Summer Recap (Part 2)

TODAY’S BIBLE VERSE: “But at the beginning of creation God 'made them male and female. For this reason a man will leave his father and mother and be united to his wife, and the two will become one flesh. So they are no longer two, but one. Therefore what God has joined together, let man not separate."

                                                                          - Mark 10:6–9

“Where there is great love, there are always miracles.”

                                                                ~ Willa Cather

I have no idea what time it was when I finally awoke on June 28, 2009. The night seemed eternal. My mind was constant. Was my wife-to-be awake? Did anyone get any sleep? How much longer until I can go to church and get ready?

I’m sure I rose with the sun. There has never been a full day dedicated to myself except for my birthday. I’ve had good birthdays in the past, but birthdays are only a big deal for the person adding a year to their age. June 28 was a birthday of sorts, but it was bigger than a birthday. This was my wedding.

Arrival and Pre-Ceremony

Corey (best man) and I drove to Immanuel Lutheran late that morning since I was anxious to get there. We got there before 11:30 when everyone else was instructed to be there. The wedding wasn’t until 2:00 PM, but we wanted to have enough time for people to get dressed and have pictures taken. I dropped my suitcase for the honeymoon and tuxedo off in the “dressing room” where the guys and I changed. Then I went out and visited with people as they arrived.

It was pretty cool to feel like the star. When someone saw me or passed me, they said, “Hey! There’s the groom!” or, “There’s the guy!” People asked me if I was ready, and said how surprised they were that I was getting married. I wouldn’t want to have that every day of my life, but for one day it was fun. I was like an athlete talking to reporters outside the locker room hours before an important game.

Our wedding party showed up on time, which was a great relief for me knowing everyone made it safely and was accounted for. Megan’s dad went out and got sandwiches and other snack food for us to indulge in before pictures. We got food in shifts; first the girls went and got food followed by the guys. Everyone did a good job of keeping Megan and I apart.

At one point, I spent about 20 minutes in the guy’s “dressing room” by myself waiting for Megan to leave just so I could get out of the room. It gave me time to think about that superstition.

I know it’s “bad luck” for the bride and groom to see each other before the wedding. But honestly, what is luck when you have God as the capstone of your relationship? Does having God in your relationship mean you have to follow that tradition? I don’t think so. When you have God, you don’t need luck or superstition.

Earlier this summer, Sidney Crosby of the Pittsburgh Penguin showed how unfounded superstition can be by violating a long-time superstition. His Penguins swept the Carolina Hurricanes in four games to win the Prince of Wales trophy as Eastern Conference Champions. Tradition has it that when the captain of the winning team is called forward to receive the trophy, they don’t touch it for fear of ruining their destiny of winning the next, big trophy, the Stanley Cup.

What happened? The Penguins went on to defeat the Detroit Red Wings in seven games to win the Stanley Cup. This wasn’t the first time it happened either. Captains from Detroit, Pittsburgh in 1991, the Dallas Stars, and the New Jersey Devils touched their conference’s respective trophy and went on to win the Stanley Cup. So what worth is found in upholding superstition?

Megan and I never talked about whether we would see each other or not; we just assumed we would follow tradition and wait until we met at the altar. If a couple does not want to see each other because they want to be surprised when the doors swing open and they’re at opposite ends of the church, that’s great. If they don’t want to see each other because of superstitious beliefs, I would advise them to find a better reason.

My thoughts were interrupted when someone finally came into the “dressing room” to tell me Jim Fish was ready for the groom to come up to the sanctuary for pictures.

Jim has known me since I was a little kid running around his studio trying to ward off boredom. My dad and Jim used to work together as photographers when Jim had a studio on Gravois Rd. in South County. When it came time to find a photographer for the wedding, I knew just the guy.

Pictures went really well. We did a few poses with just me, then Corey and I, then my parents separately and one with all of us together. Some people asked me after the wedding if it was weird to be up there with my original family before my parents got divorced. It wasn’t something I thought about at all. My parents are in wonderful relationships and they do such an amazing job of being friendly and civil around each other; you would think they were friends and never went through a divorce.

Once we got all of the pictures taken, I went back downstairs to my hiding place and waited.

It was strange to be in that room as the clock neared 1:00 PM. I couldn’t hear people walking around or talking outside. There was no way of knowing if tumble weeds were dancing in the hallway or if floods of people were filing in.

It got to be a little unnerving waiting. There was nothing to do and no one to talk to. Eventually the other guys came back to the room and we hung out, which kept me from making a jail break to see who was there.

Around 1:30 PM, Melissa (maid of honor) came to our room and gave me a hug. “I just want you to know you’re very lucky,” she said (there wasn’t time for me to tell her my thoughts on luck). Melissa and Megan aren’t just sisters; they’re best friends. Getting to know Megan also gave me the blessing of getting to know Melissa.

We developed a friendship of our own and to this day Melissa says she knew early on that Megan and I would get married. She did a good job keeping quiet about it. Long before Megan and I ever dated, Melissa was like a baby sister to me. I always wanted a younger sister and I don’t know why. Maybe it was a desire to have someone to protect or to give you advice from a girl’s perspective, but Melissa was the youngest “sister” of all my friends. It felt great to see her shortly before the wedding to tell her how happy I was that she was finally about to be my baby sister.

About 15 minutes before the ceremony, Pastor Rueckert came down to lead Corey, Matt (groomsman), Chris (groomsman), and I up to the sanctuary where we waited in an office behind the altar. There was quite a bit of commotion in the sanctuary. Finally, I got an idea of how many people where there.

It was quiet where we waited. Each of us reviewed in our minds what to do, where to walk and stand, and when to do what we needed to do. It was like the scene in Miracle just before the game against Russia where the locker room is silent and all the guys are deep in thought or prayer.

I glanced at the clock . . . 1:59 PM . . . Deep breath . . .

I wasn’t nervous to get married. I was nervous about where to stand and what to do, about making a goofy face that would be immortalized in pictures for eternity, recessing at the same speed as Megan. When the clock hit 2:00 PM the strangest thing happened.

Pastor Rueckert rang the bills right on cue. It was still quiet where I stood with the guys. Suddenly, one of them said, “Guys . . . look at the clock.” All of our heads turned and looked at the clock on the wall. It froze at 2:00 PM. The second hand froze. If it wasn’t quiet before it certainly got quiet when we noticed the clock.

“Are you guys ready?” Pastor Rueckert said as he came out from the back room.

“Look at the clock,” I said.

Pastor looked and starred at the clock for awhile before saying with a chuckle, “Well, I guess that’s a good sign.”

