Sunday School

I wanted to say a special thank you to Karen and David Hill for inviting me to share my Zambia story with their Sunday School class this past weekend. David and Karen teach the 12th grade class at First Baptist in Henderson. I feel blessed to have been able to share with these seniors the amazing things the Lord has done with me and for my kids this summer. I really encouraged them to get plugged in to some type of ministry as soon as they hit their college campus; I am a big believer in this. I warned them that many things (both good and bad) will try and steal their time away, and to keep Christ #1. Also- I apologize for not getting my video up; I still haven't figured out how to post it on this site. I will keep everyone up to date.

As far as Acton goes- I will begin our "Re Boot" week on January 6th. I've got two more books to read by next week; the ones I've read so far include The Black Swan and Mastering the Rockefella Habits. Both are great business books that I would highly recommend to anyone running their own business. I am currently reading a book called Made to Stick, which is about clearly communicating. I certainly need to learn from this one!

One more thing- I will be mailing out my Zambia sponsorship packets tomorrow. I hope you enjoy the DVD when you receive it. If for some reason you don't get a packet- please let me know (travisearl14@gmail.com) and I will send you one. Just so that everyone is aware, this is my first time to raise a majority of the money for my mission trip. I am definitely uneasy about "asking" for money from family or friends- it's definitely a pride issue. I would appreciate your prayers; I know the Lord will provide.

I want to wish everyone a Happy New Year- may the Lord bless you and your family!

Romans 12:2,

Travis

Merry Christmas!

I just wanted to wish each of you a Merry Christmas! This brief break has really allowed me to enjoy time with family and reflect on this past semester. I have been busy burning up the roads back and forth from East Texas to Fort Worth meeting with various business people about potential business opportunities post Acton.

Tonight we had a wonderful time with family and friends as we met at the Hills house for dinner. It was so nice to share old and new stories and literally laugh until I cried. The Lord has certainly blessed me with a marvelous family and such wonderful friends!

I hope you have a wonderful, blessed Christmas. Thanks to each of you for your encouragement and prayers throughout this Fall!

Christmas wishes!

Travis

ps- please let me know if you want a copy of my Zambia video- I finished it last week!

Christmas break is finally here! This is a picture of our family at Bass Hall last week. We took Dad out for his birthday to see Ricky Skaggs & Family for their Christmas show. For those of you who don't know, Ricky Skaggs is an amazing bluegrass singer/mandolin player and a very strong believer. It was really amazing- their entire family is so talented.

This morning I had the pleasure to share my Camp Life/Zambia experience with my mom's Sunday School class. The Lord was definitely at work. Becky Pruitt really wanted me to play guitar (which I reluctanlty did). I also got to show them the new DVD I made from Camp Life. Please let me know if you want a copy and I'll be happy to mail you one. If I can figure out how to post the video on this site, I'll put it up soon.

As far as Acton goes- the semester has come to a stop. Two things I'll be busy with over the break include networking and reading five books (for Acton). I definitely am looking forward to a change in pace and getting to spend time with family and close friends from Henderson. I also want to say a special thank you to Kathy Simmons! She hand delivered a coconut pie from the Purple Turnip. This is by far my favorite dessert of all time!

I want to wish everyone a Merry Christmas! I also want to encourage you to take time at some point over Christmas to communicate with your family and friends how much they mean to you. We have so much to be thankful for!

Thankful for Elijah

This week I got the most amazing Thanksgiving gift ever. My little buddy in Zambia, Elijah, wrote me a letter. Here is what he said:

Dear Travis,

How are you? Thank you for praying for me. Happy Thanksgiving. Tell your family that I love them.

Love,
Elijah

Wow- that's all I can say. I need to take notes from Elijah; they tell us at Acton to "get to the point"... Elijah sure knows how to do that. You can see a picture of Elijah right here- he was the one God told me about long before I ever met him. I'm looking forward to meeting up with Elijah again this coming summer. I'll be heading back to Zambia; this time I'll get to do Father's Heart, which will allow me to go see Elijah at his home and hang out for a while. Again, thank you to those who helped make that trip possible last year. I'll be sending y'all a DVD soon over viewing my experience last year...don't worry!

