OK, the updates are below! Enjoy!

So now Google wants us to profile ourselves. I don’t know about you, but I’ve longed subscribed to a search through Google that sends me emails if my name shows up somewhere on these Internets. But as I’ve been thinking about what may or may not be said about me online, I thought I’d throw out some bad information and see if we can get that flying around the World Wide Web.

Take a guess at which of these is NOT true:

• I have no tattoos anywhere on my body. TRUE -I have NO tattoos on any surface of my body. I just can’t justify the pain.
• As a teenager I was a ballboy for the Dallas Cowboys. TRUE -I did this the summer of 1991, and unbelievably I have NO pictures from the experience.
• I had a super teeny, tiny part in a movie starring Brad Pitt. FALSE -Seriously people?
• I played soccer in Brazil. TRUE -I was there on a Mission trip in 2003, and I played with some kids.
• I’ve seen a triple-play in a Major League Baseball game. TRUE -Watching the A’s and the Rangers in Arlington, TX. I believe it was a 1-5-4-2 play. Kenny Rogers was the pitcher.
• My wife is the former Ms. Striper City. TRUE -From the Striped Bass Capital of the World!

So let’s throw this stuff out there for the big, bad Google to work with. I’ll reveal which one I’ve NOT done later this evening.

As I head into a 2009 filled with so many new opportunities, I’ve been dwelling on something that I think I need to have more of going forward. I’ve very clearly felt compelled to have more opinions. I know, I know, those that are acquainted with me have just shuttered in horror at any chance of me having more opinions. But I’m speaking to opinions that matter. Opinions that could possibly dictate my actions. Wikipedia defines an opinion as:

a person’s ideas and thoughts towards something which it is either impossible to verify the truth of, or the truth of which is thought unimportant to the person. It is an assertion about something especially if that something lies in the future and its truth or falsity cannot be directly established. An opinion is not a fact, because opinions are either not falsifiable, or the opinion has not been proven or verified. If it later becomes proven or verified, it is no longer an opinion, but a fact.

I love this definition. It’s something that is impossible to verify the truth of. I can have an opinion that the Dallas Cowboys have a truly terrific football team, but that is neither a fact nor is it possible to prove.

But what about the opinions that matter? I’ve been challenged to think about my opinions on the important things related to my family, relationships, and ministry. And am I ready to move these opinions in the direction of facts? Here are the opinions that I’m challenging myself to get in writing, and committing time to really think through how I can move them into the realm of facts.

• What is my opinion on the best ways to communicate love to a kid? Is it through my words, actions, or both? And what is the best way for each individual kid?
• What is my opinion on leading a child to Christ? Is there a way that is better than the other ways? Is there a way to lead a child to Christ, where their decision is truly life changing? Is it effective in a large-group environment?
• What is my opinion on dedicating a child in a church setting?
• What is my opinion on what makes a strong marriage? Is my opinion on this impossible to prove?
• What is my opinion on the best way to mentor and raise up new leaders? Is there a more effective way to do it than I’m currently doing it?

You’ve heard the joke right? Well, Saturday night will mark the last game played in Texas Stadium by the Dallas Cowboys. Over the past few years I have watched as many old faithful sports stadiums have been demolished for newer and better venues (Tiger Stadium, Three Rivers Stadium, RFK Stadium, etc…); but this time it’s personal. I’ve been following the stories at the Dallas Morning News for weeks now, documenting personal stories from the stadium and it has me feeling nostalgic. (There is a great top 10 greatest games list HERE, as well as a memorial site HERE.)

I’m as excited as anyone about something new coming down the road for my Cowboys, but I’m really showing my age when I say that I’m gonna miss the old place. Lots of memories.

I can remember the first time I went to a game there. I’m I was in 11th or 12th grade and the Cowboys were good again. As a teenager I was a Dallas Cowboy ball boy during their training camp in Austin, TX; but had never actually been to Texas Stadium. For Christmas that year my dad had bought my brother and I Dallas Cowboys sweatshirts, and we headed off early on a Sunday Morning from Tulsa to catch the 3pm game at Texas Stadium. I remember that we played the Giants (and we won!), but my funniest memory is of arriving at the stadium about 3 hours before game time and my brother, father and I sitting like a bunch of kindergartners for hours just soaking in all the history. (I know, I know…we’re Cowboy nerds.)

Over the years I would return to see the Cowboys a dozen or so times, happening to catch some big moments. I was there when Emmitt Smith broke Walter Payton’s all-time NFL rushing record. The crowd was super crazy that day. It was unlike any sporting experience I’ve ever been a part of.

I was there when Terrell Owens disgraced the star at mid-field, and George Teague decked him. I remember that moment, because I was trying to explain to my wife the entire time why someone would take offense to that. Still not sure she got it.

When my son was born in late October 2004 we were unable to go back to Tulsa for Thanksgiving, so the family all came to Dallas and the men took in a Cowboy game on Thanksgiving Day. I remember Toby Keith performed at halftime, and the Cowboys got their butts kicked! I was also there for a few Quincy Carter moments, and even saw Vinny Testaverde throw 5 or 6 interceptions in a game. Whoopee!

It’s funny how inanimate objects that have been in and around our lives for decades can become so full of memories for us. So long Texas Stadium. May the wrecking ball come quick and swift for you, and here’s hoping I can afford a ticket to the new stadium at some point in my lifetime.

The Super Bowl presented quite the conundrum. As a lifelong Dallas Cowboys fan I hate the New York Giants, and the New England Patriots. I wish terrible diarrhea on both teams during their return flight. Just remember… the Dallas Cowboys beat the Giants in 2 out of their 3 games this year. (Ya, ya, ya… they just didn’t win the biggest most important game.) However, it made me a little joyous to think that the Patriots will be 18-1; and NOT have a Super Bowl title. Why are we always against the ‘perfect’ teams? Do we innately root against those who are good at something, or is it the love of the underdog?

BTW -When does Cowboy Training Camp start up?

Some thoughts on the Dallas Cowboys losing their game today:

• I’m gonna burn all my Jessica Simpson CD’s.
• Coach Wade Phillips has to go, right?
• I blame my father for this nagging pit in my stomach. I’ve been raised to have my heartbroken by the Cowboys.
• Even though the Cowboys went 13-3 this season, I’ve been waiting for the letdown all year. I knew it was too good to be true.
• How painful is it to lose to the N.Y. Giants? The New York FREAKING Giants!
• How many years until my kids feel the pain of these losses? They are totally oblivious to these things. Which is good, I guess…
• I type these things while pretending that my readers care.