I didn’t know what to make of it. What does superstition say about that? I wondered as the first song played while our parents were escorted to their seats. It seemed as though time stopped. Most of my family and friends were in the sanctuary. God was present. Everyone was here for a very big moment in my life. Nothing else was on my mind or anyone else’s probably. Heaven and earth stood still for this big day.

Pastor brought us together for a quick prayer. We were huddled like a team just before charging through the tunnel to their destiny. It was finally time. This was it.

The Ceremony

When I walked out from the back room and saw a large gathering of so many people I was overwhelmed. I tried not to look around and see who all was there. I was more focused on watching the bridesmaids come down the aisle and anticipating Megan’s entrance. I got more anxious and excited with each passing bridesmaid. I had to remind myself to slow everything down and enjoy it. Slow it down and remember it.

When the doors at the back of the church swung open and a beautiful girl stood there in a white dress I froze like the clock on the wall. I couldn’t believe that was my bride standing just feet away. I never saw this coming.

My prediction was that if I would every marry, it would be in my late 30s. I never had a girlfriend and anytime I got close it fell apart at the last minute. But the moment I gave my love life to God and let Him write my story, it happened. It happened sooner and better than I imagined. I put my trust in God and was rewarded by being footsteps away from my soon-to-be-wife instead of sitting at home wondering if I would ever know true love.

You can’t describe how beautiful Megan looked. There are no such words. No matter what was going to happen or could happen, I was not going to look away from her walking down the aisle. I was captivated by her heavenly beauty.

God has been so gracious to me and I don’t know why he keeps blessing me. A wife? A beautiful, adorable, loving wife? Now? All I could do was stand in admiration and quietly praise God.

The ceremony seemed to fly by. Before I knew it we agreed to have and hold each other, in sickness and health, for better or worse, so long as we both shall live.

BAM!

I was married! The wait was over! Megan was my wife!

“I now present you,” Pastor Rueckert said, “Mr. and Mrs. Barry Pfeiffer!”

Everyone stood and applauded. We recessed out of the sanctuary to smiles, cheers, tears of joy, and applause. It was hard not to look at everyone. Heck, it was hard not to smile like a complete goof at what had just happened.

The best part of all was that it didn’t feel awkward; it felt so right and good. I have no doubt that all of our relatives who have gone before us were there smiling and applauding with everyone else. Most importantly, I know God and all the angels rejoiced that a strand of three cords was tied together and God was invited into our relationship.

Post-Ceremony

We walked out of the sanctuary and prepared to greeted our guests. We hugged and danced around like our flower girl and ring bearer were doing earlier.

“We’re married, baby! You’re my husband!” Megan exclaimed.

“I know! I can’t believe! It finally happened!” I said with excitement.

It didn’t take long for the bridesmaids, groomsmen, and parents to come out and start celebrating with us. Soon our first guests filled out and congratulated us. I got so much deodorant and make-up on the shoulders of my coat from girls hugging me. After the first few I just accepted that it was going to stay that way.

“It’s okay,” I told people, “you’re leaving your blessing and love on my shoulder.”

Doing a meet-and-greet after the ceremony was a great idea. It gave us the chance to talk to people we hadn’t seen for years or decades in some cases. We also had the opportunity to meet our new family members and friends. I wish there hadn’t been a time issue because I could have stood there talking to everyone all day. We didn’t have time to hang out after the last person left because we went back into the sanctuary to start taking pictures.

Pictures

I didn’t care how long it took even if we did have a reception to get to. I was soaking everything up and didn’t want it to end. We did several pictures in the sanctuary and then headed out to the playground to take a few more pictures.

The weather was beautiful, which was a miracle all its own. Throughout that week, St. Louis was experiencing some rain and high humidity. There didn’t seem to be a break and many of us wondered if we would even be able to take as many pictures outside as we hoped because of the temperature. Thankfully, after much praying and petitioning from so many people, the humidity lifted and the skies were clear. It was a great day.

One of my favorite moments on the playground was shooting a few hoops. Jim got a few pictures of the guys and girls standing around in their dresses and tuxes watching Megan in her beautiful white dress standing in front of the basket making a shot. Something about it made it really awesome for me. I guess because it seems unique. How many pictures do you see of a wedding party playing basketball?

Forest Park was our next stop where we took several more pictures. Megan and I were getting our picture taken when a police officer walked up to us. He could tell we obviously just got married, so he handed Megan his handcuffs and said, “Here you go, use these.” So we got a picture with a pair of handcuffs (laughs). He said something else to us and congratulated us.

Some of the pictures we took were by one of the MLB All-Star arches that were made for this year’s All-Star game played in St. Louis on July 13. Apparently 13 were made and placed around St. Louis. They were auctioned off after the All-Star game for thousands of dollars. The fact that we got some pictures underneath one will be nice for a sentimental value. Those arches were only there for awhile, so that will be good to have in a wedding scrapbook.

It never fails that, with most weddings, you can never have enough time between the wedding and reception to get enough pictures. During the wedding planning, I was a proponent for having a long break between the ceremony and reception to allow enough time for pictures. Most people think that’s ludicrous because what are the guests to do? Frankly I could care less what our guests did; that wasn’t our job or responsibility. Secondly, if you don’t have enough time between the two events, you rush through pictures and then when you’re ordering them months later you find yourself saying, “I wish we got a picture with so and so,” or, “Why didn’t we get a picture with these people?” 

We did have a four hour break between our ceremony and reception, however, we were still late getting to the reception (by 10–20 minutes) because we wanted to make sure we got plenty of pictures and poses with everyone. It wasn’t something you could say, “Well that’s okay, we’ll just go back and get a picture next weekend.” This was a one-time thing and if you didn’t capture what you wanted that was it. I don’t think we had any regrets or disappointments though; we did everything we wanted to do before going to the reception.

The Reception

The reception was held at DeBonaire Banquet and Conference Center. It wasn’t the biggest place and I was concerned with fitting our 250 guests in what seemed like a tight space. Everything worked out as far as seating and arrangement was concerned. We arrived with our wedding party and went where the offices are to prepare. Once we paired everyone up and gave each group their instructions, the reception began.

The wedding party was introduced by our DJ, Steve. Steve was a great find for us thanks to my dad having worked with Steve at Lowes. The couples walked in to the B-52’s “Love Shack” and did a dance to it. Unfortunately, Megan and I didn’t get to see the dances they did. Hopefully someone got a video of it for us and we’ll send it to us. After everyone had gone before us, we danced our way to the head table and sat down to get the reception moving along.

While dinner was being brought out, we watched a video that Melissa made for us. She did a great job on it and we were happy to finally see it. She does a good job with scrapbooking and making videos.

