We’re watching the Cardinals / Mets game here at the house. Albert Pujols, (pronounced poo-holes) the Cardinals first baseman, just came up to the plate.
Sunny said, “Look, Joshua, it’s Albert Pujols.”
Joshua said, “Go Poop-holes!”
I’m telling you, we should be writing a book.
I’ve been trying to write this blog for a week and a half now. But each time I try, it seems like something comes up or I choose to blog about something else. But this pleurisy is really slowing me down and I can do little more than sit here and type, so looks like I finally have time to blog about this.
In our Sunday school class a couple weeks ago, we had a great discussion about heaven. Perhaps no other aspect of Christendom invites the imagination to action like heaven. We love to speculate about what eternity with God will be like. This is partially due to the dearth of NT texts about heaven. There’s simply not as much there as we’d like. So we’re left to speculate and dream and wonder. What follows, if you’ll indulge me, is my own such speculative perspective. Take it for what it’s worth.
Zephaniah prophesied during the reign of Josiah. It’s likely that he prophesied during the first portion of Josiah’s rule, prior to the monarch’s spiritual reform. Zephaniah was one of several prophetic voices in those days, proclaiming the impending judgment of God upon Judah. Zephaniah refers to this coming judgment as the Day of the LORD, characterized as a day rife with anguish, darkness, wrath and ruin (1:14-18). Zephaniah’s prophetic word was fulfilled at the hands of Babylon. All too soon, Jerusalem would experience the graphic horrors of the Lord’s wrath at the hands of this foreign power.
But, as with all the prophetic voices in the Hebrew Bible, Zephaniah also offers a word of hope to the remnant, those who would remain faithful in spite of God’s judgment. To these, Zephaniah offers the promise of Israel’s restoration.
Sing aloud, O daughter of Zion; shout, O Israel!
Rejoice and exult with all your heart,
O daughter of Jerusalem!
The LORD has taken away the judgments against you;
he has cleared away your enemies.
The King of Israel, the LORD, is in your midst;
you shall never again fear evil.
On that day it shall be said to Jerusalem:
“Fear not, O Zion; let not your hands grow weak.
The Lord your God is in your midst,
a mighty one who will save;
he will rejoice over you with gladness;
he will quiet you by his love;
he will exult over you with loud singing.”
Zeph. 3:14-17 (English Standard Version)
The image of God’s abiding presence among His people surely sustained the remnant through her days in exile. But I’m especially drawn to the final portion of the passage. Zephaniah gives us a portrait of a rejoicing, singing God who is mighty not only to save, but to quiet us with his love.
When I think of what heaven will be like, I think of the same things you do: being reunited with my loved ones, conversing with the Bible heroes we’ve always read about, spending eternity in the presence of God. But as I read Zephaniah 3, I’m hopeful this passage foretells what that moment will be like when we first stand in the presence of the Beautiful One, the Creator God. I’ve always imagined that I would join my voice with the multitude to praise Him when we finally see Him for the first time. But after reading Zephaniah 3, I hope it plays out just a little differently. I picture all the believers from every tribe and nation approaching the Great Throne of God on that glorious day. And in that moment, when God chooses to reveal Himself and we finally see Him as He truly is, all heaven stands silent, quieted in the presence of Love. And we gaze upon the definition of Beauty and Holiness and we are restored. All is made right. Every tear is wiped away. Every hope is realized. Faith becomes sight. And as we absorb the weight of His Glory in an ultimate, eternal way, our God rises from His throne and…He begins to sing. The Creator of art and music begins to sing His beautiful song of love over His covenant people. He sings a song we’ve never heard but who’s words we’ve always known. It is the song of the saved, the song of the redeemed. It is the song of eternity. And He sings this beautiful verse over us in that eternal moment, welcoming us to heaven. And in time we join our voices to His and we praise Him for who He is and all He’s done for we are in the presence of God now and forevermore.
Marantha, O God. May You sing over us;
may we be quieted by Your love.
So yesterday I started feeling some pressure in my chest. Corey and I went to visit one of our teens in the hospital and I turned to him and said, “Man, my chest feels kinda weird.” We joked that at least I was in the right place if I needed medical attention.
During last night’s Isaiah class, I was a little uncomfortable. My chest never hurt, but I felt even more pressure inside.
