Independence Day is celebrated on the 4th of July.  Click here to check out an article from National Geographic on why the holiday should actually be a couple of days earlier.

A few years back, my wife and I started a holiday tradition where we invited our closest friends over to our home for a pre-Thanksgiving dinner the weekend before the Thanksgiving holiday.  Due to various transitions that have occured over the past couple of years, this is a tradition that we’ve had to put on hold.

As the leader of our household, I was expected to give the pre-dinner prayer and kick off a toast, two things that I found extremely uncomfortable to do.  It’s so funny, I’ve prayed in public hundreds, maybe thousands of times, but this pre-dinner prayer seemed to carry much unnecessary and an unusual amount of pressure.

If the thought of speaking up at your holiday dinner brings chills down your spine, you’ve got to check out this article from AOL News that is full of tips on delivering that always akward and uncomfortable toast.

The number one thing to keep in mind?  As AOL states, “this isn’t a wedding, and no one’s expected to give a lengthy speech.”  There’s no need to over prepare for this quick toast.  Speak from the heart and move on.  Over preparing or dwelling on this will only bring on much more unneeded anxiety.

From Silver City to the world! All this week, First Baptist Church of Silver City (2300 N. Swan Street — (575) 388-1582) will be collecting shoe boxes for underprivileged children in other countries.

Join in!  Pack a shoebox filled with school supplies, toys, necessity items, hard candy and a letter of encouragement. Step-by-step shoe box packing instructions are available at on the Samaritan’s Purse website.  If you’re in the area, stop on by (9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Mon. through Fri., 1 to 2 p.m. Sat., 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. Sunday, and 8 to 9 a.m. Mon. Nov. 22) with your contribution.

For more information, click here.