Pastor Rueckert said a prayer and everyone had dinner. One of the perks to being the bride and groom is that we didn’t have to get up from our seats to get dinner! We had ham, salad, pasta, and a few other things. The food tasted great and I wish I would have been able to eat more.  

Our wedding party made toasts between dinner and cutting the cake. Corey went first and delivered an interesting toast. He mentioned how, despite being the younger brother, he was the first to do everything: get his license, graduate from college (he went to a one-year technical school), have a girlfriend, etc. His toast was humorous, but really good.

Melissa delivered her toast and mentioned how she knew all along that we would be married, especially when Megan came home one morning from Grandpa’s and said, “So, I think I like Barry.” Everyone laughed. She delivered a very sentimental and heartfelt toast that made me more thankful to officially be her big brother now.

The only other people in our wedding party to give a toast were Chris and Emily. I was a little surprised that Chris gave a toast, but not entirely. He talked about me being a brother to him and that he was grateful to have a sister now as well. I appreciated him standing up in front of a bunch of people he didn’t know and give a toast. It meant a lot to Megan and I. Emily talked about being best friends with Megan and how happy she was for both of us to have found each other. She was actually the one who introduced us.

My dad also gave a toast to Megan’s parents for hosting the reception. We were glad he recognized the dedication and sacrifice that was made by her parents to help make our day so special.

After the toasts, Megan and I went and cut the cake. Most of our guests were surprised when we rubbed cake in each other’s face. No one expected us to do that, which surprised both Megan and I. I don’t think we even had much of our cake after that, which was really disappointing because the lady who made the cake also did my cousin’s wedding cake last summer and she makes great cake. We do have some of the cake in a freezer at Megan’s parent’s.

Following the cake-cutting we had our first dance. I couldn’t help but stare into my wife’s magnificent eyes. We talked about how the day was going and how happy we were to finally be married. It was incredible.

Our first dance, and dancing with our respective parent, was the only time we had at the reception to slow down and take it easy. After that it was fast-paced visiting and greeting.

I expected to be busy at the reception, but I didn’t expect to be so busy to the point where I didn’t get to have any cake or time to simply sit. If I wasn’t dancing, I was visiting with someone. If I wasn’t visiting someone, I was dancing or trying to get a drink. There was no slowing down. We didn’t get time to talk to nearly everyone we wanted to, but that’s how it goes at a wedding.

We had a great time at the reception. It was everything I hoped it would be and then some. Some of the interesting memories I have are Zach and Jimmy running up to me while I was talking with members of my family and grinding against me, Zach and Jimmy lifting me up to the ceiling during one of the songs, Megan and her bridesmaids dancing on the chairs by the head table to “YMCA,” and watching our ring-bearer (Garrett) and flower girl (Olivia) take over the dance floor.

Before I knew it, people were leaving and other people in our family were telling us to get out of there because, according to tradition, the bride and groom should be long gone by the time the reception ends. There was another tradition that needed to be done before we could leave, though. It’s a tradition my dad started at my cousin’s wedding last summer.

My dad broke out a bottle of 15-year-old single malt double-wood scotch and toasted Megan and mine’s marriage with some of our friends and family before we got in the car and headed to our hotel to begin the honeymoon. It was a toast to health and happiness, but better yet, a toast to newfound love. I was glad to see his tradition continue.

Conclusion

I knew our wedding day would be great, but it was, just like the bachelor party, better than I expected. Everything went so smoothly and we had such a great time. There were no problems with guests or people being asked to leave. No one stood up and objected (laughs). It was a lot of fun and hard to believe it went by so fast compared to the preparation and where we are now.

It’s been four months—plus a day—since Megan and I married. Our marriage is still centered in God as we do nightly devotions and prayer. We’ve had our stupid insignificant arguments about things that don’t matter (how to hang the towels, what towels to use for dishes, how to do the dishes).

We’re still getting to know each other as husband and wife. We’re still learning what the other is saying when they’re saying nothing. We’re figuring out how to read each other. We’re discovering we have different approaches to doing basic and complex things.

Marriage is hard, but that’s what makes it so great. There is no greater feeling of accomplishment than when you stick with it, pray, and rise above those obstacles. The best part of all is that you get to celebrate every inch of victory with your best friend.

So we continue to learn and rely on God, but, most importantly, we still love each other deeply and wouldn’t want it any other way. We have fun most of the time and enjoy each other despite how the towels are hanging.

We’re just now working on ordering our wedding pictures (we’re terrible aren’t we?), which is stressful to pick only 70 pictures out of 500 or so. What’s nice about it is getting to relive our wedding day, which is as enjoyable as writing about it months afterwards. We waited for so long and when it finally arrived it seemed to come and go as the wind.

Our special day was short in passing, but it left a long trail of memories that we’ll shall for the rest of our lives. May our marriage bring happiness to us, joy to others, and glory to God.

Summer Recap (Part 1)

TODAY’S BIBLE VERSE: “For even the Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many.”

                                                                           - Mark 10:45

“Reflect upon your present blessings, of which every man has many.”

                                                                                                ~  Charles Dickens

What a summer! Weddings, honeymoon, mission trip, job hunting, moving, several things in between. I haven’t had much time to write because of my busy schedule. I never thought I’d be so busy; especially to the point of having no time or energy to write.

In the spirit of reminiscing and not leaving things hanging out there, here’s a review of my summer and some of the big events that took place:

Pre-Wedding

Megan completed her first year of teaching at Zion Lutheran Church and School in Bethalto, IL in June 2008 with two weeks until our wedding. That meant one thing for our calendar: fill it up with wedding preparations.

I can’t remember everything we still needed at the time Megan finished her first year of teaching. The majority of it was small things for décor at the reception or church. At times it felt like we were never going to get it done.

We had programs to print, fold, and tie. We had party favors to buy and figure out how to distribute. We had rooms at Megan’s parent’s house to paint. Our list was long and time was short.

God gave us strength to persevere and get it done. Our biggest stressor and headache was our ceremony program.

Her parents, sister, my dad, Megan, and I had just finished a productive day of painting and organizing rooms. We were sitting around the living room looking at the programs we had printed that day. Everything was great until her dad started looking through it.

“That’s not how you spell [their name]” he said.

Her dad likes to joke a lot, so none of us took him seriously. Then he proved he wasn’t joking by showing the girls the misspelled name. Megan wanted to cry.

We spent hundreds of dollars on 180 programs and all of them had a misspelled name. I can’t put into words the feelings some of us had. There was no way to fix it. You couldn’t pass it off and hope it would go unnoticed.

