MAVS WON 1ST ROUND!!

DALLAS MAVERICKS WON THE FIRST ROUND AGAINST SA SPURS IN THE PLAYOFFS!

Easter

Easter is this weekend - 4/12/09.

Are you willing to set aside an hour out of your entire year for our Creator? Please join my family and I at First Baptist Church of McK for Good Friday service &/or Easter Sunday service.

Good Friday Services:
Apr 10, 2009
6 & 7:30pm

Easter Sunday Service Times:
Sunrise Service: 6:45am (Parking lot near FBC baseball fields-rain out location the Rock)
Worship Center: 8, 9, 10 & 11am (childcare available for birth-age 3)

The First Baptist McKinney campus is located at 1615 W. Louisiana, McKinney, Tx, 75069

The meaning of Easter - What does it mean to you?

The meaning of Easter is Jesus Christ's victory over death. His resurrection symbolizes the eternal life that is granted to all who believe in Him. The meaning of Easter also symbolizes the complete verification of all that Jesus preached and taught during His three-year ministry. If He had not risen from the dead, if He had merely died and not been resurrected, He would have been considered just another teacher or Rabbi. However, His resurrection changed all that and gave final and irrefutable proof that He was really the Son of God and that He had conquered death once and for all.

Pray For Our Nation

This was an email sent to me:

AFTER A DAY OF CONTEMPLATION AND SOUL SEARCHING, I HAVE DECIDED TO REACH OUT TO MY FRIENDS AND RELATIVES AND ASK YOU TO DO SOMETHING THAT HAS BEEN TROUBLING ME FOR A LONG TIME. OUR NATION IS & HAS BEEN ON THE SLIPPERY SLOPE TO HELL FOR A LONG TIME. IF YOU LOOK AROUND YOU WILL FIND CORRUPTION, GREED, MORAL DECAY AND A STEADY MOVE AWAY FROM THE THINGS THAT MADE US GREAT. THE PRINCIPLES UPON WHICH THIS NATION WAS FOUNDED ARE NO LONGER OUR BACKBONE. HOWEVER, WE CAN REVERSE THIS TREND.

IN GOD'S WORD HE STATES,"IF MY PEOPLE WHO ARE CALLED BY MY NAME WILL HUMBLE THEMSELVES, AND PRAY AND SEEK MY FACE, AND TURN FROM THEIR WICKED WAYS, THEN I WILL HEAR FROM HEAVEN, AND WILL FORGIVE THEIR SIN AND HEAL THEIR LAND."

I AM CONVINCED THAT WE MUST PRAY FOR OUR NATION AND ITS LEADERS AND ASK FOR FORGIVENESS. SO I ASK YOU TO JOIN ME IN THIS PLEA TO OUR LORD.

IMAGINE IF EACH PERSON REACHES TEN OTHERS. IF YOU DO AND THEY COMPLY, WE WILL LIFT UP MILLIONS OF PRAYERS A DAY TO OUR CREATOR. HE WILL HEAR US AND IN FAITH WILL ANSWER!

"In Jesus' name, we humbly beg for God's mercy and forgiveness, we beg Him to send forth a spiritual renewal and in doing so, heal our Land"

5 Year Anniversary

March 12 - 13, 2004 was a traumatic day for us all as we lost our good friends Rosa Barbosa, Mark Barbosa, Matt Self, and Austin York. This year is the 5 year anniversary.

I celebrate the justice we finally have & pray that the families have comfort in their lives.

Miss you Matt & Austin (school friends) - wish I could have known you Rosa & Mark.

My WFAA Article & Video

http://www.wfaa.com/sharedcontent/dws/wfaa/latestnews/stories/wfaa090310_lj_stoler.200deed7.html

I'M GOING TO BE ON THE NEWS TONIGHT :)

I'M G0NNA BE ON CHANNEL 8'S NEWS TONIGHT (3/9/09) AT 10 PM DISCUSSING MY OPINION ON OBAMA'S RECENT DECISION TO FEDERALLY FUND STEM CELL RESEARCH! :)


PLEASE WATCH & SUPPORT ME!


