Sunday Front Porch Sitting: Victory

It's a bit chilly this fine day, but that doesn't bother me too much. Come and sit down on the porch here and grab some sweet tea. We got some time before Easter dinner.

You know, this is the day we set aside every year to celebrate something big: Christ's Resurrection.

I could use this space to complain about how commercialized the holiday has become, but even that would take our eyes from the focus of this day.

The reason we have hope beyond the grave is because of Christ's Resurrection. Our faith would be absolutely meaningless without Christ's Resurrection. Our souls would be tragically and hopelessly lost without Christ's Resurrection.

In fact, that's what it says in 1 Corinthians 15:
"Now if Christ be preached that he rose from the dead, how say some among you that there is no resurrection of the dead?
But if there be no resurrection of the dead, then is Christ not risen:
And if Christ be not risen, then is our preaching vain, and your faith is also vain.
Yea, and we are found false witnesses of God; because we have testified of God that he raised up Christ: whom he raised not up, if so be that the dead rise not.
For if the dead rise not, then is not Christ raised:
And if Christ be not raised, your faith is vain; ye are yet in your sins.
Then they also which are fallen asleep in Christ are perished.
If in this life only we have hope in Christ, we are of all men most miserable.
But now is Christ risen from the dead, and become the firstfruits of them that slept."

This is what it's all about. Jesus' sacrifice was the ONLY perfect sacrifice and atonement for our sins. He didn't even wait for us to say sorry first, while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us.

Christ's victory over the grave is the greatest victory ever to be won in all of humanity. We are bought with a price, paid in full, it is finished.

He is risen indeed. God bless y'all!

Don't even THINK about trying it...

I cannot tell you how many times I've had a friend tell me something like:

"One of these days I'm gonna try to start my own blog."
"I think it'd be cool to try to have a YouTube channel."
"I wanna try to grow sideburns."

It's only talk. All talk. Just talk. Yet, they've never attempted to knock any of these things off their to-do list.
Well I'm here to tell you that I've accomplished all of the above. If a guy like me can do it, then there is no reason to doubt that you shouldn't even bother trying it.

*Record screeching*

Thought this was going in a different direction? Cool.

Listen, you have that bucket list of really cool stuff you want to do. Why waste your life's ambition by accomplishing everything early? You'll have nothing else to live for!

I know a girl who wished her whole life she could travel to new and exciting places, one day she quit wishing and started traveling! Wow. What even is the purpose of her life now?

I know a small team of guys who decided that quantum physics shouldn't be scary and boring, but fun and musical. As we speak, they're developing the perfect app that will use music to get you thinking in terms of quantum! Now they're going to ruin EVERYTHING by developing the perfect app. So much for motivation!

I know a guy who wanted to learn to speak to his grandma in Italian, so he taught himself. That's actually really sweet and touching.

If you put the focus of your life on stuff you want to do, your life is gonna be complete when you do it. I might be the one to suggest you put your focus on the things you are currently doing, but hey, who am I to tell you how to live your life? You want a lifestyle blog, read the Art of Manliness.

I guess I could sum everything up in the words of that great philosopher:
"Do or do not. There is no try."
And yes, that philosopher is a glorified Muppet, but hey, out of the mouths of  babes and movie practical effects, amirite?

Sunday Front Porch Sitting: This is war

Welcome back. All this rain we've been having has left us a nice, clear Sunday afternoon.  

Recently, I was thinking about how some kids are afraid of the dark. In their defense, they aren't so much scared of darkness as they are scared of things hiding in the dark. Who knows what lurks in the shadows? There could be all kinds of evil things: clowns, monsters, unsweet tea, fractions homework, the list is endless and diabolical!

Enter the nightlight. It sheds light in the dark so we can be prepared to fight whatever evil might befall us. Fraction homework won't solve itself you know! As I always say: "It's better to die carrying a light than to die in the dark." I always say that. I really do.

You know something, we have a lot of battles in life, and most of those battles hide in dark places where we don't see them until it's too late. Fortunately, we have the Instructions on how we can overcome:

Galatians 5:16, 17

"This I say then, Walk in the Spirit, and ye shall not fulfil the lust of the flesh.For the flesh lusteth against the Spirit, and the Spirit against the flesh: and these are contrary the one to the other: so that ye cannot do the things that ye would."

Yep, we got ourselves a war on our hands. Flesh against the Spirit, Spirit against the flesh, this could go on our whole life! Actually, it probably will. Someday, we'll have a glorified body with non-fighting flesh. But that's another subject for another Sunday. 

In Psalm 119:110, it says "The wicked have laid a snare for me: yet I erred not from thy precepts." There's snares in the road, y'all. Just waiting to catch us. But you know why we don't have to be afraid of the snares? Psalm 119:105 says "Thy word is a lamp unto my feet, and a light unto my path."

Aren't you glad we have God's word to be a light unto our path? We don't have to be afraid of what's hiding in the dark at all. 

Well, maybe except for fraction homework. Why did that never come easily?!?!

Alright. I guess we'll go in for supper now. Happy Sunday!