On another note, I wanted to share with y'all the message I got to hear this morning at Austin Stone. Matt Carter delved into 1 Corinthians 11:1-10 and Ephesians 5. He explained the relationship between husbands, wives, and non-married folks (like me) who one day hope to be the former. It was really interesting- he brought to life what it really means for wives to be helpers and husbands to be like Christ to their wives. He told the story about how had he not had a supportive, encouraging wife, that a church known as "Austin Stone" would have never happened. He said he could not have achieved what he had without her.

With that, I wanted to wish everyone a happy Thanksgiving. My cup definitely overflows! God bless.

Robin vs. Wonder Woman: Understanding Biblical Submission and Headship
http://media.austinstone.org/

Overdue Update!

Sorry for not updating everyone for a while! School is definitely in full gear, and I definitely wanted to update everyone on what's been going on. I apologize for those who've emailed (especially my wonderful former assistant Kahty!), please don't think I'm ignoring you.

The big news in our family is that Lesa (my cousin) and Steve Abney (almost my little brother) got engaged! The Lord definitely has brought together two wonderful people- congrats Lesa and Steve! We got to celebrate over a big family dinner last Saturday night at the Red House. Yes, I got away for a weekend and went to Henderson- it was fabulous. Even though I studied pretty much the entire time, it was great to be back home with the entire family (which doesn't happen as often as we'd like). This picture is of me and Michael Anne by the campfire on Saturday night.

Other big news is that Katie and Josh are expecting a baby! It was a real shocker (in a good way). We got to have lunch with the Hills on Sunday and it was wonderful just getting to catch up with two of my best friends in the entire world. The baby is due in June, and I'm hoping to be an adopted uncle soon (wow...that's weird to say).

As far as Acton goes- things are moving along quit well. I'm loving the classes. I'm reminded daily of how blessed I am to be learning from top notch entrepreneurs. We've only got one more full week of school before Thanksgiving, and I am looking forward to wrapping up this semester so that I can concentrate a bit more on my next step post Acton. I hoping to either stay in Fort Worth or Austin- I'll keep you guys updated.

I just found out that on December 14th I will have the privelage to share my Zambia story with my mom's Sunday school class. I am excited to share what God did in my two week stent this past summer. If you're in East Texas around that time- I'd love for you to come!

Everyone please have a BLESSED weekend. Thank y'all for all your prayers! The Lord is definitely directing me each day, even when I'm stubborn to move. Keep in touch and God bless!

Kind regards,

Travis

Philippians 2:5

Mid Terms Finished

Hello everyone! Well, we just got done with mid-terms last week; pretty soon my first of two semesters at Acton will be in the books. It's amazing that at Acton, even when tests are over, you are still challenged. For instance, this week, most of us thought it would be a little less stressful- that was definitely not the case. But, the good news is, our class is doing an amazing job of improving on the "case method". Like I've mentioned before, during class we use the case method to guide our learning. The teacher asks questions, and the students are supposed to answer that particular question with sound logic and evidence gained through 5-8 hours of prep time. This week our class did an exceptional job at building on the previous point; it was neat to see how all the brain power in the room, combined with active listening, reasoned to a very practical and effective course of action.

Okay, one last thing. In our Life of Meaning Class (www.lifeofmeaning.com) I was posed with the following question: If you were to pick one value you hold, one rule you live by, or one commitment you've made that most clearly distinguishes you, what would it be? This question brought to my mind a myriad of thoughts. Here was my answer:

"Growing up, my dad would often say, “Remember who you are.” At age thirteen, I did not fully realize the weight behind Dad’s advice. Today, these words sit like an anchor. To me, here’s what “remember who you” means: be yourself, don’t follow the crowd, be a leader, stand up for the truth, be quick to listen and slow to speak, honesty and integrity matter, honor your family name, do unto others as you’d have them do unto you, don’t ever start a fight, but if you ever get in one- finish it, be a role model to your brother and sister, encourage youth, be bold, do what is right, and finally, follow Christ. “Remember who you are” is the insignia on my life, and through it I have gained both accountability and respect from and to my family.

Have a blessed week, remember what is important, and take time to thank God for your many blessings. God bless!

It Hurts So Good

Well, believe it or not, Acton just got a whole lot tougher. You are warned numerously of how hard the program can get in October. But believe me- it's definitely different when you're in the middle of it. I'd say it's wonderfully difficult and that I'm sickly loving it! How's that?

