If you are struggling with things like pride, anger, unforgiveness, selfishness, lust ... Dr. Gary Smalley encourages us all to take the Four Day Belief Challenge! In areas where we shouldn't let our heart and mind wander, taking those thoughts captive and surrendering them to God.  It starts by memorizing these four commands of Christ through these 4 verses (Dr. Smalley says to think upon these things 7-14 times a day and see the difference it makes in your life) :

1) Matthew 5:3 - (Listen Here) Blessed are the poor in spirit.  Instead of being boastful and arrogant (pride), be humble.

2) Mark 12:30 - (Listen Here) Love the Lord with all your heart, soul, mind and strength

3) Mark 12:31 - (Listen Here) Loving your neighbor as yourself.  Serving others, instead of using others for our own gain and pleasure.

4) Matthew 5:9,10-  (Listen Here) Trials are not bad. Thank God for the pain.

He made a choice to not let being diagnosed with HIV be a "death sentence".  Pastor Shane Stanford found out he was HIV positive following a bad blood treatment when he was a teenager.  But he didn't let that "positive" diagnosis, become a negative. His life has become a story of perserverance, faith, forgiveness and God's Grace.

A Positive Life by Shane Stanford from Anthony Thaxton on Vimeo.

This weekend an estimated 7,000 people will be treated in emergency rooms for fireworks-related injuries. Wow!  We'd rather you not be one of them, so here are some basic fireworks safety tips ...

Before you begin, make sure you have:

• A bucket of water or hose. Water is important for cooling off spent sparklers, fully extinguishing fireworks, and in case of fire.
• A clear, flat area away from houses, spectators, leaves, and flammable materials.
• Closed-toed shoes.
• Safety glasses for the person igniting the fireworks.

  Sparkler Tips

  • While many consider sparklers to be safe, it's important to remember that you are, in fact, playing with fire: Sparklers can burn at more than 1,000 degrees F, and caused an estimated 800 injuries in 2008.
  • Don't allow children under the age of 12 to handle sparklers.
  • Show older children how to hold sparklers at arm's length, and don't let them run with or wave the sparklers.
  • Stand at least six feet away from another person while using sparklers.
  • To hand a sparkler to another person, give him or her an unlit sparkler and then light it.
  • Don't hold a child in your arms while holding a sparkler.
  • Drop spent sparklers into a bucket of water.

  Other Fireworks Tips

  • Always read and follow the directions.
  • Never relight a failed firework — wait 20 minutes before placing it in a bucket of water.
  • Onlookers must keep a safe distance from the person igniting the fireworks.
  • Children should not play with or ignite fireworks.

If you ever feel like there is too much month at the end of your money, you are not alone.  Danny Kofke, a special education teacher in Georgia, came to the conclusion that if he wanted to be able to support his family and continue to do the job he feels called to do, he needed to figure out how to live on teacher's salary.  In fact, he wrote a book - "How to Survive (and perhaps thrive) On A Teacher's Salary."

Danny says - "The number-one reason people are so far into debt is they don't know where the money is going," says Kofke, who is married with two daughters, ages four and one. "When we got married, we walked around with a pad for a month and wrote down everything we spent. After that we used a cash system -- we pulled $200 a week out of the ATM and left it in jar in our apartment. It's so much harder to spend the green stuff than swiping a piece of plastic through a machine."

For more tips, check out Danny's blog