Thank you for submitting your questions via text message on our services this weekend. Here's the answer to some of them. Love you guys.

Troy and Steph

It has been a great weekend of celebrating at the Gramling house!  Celebrating Troy's birthday...the most wonderful husband, father, Pastor in the world!!!  I am SO very very proud of him.  Being married to Troy the last 20 (almost!) years has made me a much better person.  I have learned so many things from him.  The very first time I met him, I knew there was something very special about him.  And I knew that God had BIG,BIG plans for his life.  We have been through some very difficult things in our 20 yrs. of marriage...health challenges, extended family issues, ministry struggles, etc...BUT he has always stood firm & never given up on reaching his God potential and not letting circumstances pull him down.  He is one of the most humble, authentic person I have ever met in my life.   I have watched him live a life of Integrity the last 20 years, and strive to become all that God created him to be.  I sit and listen to him teach every wknd. @ Flamingo, and never cease to be amazed at the giftedness God has given him.  I am SO very honored to be his wife & get to go on this journey with him!  I love you Troy....Happy Birthday!!!!...steph

It's Friday...and time for more links to add to your bookmarks!  Today, I thought I'd give you links that tie in to our final weekend of "The Family Series."  Enjoy these 10 useful links about parenting..

1)  "Wisdom for Raising Children in Today's Culture" - Focus on the Family

2)  "The Online Home of American Baby, Parents, and Family Circle" - Parents.com

3)  Faith-based Parenting articles - Crosswalk.com

4)  Single-Parent Articles and Resources - Parentsworld.com

5)  National Center for Biblical Parenting - BiblicalParenting.org

6)  "An Online Magazine for Parents with Teens" - Parent-teen.com

7)  "Momsense - Christian Parenting Advice and Inspiration" - ChristianityToday.com/momsense

8)  Resources for Parents from the PTA! - pta.org

Are you a step-parent?  Try one of these sites: 

 9)  Step-Parenting.com

10)  Stepfamily.org

I hope to see you this weekend!

When I got up this morning, I expected just an ordinary day...BUT, it was far from ordinary!  More like extraordinary!!!!  You see, today is my 40th birthday...yikes! Can't believe I'm 40 :)  My birthday celebration started yesterday when Troy & I got home from Dallas...my kids had gone to Publix & bought a cake, and also made me a birthday card.  Cool thing was...they did it all by themselves, just the three of them :)  I have the coolest kids in the world!

Then, when I got up this morning, Troy had some gifts sitting out for me...a beautiful emerald ring AND  a pair of Bvlgari sunglasses!!!!  Here's the tough part...I usually just buy cheap sunglasses cause I have been known to lose a "few"...I've even been known to sit on a "few" and break them :)  So, I have got to guard these new sunglasses with my life...pray for me!     But I absolutely love both of the gifts he got me!  He has such great taste!  

Man, I can't even begin to put into words how special today was...thanks to all of you who worked so hard to make it special :)

And for all the "Surprises" along the way...I have never been more shocked or speechless in my whole life!  I truly did feel like a Queen today.  Was def. one of the most memorable birthdays I have ever had!  And the BEST thing about it was getting to spend it with my Flamingo family!  You guys rock!!!!!  And yes, I DO forgive all of you that "lied" to me today...you know who you are :)...steph

Here are this Friday's interesting web finds... please let me know what you think in the comment section below...

1)  Ever wonder if God still does miracles?  Does praying really work?  You may be convinced after reading this...

2)  Looking to trim some calories from that home-cooked meal?  Better use grandma's cookbook and not the one you just bought...

3)  Did you know that you can make a font for your computer out of your own handwriting?  Definitely worth a look...

Our last two links are Twitter-related...

4)  What's twitter?  Why would anybody do this?  Before you judge...check out this cool video that explains it all...

5)  Who twitters?  I think, with the addition of these guys, just about everybody...

That's it for this week... I hope to see you this weekend as we continue "The Family Series"

Hope everyone had a wonderful Valentine's Day!  

At the Gramling house, we are big on celebrating holidays...just ask my kids :)  So, we celebrated Val. Day with our kids on Friday.  We always get them a little something & try to make it a really special day.  Life is too short to not celebrate...and it's so easy to get caught up in the busyness of life and forget that.  But celebration is one thing we have worked hard to instill in our children.  And I love coming up with creative ways to celebrate...whether it's holidays, birthdays, achievements or whatever.

Then, Troy & I went away for a couple of days...just the two of us...to celebrate Valentine's Day.  This trip was different than most, in that we did absolutely "nothing".  And it was awesome!  We just hung out on the beach & by the pool (got a little too much sun...I'm still red :)  But we had the best time.  Spent lots of time just talking & dreaming.  Sometimes it's hard to find the time to get away by ourselves...but man, I am so glad when we do!  It makes me a much better wife & Mom. 

Have a great week!  And remember...celebrate!...steph

Here are this week's five links...a collection of some interesting things that have posted around the web...  If 5 isn't enough for you, I've posted 5 additional leadership-based links on www.potentialblog.com

 1)  Let's get started this week with a heartwarming story about two Koala bears...and why they are now inseparable.

2)  When a local BK restaurant runs out of lemonade...what do you do?  Probably not what this guy did.

 3)  Valentine's Day is tomorrow.  Here is the nerdiest way I could find to blow a kiss to your special someone.

4)  Do you get a lot of email?  Why don't you hire one of these?

5)  Why is Abraham Lincoln's legacy still as relevant as it is? 

See you this weekend as we continue "The Family Series!"

Often I’ve  heard people say they wear many hats, but I have to be honest, I can’t keep up with my car keys let alone a bunch of different hats. Think about it, hats are not easy to store. You can’t put them in your pocket, they will get smashed if you try to tuck them away in your briefcase, and they won’t hang in your closet. They're just difficult to deal with.
I wear one hat, the Troy hat, whether I’m at home or church, hanging with friends or kissing my wife.  It is all the same hat.  I don’t put on the pastor hat when I leave for the office, exchange for the dad hat when I leave, and after the kids go to bed put on the husband hat.
I’m me all the time, that means that there are times when I spend hours in the evening studying for an upcoming talk, there are times at the office I’ll pick up the phone to call my wife and tell her she is all I’ve thought about for the last hour.

I don’t really buy into the thought that the church can have me from 8 until 5 but my family has me the rest of the day. I don’t turn off my phone on my days off, and I check personal email when I’m at the office.
I’m ME:  a husband, Christ follower, Dad, pastor, friend, son, and brother, and occasionally, a pain in the butt. I’m all those things all the time. For me, it just gets too complicated to try and figure out which hat I’m wearing. If I take my wife to a conference, is that the pastor hat or husband hat?  If friends go with us, is it the friend hat?  I don’t recall reading anywhere in scripture where Peter told John he wasn’t going to speak at promise keepers because his son had a ball game, or Jesus telling the folks in Nazareth he wasn’t going to be able to make the meeting because he was watching his brother’s kids.
Me, Steph, Tyler, Carson, Baylee, and even our dog Toby have been called to ministry.  We all have something to bring to the table, and we do the best we can to follow Christ as we play ball, go to conferences, do missions, share our faith, watch TV, go to the playground, teach the weekend, celebrate Christmas and hang out with friends.
I don’t feel guilty about the amount of hours I put in at the office.   I’ve had more fun with the kids and Steph than ought to be legal, and I love the time with friends. As politically incorrect as it is, ONE hat has made life less complex and a lot more fun without the guilt!
My simple advice would be to throw away the hats and just be you, doing what you are called to do, wherever you are, with the people God has put into your life.
-Troy