MUCH LOVE, <3 T

Obama Lifts Stem Cell Restrictions

President Obama to Lift Stem Cell Restrictions

Obama to Sign Executive Order Reversing Bush Policy

"President Obama has signed an executive order ending an 8½-year ban on federal funding for embryonic stem cell research.

"At this moment, the full promise of stem cell research remains unknown, and it should not be overstated," Obama said Monday morning before signing the order. "But scientists believe these tiny cells may have the potential to help us understand, and possibly cure, some of our most devastating diseases and conditions."

The President's speech was equal parts hope for the new research and support for the scientists involved in such work. "Today, with the executive order I am about to sign, we will bring the change that so many scientists and researchers, doctors and innovators, patients and loved ones have hoped for, and fought for, these past eight years: We will lift the ban on federal funding for promising embryonic stem cell research," Obama said. "We will vigorously support scientists who pursue this research. And we will aim for America to lead the world in the discoveries it one day may yield."

White House officials said Sunday that the president's order will give the National Institutes of Health 120 days to develop ethical guidelines for the research. "Encompassed in [the executive order] will also be the requirements around guidelines that will be drafted by the NIH [National Institutes of Health] as they ... work with others around the country to make sure we're handling the issue responsibly," said Melody Barnes, the director of the president's Domestic Policy Council.

The president also signed a memorandum that Barnes says will "restore scientific integrity in government decision making." It will help ensure public policy is "guided by sound scientific advice," she said.

The memorandum covers all scientific research, including such areas as energy and climate change. The Bush administration was often accused of allowing politics to color its scientific decisions, something the administration denied.

Actor Michael J. Fox, a longtime advocate for embryonic stem cell research, expressed his enthusiasm for the president's plan and commended Obama for "recognizing the inherent value of research freedom and creating an environment in which it can flourish."
"Today is a new day. I'm thrilled to see President Obama has honored his commitment to get politics out of science," Fox, who has Parkinson's disease, told "Good Morning America." "The last few years have been incredibly frustrating for patients and researchers who believe that embryonic stem cell research has the potential to bring better treatment."

Former first lady Nancy Reagan, who has emerged as a prominent supporter of stem cell research after her husband, President Ronald Reagan, passed away in 2004 after a 10-year battle with Alzheimer's disease, said in a statement that she is "very grateful" that Obama has reversed the federal government's policy on embryonic stem cell research funding. "These new rules will now make it possible for scientists to move forward," Reagan said in the statement. "Countless people, suffering from many different diseases, stand to benefit from the answers stem cell research can provide. We owe it to ourselves and to our children to do everything in our power to find cures for these diseases -- and soon. "

****

"President Obama's executive order signals a new day in which science policy will be based on science and in which the federal government can invest in the best ideas with the greatest potential to improve public health," Morrison said. "America will once again seek to be the world's engine for biomedical discovery, leading the way toward new treatments for disease."
But the executive order that ends President Bush's 2001 ban on such research will likely bring no such end to the fierce political debate that surrounds the use of embryonic stem cells. "

http://www.msplinks.com/MDFodHRwOi8vYWJjbmV3cy5nby5jb20vSGVhbHRoL1BvbGl0aWNzL1N0b3J5P2lkPTcwMjM5OTAmcGFnZT0y

My Spring 2009 Classes

History & Government!

Barbosas, York, and Self Trial

March 12, 2004, our high school friends Matt Self and Austin York along with Mark and Rosa Barbosa were murdered. We have been waiting for justice and I believe it is near.

January Articles:

http://www.courier-gazette.com/articles/2009/01/27/mckinney_courier-gazette/news/9298.txt

http://www.courier-gazette.com/articles/2009/01/27/mckinney_courier-gazette/news/9304.txt

http://www.courier-gazette.com/articles/2009/01/27/mckinney_courier-gazette/news/9305.txt

http://www.courier-gazette.com/articles/2009/01/27/mckinney_courier-gazette/news/9310.txt

http://www.courier-gazette.com/articles/2009/01/27/mckinney_courier-gazette/news/9314.txt

http://www.courier-gazette.com/articles/2009/01/27/mckinney_courier-gazette/news/9317.txt

http://www.courier-gazette.com/articles/2009/01/14/mckinney_courier-gazette/news/9948.txt


Psalm 9:16- "The LORD is known by his justice; the wicked are ensnared by the work of their hands."