So we reprinted them. All of them. Thankfully, Dad knew a place that would print them for way cheaper than what we paid at Kinkos. It still cost money; money we shouldn’t have had to spend.

That was when we realized how big of a vacuum weddings are. It’s so easy to make a mistake when you have so many things to keep track of. It’s amazing people don’t make more mistakes for weddings. With so many things to keep track of and all the stress involved, how do things not get lost, every name gets spelled right, all the right people are invited, everyone gets paid or thanked for their service, and so on?

Our wedding planning had stress, tough decisions, and weak moments when we pondered how we could ever afford any of it with only one of us working. The stress began to subside, however, the closer we got to the wedding date.

Worry and anxiety slipped away. The thunderous voice of conflict slowly became a mere rumble. Our long list grew shorter and shorter as did our stress. Though there was some remaining, we could meet each new day with excitement. The day—our day—was quickly approaching.

Family came in town. Our wedding party traveled from near and far. They arrived with excitement for Sunday, June 28, 2009. It was almost here, but there were parties to attend and rehearsals to prepare for.

Bachelor Party (June 25, 2009)

My expectations for a bachelor party were low. I gave Corey (best man), Matt (groomsman), and Chris (groomsman) one specific instruction: no strippers. It may be a popular thing to do, but the idea of it being my “last night of freedom” was nonsense to me. If you have a bachelor party, it typically means you’re getting married, which means you’re probably not in the state of “freedom” anyway.

Corey did his best to invite friends over to Grandpa’s for a party. The feedback was discouraging.

“I won’t be too terribly upset if I don’t have a bachelor party,” I told Megan that week. “It would be nice to have, but I think people’s expectations of it being a typical bachelor party won’t be met and they’ll end up being bored the whole time.”

As Thursday approached, there were only one or two people who said they would attend. Though there would be a “party,” it hardly seemed like it was going to be a bachelor party. I assumed it wasn’t going to happen, so I was surprised when the 25th arrived and several people said they would be there. Slowly I became more excited for the evening.

It turned out to be a great day. Before the party, I went up to North County to see Transformers 2 with Megan, Melissa, and their mom. It was a good sequel. I was surprised by the amount of cussing compared to the first. It wasn’t a large amount; it just seemed that way after seeing the first one. It was worth my money mostly because I just wanted to be entertained for a couple of hours.

Little did I know that in the midst of my entertainment, a pop culture legend was entering his final hours of life.

The movie ended and we took bathroom breaks. I stood by the foyer area waiting for the girls. They walked up with confused looks on their faces.

“Did you hear that Michael Jackson is in a coma?” Megan asked me with suspicion and confusion in her voice.

“What?” I said.

“Yeah,” she replied. “One of the girls who works here came in and said that he was in a coma.”

I didn’t think much of it until I got in the truck to head back for the bachelor party when it was announced that Michael Jackson was dead.

Jackson’s death is one of those strange things I’ll always remember. I’ll always remember where I was and what I was doing when I found out. It was one of those surprising situations where you feel as if you need to call everyone you know and tell them (as if they didn’t already know).

I wondered what would happen now while driving home. I imagined people rushing to the nearest record store to buy up as many of his CDs before profit-hungry managers bolted out of their back rooms armed like Clint Eastwood with price guns in each hand and a full clip of price stamps aiming for anything with the name “Michael” or “Jackson” on it.

Would people who cursed his name and everything he did suddenly bust out a shiny red jump suit and a white glove claiming to be his biggest fan? Would people start drinking Pepsi and reminisce about the commercial that never was? Would eBay be bombarded with Michael Jackson memorabilia?

It really didn’t matter to me. I wasn’t the biggest Michael Jackson fan. I’m proud to say I owned Thriller in high school. The strange thing was I found myself wanting to listen to it as well as his other albums.

Death is strange. Why is it that when someone dies, we suddenly want to know them better? We dig through walls of boxes to find as many pictures of them as we can. We stay up into the early morning hours watching home videos of them. If they’re famous, we want to buy all their CDs, movies, books, or anything else with their name on it.

I guess if you’re famous and you want to make it big, the best thing to do is die. A little morbid I know, but am I wrong?

The biggest sales Thriller, Moonwalker, or any other Michael Jackson CD will make are likely to happen this year compared to the several years it was on the market before his untimely death. Why? Because he died tragically.

I didn’t like everything the man did. He did some odd things, but who among us doesn’t? If we were all honest with each other about what we do when no one is watching or listening (sing in the shower, dance in our underwear, wear outrageous clothes), we would hail everyone to be weird (except ourselves of course).

The big difference between us and Michael Jackson is he did most of it in public in front of everyone rather than keeping it secret. Maybe that’s what people struggled with: not what he did, but where he chose to do it.

I don’t know. All I know is that he recorded some awesome songs like “Thriller,” “Beat It,” “Man in the Mirror,” “Smooth Criminal,” and way more than I feel like typing.

But the way the world likes to work is to overshadow the good things a person does with the questionable, the weird, the shameful acts, and the accusations.

I would have had more thoughts about it, but I arrived home and was ready to enjoy the bachelor party.

It was more fun than I expected. My expectations were low, as mentioned before, but the night went very well. Josh and Jeremy came. Matt R. and Matt H. were there. Uncle Frank was there for awhile. Corey, who was charged with putting the whole thing together, was there as well.

We didn’t waste time getting the drinking games going. I’ve never been drunk and wasn’t planning on being so that night. I managed to do this without sacrificing any fun. The ridicule wasn’t too harsh, either (laughs).

Our first game was Beer Pong. I never played before tonight. Matt R. was glad to have me on his team as I made a good number of my shot attempts. He did pretty well too.

I only participated in two games, but it was fun. Naturally, we got beer all over the table and on the floor a bit, but we cleaned it up right away when it happened.

We did a few other drinking games like “Screw the Dealer,” “Connection,” and “Horse Race.” Horse Race was good, but not the most entertaining. You take the aces out of the deck and each person places a wager in the form of drinks on one of the “horses” (aces).

Seven cards and placed face down in a line parallel to the “horses.” The dealer holds the deck in his hand and flips each card over one at a time. Whichever suit comes up the corresponding “horse” moves forward. When the last “horse” comes out of the gate, the card next to it in the parallel line is flipped over. The card that has the suit of the one flipped over moves back one space.

The first one to cross the “finish line” (the last card in the parallel row of seven) wins. Whoever loses must drink the amount the wagered on their “horse” plus whatever amount the winners tell them to drink from their wager. Wagers can be split between the loser(s).

For example, let’s say I wager five drinks and my “horse” wins. I can give one drink to one person, two to another, and the last two to anyone else. If you want to be really mean, you give all five to one player.

