Happy Thanksgiving!
Happy Thanksgiving!
Category Archives: Holidays
Happy 4th!
As I was out on the lake celebrating the 4th, I reflected on my love of the South. The South can be summed up in a great cookout. Sharing good times and great food with friends and family while out in the beautiful hills of Tennessee — That's the South. Now a yankee tried to point out that she had similar cookouts up in Jersey, but it's not the same. You see in the South, we have a special affinity for food. Love of friends and family have long intermingled with food. Its not about a particular item… the perfect burger or the perfect cannoli… it's about the perfect MEAL. And beyond that… its about SHARING the perfect meal with those close to you and even more — sharing that meal enjoying the beauty of nature and reflecting… on how truely good we all have it. That is what I love about the South. Happy 4th of July! And thanks to all the troops that won and defend our independance!
He Is Risen!
He is risen, indeed! Happy Easter everyone!
Easter is one of my favorite holidays, but I've always felt that it didn't quite get the credit that it deserved. Throughout history, Christianity has had a constant, recognizable symbol: the cross. (Google will bring up 935,000 cross images) And this is understandable. The cross symbolizes that God was willing to sacrifice his own son to achieve reconciliation with humanity.
Greater love has no one than this, that he lay down his life for his friends. (John 15:13 NIV)
This is, of course, of vital importance. Not only as a sign of God's love but against the backdrop of Jewish law and history – it demonstrates the end of sacrifices through the one perfect sacrifice.
The law is only a shadow of the good things that are coming – not the realities themselves. For this reason it can never, by the same sacrifices repeated endlessly year after year, make perfect those who draw near to worship. If it could, would they not have stopped being offered? For the worshipers would have been cleansed once for all, and would no longer have felt guilty for their sins. But those sacrifices are an annual reminder of sins, because it is impossible for the blood of bulls and goats to take away sins… And by that will, we have been made holy through the sacrifice of the body of Jesus Christ once for all. (Hebrews 10:1-4,10 NIV)
So now that I have made quite the case for the cross as a symbol for Christianity – what am I whining about? I never felt that symbolism of the cross should be replaced, but supplemented. Supplemented with the imagery of the empty tomb. Continue reading
Happy New Year
Happy New Year!
Merry Christ-mas!
Merry Christmas everyone! While Christmas is a time of family, friends, christmas trees, decorations, eggnog (a personal favorite), Santa, presents, a few classic movies (you’ll shoot your eye out kid!) — it is also a celebration of the birth of Jesus of Nazareth. Son of Joseph a Carpenter, Jesus was THE most influential person of ALL TIME. Don’t believe me? Check the date.
A.D. stands for Anno Domini: “In the year of the lord” – it indicates a year counted from the traditional date of birth of Jesus; recently the P.C. crowd has tried to introduce the Common Era (C.E.) as a replacement to remove religious implications.
The interesting thing about Jesus is that he never obtained an advanced degree, never held a political office, never wrote a book, never traveled very far from his home, never comanded an army, never amassed possessions beyond the clothes on his back — and yet he changed the world. Argue that the change was good or bad, fine. But you can’t argue that he didn’t make an impact.