an example to them. Actions speak louder than words. Until Jesus comes back to bring us home, we are to represent him to our children, in word, action and deeds, so they will know how to live a Godly life.
- Pray over them at night. It shows them that you care about them.
It is all about cultivating a relationship with them. Just as we need to cultivate a relationship with Jesus.
If you have read my personal story or our ongoing trial, then you know I have been blessed with two children with severe Special Needs. Here are some things I have learned from them.
- Love – They give it unconditionally. Andrew has actually given me a hug and told me that he loves me, after being disciplined.
- Joy – They live with Joy in their hearts and express it without inhibition.
- Peace – They are gifts to God from God, therefore giving me Peace. They don’t feel the pressure of this World, like we do.
- Long-suffering – Avery experiences pain all day long. He has suffered more in his 2 years than I have in 40. His suffering teaches me compassion. In a very different way, I am long-suffering right beside him. I pray that his pain would be taken away.
- Kindness – Andrew will offer food and drinks to people in our home, whether we have it or not.
- Goodness – They often give encouragement to others. I have often heard Andrew telling someone what a good job they are doing.
- Faithfulness – Because they need us for so many things, we learn to be faithful to them and the rest of the family.
- Gentleness – Andrew is awesome with little children. The way he speaks to them and plays with them, makes them love him.
- Self-control – You learn patience, which allows you to control yourself, when you’d rather lash out. This may be the hardest one to learn.
Don’t ever deny yourself the opportunity to get to know someone with Special Needs. You will be forever blessed!!! They are whole and full of the fruits of the Spirit.
Truly THEY are NOT Special Needs, I am.
Tags: Blessing, Father's Day, Special Needs
Extreme Makeover Home Edition Application
The next step in the application process has been completed. The application was mailed overnight on 06/14/2010 to be delivered on 06/15/2010 at noon. We had the tracking number so we could know when it was received and we checked it at about 4:30 PM the next day, to confirm receipt.
Well, the tracking information just said that it had left the original post office, in our home town, but there was no more information. It said the same thing this morning, so I called the local post office to see what was up. The gentlemen there looked in his system and saw the same information we did online, so he said he would research it and get back to me.
He called back an hour or two later to apologize, because the package did not arrive at the destination yesterday at noon, like it was supposed to. It was delivered today, 06/16/2010 at 9:45 AM.
Since we had paid for overnight delivery and it didn’t happen, he told me to stop by the post office to receive a complete refund of the ENTIRE shipping cost!
Every setback has a blessing in disguise!! We didn’t really need it to be there overnight, but we were anxious to get it in, so that is how we decided to send it. The fact that it took an extra day is really no big deal so getting a refund seems like God’s way of letting us know, that he is a part of this.
It gives us hope that even if we are not chosen to receive an Extreme Makeover on our home, we will still be abundantly blessed, regardless. God is good, all the time and all the time, God is good!!
Tags: application, Blessing, Extreme Makeover Home Edition, post office
As of this writing, there have been approximately 1,890 people that have joined the MOVE that BUS for AVERY!!! support page. There has also been an official nomination entry on the Extreme Makeover Home Edition Facebook page, under the title “The Austin Family of Easton, Massachusetts“, that already has 4 pages of comments!
To say that we have been overwhelmed by the outpouring of love shown to our family would be an understatement. It is hard not to get choked up when reading some of the entries. It has been a truly humbling experience that we will cherish for the rest of our lives, whether we are chosen for the show or not. Many of the comments or posts, are from out of state and all around the country and we even had one from London, UK!!! Most of these people don’t know us personally, but have read our story by going to the “Our Ongoing Trial” page of The BOLD Christian website, or to my Wife’s blog called “A Walk By Faith – Amazed By Grace“.
The bottom line is that we want to be able to keep our family together and not have Avery AND Grace spending months at a time in the hospital. We have an awesome relationship with our children and we are afraid that if we have to be apart for long stretches at a time, then that relationship will begin to deteriorate. I would do anything to prevent that from happening and with your continued help, I believe we can get it done and MOVE that BUS for AVERY!!! and the rest of us.
I almost forgot to mention, that a Building company also joined the page and offered their services should we be chosen!!! That is awesome!
Thank you all SO much for the support. Please help us to keep that bus rolling! God Bless you ALL!
The Austin Family
A dear friend of ours has started a Facebook page for our application to Extreme Makeover Home Edition. It is called “MOVE that BUS for AVERY!!!” and can be found at the link below.
http://bit.ly/dozTnb – (The original link was very long. This is just a shortened version of it. It is safe to click on.)
If you would like to help us out, in our quest for a new home, please take a look and choose the “Like” option to officially subscribe. You don’t have to send any money or anything else, this is just to show support for our cause and to show ABC the support that Avery and us have behind us.
Thank you so much for your consideration!!
Joe, Grace, Andrew, Tyler, Devynn and AVERY!!
Extreme Makeover Home Edition
My Wife and I have started the application process for the Extreme Makeover Home Edition television show. As you may have read, in the ongoing trial section of the website, we have two severely special needs children. What you may not know, is that we live in a house that was built way back in 1926. Needless to say, it is very old and in need of much repair. There is mold in the bathroom, as well as other rooms around the house and even on the front of the house. The walls are made of horse-hair plaster, which is very susceptible to falling apart and blowing plaster dust everywhere.
Three of our four kids have allergies, one of them being little Avery. Avery suffered two strokes within a few weeks of being born and is now dependent on a trach, connected to oxygen, in order to breathe. Any kind of mold or dust could cause serious respiratory problems and he has already had pneumonia several times.
Avery and my Wife spent most of 2009 at Children’s hospital, in Boston, due to his many issues, and only came home in January of 2010. We would really like to keep him home for as long as possible, but with the house in the condition that it is in, we just can’t be sure how safe it is for him to be here. If he can’t be here, then my Wife can’t be here, since she stays in the hospital 100% of the time with him. That leaves me home with the other three, trying to eak out a living, between work, home and the hospital. The strain, on the family, is almost unbearable.
Even while Avery is home, we have a difficult time moving around, since all of his medical equipment takes up a lot of space and we do not have much storage room at all in the house. We’ve also had to move part of our bedroom, downstairs, so that we don’t have to lug all of his equipment up and down the stairs every day. Since we can’t move him around much, my Wife ends up being restricted for most of the day, in that one room. Sometimes, she has to wait hours, just to use the restroom or to get a little something to eat.
There are many other issue that the house suffers from, but there are far too many to list here.
So we have begun the process of filming the different rooms and detailing the potentially dangerous issues that each of them presents to Avery and the rest of us.
So, if you think of it, we would appreciate your prayers, as we go through this process. Whether we are chosen or not, we praise God from whom ALL blessing flow!
Tags: 1926, Avery, breathe, dust, Extreme Makeover Home Edition, God, mold, old house, oxygen, trach