We did a few rounds of that and then didn’t do much else. We basically spent the whole night at the dining room table playing drinking games (laughs). It was fun.

The guys started to leave well past midnight. Everyone made it home safely and was responsible getting there. Matt R. had his dad come pick him up just to be safe.

I really respect how responsible my friends are. They’re not stupid when it comes to drinking. I hear about people getting killed in car accidents or doing things they regret for the rest of their life because of alcohol. It makes me appreciate the people I hang out with because I know I don’t have to worry about them in regards to that.

Dad and I found ourselves on the front porch at the end of the night. He asked if it went well and what I hoped for.

“Yeah,” I said. “It would have been nice to have a few more people, but it was still fun. It was better than what I hoped for.” It was better than I had hoped. Not one friend said anything to me about why there were no topless women walking around or anything like that. I guess I was wrong all along about what other people hoped for.

Little did I know, I would say, “It was better than what I hoped for” to many people again, but this time it would be about the wedding. The biggest event of my life was looming closer and closer. I knew it would be great and wonderful, but I was about to be surprised by just how great and wonderful it was.

Rehearsal Dinner (June 27, 2009)

Everything started to move faster on Friday, June 26. Megan had her bachelorette day and party that night while I spent time at my grade school alma mater playing hockey with friends and listening to the 2009 NHL Entry Draft in Montreal on the radio.

I didn’t think too much about how close the wedding was. I did have moments of realization where I suddenly realized that I, yes me, was about to marry someone on Sunday.

I never got nervous or cold feet though. No one had to sit me down and reassure me I was doing the right thing. Why not? Why was I so confident? That’s easy!

The commitment I was about to make wasn’t totally my choice; it was God’s. He blessed me with, first, a wonderful friend. Then when He knew it was just right, He guided us to a loving relationship. He walked us through fire and made us white as snow. Now He was about to make three separate strands of a chord into one, solid bind.

When you walk by faith and trust that God is working a miracle in your life like He was in mine, there’s no reason to get cold feet or nervous; there’s only room for excitement.

It was hard to contain my excitement on Saturday, June 27. I was anxious to get to Pasta House in Olivette where we held the rehearsal dinner. I was excited to see family and friends and have a big dinner with them.

Everyone got their safely and our fun evening began. Friends and family walked around chatting with each other, catching up since the last time we were together, and enjoying each other’s company. The food was great and the evening was even better.

Megan’s parents made a toast to us as did my dad (mom didn’t want to because she knew she would start crying). It was hard not to have watery eyes when dad got up to give his toast. Even he had to fight back the tears. Dad is always good for a sentimental speech.

After the toasts, Megan and I passed out the presents for our wedding party. I took some time to just sit and observe.

If you’ve never done it when you’re with family and friends you should. Just step back and watch people. Observe the group giving each other advice about something. Then look over to the group where everyone is joking and laughing.

I’ve found that when I do this I’m nearly brought to tears. God has blessed me more than I deserved with such quality friends and a supportive family. Sometimes I forget the difference between friends and family because I don’t see one.

Looking around the private room we had at Pasta House, I saw friends from grade school and high school. I saw family that had gone through hard times and moved on with their individual lives, but there they were being loving and mature. I saw new friends that I’ll get to know in the future. I saw new family members I’ll get to spend time with.

Just when I think I have it really good, God opens the floodgates and fills my life with more loving, quality friends and family. I owe Him so much praise and thanks that I’ll never be able to fully offer.

That’s the value of taking time to step back and look at the gifts God has given you. Just make sure you don’t do it at the same time as everyone else because that would be awkward: a bunch of people in a room staring at each other and no one talking (laughs).

The actual rehearsal at Immanuel Lutheran Church went well. It didn’t take nearly as long as I thought. We went over procedure, where to go the next day to get dressed, where to stand, and when to move or in which direction to look for the readings and such.

There wasn’t much stressed involved with it. The only time there was stress was when a decision needed to be made and there were conflicting ideas. The majority of the time it was actually pretty fun.

After the rehearsal, we went back to Megan’s parents where they hosted a dessert night. Their house was packed with family and friends. I had never seen their house so full. The entertaining thing about it is that Megan’s mom’s family is tall while mine is short. Walking into their house and seeing a bunch of tall people made you think you walked onto the set of a Green Giant commercial.

There were desserts, drinks, and plenty of people to visit with. I talked to some of Megan’s family whom I hadn’t met before. The time flew by so fast that I didn’t get a chance to talk to everyone. Who would, though?

What typically happened was I got up to get a drink and was stopped by a few people who had a question or wanted to know the story of how Megan and I met. After 20 minutes had passed and I forgot why I got up in the first place, I walked away and was stopped by someone else.

It wasn’t annoying. It was nice to see so many friendly faces in one place. People slowly started to leave and before you knew it, it was just Megan’s family and I with empty cans, cups, and plates all over the house. I helped clean up for awhile and then left so I got rest before the biggest day of my life.

The 25 minute drive home seemed to go by so fast because I thought about everything going on. How am I going to get any sleep tonight? I wondered. I was too excited and anticipating the sunrise so I could begin getting ready to marry my best friend and fiancée.

Everything came into focus. All the planning, stress, decisions, and procedures were worth it. Now we were about to enjoy the fruits of our labor with our friends and family.  

I got home and thought back to when we got engaged in December 2008 as I got ready for bed. We seemed to wait forever for our special day. So many times we ran short on patience and temper that we were tempted to contemplated eloping. It was only by the grace of God that got us through the difficult and stressful times of planning the wedding.

I longed to wake up to the words, “Today’s the big day!” I went to bed that night as anxious as a kid on Christmas Eve.; too excited to sleep and watching for the first sign of daybreak. The next morning, the next sunrise, the next time my eyes would see the light would be that day. It was finally here.

A Very Special Day

Today is a very special day. God has blessed me with so many things in life. So many years ago He gave me His son Jesus to die for all my sins. Twenty-three years ago he gave me life. Today, he gives me my life partner in marriage.

He has heard our prayers and blessed us with a nice day and lifted the humidty away. God is good and His love endures forever.

May my soon-to-be-wife and I have the same enduring love that God has shed on us.

Fleeting Possessions

TODAY’S BIBLE VERSE: “For you are a people holy to the Lord your God. The Lord your God has chosen you out of all the peoples on the face of the earth to be his people, his treasured possession.”

- Deuteronomy 7:6

“If we’re not witnessing, we’re kind of hording the message and keeping it to ourselves when God wants us to go out and share it with others.”