By the time I got home, my chest was hurting pretty good. I HATE going to the E.R., but the pain was pretty great. By the time we reached the hospital, I’d also developed a migraine. After 2 EKG’s, a chest X-ray, an echocardiagram and six vials of blood, the diagnosis is in: pleurisy.
I thought that was a disease that little old ladies got.
Seriously, I have some inflammation around my lungs and chest. Nothing that some medicine and a few days of rest shouldn’t fix.
So here it is, 7:20 on a Wednesday night — the time that I’d ordinarily be teaching our teen class — and I’m here at home on the computer.
With pleurisy.
I was going to blog about heaven today, but I ran out of time since I have to leave in a minute for tonight’s grad class. But as I’m listening to some Old Crow Medicine Show (thanks to by good buddy T.H.), I thought I’d make a quick post about a conversation I had with my son last night.
As I’m changing his diaper and putting his pajamas on, Joshua begins to tell me all the things he likes:
“Daddy, I like foo-ball (football).”
“That’s good, son.”
“I like b-ball (baseball).”
“Me, too.”
“I like bat.”
“Uh-huh.”
“I like glub (glove).”
“OK.”
“I like bah-bah-ball.”
“Great”
“I like golf.”
I have no idea where he learned this word. I don’t play golf. I don’t talk about golf. But my son likes it.
Earl Woods would be proud.
________________
Tomorrow: Heaven.
All things are right in my sports world. Go Birds!
Rocky Top, you’ll always be
Home sweet home, to me
Good ol’ Rocky Top
Rocky Top Tennessee
Go Bills / Football Friday, Vol. 4
A week or two ago, Sunny and I were at Wal-Mart doing our grocery shopping. I was wearing an old Buffalo Bills T-shirt. Now, I am not, nor have I ever been, a Buffalo Bills fan. When I was in college, I went to this sports clothing store in the mall and this Bills shirt was on sale for $2. Like any other college kid, I had an eye for a deal, so I bought the shirt. I’ll still wear it when I mow the grass, play ball or — as luck would have it — go to the grocery store.
I’m walking through the dairy section, looking for some cottage cheese or something, when I notice this tall figure approaching me out of the corner of my eye. He walks up to me quickly, sticks his hand out and, with a huge grin on his face, says in a boisterous tone, “GO BILLS!”
I’m taken aback at first, forgetting that I’m wearing the shirt. Strange Man continues talking with unnerving enthusiasm and a distinct northern accent.
“My name’s Jim. I grew up just outside Buffalo. Are you from Bills country, too?”
“Uh, no, I grew up in Nashville.”
“Nashville? Tennessee? Wow, I didn’t know there were Bills fans that far south! How’d you end up a Bills fan?”
At this point, I was faced with a moral dilemma. Do I go along with the charade, pretending to be a Bills fan just to placate this poor, desperate soul who is just longing for some community, even if that community is comprised of just the two of us? Or do I crush this dude’s spirits, tell him I’m completely ambivalent toward his precious Bills and I only own the shirt because it was on sale for $2?
With Jim standing there before me with his eyes aglow at the prospect of finding another Bills fan on the dairy aisle all the way down here in Huntsville, Alabama….I just couldn’t do it. I couldn’t break his heart like that. Here’s my answer to his question:
“Well, I always enjoyed playing with the Bills on Tecmo Bowl.”
Now this was true. I did enjoy playing with the Bills on Tecmo Bowl. Jim just stood there for a second, dumbfounded, and then continued to tell me about growing up going to Bills games, how work had brought him to the south and how he hoped to take his son to a game at Ralph Wilson Stadium someday soon. I wished him well and as we parted ways, he turned back around as he neared the eggs and said, once again, “GO BILLS!”
Go Bills, indeed, Jim.
________________
All right, on to the football picks. After an 8-1 tally last week, I’m standing at 44-11 on the season. Nice.
I’ll begin with this week’s SEC games. First, the throwaways:
Bama will roll over Duke.
Mississippi State will be crushed by West Virginia.
Spurrier’s Gamecocks will defeat Kentucky.
I’m honestly torn on Vandy vs. Ole Miss. Originally, I picked Ole Miss to win this one, but I think I’m going to make an about-face here. Vandy has looked decent all season and they look to be the more disciplined team. I can’t believe I’m picking Vandy to win an SEC game on the road.
