With Live the Dream starting today, Rachel has been all in working to prepare…which means I have been full-throttle with the kids! In my bonding time with my son, I thought that a trip to LSU was a must. Check out these great pics from Trevor’s 1st LSU experience.

This was a monumental day in the Haman Family…the day that Trevor learned to love the LSU Tigers!

When you are young you believe your dad is a superhero in disguise. Well this past week my dad was trying to play the part! He is currently working security detail in the evenings in Galveston, TX. One evening last week, my dad spotted some suspicious activity going on near the bank across the street. Two men had pulled up next to a work truck, punched out the window, and were stealing tools out of the back seat. Instinctively, my dad rushed in to save the day. He grabbed the truck door handle attempting to open the door and expose the bad guys, and at that moment the guys gassed it and speed off. The force spun my dad around, knocked him to the ground and left him lying unconscious in the middle of the street!!!

Needless to say, when he woke up, he drove himself to the emergency room where he received stitches for the lacerations on his forehead and some instructions as he suffered a mild concussion. In hearing this story, I felt I had to make a quick trip to visit. My sister and her family made a trip as well to check on him. Here are some snapshots from my time there.

Dad is recovering fine…He already won #1 dad in our hearts, so hopefully he doesn’t pull anymore stunts like this to prove he is a superhero!

Live the Dream 2008 women’s conference begins next week…Thursday, October 23- Saturday, October 25! Our entire staff is working so hard to make this an incredible experience for all of the women in attendance. My office is even becoming the Official HP Women Live the Dream Warehouse!

Delynn and her team are working so hard to cover every detail, gathering gifts, decorating, and more to make sure that all of the ladies leave know how much they are loved by God! The ladies will also be hearing from some all-star speakers like April Simons, Christine Caine, and Dino and Delynn Rizzo. If you or someone you know hasn’t registered yet log on and register now! You will not want to miss this conference!

The Apostle Paul compares our journey in life to a race and urges us to run with purpose in every step (I Corinthians 9:27). Some steps are quick and easy, requiring little effort and crowded with lots of company. Yet others can be extremely challenging and painful, marked with seasons of sacrifice and aloneness. Regardless of the degree of difficulty, one thing is for certain: when we come to faith and trust in Jesus Christ, we better start stepping because the race has just begun! Shortcuts will only lead us into dead ends and keep us from finishing the way God intended.

We must consistently be reminded that the spiritual journey we are on is a marathon, not a sprint, and there are no shortcuts to His plan. At times in my life when I am tempted to shortcut the work God is doing in my heart I am taken back to my first experience in a long distance race. Check it out…

As a college athlete, I was conditioned to play hard, train extensively, and make whatever adjustments necessary to compete. My freshmen days on the men’s basketball team usually began with early morning sprints and ended with drills long after the sun went down. Thrilled to be on the team and anxious to start my collegiate career, I was determined to turn the heads of our coaching staff and the entire campus community. People would one day associate the name Mike Haman with incredible athletic skill and performance. However, I was totally unprepared for the assignment I was about to be handed.

Several weeks before our first game, Coach informed me that our cross-country team was short a few runners and that I needed to participate in the upcoming meet. His decision was already made. With little time for discussion, I found myself on a bus headed to Alabama for a little lesson in long distance.

I remember the culture shock I felt stepping off the bus.

I saw a group of guys that looked like the Kenyan national marathon team stretching and warming up, and I knew I was in trouble! I felt so self-conscious and out of place with my skimpy, little, too-short, not-enough-material, running shorts –or should I call them “daisy-dukes” (a basketball player is used to wearing shorts down to his knees)—not to mention the high-top basketball shoes I had on!

It was time to get creative. With fifty highly trained, fully prepared long distance runners and one clueless basketball player who ran his mouth more than his legs, my chances of winning were next to none. So I decided that when we stepped to the line and the gun sounded, I would sprint at full speed. That way, I could tell all my friends that at least momentarily, I was in the lead!

When the gun went off, I launched from the starting line in a blazing burst of speed. With satisfaction I looked to my left and right, seeing nothing but trees; however, my view from the front was very short-lived. Suddenly, it felt as if my legs were on fire. Pain pierced my lungs, and muscles I didn’t even know I had were screaming at me. It wasn’t long before I found myself nearing the back of the pack. It was then I realized how unprepared I actually was for this event. I had no idea where I was going or even how long the race was. My best bet was to follow the large, round guy ahead of me who was having as much difficulty breathing as I was.

This strategy worked until I had fallen so far behind that even a family of turtles could see me in their rear view mirror! The path I was on split off in two different directions, and I could no longer see the “round mound of rebound” who was leading me. So I was forced to make a decision on my own as to which way to go.

Heads or tails? Left or right? Eenie-meenie-miney-mo; paper-rock-scissors. I went left when I should have gone right. I ended up tangled in a web of thick brush wondering how much more of this I would have to endure. How was I going to explain this to the guys? How was I going to even make it back to the bus!

Then, in the faint distance I heard the sound of civilization, people clapping and cheering. I cut through the woods and realized I had hit the jackpot—it was the final stretch and the lead runners were in an all-out sprint! I saw my chance to end this thing once and for all, so I jumped in and started racing like a wild man.

People from my school looked on in disbelief. “No way! Look, it’s Mike!” they screamed. Neck-and-neck, I fought for the lead until I finally leaned across the tape for a photo-finish. But what appeared to be the biggest upset in cross-country history was nothing more than a few wrong turns and ultimately a disqualification!

Today, we have opportunities to go the distance in our faith. Let us keep our spirits fueled and our hearts set on the finish line. With the help of the Holy Spirit we can finish the race strong!

It is day 8 of our 40 Day Spiritual Adventure Pursuit.  This morning some of the guys got together for prayer at 5:00 AM.  I arrived proud of myself for coming to the church so early for prayer, only to realize my weakness.

Of course, I came right in and began praying when all of a sudden my sense of smell was awakened by something.  In hopes of finding the scent, I turned to look towards the back of the sanctuary.  There, I noticed Jonah Thibodeaux EATING off a plate sitting on his lap!

Intrigued and a bit astonished,  I got up from my seat, walked to him, and asked what he was eating.  He told me it was an omelet he had just made at his house.  I was like, dude, help a brother out, we are in the middle of prayer and FASTING…and you are going to bring your omelet to a 5:00 AM prayer meeting!  He felt bad, and asked if I wanted him to put it away.  Confessing, I said no, ” I have already lusted for your omelet, and I have COMMITTED BREAKFAST in my heart, go ahead and EAT!”

I know through fasting God can reveal Himself  to us in a fresh way, but a lot of times I receive revelations of hamburgers, omelets, cookies, and more!

In all seriousness, I am feeling the weight of committing to a 40 day pursuit of prayer and fasting.  But, I am convinced that as we stay strong, embracing discipline at the end of this year, we will see God revealed in incredible ways.  He is at work in my heart!!