                                                          ~ Aaron Reinking, The Lutheran Witness

What a busy last couple of months I’ve had! Job searching, landscaping at Megan’s parent’s, moving Dad in, and wedding planning have filled the calendar. This month has been the busiest making the final preparations for the wedding.

I never knew how much and how many months of planning goes into a wedding—a one day event—that will probably go by in an instant. Decorations, flowers, cake, fees, colors, tux styles, dresses, programs, invitations, license, DJ, correspondents.

Megan and I have managed to keep our head above water, though we’ve come close to going under a few times with stress and an urge to forget the whole thing and elope.

What can you do? Wedding planning has its hardships mixed with the excitement.

My biggest hardship is listening to other people’s opinions. Weddings bring out the best or the worst in people. I don’t know that Megan or I have let our worst side show, though at times we got upset that people seemed to forget it wasn’t their wedding.

I’ve struggled with not being so possessive of June 28 and how significant it is in my life. Granted it is mine and Megan’s wedding, but it doesn’t hurt to listen to other ideas. The point where I begin to struggle is when people tell us what we like or what we want.

I’ve done a lot of praying and seeking God’s calming touch so that I can listen to someone’s idea—no matter how far-fetched or wonderful it sounds—and if I don’t agree to politely say so.

We’re often told to look for the lesson in the hardship. In my case, God might be showing me how possessive I can really be of things with my name attached to it. The again, who isn’t?

If we’re quoted, we want it to be right. We wouldn’t want people to think negatively of us because someone twisted our words.

If we help a person design a slide show or write a document with our name on it, we want the project to look good so our reputation isn’t ruined.

If we have a party in our honor, we want it to coincide with our tastes because, after all, it’s our party, right?

One of our shortcomings as humans is that we’re possessive. Too possessive. We claim ownership to our car, our house, our money, our big screen HDTV, and anything else we can fit into our bank accounts.

But it doesn’t stop there. We claim ownership of our thoughts, our feelings, our words, our ideas, and our rights. We are so possessive of everything that it’s amazing we even let people into our homes or have conversations with them.

There’s nothing wrong with owning things if we meet three conditions: 1) we don’t let it rule our hearts to the point we worship those objects, 2) we share those objects, and most importantly 3) we praise God for blessing us with all the objects we possess.

Nothing we have comes from ourselves. It’s all here because God chose to bless His children with all that we see, buy, own, and enjoy. It started with the creation of the earth, grew through the Old and New Testaments, and continues today.

When the Israelites were wandering through the desert, where did their food come from? Heaven (Exodus 16:4, 13–15). Where did their water come from? A piece of wood that Moses threw in the water to make it sweet (Exodus 15:25) and out of a rock which God instructed Moses to strike (Exodus 17:6).

Where did their land come from? When Moses and the Israelites approach Canaan, God tells Moses: “Take possession of the land and settle in it, for I have given you the land to possess” (Numbers 33:53, niv).

In these three examples, God states that He is giving the food, the water, and the land to the Israelites. They didn’t find it on their own or by coincidence. Everything the Israelites enjoyed came from God.

There was a catch, however. In order to enjoy their possessions, they had to obey the commands of God. Some tested God. When they did, the food became infested with maggots, the water dried up, and their enemies became stronger and took their land (Exodus 17:20).

We’re very similar to the Israelites. We wine and complain if we don’t get what we want. We get selfish and believe we don’t need God. We become ignorant and say, “Thanks for getting me this far, God. I’ll take it from here.” What happens when we do?

Our car breaks down, our HDTV stops working, and our bank account dries up.

But what happens when we share our possessions with others and give glory to God for providing us with the necessary skills and talents to earn an income to buy our possessions? We are blessed beyond measure.

The car starts working, the HDTV functions as intended, and the bank account stays in the black.

God chose to bless us with incredible gifts. Look at the beautiful life that surrounds us: The Rocky Mountains, Niagara Falls, Yellowstone, The Appalachian Mountains, Lake Tahoe, White Mountain National Forest.

Look at the wonderful talents people have: writing, designing, teaching, leading.

Look at the splendid objects people possess: lavish homes, giant boats, multiple cars, state-of-the-art home entertainment system, all of the above.

God has given us all of these things. None of them are meant to be horded for ourselves; they’re meant to witness to others the power and love of God. Just how does having a giant boat or a home entertainment system project the love of God?

For starters, it’s impressive to know people who have such things. How much more impressive it is to hear people give all glory and praise to God for what they have.

Secondly, it’s inspiring to see people use their possessions to disciple to others. Take the boat for example.

You invite friends to enjoy a couple days out on the lake for some summer sun and good times. Perhaps some of them are not Christian or don’t know Jesus. Others may be Christian, but are shallow in their faith.

Inviting them to enjoy your boat provides an opportunity to witness to them and share your faith out on the middle of a lake. What a great place to share the story of Jesus walking on water! Besides, they can’t escape anywhere and it might be a long way back to shore, right? Just kidding.

Sharing our possessions, if nothing else, shows the love of God through us by saying, “I spent x amount of dollars on this, and I share it with you, my friend, my sister, my dad, my neighbor.”

It’s like the old saying, “Spread the wealth.” This may have been what John had in mind when he wrote, “If anyone has material possessions and sees his brother in need but has no pity on him, how can the love of God be in him?” (1 John 3:17, niv).

God chose to “spread the wealth’ by blessing us with everything we have and want. Which possession means the most to God? The answer may surprise you.

We are! Deuteronomy 7:6 tells us that we are God’s chosen “treasured possessions.”

If God chose sinful humans to be his most treasured possessions, how can we keep from praising Him for what we have? Why not make Him our greatest possession? After all, there will come a time when all we see and claim ownership to will pass away (1 John 2:17). With that in mind, do we really want to be stuck up and proud of our possessions?

There is only one thing we should have a burning desire to possess: God. The Psalmist states that desire beautifully in Psalm 73:25 when he writes, “Whom have I in heaven but thee? and there is none upon earth that I desire beside thee” (kjv).

When God is the only thing we desire to possess, everything else comes into perspective. We don’t need the extra car, the vacation home, the state-of-the-art home entertainment system, or the yacht; all we need and want is God!

Great things happen when people realize that truth. They follow Christ’s command when he told the rich young man to sell his possessions and give to the poor and then follow Him (Matthew 19:21).

As extreme as that sounds, it translates into obedience and lack of regret like Paul shows in his second letter to the Corinthians.

He writes about his hardships saying, “We put no obstacle in anyone’s way, so that no fault may be found with our ministry, but as servants of God we commend ourselves in every way ¼ having nothing, yet possessing everything” (2 Corinthians 6:3–10, esv).

