Update from Easter Sunday

I read a blog today and noticed that on it there was a post updating those who read on their Easter Sunday events. It reminded me that I should do the same. So, here goes. Easter Sunday was fantastic. Not only did the boys get to dress up and look very handsome (see pictures below), but we also had a great Easter Egg hunt at my uncle and aunt's house. My cousin was there with her child (Davis) as well as an old friend I had not seen in a long, long time was there with her son. Most importantly it is so great to get to take a day out of the year and and reflect on the fact that Jesus Christ conquered the bonds of death. If you have not read it in a while, read Matthew 28 and just think about what a wonderful day that was and how it has affected you and mankind as a whole. The angel told Mary to give the child born of immaculate conception the name Jesus because it meant, "God with us" and in Matthew 28:20 Jesus reminds us that he does live up to his name when he says "I am with you always." I hope that you all had a great Easter and spent time dwelling on the fact that what seperates Christians from all other religions is that we serve a LIVING God who is with us always.

Ethan looking handsome on Easter.

Luke really does not like having his picture made in the cold!

Ethan found the most eggs.

Luke was a close second though.

The afternoon quickly dissolved into a day of chase,

Tackle

and pile on.

that ended with Luke's mouth bleeding and...

he and Davis pretending to be dead.

Pilgrim's Map of the Day

I hope everyone had a Happy Easter. I know that we did. The boys got to play with their cousin and a new friend and they hunted Easter Eggs and ate tons of candy. While it was tiresome for Joy and I, it is always worth it when you can give your kids days that they will always remember. Hopefully I will have picures up soon. In the meantime, here is the pilgrim's map of the day to some good internet finds.

* I thought this was an interesting article regarding the supposed on-screen suicide seen in The Wizard of Oz.

*

Pilgrim's Map of the Day

I am discovering that the only easy thing about keeping up a blog is forgetting to post. I am back now and I aim to soon post the reaminder of my "Because He Loved Him" lesson. In the meantime, enjoy today's map to quality links on the internet.

* (NERD ALERT!!!) Here is a neat little photo essay on the evolution of home video gaming systems. It was a stroll down memory lane for me.

* This next post is primarily for my friend Amber and her daughter Maddy. I thought they would enjoy seeing the Disney imagery that made its way into the movie Enchanted. Click here to see the listing of "easter eggs."

* I just saw the trailer to this movie called The Strangers and if you like chilling scary movies, this one looks like it may be for you (I know I want to see it). Here is a link to the trailer.

Because He Loved HIm Part 2

First off, sorry it has taken me so long to get back with part 2. I was very busy last week and I am struggling to find time to post much. So anyway, here is part 2 of my thoughts.

If you remember, in Part 1 I talked about how we need to decide if we are living the Christian life because we expect some great reward or if we are doing it for the sole reason that we love God. In this post, I am going to talk about the first of four things that I do because I love God.

-Because I love God, I obey Him-

This sounds so simple and so hard at the same time. Even those of us who are trying every day to show our love to God struggle with this one. Let me address fellow Christians first. As Christians you know that we should search the scriptures daily and if you truly love God, this is not a burden, but a privilege. It is your chance to read the mind of God and find answers to any questions that you may be having. To refer back to our original text, Elijah himself tells us that he knows what to do "through His word" (1 Kings 17:5).

One response to this is "but there are so many rules." No, there aren't. If we are living our lives with the sole purpose of expressing our love and adoration to God almighty, there should be no rules, only a ruler. Pay attention: If God is the ruler of my heart then all I have to do to obey Him is measure every action against this ruler. Use God as an actual measuring tool. If you love God, you must obey Him. All of the rules that so many people complain about in daily Christian life are neatly summed up for us in Colossians 3 beginning at verse 11:

11 where there is neither Greek nor Jew, circumcised nor uncircumcised, barbarian, Scythian, slave nor free, but Christ is all and in all. 12 Therefore, as the elect of God, holy and beloved, put on tender mercies, kindness, humility, meekness, longsuffering; 13 bearing with one another, and forgiving one another, if anyone has a complaint against another; even as Christ forgave you, so you also must do. 14 But above all these things put on love, which is the bond of perfection. 15 And let the peace of God rule in your hearts, to which also you were called in one body; and be thankful. 16 Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly in all wisdom, teaching and admonishing one another in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing with grace in your hearts to the Lord.

There sure are alot of things you are supposed to do in that passage aren't there? Yes. But notice verse 14. What is the trump card? Love. If you love God, you will love your fellow man and yourself, making every other thing listed in this passage fall right into place. Because I love God, I obey His word to show Him.