A friend shared the following video with me. You talk about moving...man. It reminded me real quick of what's important, and where my priorities are, and why I'm doing what I'm doing. I hope it touches you like it has touched me. You can thank my classmate and friend Mike for sharing it with me.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rPLCaAu_H2U&feature=related

Lastly, I wanted to share with everyone a quote that Dad shared with me a few years ago. It is my favorite. Coincidentally, this quote hangs in the entrance of our Acton classroom, otherwise called "the pit". I am definitely being humiliated and knocked down this week. But I know my efforts are not in vain. It's time to get back in the arena- may God bless your week, and may you fail courageously each day!

"It is not the critic who counts: not the man who points out how the strong man stumbles, or where the doer of deeds could have done better. The credit belongs to the man who is actually in the arena, whose face is marred by dust and sweat and blood, who strives valiantly; who errs and comes short again and again; because there is not effort without error and shortcomings; but who does actually strive to do the deed; who knows the great enthusiasm, the great devotion, who spends himself in a worthy cause, who at best knows in the end the triumph of high achievement and who at the worst, if he fails, at least he fails while daring greatly. So that his place shall never be with those cold and timid souls who know neither victory or defeat."

Whew...what a whirl wind the last week has been! This week was probably my best week at Acton. Even though I know I have so much more to learn, I see myself taking some baby steps toward truly "learning how to learn".

This weekend I took my first, and more than likely, only break. I took a quick flight up to Norman to go see my Horned Frogs play the Sooners. It was actually kind of nice because I got a lot of school work done on the road. Don't kid yourself- I spent most of the weekend studying. Being in the airport and plane for about 8 hours on Friday, studying all morning on Saturday from 8am to 1pm, and studying all day today allowed me to get my work in, but I am exhausted. By the way, THANK YOU to the Banks Family for putting me up for the weekend. Your company was a blessing and your family is an inspiration to me! For those of you who don't know- the Banks Family lives in Oklahoma City and was one of a few wonderful families that went on our mission trip to Zambia this summer. Unfortunately, my Frogs lost...it was pretty upsetting, but the joy of it all was that I got to hang out with Michael Anne and Austin. We had a blast just catching up and rooting for the Horned Frogs (even though the Frogs played as bad as we possibly could). Not seeing my family for over a month really hit me on Saturday- I reminded for the first time in weeks of how blessed I am for having such a great family. In fact, after the game I had to walk by myself back to the Banks' car. Although we had lost, I found myself overly joyful for all the gifts the Lord has bestowed upon me. My cup overflows, and this reminds me that "to much who is given, much is expected."

Lastly, I wanted to share one quick "Acton" moment with you. Two weekends ago I had the privilege to be coached by our amazing master teacher, Steven Tomlinson. Steven is a phenomenal and very sought after communications coach, and I got to spend four hours with him and other classmates working on our communication effectiveness. Thanks first to Steven for taking time out- what I learned was invaluable.

One communication exercise prompt was this: if you had 30 seconds to share with the world one thing, what would it be? Here's what I said.

"Have you ever wondered why sunsets are so beautiful? Have you ever wondered how a baby, upon being born, can instantly change the way it breaths? Have you ever wondered why we all have a conscience that tells us the difference between right and wrong? The one true God, who created you and me, longs desperately to have a relationship with you. My question is- will you let Him create something beautiful in you today?"


ps- oh, and bye the way... don't give up hope, the Frogs can still make the BCS with a win over Utah and BYU!

I Know So Little

Week two is in the books, and I can definitely say that 95% of my time is now devoted to school. Some really neat things have happened, and I thought I'd share a few of those "ah ha" moments with everyone.
Last week in our Entrepreneurial Journey class I was asked by master teach Jack Long to open up the case. Basically what this means is that I get to be the business owner in the case we're studying and I get to make a pending decision based upon several pages of notes. As soon as you get done, your classmates start firing from all directions to challenge or support your answer. Tonight I got to review my opening via our new online video system, which, by the way, is amazing. Standing still and being more concise were just a couple of things that I witnessed that I definitely need to work on. I told Dad that I felt like I was getting back up for an opening in Mock Trial. It was fun, and I certainly learned a lot about being prepared. On a lighter note, there was a point in the class that was pretty hilarious (this may not be that funny because you were not there). Jack asked me if my name was R"ee"s or R"i"s; the business owner in this case had a unique last name. So I replied, "It's R"ee"s." Jack said, "Well how do you know it's R"ee"s?" Already in character mode, I replied, "Because I'm Bob R"ee"s." This is when everyone in the class cracked up laughing. I particularly like Jack's class because each day he gets someone to yell "Good morning!" to kind of liven up the class. So far we've yelled good morning in about three different languages. I think I may volunteer next time and say it in Ynanja (one of many Zambian languages). It's "Mui Bwanji" I believe. I need to double check.