What are we to do the next time we find ourselves in Best Buy wanting to buy a state-of-the-art home entertainment system or other product? Ask ourselves one question: “Can I serve God and His kingdom with this product, or will it only become an idol in my life that will take time away from serving God?”

If the answer is the latter, the product is best left on the shelf.

As Megan and I continue to make the final wedding plans, I often remind myself that our day of matrimony is truly a monumental event in our lives.

But even though Megan and I are the only two saying, “I do,” listening to other’s opinions beforehand is a part of the process. I also know that I don’t own June 28, 2009. God does. The last thing I want to do is act like the grumbling Israelites in the desert or a modern day sinner and say, “Thanks for getting me here, God. I’ll take it from here.”

In all reality, I don’t own anything in life. None of us do. God is the author and maker of it all. To claim ownership to things—seen and unseen—without praising God or sharing those possessions is ignorance.

We are God’s treasured possessions living in a material world that says you can never have enough. Therefore, we must strive to be resourceful stewards of our possessions.

We should take stock of what we have been given, share it with those around us, and praise God with thanksgiving for the blessings He rains down on us.

In addition, we must ask ourselves whether what we so deeply desire will help us serve God or prevent us from serving God.

That means letting go of possessions in our home, our driveway, our mind, and our life. It can be something as big as downsizing to a smaller house and giving the extra money to a charity or just listening to people give you different ideas for your wedding.

Whatever the case, we should use our possessions to glorify God. Now and forever. Amen.

Prayer

Lord of all things seen and unseen, help us to share our possessions as they are precious gifts from your kingdom. You have given us everything we have. Guide us to be good stewards of such things. Encourage us and equip us to use them to glorify your name to all those who see it. Amen.

Response Previous Entry’s Comment

RestlessButterfly: It is very true. Glad you enjoyed it.

Currently The Case for Christ: A Journalist's Personal Investigation of the Evidence for Jesus By Lee Strobel see related

The Greatest Upset

TODAY’S BIBLE VERSE: “But we see Jesus, who was made a little lower than the angels, now crowned with glory and honor because he suffered death, so that by the grace of God he might taste death for everyone.”

                                                                                    - Hebrews 2:9

“The purpose of life is a life of purpose.”

                                                ~ Robert Byrne

There I was sitting on the couch watching the minutes tick away in Game 7 between the Anaheim Ducks and the Detroit Red Wings in the Conference Quarterfinals of the 2009 Stanley Cup Playoffs.

It had already been a long, hard-fought series with both sides gaining important ground only to see their opponent come within inches of winning the series. Trying to predict a winner in this series was a headache for most people.

No one—fans, players, and media alike—were surprised that the series went to seven games. The teams were so closely matched. You could throw out the fact that Detroit was the No. 2 seed next to Anaheim’s No. 8 seed, respectively. It didn’t matter in this series.

Anaheim had ousted the NHL’s best team (standings wise) when they dispatched of the No. 1 San Jose Sharks in six games in the first round. Their first round upset led many to look favorably on the Ducks as being Stanley Cup contenders.

Detroit, meanwhile, swept the No. 7 Columbus Blue Jackets in four games in their first round meeting leading many to predict a second consecutive Stanley Cup Championship for the Red Wings.

While both teams looked favorable to advance to the Conference Finals, only one could advance. Both teams had a wealth of experience (Anaheim won the Cup in 2007 and Detroit won the Cup last season in 2008). It was a battle of war-like proportions. It was an intense series that took seven games before a winner was finally decided.

The stage for Game 7 was set to be competitive, dramatic, and a classic. It didn’t disappoint.

Detroit took a 2–0 lead early in the second period before Anaheim managed to get on the board with their first goal.

Just when Anaheim seemed to be finding their momentum and energy, disaster struck. Detroit scored a third goal to regain their two-goal lead with a score of 3–1.

By that point in the game, most teams would give up and start thinking about what to do in the off-season. Not Anaheim.

The second period was nearing its end and signs of desperation began racing through the Anaheim player’s minds. Time was running out on their season. They remained calm and confident that they could weather the storm and get out of Detroit with a series win.

Anaheim quickly scored their second goal of the game before time ran out in the second period to draw within one by a score of 3–2. Then the amazing happened in the third period that sent myself and other Ducks fans into a frenzy.

The Ducks tied the game just over seven minutes into the third period.

I had hope, confidence, and even an absolute certainty beyond a doubt that Anaheim would come out of the game victorious. I mean let’s be honest, they were down by two goals in Game 7 against the defending Cup champions and had been outplayed for most of the game. Suddenly they tie it and only need one more to get a victory with their goalie playing incredibly well. Talk about a huge boost and momentum swing!

Time was running out in regulation with a 3–3 score, but I did not fear for I had faith that, even if the game went into overtime, my guys would still get the goal to catapult them into the next round.

I don’t know what the earliest age is when we learn that sometimes things don’t go how you expected or wanted them to. The odd thing is we never seem to completely learn that things rarely go the way you want or expect them to. This was a lesson I had to learn all over again that afternoon when I watched the unexpected happen.

Detroit carried the puck deep inside the Anaheim zone. One Red Wing took the puck to the far corner and then shot the puck toward the front of the goal.

Nothing but a harmless attempt at a pass through the middle. No worries there. I thought.

“It comes to Zetterberg again,” the Versus announcer said as my confidence remained unshaken. “He chases it down in the corner tries to get it in front he did! It’s in! The Red Wings score!”

What happened in that brief span of about one second is hard to describe. Everything was turned upside down. Shock. Disbelief. Doubt. Silence. Fear. All these crept into my mind and removed all the hope, confidence, unwavering belief, excitement, and fervor that was so much a part of me just moments before.

All of a sudden, what looked to be a very good chance at a Ducks’ win turned into being in jeopardy of elimination. There was only three minutes left for Anaheim to mount another comeback.

Anaheim made a valiant effort, but could not score another goal to save their playoff lives.

You didn’t need any words or comments to see the emotion on the Ducks’ faces. Disappointment. Frustration. Sorrow. Defeat. Heartache. Silence. Disbelief. Bewilderment.

Emotions ran through every player’s mind as they watched the Red Wings jump over the bench onto the ice and mob their teammates with hugs.

The emotions written on the Red Wings’ faces were vastly opposite of their opponents. Joy. Relief. Excitement. Smiles. Cheers. Accomplishment. Pride. Exuberance.

The Ducks had to stay and watch all of it before shaking the victors’ hands and then leave the ice to pack away their hockey gear and break out the golf clubs and summer clothes.