Isaiah 30:18- "Yet the LORD longs to be gracious to you; he rises to show you compassion. For the LORD is a God of justice. Blessed are all who wait for him!"

Pray for the Barbosas, Selfs, and Yorks.

<3 Tonya

Upcoming events at First Baptist McKinney

Upcoming Events
Dec 10 Service of Hope: 6:15pm, a time of worship and remembrance.

Dec 17 Mission CHRISTmas: 5:30pm, an evening of showing our community Christ's love.

Dec 24 Christmas Eve Carols & Candles Services: 3:00, 4:30, 6:00, *7:30pm (*Lord's Supper)

December 5 & 6 at 7:30 PM

Ms. Mert’s Holly Jolly Merry Christmas Movie Night
Friday, December 5th & Saturday, December 6th at 7:30 p.m. FREE Admission

"Join the Watters family for their annual Christmas movie night. Ms. Mert, the special lady for whom this night was named, is absent from the celebration this year…or is she?

Zane, Isabelle, and their three children prepare to carry on with the holiday tradition they established with their elderly neighbor, Mert, some five or so years ago: Ms. Mert’s Holly Jolly Merry Christmas Movie Night!. Only Ms. Mert recently passed away. Mert left each member of the Watters family with warm memories to cherish for a lifetime. But it would seem that she left them with even more when the doorbell announces a mysterious messenger sent, it appears, by Mert herself. This would-be herald – dressed as a fruitcake - announces that Mert has prepared one final gift for her surrogate family…a treasure hunt to end all treasure hunts! And what better place to hide her clues than within the treasured films they have enjoyed throughout the years and in gifts she selected for the entire family season after season.

Watch as some of your favorite scenes from classic Christmas movies come to life on stage. Help Zoe, Katie Liz, Rudy and their parents uncover Mert’s cleverly laid plan and discover treasure that speaks of a heavenly design to touch every member of your family this season. Ms. Mert’s Holly Jolly Merry Christmas Movie Night! is heaven sent!"

www.collincreekcommunity.org/christmas-musical

Needed Prayers

Kevin Fields: He is the Headmaster at McKinney Christian Academy. He had major back surgery and while recovering at home became very ill. They think he has two different infections.

Casey: She is 19 years old and has been diagnosed with Lemiere's Disease--they thought it was double pneumonia initially. She has been in ICU for several weeks--heavily sedated and very very ill.

Galen Horacek: He is 5 years old and has a small spot on his liver. The consensus is to therapeutically clear the abnormal lymphocytes from Galen's liver. Yesterday, he started the therapeutics. http://www.caringbridge.org:80/visit/galenhoracek

Stacy Warren: Please continue to pray for her. She is my paster's wife who was diagnosed with breast cancer. She is currently going through chemo.

Thank you Everyone. Together, we can make a difference!

A Must See!

My dad sent this to me. It is a song that perfectly describes me and my situation. I broke down in tears when the song got to the part about when the girl is talking to her daddy, telling him "Don't cry daddy, I'll walk."

Phi Theta Kappa Member

November 2 I was inducted into the Phi Theta Kappa International Honor Society! :)

Golf Tournament SUCCESS!!

My golf tournament fundraiser (Oct. 11) was a big success! We had 13 teams sign up and compete. The winning team included Pete Bellmer, Roman Wrobel, and Rich Karm! Congratulations with your winning score of 60! We had tons of prizes and tons of raffle ticket sales. Thank you to all the golf players, Golf Etc., the volunteers, my family, and raffle ticket buyers. Through donations, player fees, raffle ticket sales, and auction items, we made about $4,700! Yay! Thank you EVERYONE again!!

<3

Birthdays & Anniversaries!

August 21, I turned 21!!
September 3, Kristen (my friend) turned 24!!
September 14, Billy turned 24!!
September 21, Mom & Dad celebrated 23 years!!
October 25, Billy & me celebrate 6 years!!

