One More For JC

Children, obey your parents in the Lord, for this is right.  Honor your father and mother - which is the first commandment with a promise - so that it may go well with you and that you may enjoy long life on the earth.” (Ephesians 6:1-3) I’m sure anyone who loves baseball and their Dad had no remorse over shedding a tear at the end of Game 6 of the World Series last night in St. Louis.  As the game winning home-run in an epic comeback was nearing its descent over the wall, Joe Buck took us back 20 years to one of the greatest announcing calls ever made, when his father, Jack Buck proclaimed: “And we’ll see you tomorrow night!” at the end of Game 6 of the 1991 World Series.  Although it’s a tribute he’s done before, the timing and delivery of it last night was just perfect.  If the games didn’t have lasting significance in their own right, now, every time I think of Game 6 of either 1991 or 2011, I’ll think of that special bond between a father and son that ...

Then he said to Thomas, “Put your finger here; see my hands. Reach out your hand and put it into my side. Stop doubting and believe.”  Thomas said to him, “My Lord and my God!”  Then Jesus told him, “Because you have seen me, you have believed; blessed are those who have not seen and yet have believed.”  (John 20:27-29) Dee and I spent the weekend in northern Minnesota.  Saturday night we selected a new church to visit on Easter Sunday morning with the family.  It’s always an interesting thing visiting a new church – what is the pastor like, what is the worship music like, and what are all the people like?  About 50% of the way through the sermon, it became clear that this particular message was going to resonate for a long time.  Towards the end of the message, the pastor posed a question as to why most people reject Jesus as their savior.  He offered two reasons: 1)    The story is just too good to be true.  Why would God...

Sing to him, sing praise to him; tell of all his wonderful acts. (1 Chronicles 16:9) I caught the tail end of “It’s a Wonderful Life” on television last weekend, which tells the classic story of George Bailey.  From a young age, George always wanted to go to college and travel the world, but he selflessly postponed his dreams time and time again.  When a serious financial crisis came his way, George was on the verge of suicide when his guardian angel, Clarence, stopped him.  Clarence slowly coaxed him back to life by showing him how miserable George’s hometown of Bedford Falls would have been had he never been born.  When George realizes suicide is a mistake, I never fail to get teary-eyed, as the entire town rallies around him and gladly donate the money he needs. So many emotions build up in me whenever I watch that movie.  It brings back fond memories of my Dad – and all the times we watched it together as a family on Christmas day.  It reminds ...

The rain came down, the streams rose, and the winds blew and beat against that house; yet it did not fall, because it had its foundation on the rock. (Matthew 7:25) In April, I told the story of a family member providing Dee and I with a very special gift – a CD filled with Christian music.  Over Labor Day weekend he repeated the favor with not one, but three Christian CDs.  We didn’t know it at the time, but one of the songs on one of the CDs, “Show Me Your Glory” by Jesus Culture, would be instrumental in helping us through the next couple weeks. It’s an extremely powerful song, but the lyrics that really hit home with me are: “I’m not afraid!  Can you feel the joy welled up inside?  Just to say that I belong to Jesus.  I belong to Jesus.  Safe and secure!  I belong to Jesus!”  They’re words that we’ve listened to over and over again – particularly last week when “the rains came down, the streams rose, and the winds blew and beat a...

The rain came down, the streams rose, and the winds blew and beat against that house; yet it did not fall, because it had its foundation on the rock. (Matthew 7:25) I hope you all had a very blessed Easter.  Mine was capped by an incredible gift that a family member gave me on Easter morning – a homemade CD with all of his favorite Christian songs.  If you had ever seen my iTunes collection, you’d probably be asking what made the gift so special (I’ve got more Christian songs on it than I can count, and I’ve been known to burn quite a many of them to CD).  The true value of the gift was not the CD itself, but it was from whom I received it.  The family member who gave me the gift has seen his life turned completely upside down over the past year, with a large number of heavy trials mixed in.  But despite being caught in the lowest of lows, there’s a peace he’s coming to find more and more every day.  There’s a level of forgiveness in his heart that...

Where, O death, is your victory? Where, O death, is your sting? The sting of death is sin, and the power of sin is the law. But thanks be to God! He gives us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ. (1 Corinthians 15:55-57) A couple of weeks ago I received an e-mail that my Little League teammate, Billy, had passed away.  For the next few days my mind was filled with memories of our baseball journey together over 30 years ago.  In our first year on the Senators, we landed on a miserable team that not only suffered through a winless season, but was the laughingstock of the league.  It was a very difficult year for me personally; in my tee-ball years prior, I was on the dominant team in the league.  We toasted two championships together, and in my mind, that success was going to surround me on every team I played.  However, that first year of Little League brought me quickly back down to earth. The following year found renewed hope; some new players wer...

Ask and it will be given to you; seek and you will find; knock and the door will be opened to you.  For everyone who asks receives; he who seeks finds; and to him who knocks, the door will be opened. (Matthew 7:7-8) A few months ago, I received a ‘Save the Date’ card in the mail from my cousin, Lori, to reserve August 22 nd on my calendar for her wedding.  Later that day, I felt led to lift up a prayer to the Lord that she would ask me to lead the grace on her wedding night, and that He would give me words to share that would have a positive impact on the lives of all those in attendance.  After I said the prayer, sadly, I remember having my doubts.  I moved away from New Jersey almost a decade ago, and Lori and I have only had a chance to see each other maybe once every couple years since.  Those doubts wanted to continue to grow as the days, weeks, and months went by with no call, but I knew if it was the Lord’s will, it eventually was going to happe...