Okay, enough about class- I wanted to update everyone on what else is going on (although not much else is going on because of my commitment to Acton). Labor day weekend my roomate Tully was nice enough to take my buddy Scott and me out on Lake Austin; for the first time I learned how to surf behind a boat...it really made me want to hop on flight back to Maui. I have had a little time available to watch the Frogs play. I watched the game at a sports bar/restaurant called The Tavern since I dont' have Direct TV. TCU won 31-14 this week over Stanford, and (by the way) the Mountain West Conference was 4-0 against the Pac 10...I was pretty proud fo this feat. I'll stop here on the football note. Oh yeah- some of my buddies from school and I have been attending Hillcountry Bible Church-UT, which is right on the UT campus. I feel really "at home" at HBC- it has definitely been a great way to recharge spiritually before the week gets going.

One last thing, I did want to touch on a class we have called "Life of Meaning". Although what goes on in this class is confidential between classmates, I did want to share my experience. One of the things asked of us in LOM is to figure out our ethical framwork. What guiding truth do we use in our life that serves as our compass? Let me just say that it is refreshing to know that absolute truths exists. Your conscious, a sunset, or a waterful are all hints of how marvelous our Creator is. Likewise, I consider myself underservingly blessed to have been shown grace and truth. The challenge for me now is to live that out more courageously each day. Today we actually talked about honesty and how that is lived out in our personal and business lives. This topic hinted more and more to integrity, which reminded me of a saying my grandmother, Mimi, used to say. She'd say, "Remember that your reputation is like a piece of paper...once it's folded, there's always a crease."

I hope everyone is doing well. Have a truly blessed week and keep in touch! Go Frogs...beat the Ponies!

Sincerely,

Travis

"A good name is more desirable than great riches..." Proverbs 22:1

First Week of Acton in the Books!

Hello from the ATX! Well, the first week of class was nothing short of amazing! About the only downside to this week is that I didn't get much sleep (4 hours on Tuesday and 3 hours on Wednesday night). The most amazing thing about our classes are just being able to learn from some incredibly successful entrepreneurs (in all walks of life, not just business). The classes are set up to where we do 10 cases per week (a case is real business situation that happened in the past; the goal is to study the information and make a decision as the business owner.) This week we did TiVo, a Lemonade Stand, and Dr. John's Spinbrush (this was my favorite). John Osher, who invented the spinbrush, is one of the most intriguing entrepreneurial stories I've ever seen. You can probable google "John Osher" and "Spinbrush" and see all the successful businesses this guy has started. He always started with finding an "intense need" and then going out and finding a way to satisfy that need.

Other news- I got my Zambia 2008 Apple picture book in today- it was awesome. I really just made a picture album and tell the story about my mission trip this summer. I hope you get a chance to see it. I also found out that Camp Life won't be opening up any new spots next summer....so I'm hoping to sign up again soon- I really feel led to go back and be with my same kids. I'm trying to get Mom and Austin to come with me- Zambia truly changed my life and I know it will theirs if they get to go. I'm working on a dvd right now from this summer and hopefully I'll have it done by Christmas to show everyone back home.

Well, tomorrow I will be missing the TCU game, which is a bummer for me. All of you who do make it please yell a little louder....I'll be there in spirit! Also, please pray for the following people when you get a chance:

Bret and Kelly Guetz- that the Lord will help Bret finish the Nationwide Tour strong
Mike Janszen and the Janszen family- that God will continue to heal Mike from his esophageal cancer operation
My Acton Classmates

Thank y'all for all of your support; I'll try and keep you updated as often as possible. Again, I apologize if I haven't called you back or answered my phone- this program is so intense...but so good. Have a blessed weekend!

Love,

Travis

Philippians 2:5

Picking them up and putting them down

Well, Acton Boot Camp got started today- it was an absolute blast. We spent from about 7:45am to 11pm last night doing a Profitability simulation where we got to run our business. Marc, Daniel, and Jason Herd were in my group; they were a blast to work with. Our company's name is called Dynacore, and man did we have a roller coaster ride in getting it off the ground. We almost ran out of money on two occasions- it's amazing we're still in business. But, I will say that we've got the company in good position for continued growth in our final two simulations.