Prayers Needed!!

Please pray for Stacy Warren and her family. Stacy is our pastor's wife who recently has been diagnosed with breast cancer. Please pray for healing, strength and courage to the entire family.

Visit my pastor's (Dr.Jeff Warren) blog: www.liveforgiven.org

James 5:15- "And the prayer offered in faith will make the sick person well; the Lord will raise him up. If he has sinned, he will be forgiven." Matthew 21:22- “If you believe, you will receive whatever you ask for in prayer."

"Faith is the most important quality of a prayer that God answers. Faith is that quality that trusts in and clings to God. Faith attracts God. Without faith it is impossible to please God. It is the raw material upon which the answers to our prayers are produced. Need and circumstances do not move God as much as faith. Jesus has promised that whatsoever we ask, if we believe, it shall be granted us. (http://www.lausanneworldpulse.com/perspectives.php/593/01-2007?pg=all)"

Golf Tournament Fundraiser

Golf Tournament Fundraiser

McKinney, TX ((10/11/08!!))

Tournament Flyer

4 Man Scrambles at $65 per person.

Mulligans will be $5. A mulligan is a "do-over" shot and must be purchased before round begins. Par 5 Adv. Hole will be $15. Want to get closer to the hole? You can buy it!

Awards will be given for 1st Place, Longest Drive and Closest to the Pin. There will be a Raffle Drawing with donated prizes including free dinner at restaurants, free rounds of golf at various golf courses, free hair cuts, and more in the works! There will also be a Silent Auction including golf services, 2 one-year subscriptions to Avid Golfer Magazine (with free rounds of golf at 21 various DFW golf courses) each an $800 value, and 2 passes to Six Flags in Arlington, Tx! We are currently working on 2nd place & 3rd place prizes.

A free $25 gift card to Golf Etc. will be given to every participant. And one lucky participant will randomly get a $200 gift card to Golf Etc. so make sure you check out Golf Etc. soon after the tournament! Golf Etc. is next door to Genghis Grill in McKinney.

Early Registration ends October 1, 2008. Please make checks payable to "Tonya Winchester Irrevocable Trust" or "Tonya Winchester SN Trust." Each participant will need to fill out a form that can be mailed, e-mailed, or faxed. Volunteers are needed. THANK YOU!

http://www.tonyawinchester.com/Events.htm

Why is there EVIL & SUFFERING?

"There may be several reasons for suffering. A major factor is our fallen, sinful world. Because of sin, throughout the ages, the perfection and goodness of the world is tainted. We experience illness, disease, natural disasters, hunger, and all types of suffering.

As mortals, we cannot know all of God's reasons. But, God loves us enough to give us free will. We are not robots. As a result, people make mistakes. People turn away from God's perfect goodness through sin.

Thus, our own choices sometimes produce evil over good. It is impossible for God to have created man with free will and evil not be a consequence. Also, the choices of others can produce suffering. The consequences of bad choices sometimes affect not only the person who makes the wrong choice but also their family, friends, and sometimes even society.

The Old and New Testaments make it clear that suffering can be a result of God's discipline in our lives—similar to the discipline a loving parent has for his child. So, too, can God discipline us. Hebrews 12:10-11 illustrates this point: "...but God disciplines us for our good, that we may share in his holiness. No discipline seems pleasant at the time, but painful. Later on, however, it produces a harvest of righteousness and peace for those who have been trained by it."

Suffering is God's megaphone to a deaf world. Suffering can produce benefits greater than the suffering itself. It can strengthen people, lead people to faith, help us to appreciate the good, and be a tool to influence others. Indeed, suffering can mold us. "Suffering produces perseverance... character... hope...." (Romans 5:3-5) "...though now for a little while you may have had to suffer grief in all kinds of trials. These have come so that your faith—of greater worth than gold, which perishes by fire—may be proved genuine and may result in praise, glory and honor when Jesus Christ is revealed" (1 Peter 1:5-7). The actual trials of faith are worthwhile and precious as is faith itself! Our faith is strengthened as we rely on Christ to see us through troubling times

It is the knowledge that God sent His only son to suffer and die for us that our sins are forgiven and that our ultimate suffering will be relieved. God is "not only aware of suffering—he feels it. No pain or suffering has ever come to us that has not first passed through the heart and hand of God... (Isaiah 53:3)."