To those who may be reading this who may not have put on Christ yet, allow me to talk to you. Your question may be, "If I have yet to put on Christ, then how do I obey Him?" The answer to this is harsh but I feel needs to be said. If you have been taught the word and shown that Jesus does save and that he did die for your sins and was raised again and you have not made the decision to put on Christ for redemption, then you can not even say you believe in God, much less love Him. If you truly believed you would know how great and powerful he is and you could not help but love Him and obey His every command. You are spinning your wheels and waiting for something that will probably never come. You are relying on something else when Jesus himself says that you are foolish and slow of heart (Luke 24:24-27) and that He is willing to teach you should you simply try to believe. You have been told that Jesus conquered every constraint that this Earth could possibly put on him and you can not believe so how will you ever believe spiritual matters (John 3:12). You may think that you are fooling people because you go to church sometimes or you wear a cross around your neck but the truth is you do not even believe in the Lord God, much less love Him. Jesus speaks to you in John 5: 37 & 38 and tells you that He is not abiding in you because you have yet to hear his voice. You can't fool God and Jesus tells you so in verse 42 of that same passage. He says "But I know you..." When I read those words thet make me think of some threatning gangster movie. Those 4 words should call you to action. Jesus knows your heart and if you are fooling yourself into believing that you love and obey God, please search your heart and scripture for the truth.

If you truly recognize God for the power that he is you have no option but to obey Him. Love = Obey. There is the equation for all of us. How hard is that. Yet this world is filled with confusion over such matters as baptism and the Lord's Supper. The word of God says to do it, if you love God you will obey God, do it. Show God your love through your obedient actions.

I hope to post part 3 of this lesson in the near future. Check back often.

"Because He Loved Him." part 1

It is amazing to me how God provides all of us with what we need. When one of our preachers asked me to fill in for him to preach in four short days (yesterday being the end of that four days), I had no idea what I would speak on. Let me stop here and say that he also unwittingly gave me a great birthday present (yesterday was my birthday). There is nowhere else I would want to be on my birthday than somewhere being given an opportunity to speak the Truth. I am by no means a refined preacher but I love the Lord and there is nothing that makes me happier than being able to share his word and how it works in my life.

As I sat down the next night (Thursday) to study the Bible with my children (something I do not do often enough) I decided to read them the story of Elijah in 1 Kings 17. In this story, God tells Elijah to hide by the brook and that he will provide for him. God sends ravens to bring Elijah food and Elijah stays there until the water begins to dry up. This is all found in the first seven verses of this chapter. At this point, I stop and I am going to make a point about how Elijah went and lived a very uncomfortable life just because God told him to and that they should obey like Elijah does. God had other plans though. I asked my children (5 and 6 years old) why did Elijah do what God said without asking any questions. At this point, without hesitation, my six year old, Ethan responds "Because he loved him."

I paused. I was totally caught off guard by this response. I couldn't argue with that answer or ever provide a better, more concise answer. This 6 year old prince of God had just shaken my soul and I get misty eyed just thinking about how powerful this child's words were. Here I was, preparing to teach my children a lesson about doing what they are told and instead I am given a lesson. Talk about verification of Psalm 8:2.

Despite the effect this had on me that night, I still woke up the next morning not knowing what I would speak about. I was going to go with the obligations of Christians. I was off work that next day and I took Luke, my youngest son, with me to my parents to eat lunch that day. I was going to ask my father and mother's advise on what to speak on while there. But God had different plans. My parent's home is surrounded by tall, tall trees and that day in those tress were hundreds of crows, cawwing (is that a word) away. As my son and I got out of the car and walked inside Luke asked me what those birds were and I explained to him that they were kinda like the birds in the story we read last night about Elijah. After lunch, I left to pick Ethan up from school and the birds were still there as I was leaving, louder this time. When Ethan and I arrived back at my parent's house, the crows were still there singing their rancid tune and Ethan asked the same question as his brother before. "What are those birds?" As I was answering him, his answer to me the previous night hit me again and I then had my inspiration of what to speak on. God is so good.
Over the next several days I will be posting my thoughts on this and hopefully the words will help you answer the question I am trying to answer. Am I living a Christian life just so I can get something out of it such as Heaven, financial security, peace, etc... or am I living a Christian life for no other reason than I love God for everything He is? If you can answer yes to the second half of that question, then how are or do we show God we love him? It is a tough question but one we all need to ask ourselves because God has earned our love and we need to be acting daily to show God how much we love him.