One of the fun parts of this exercise is the bidding process. I felt that I had the upper hand on this part of the simulation because of my expertise in art of drafting (those from Camp know what I'm talking about). On several occasions my team strategically outbid the others...I was absolutely loving it...it fired me up! In fact, this last round tonight I managed to sell all ten green inventories for nearly top price!

Well, I know that's more than y'all would like to hear, but I did want to let y'all know I'm doing great and loving it so far. Tully and I are enjoying our new casa...if you're in town you should stop by.

One last thing- Sunday I went to Austin Stone church and listend to Matt Carter share a message about "givining it all up for the gospel", whichi is in 1 Corintians. I encourage you all to go get this message free on Podcast (search Austin Stone Community Church, Matt Carter) and look for the August 24th message. Not only does he tell a great story about him being in the Corp at A&M, but he talks about the essense of Paul's journey.

Everyone have a blessed week and feel free to shoot me an email if you want to say hello (travisearl14@gmail.com).

God bless!

Travis

I Made It to Austin

Greeting from the State Capital,

I finally got moved in, at least half way. My new address is:

3307 Cherry Lane
Austin, TX 78703

Tully and I were truly blessed with a wonderful house in a cozy neighborhood. I am close to school and also close to Lake Austin. Also, I just want to say a BIG THANK YOU to Lucy and Steve Butter- you guys are awesome! They let me stay at their house a couple of nights and hang out with their neato kids- Trey and Tate.

Tonight Austin and I got to attend Acton's Grand Opening (see picture above). The school is located right on Town Lake- you can see downtown in the background...it's really nice. I was glad because Austin got to meet a lot of my classmates. I have been impressed with the caliber of people in this program. I was really impressed when listening to some of our Master Teachers; y'all wouldn't believe (seriously) the business opportunities these guys are involved with (not just in the States). It's truly baffling.

Lastly, I just wanted to apologize to everyone before hand about how much time is about to be zapped from my life. Please just know that between now and May many of you may not hear from me at all (other than this blog). Nobody understands, including myself, how much time this program truly requires. This truth was reinforced tonight when speaking with several former students. So, please just keep up with this blog and don't think I've forgotten about you! When I say "I probably won't make one TCU football game this year", you know this is serious business.

Here's a verse I wanted to leave with everyone before I go. The Lord revealed this to me while in Zambia- it basically means that God is always at work, even when we might get frustrated or have things not work out as planned.

"Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding; in all your ways acknowledge Him and He will make your paths straight." Proverbs 3:5-6

A year ago if you told me I'd be in Austin, Texas, going to a school called Acton, I would have laughed and said, "What is Acton?". But then again, His plan is better than any plan we could ever put together.

Have a blessed week!

Travis

Big Accouncement!

Greetings to all Friends and Family!

Well, it's official! I will be moving to Austin this month to attend the Acton School of Business. Acton specializes in entrepreneurship and I was fortunate and blessed to be a part of this year's incoming class. There's only 28 students total, and once school starts I'll be spending 80 to 90 hours a week immersed in learning how to run a business. The program is just a year long, so I'll be graduating along with Austin and Price in May of 2009. You can check out all the details on the Acton Program by going to www.actonmba.org

Let me back track a little. It has been a difficult decision leaving Cleburne. I've made so many wonderful friends there- it truly is bittersweet. That being said, I know that attending Acton is what I am supposed to be doing. While in Zambia (see picture above with my boys) on a mission trip the past couple of weeks, I had a little more time to get alone and talk to the Big Man. I am thankful for the opportunity and ready for the enormous challenge that awaits. By the way, just to clear things up about the picture above-they're not throwing up gang signs (Dad, I hope this eases your concerns). They're showing their signs we created in a game we played called the "sign game".

The reason for this blog is two fold. First, I wanted to let everyone know of my plans. Secondly, I want to have a forum to update everyone on my Acton and Austin experience. Because Acton is so vigorous and time demanding, and because I won't be able to stay in touch as much as I'd like to this next 9 months, I'm hoping y'all will come to this blog to keep updated and keep in touch. Feel free to add comments as I will check it periodically.

Thanks for everyone's prayers over the last year- the Lord has truly blessed this time in my life. This event in my life is representative by my mom's favorite verse:

"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." Jeremiah 29:11

I look forward to hearing from you all- God bless!

Travis