Christianity is the only religion or worldview that has an answer to evil and suffering."

<3 T

Prayers Needed

Please pray for Jesse. He is 16 years old and was in a 4-wheeler accident. Apparently he hit a tree and has sustained some brain injuries--they don't know the extent of his injuries yet. His family was with him at the time of the accident. He had just told his mom "This is the most fun I've ever had in my life". That is the last she has heard from him. He is in surgery right now.

Please pray for Jesse, his mom Tawni, father Brad, their other 3 boys and the physicians caring for him!!

1 Peter 1:5-7
"...who through faith are shielded by God's power until the coming of the salvation that is ready to be revealed in the last time. In this you greatly rejoice, though now for a little while you may have had to suffer grief in all kinds of trials. These have come so that your faith—of greater worth than gold, which perishes even though refined by fire—may be proved genuine and may result in praise, glory and honor when Jesus Christ is revealed."

JUSTICE has been served!

So I've been waiting for my trial to come for about 2 1/2 years now (concerning my wreck). And I finally have some good news. The trial has been postponed about 5 times! The most recent trial date was set for this tuesday (July 22). Originally (like a year ago) the max sentence the guy could get that was drivin my car was 10 years for intoxicated assault and fleeing the scene. And he pleaded to 10 years. Then I guess after he thought about it, he fired that lawyer and got a new one. The DA of my case then posted 2 more charges on him, assault with a deadly weapon (my car) as one of them making the new max sentence 20 years.

I've been dreading the thought of going to trial and giving my testimony. I've been praying about it and God is a God of JUSTICE when you pray with faith. So this past week he pleaded to 15 years. My DA just sentenced him friday and on tuesday my family and I are giving our victim's response to him. He cannot respond. I'm like nervous and don't know exactly what to say. Please keep me in your prayers. I need strength through this.

My thing is... WHY WOULD HE LEAVE ME AND THE OTHERS TO DIE? We all were unconscious by this 18 wheeler crash. We all were abandoned by someone we trusted. And he had the nerve to pull me out of my crushed physical state over the driver's seat laying me face down on the pavement to make it look like I was driving. I was not breathing when paramedics arrived. He had a phone on him. He could have called 911. Instead, like a cruel unhuman devilish coward, he left us. I basically died there as a fresh graduate. A fresh beginning to my life was instantly robbed from me... forever. I can't walk; I can't feel. It kills me when people take life for granted. You can walk. You can run. You can feel. Look at life as a blessing. You are blessed. Every breath; every blink; every footstep is a gift from God. I just pray that what has unfortunately happened to me can give you a new perspective on life. Love your life. Love one another. Live. Learn. PRAY.

"But if we walk in the light, as he is in the light, we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus, his Son, purifies us from all sin." (1 John 1:7)

HAPPY BIRTHDAY!!

Happy birthday to Ella my therapist (July 1), DAD (July 16), and MOM (July 21)! Love you all!!

Jobi had her baby!

My best friend Jobi had her baby early thursday morning! He weighed 7 lb 9 oz and his name is Elijah!

June 16

June 16 was my 3 year anniversary of my accident in 2005. It went better this year. We just hung out around the house and mom cooked. We are going to trial about my accident in late July. So woooooo to that.

"Do not take life for granted. Cherish every precious moment. For this can be taken away in an instance."

My ICU Pictures

Celebrity Golf Tournament

Matt Lauer, Justin Timberlake, Tony Romo, and John Atkinson played in a celebrity golf tournament June 5. Guess who won.. My Romo! GO ROMO!!