Arkansas at Auburn will be close. I see the Hogs giving Auburn a fight, but the Tigers are just too talented. AU will pull away late. Auburn wins 31-17.
Two premiere games are on tap Saturday:
LSU at Florida should be quite a doozy. The Gators begin the gauntlet portion of their season, playing LSU, Auburn and Georgia their next three games. LSU continues to look like a powerhouse. This one could honestly go either way. I’d love to see the Gators lose, as it would help out my Vols. But playing at the Swamp could be the deciding factor here. Reluctantly, I’ll say Gators by a hair.
The game I’m most concerned about, as always, is the Tennessee game. This week we travel to Athens to play the Georgia Bulldogs. Early on, I picked Georgia to win this one, but the past few weeks have caused me to change my mind. Georgia has looked very beatable the past two weeks and the Vols continue to click on offense under the direction of David Cutcliffe. I know it’s tough to win on the road in our conference, but I like the boys in orange to get it done this week. My prediction: 28-20, Vols win.
This week’s prime time NFL games are pretty tasty, too. Sunday night’s showdown pits the reeling Pittsburgh Steelers against the San Diego Chargers. The Chargers lost a tough one last week to Baltimore while the Steelers are trying to not start the season 1-3. Sorry, Bill Cowher, but you’re not going to get a win this week. San Diego is one of the premiere franchises in the league right now, with an awesome defense and a surprisingly solid O. Until Big Ben regains his mojo, the Steelers are going to struggle to put points on the board. Chargers win.
Monday night’s Baltimore / Denver game should be another good one. The Ravens are a surprising 4-0 after a last minute win against the Chargers last week. Denver stands at 2-1 and they’re playing at home. At some point, the Ravens have to lose a game. Might as well be this week. Broncos over the Birds.
Finally, in honor of Jim, I’ll add the Bills / Bears game to my picks this week. The Bears look to be the best team in the NFL at this point after rolling over the Seahawks last week. But maybe Jim’s enthusiasm is contagious. It’ll be hard for the Bears to get up after last week’s big time win. Maybe, just maybe, the Bills get the Bears at the right time. This one’s for you, Jim. I’m picking the Bills in a big time upset. I might even wear my shirt.
My good friend Jon Stacy has written an earnest blog about the Huntsville Inner City Ministry that he is involved in. I encourage you to read it and prayerfully consider how you might be able to assist this worthwhile effort.
For the past month or so, Corey and I have been putting out weekly podcasts for our students. You can click on the embedded player below to listen to our most recent podcast. You can even subscribe by adding our podcast to your iTunes. Pretty cool stuff. Check it out!
The events of recent days have been hard for me to process. I struggle to understand the violent deaths of five Amish school girls in Lancaster County, Pennsylvania. The actions of Charles Carl Roberts IV are a stark reminder of our fallen and depraved world. How else are we to explain such calculated, premeditated brutality? I have no barometer for this kind of thing. Senseless pain is always more difficult to deal with. I pray for the families of the wounded and the deceased. I pray for the family of Charles Carl Roberts. May God be with you all.
Equally appalling has been the response of a certain group of Americans who refer to themselves as a “church”. In my opinion, any organization that the Anti-Defamation League recognizes as a hate group isn’t a Christian church. Contrary to the position of their leader, Jesus doesn’t hate homosexuals any more than he hates racists, bigots, legalists, anti-Semites, anti-Catholics, anti-Americans and hatemongers. The fact that these extremists would even consider demonstrating at the funerals of these young girls repulses me. Again, I have no barometer for such flippant disregard for the sanctity of human life. That a group would “pray for even worse punishment upon Pennsylvania,” — well, it just makes me weep.
And yet, I find hope in these days as well. Good men like Mike Gallagher are doing whatever they can to keep Phelps and his crew from following through on their protest threats. I find hope in the Amish grandfather who, amid his tears, tells his grandchildren, “We must not think evil of this man,” referring of course to Roberts. I need to be reminded that Jesus is powerful to reorient our hearts away from hatred. His call to love and forgive, although unnatural on nearly every level, is indeed the better way. I’ll admit, I have a hard time fathoming that level of mercy. But I believe in it, with every fiber of my being. That’s what I keep coming back to on days like these.
already & not yet 