I shared in some of the emotions the Ducks felt, but not all of them. It’s hard to react when you’re not the one going through it. While I may have not been on the ice with them, I was certainly supporting them and cheering them on.

When you’re so invested in something and it doesn’t work out the way you want it to, it’s hard not to have an emotional response.

We’ve all had something we poured our time and energy into just to see it fall short or not achieve the success we hoped for. No one knows better about this than the disciples.

Here was a group of 12 men who had given up everything they had (their families, their trade, their life) to follow a carpenter from Nazareth who was the promised Messiah from David’s time.

They travel with Jesus and see miracle after miracle. They witness Jesus turn water into wine (John 2:1–11), calming the forces of nature (Matthew 8:23–27), walking on water (Mark 6:48–51), healing a paralyzed man (Luke 5:18–25) and a boy possessed by a demon (Matthew 17:14-18), raising Lazarus from the dead (John 11:1–44) and several more.

They had hope, confidence, and an absolute certainty beyond a doubt that Jesus was the Son of the living God. Peter even tells Jesus this when Jesus asked him, “Who do you say I am?” (Matthew 16:13–16, niv)

By the time of Passion Week, you can imagine how confident the disciples were about Jesus. They had to be thinking, “This is the Son of God who the demons obey and nature listens to. How could we possibly safer?” Perhaps this leads them to believe nothing bad could happen.

The disciples, like us today, never really seemed to grasp the idea that Jesus came to die and rise again three days later. They didn’t want it to happen that way. They may have thought they knew how it was going to work, but they didn’t.

If they had, why would they have fled in the Garden of Gethsemane? When Jesus is arrested, the disciples flee and one even runs off naked (Mark 14:50–52, nkjv).

If Peter, one of Jesus’ closest friends, knew that He was the Christ and this was his destiny, why would he deny Jesus three times in a row (Luke 22:56–61, kjv)?

Witnessing Jesus’ arrest was enough of a blow to their confidence, but to see Him crucified? It’s hard to imagine what that did to their psyches. I can picture the disciples sitting around Mary’s home shortly after Jesus’ death.

The room is dark. No one speaks or moves. No noise is heard except weeping. The eyes of Peter are still red from weeping bitterly and his cheeks are embroidered from his tears.

The emotions seen on their faces were probably similar to the faces I saw when my team was eliminated from the playoffs this season: Disappointment. Frustration. Sorrow. Defeat. Heartache. Silence. Disbelief. Bewilderment.

In his book, The Case for Christ, Lee Strobel quotes J.P. Moreland, a professor of theology at the Talbot School of Theology with a master’s degree in theology from Dallas Theological Seminary, who adds to this picture of the disciples shortly after Christ’s crucifixion:

“When Jesus was crucified … his followers were discouraged and depressed. They no longer had confidence that Jesus had been sent by God, because they believed anyone crucified was accursed by God. They also had been taught that God would not let his Messiah suffer death. So they dispersed. The Jesus movement was all but stopped in its tracks.”¹

Meanwhile, the Pharisees were living it up like a team who just advanced in the Stanley Cup playoffs. They congratulated each other, gave each other a pat on the back for doing a great job working over the crowd back at Pilate’s, and rejoiced in their victory.

Their emotions were quite different from the disciples’: Joy. Relief. Excitement. Smiles. Cheers. Accomplishment. Pride. Exuberance.

Jesus crucifixion was the biggest upset and let down in the disciple’s lives. Just like players struggle to find things to do once their team has been eliminated from the playoffs, the disciples had to decide what to do with their lives now that their teacher belonged to the earth.

Or so they thought.

The biggest upset in history did not belong to the Pharisees and chief priests. As Moreland said, the Jesus movement had been stopped in its tracks. Darkness reigned supreme and threatened to win.

But on the third day after Jesus’ death, God made a come-from-behind victory. He raised Jesus back to life. Sin and death were conquered. The game was won. God triumphed and was crowned champion.

What looked like the ultimate championship for evil turned out to be the biggest upset in history for good.

The emotions that were felt by each side on Good Friday were immediately flipped when Jesus appeared to his disciples.

“Peace be with you!” He said to them. “After he said this, he showed them his hands and side. The disciples were overjoyed when they saw the Lord” (John 20:19–20, niv).

Sure there were doubts, but all were removed and everyone came to have faith and believe that Jesus truly was the Son of God. What followed was the greatest commission and expedition ever. In fact it continues to this day.

The disciples went out and spread the Good News to everyone whom they could reach. The church was formed and, as we are told throughout Acts, people were added to their numbers daily.

The Jesus movement was once again in full swing and this time would be unstoppable. One of the Pharisees, Gamaliel, recognized this truth. He was wise to share it with his fellow Pharisees when they wanted to put the apostles to death for teaching in the name of Jesus and proclaiming that He was raised from the dead despite the wicked acts of the Pharisees.

Gamaliel said to the others, “Leave these men alone! Let them go! For if their purpose or activity is of human origin, it will fail. But if it is from God, you will not be able to stop these men; you will only find yourselves fighting against God” (Acts 5:38–39, niv).

With God there is no final defeat like there was for the Anaheim Ducks in the Stanly Cup playoffs; there is only a momentary discomfort before He reveals His true majesty and power.

We play in a variety of tournaments, contests, and games, but the most important one has already been played and won. Christ defeated sin and death in the biggest upset and victory the world has ever seen to redeem us all and prove He truly is the Son of God.

That was the truth the disciples rejoiced in after days of doubt, depression, and suffering. It’s a truth that we still rejoice in today. Even if we were just eliminated from Game 7 of the Stanley Cup playoffs.

Prayer

Heavenly Father, how great and blessed we are that you sent your all-star to redeem us in our fight against sin and death. Without Christ’s sacrifice, we would have lost the most important game of our lives. May we praise you forever for the greatest gift you have given us. May our hearts be full of joy and worship for you have redeemed us and won the great game. Praise be to you forever. Amen.

¹Strobel, Lee. The Case for Christ: A Journalist's Personal Investigation of the Evidence for Jesus. Grand Rapids. Zondervan, 1998. 246.

Response to Previous Entry’s Comments

RestlessButterfly: That was a very intriguing comment. I’m not sure I understand it completely. Is it that the one who calls themselves a child of God tries to compare themselves and live with those who do not consider themselves a child of God?

I could see how this causes distress and sorrow in our souls. We are called to a higher purpose of living, yet some people we associate with are not Christians or live holy lives, thus causing us grief. If I understand your comment correctly, you suggest we amend this situation by fleeing that which is not holy or causes us to sin without apology.

That’s how I interpreted your beautiful comment. I hope I got it right or that I was close and if I wasn’t I sincerely apologize.