"Dallas Cowboys quarterback Tony Romo and singer Justin Timberlake may not be qualified to play in the U.S. Open, but both proved they could break 100 Friday on Torrey Pines’ South Course.
The pair joined “Today” host Matt Lauer and a regular guy from Omaha, Neb., in a foursome bent on disproving Tiger Woods’ theory that it takes a pro to beat the course.
Romo, who missed qualifying for the U.S. Open this spring, won with a 13-over 84. The beefy quarterback, who boasts a 2.2 handicap index, barely broke a sweat playing the first nine holes in 5-over 40 but slowed as the six-hour round wore on."

http://www.worldgolf.com/blogs/william.wolfrum/2008/06/07/take_that_tiger_justin_timberlake_tony_r

How You Can Help the China Earthquake Victims

Visit this link. There are many different ways to help! They desperately need us!

http://www.networkforgood.org/topics/international/earthquake/china080512.aspx?source=YAHOO&cmpgn=NEWS

The Country's Cheapest Gas

"While the average gas price nationwide passed $4 last weekend, Missouri could boast of prices around $3.825, the cheapest in the country. How come the Show Me State has the lowest gas prices?

Taxes, pipelines, and ethanol. State gas taxes—which are assessed on top of the federal rate of 18.4 cents per gallon—tend to get the most attention in comparisons of fuel prices across states. At 17.6 cents per gallon, Missouri's gas taxes are low, but they aren't quite as low as some other states'. New Jersey, for example, takes just 14.5 cents per gallon, but its prices remain more expensive than Missouri's."

"But because of its proximity to Texas, Oklahoma, and the Gulf Coast states, Missouri is crisscrossed by some of the nation's larger pipelines. Oil barges also pass through the state on the Mississippi and Missouri rivers. Proximity to producers reduces transportation costs a little, but it also makes Missouri less susceptible to price spikes when individual refineries run into problems."

-http://www.slate.com/id/2193222/?y=1

Help Vote 4 Me So I Can Win A Scholarship

Show Us Your Art 3 Brickfish

Obama Clinches Democratic Nomination

"Sen. Barack Obama achieved the 2,118 needed to clinch the Democratic nomination for president last night and made history by becoming the first African American to win a major party's presidential nomination.

Obama, D-Ill., locked up one of the longest and most closely fought Democratic nomination fights in recent history."

"Tonight we mark the end of one historic journey with the beginning of another -- a journey that will bring a new and better day to America. Because of you, tonight I can stand before you and say that I will be the Democratic nominee for president of the United States," Obama told 30,000 thrilled supporters at an arena in St. Paul, Minn.

"This is our time. This is our moment," he said. He graciously praised Cllinton, despite the sometimes bitter exchanges the two had during the campaign. "Senator Hillary Clinton has made history in this campaign, not just because she's a woman who has done what no woman has done before, but because she's a leader who inspires millions of Americans with her strength, her courage, and her commitment to the causes that brought us here tonight," Obama said.

"Our party and our country are better off because of her, and I am a better candidate for having had the honor to compete" with her, he said."
-http://abcnews.go.com/Politics/Vote2008/story?id=4987177&page=1

DEADLY DISASTER BY NUMBERS

http://www.usatoday.com/news/world/2008-05-26-china-earthquake-mainbar_N.htm?csp=34

"ANXIAN, China (AP) — China grappled with backed-up rivers and reservoirs in danger of collapse, along with looming storms heralding the start of rainy season that threatened Monday to compound damage from the country's worst earthquake in three decades.
Two weeks after the magnitude-7.9 earthquake centered in Sichuan province, the confirmed death toll rose to 65,080, the Cabinet said. The government has said the final number of dead is expected to exceed 80,000.

Many of the disaster victims were children, prompting officials to clarify the country's strict one-child policy guidelines.

The Chengdu Population and Family Planning Committee in the capital of Sichuan province said Monday that families whose children were killed, severely injured or disabled in the quake can get a certificate to have another child."

DEADLY DISASTER BY NUMBERS
Latest facts about the May 12 earthquake that struck a city in China's Sichuan province, the country's worst in 30 years:

Magnitude: 7.9 (U.S.); 8.0 (China).

Disaster area population: 20 million.

Missing: 29,328.

Injured: 288,431.

Homeless: 5 million.

Classrooms destroyed: 6,898.

Orphans: 4,000.

Tents needed: 3.3 million.

Animals killed: 12.5 million.

Company losses: $9.5 billion.

Reconstruction: $10 billion government fund.

Sources: Chinese government