Tomorrow is the fourth of July. It’s the day we celebrate our independence from Britain and the day democracy was born. For most Americans, it will be filled with family gatherings, picnics, parades, and fireworks. We will laugh, and we will play. We will celebrate a day off from work. We will enjoy the freedoms our country generously grants to us.

Amidst all of the fun, let’s not forget that freedom isn’t free. A high price was paid for the liberty we enjoy. Even today, many brave men and women are sacrificing their time and their freedom to fight for our country. They stand between us and those who want to cause us harm. They vow to protect us and our liberty — even at the expense of their own lives.

As you celebrate the holiday tomorrow, don’t forget to say a quick prayer for the men and women who are fighting daily to protect us. And when you watch the fireworks light up the night sky, remember those who paid the ultimate sacrifice for our freedom.

Happy Birthday America! God Bless You.

Are you planning a trip this summer? If so, you should check out TripAdvisor.com. It’s a travel community that features real advice from real travelers. With 15 million reviews and opinions, TripAdvisor is the best place to go to get the scoop on destinations, attractions and hotels for your next trip.

TripAdvisor the first place I go when planning a trip. No matter what my destination is — Hawaii, Rome, London, Florence, NYC — TripAdvisor has become my personal travel agent. By using the site, I can find the best locations to stay and the highest rated hotels in those areas. I’ve been using it for a few years now, and it’s never failed me.

Booking travel on the Internet is convenient, but it can also be a crap shoot. You never know what you are getting until you arrive at your destination. It’s easy for companies to make their hotel rooms and facilities appealing on the Internet — online pictures can be very misleading. I’ve been burned a few times with hotels that didn’t live up to the descriptions and photos on the Website.

The thing I like about TripAdvisor is that it offers reviews and photos from real travelers who actually stayed at the hotel. They tell you the good, the bad and the ugly. It’s a great way to narrow down the list and find the best places to stay. When you are ready to book your stay, TripAdvisor links you to discount booking sites (i.e. Expedia, Orbitz, hotels.com) so you can get the best rates.

So, the next time you plan to travel, go to TripAdvisor first. You’ll be glad you did.

Derrick hooked us up with tickets to an advance screening of Hancock Tuesday night at the Legacy Cinemark in Plano. I wasn’t feeling great, but since I’m a big fan of Will Smith I wasn’t going to turn it down. I’ve been looking forward to this movie for a while, and it didn’t disappoint.

Douglas Young on Imdb.com describes Hancock as “an unhappy and reluctant superhero who is living in his own world. For some unknown reason, Hancock is depressed and has started drinking very heavily. He has saved many lives in Los Angles over the years, but in doing so, he has no regards for damaging buildings, trains, roads, cars, or anything that gets in his way to get the job done. The last time he captured several criminals, it cost the city $9 million to fix the damages. The public has had enough of Hancock, and they want him to stop or go to another city. Then one day, Hancock saves the life of Ray Embrey (Jason Bateman) from being run over by a train. Ray is a Public Relations executive who now can go home to his wife and child, because Hancock was there. Ray owes Hancock his life, and he makes it his mission to change his superhero’s image and have the public cheering him.”

The movie has garnered lukewarm to negative reviews from the critics. However, I’m not a critic; I liked the movie. It was a fun-filled summer flick filled with humor, adventure, and action. Hancock is not a complex movie, but it did have more of a plot than I had originally expected. The movie isn’t deep, but I don’t think anyone seriously expects it to be that way. C’mon, it’s a summer blockbuster after all.

There are just some days that stand out from the others, and today was one of those. I am incredibly proud to be part of the great group of believers that make up Abundant Life Church. Not only was the worship service outstanding this morning, but it was followed by a “fantabulous” night of fellowship at The Main Event in Plano.

As I walked into the building this evening, I felt at home immediately. This is my family, an incredible group of people that I am blessed to have in my life. Each person is uniquely different, yet we all share the same faith, the same love for God and the same love for each other. Are we all perfect? No, but therein lies the beauty of it. We love each other in spite of our differences — and sometimes because of them.

I had a blast tonight — talking with friends, sharing hopes and fears, laughing, playing laser tag and my favorite…extremely loud cheering! After the stress of the last few weeks (both at work and with PoP), it was nice to let go and enjoy myself without having to worry about a list of “todos” waiting for me at home.

Thanks ALC! You guys are amazing. I love each and every one of you.

Our Italian Greyhounds don’t take to the water naturally. Sure, if you throw them into it, their instincts will take over. They will swim, but they don’t like it. It’s almost impossible to get them to jump in voluntarily, yet today we tried.

In our pool, we have a tanning platform on which the dogs like to stand. It only has a few inches of water so they don’t mind it — for them, it’s like wading in the creek. No matter how much they would like to join us in the the pool; however, they refuse to leave the platform.

Gary and I were playing in the middle of the pool today, and Joss wanted to join us. We tried to coax him to step off the platform and swim to us. He wanted it so badly, but he was frightened to take the first step. He would stretch one paw into the deep water, then pull it back. We could have pushed him a bit to get him started, but it was important for him to take that first step. He needs to know that he can do it on his own. Of course, we would never let anything bad happen to him. The problem is that he didn’t know that.

As we stood there watching him decide whether to take the leap of faith, I was struck with a thought. Is this how we are with God sometimes? He stands a few steps in front of us with outstretched arms. He wants us to trust Him, yet we are afraid. We don’t always realize that he’s in control. If we start to sink, He’ll be there to catch us. All we have to do is take that first step, the leap of faith.

So there’s no need to be afraid. He’s there just waiting for us to trust Him.