"Freedom is never more than one generation away from extinction. We didn't pass it to our children in the bloodstream. It must be fought for, protected, and handed on for them to do the same, or one day we will spend our sunset years telling our children and our children's children what it was once like in the United States where men were free." - Ronald Reagan

For some time now, I've waited and watched for a presidential candidate that I could support - one who not only scored high on my issues surveys but also who stood a chance of winning both in the primary and next November. You may remember that Duncan Hunter and Tom Tancredo fit the first criterion, but were long-shots at best. When I would talk to anyone about either of those candidates, the reply would generally be, "who's that?" For a while, I thought that if Fred Thompson would step up and run, he'd be the answer I'd been looking for, but I've been very disappointed in just about everything he's done. Of course, there's always been Rudy McRomney - the three stooges of the Republican party. I can't really tell the difference between Rudy and Hillary; McCain seems too weak on national security; Romney says his faith doesn't define him, and I remember all too well what happened the last time we had a president whose faith didn't matter.

After several grueling months of campaigning and debating, it almost seemed like Ron Paul was the best candidate . . . and that was REALLY starting to worry me. Enter Mike Huckabee in the blind spots of all the frontrunners, leaving the second- and third-tier candidates behind. Finally, someone who shares my beliefs on fiscal and social issues, national security, and even religion. A Southern Baptist preacher running for president, who recently beat all the Democrats in a head-to-head poll. I never dreamed Huckabee would be a formidable candidate, but it seems like he's in this race to win, and he has as good a chance as any of them.

A few weeks ago, I started worrying that this whole Huckabee craze would wear off by the time the primaries rolled around, or that he might actually win the nomination only to be defeated in the general election by Hillary or Obama. I kept focusing on the negative and thinking about how horrible it would be if that happened. But then I started thinking. Jeremiah 29:11 says, "'For I know the plans I have for you,' declares the LORD, 'plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future.'" God already knows who will win the 2008 election - He knows the foreign policy, healthcare plan, and moral values of the next president. He also has the power to make anything happen - He can even put a Southern Baptist preacher in the Oval Office if He wants to. The only thing we can do is pray for His will, and then for the man (or woman) who ultimately gets the job.

Would Jesus vote for Hillary? Obama? Giulianni? McCain? Huckabee? I don't know. I do know that, no matter what happens, God will still be in control on November 5, 2008, and He'll still be in control on January 20, 2009. My favorite verse is Habakkuk 1:5: "Look at the nations and watch, and be utterly amazed. For I am going to do something in your days that you would not believe, even if you were told." That's what I'll be counting on in the weeks and months ahead.


"Recently, out on the campaign trail, a voter asked if my personal faith informed my decisions. My answer was simple, just as it always has been: my faith is my life - it defines me. My faith doesn't influence my decisions, it drives them." - Mike Huckabee

I've come to a point in my life where I've started realizing that the road of life is one-way. There are no u-turns and no slowing down. It feels like I'm in the cab of Jack Monk's eighteen-wheeler, barreling down a winding mountain road somewhere in California, with the brake lines cut. The farther I go, the faster the scenery seems to pass by. Yes, the DVR picked up all the "Monk" episodes that I haven't already seen, and I've been enjoying catching up on the ones I couldn't watch when we didn't get USA.

For some reason, the thought of turning 30 frightens me. In just 389 days, I'll enter the fourth decade of my life. See - I couldn't even type that sentence without getting a knot inside and my heart pounding a little harder. I've never dreaded something quite so much, but I really can't tell you why. I'm excited about the journey of life; I'm secure in my faith and the dreams I have for my life. I love my wife and daughter and am looking forward to the arrival of my first son in a couple of months. There's just something about not being in my 20's that scares me!

The Saturday after Thanksgiving, we went to my wife's grandparents' house for a family reunion. Her cousins from Nashville had spent a few nights there, and they brought their 4-wheelers to pass the time. I'm not really used to riding 4-wheelers that were made for sport riding - I've mainly just enjoyed the utility versions that get the work done. That doesn't mean I didn't enjoy going 60-70 mph around the makeshift track behind the house - or running straight lines from the yard to the woods and back as quickly as I could. It was definitely a lot of fun - and I wanted to spend the night so I could do it again the next morning. But I couldn't talk Jessica into staying, so around 10:00 that night, we headed north.

Sometime in the middle of the night - not long after we went to bed - my back started hurting. I've been told countless times that I don't know what "hurting" means until I've carried a baby for nine months and had unmentionable things done to my body in order to get that baby out . . . but that night, I knew that an aching back was enough pain for me. I tossed and turned all night and took a couple of Jessica's prescription pain pills from when Ella was born along with six or eight Tylenol. And I was still in pain. The only thing I could do to keep my back from hurting was to lie on a heating pad on the floor. Every time the thermostat on the pad would kick it off, I'd wake up in pain and have to wait for it to heat up so it would stop hurting long enough for me to go back to sleep. The next morning, I crawled upstairs and into the recliner, where I sat with the heating pad for the rest of the day. By bedtime, I was finally feeling better.

I'm 28 years old. I shouldn't have to give up an entire day of my life to recover from riding a 4-wheeler. What is going on? Is this what getting older feels like? I've had a hard time admitting that age was a contributing factor to my back problem, and I really wanted to blame it on the mattress.

I don't really have anything inspirational to say about the subject . . . I still hate the thought of getting older, and I haven't figured out how to stop it from happening. I'm well on my way to having a Doctorate by the time I'm 38, and I'm headed up the "corporate" ladder of public education. I have the family, house, and cars. I have a relationship with Jesus and a purpose for living. I'm happy with life. But I'd like to just stop the hands of time for just a while. Or maybe I should just start thinking of my age as 21, plus (fill in the blank).