He Is Risen!

And you say, "He is risen, indeed!"

Jesus rocks.

One Moment

Imagine you're on a bus riding down from the top of the mountains out west on a very narrow barely-big-enough-for-your-vehicle winding road. You're in the back with all of your friends ... reading, laughing, making calls, texting, talking, having a great time.

Suddenly you see - from seemingly out of nowhere - a small boy start to dart across the road, directly in the path of the bus.

The bus driver has three choices. He can veer to the right, careening into the side of the mountain, killing you and all of your fellow passengers, but saving the life of the child. Or he can swerve sharply to the left and plunge off the edge of the road, bringing instant death for everyone on the bus but again, saving the boy. Or he can do the unthinkable and run the child down, but save the life of everyone on the bus.

As the bus driver slams on the brakes, you can feel the small body crumpled by the weight of the massive bus. As the dust clears and the smell of scorched rubber fills the air, the bus driver sits in tears. You approach him and try to offer some small comfort. "Don't cry," you say. "You're a hero. I have a wife and two kids. We all have families. You've saved us all!"

The bus driver turns to you and whispers, "You don't understand. That boy was my son."

God is the bus driver. And that's the choice He made. The one we commemorate this day, Good Friday.

:::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::

There was a small girl whose father was a pastor.

One day, after one of her daddy's sermons, the little girl asked him, "Daddy, can a person go their whole life without sinning?"

"No, honey," the father replied, "I'm sorry, but that's just not possible. Jesus was the only one who could."

"What about a year, Daddy?" the little girl continued. "Can a person go a whole year without sinning?"

"No, I don't think that's possible, either," Daddy said.

"What about a day, Daddy? Can a person go a day without sinning? Maybe just once?"

"Unless they're in the hospital and very, very sick and not even awake, I don't think that's possible, either, honey."

"What about one moment, Daddy? Can a person go one moment without sinning?"

"Yes, dear, I think that is possible."

"Then, Daddy, I want to live my life moment by moment."

[Author Unknown, selected from Daily Food for Thought.org with edits by Mark Raymond]

:::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::

But Sunday's coming. (See below)

I'll see you on Monday.

Mark

:::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::

WEB SITE of the WEEK: My wife bought pistachios last week as a snack for me at my fantasy baseball drafts. Since I was using my laptop this year, I couldn't really enjoy them because I didn't want to get "shell dust" all over the computer ... so I took them back to the store for a less messy snack. When I did, the clerk at customer service informed me it was a good thing because those pistachios had been recalled. Find out what other foodstuffs might be on a recall list at the Department of Health and Human Services website at http://www.hhs.gov/. And, of course, there's lots of other good stuff there, too.

:::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::

Mark's Musings is sent using Ezine Director and I pay extra to make sure those folks are certified by Habeas to be a safe sender of e-mail. That means you can trust what I send. And I promise never to send spam or give your address to anyone who will. Subscribe, view past issues in my Archives, and otherwise click your day away at my web site. (There are years of archival jokes and links, for instance, and at least three years of "Web Sites of the Week" to browse.) To contact me and sooner or later get a reply, click here. Make sure you go to a good church this Sunday. Garrison Keillor once said that without faith, life is just one long committee meeting. I couldn't agree more. You can forward or reprint "Mark's Musings" freely but please keep the credits attached. The credits go with the post like music goes with a good movie. They both enhance each other. Original material and musings © 2009 by Mark Raymond. I update this blog with a copy of this post daily and occasionally with "bonus material" whenever the mood or muse strikes. Look for the label that says "bonus" and you can bring it all up with one click. My personal mission statement remains John 3:30.

:::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::

WORDS for YOUR WEEKEND: "Easter says you can put truth in a grave, but it won't stay there." (Clarence W. Hall)

+++

Kitchen Note

It's Ash Wednesday. The beginning of Lent. If you don't count Sundays, there are now 40 days between this moment and Easter.

For Lent this year, I've decided to give up my son.

No, not really, but he is moving out today ... probably for good. At least if everything goes well.

He landed a good job, his own apartment, and a new car ... all in the space of the last week. (To be fair, he had spent a month as a paid intern at the company training sessions prior to all this.) For the record, he's worked very hard to achieve this, and we couldn't be prouder of him.

But, by this time tomorrow, Matthew will be well and truly on his own, our house will be a little emptier, and our daughter will have that much more room to grow up in.

It's shaping up to be an interesting Easter season.

+++

My wife, often busy, had a bad habit of leaving pots and pans on the stove with the burners on. So she resorted to posting herself a reminder on the kitchen door. It said, "STOVE!"

One weekend my son, who had been away at college, came home. The next morning there was a second sign taped up below the first. It said, "NO! DOOR! Trust me, I've been to college."

[Good Clean Funnies List]

+++

WONDER for YOUR WEEK: Why does it take so many things to prove you're smart but only one thing to prove you're dumb?

+++

Mark's Musings can be boxed up into an RSS Feed or moved into your Inbox via email each weekday. Get your own subscription here, and never pack up my credits.

Easter, 2008

He Has Risen!



HE HAS RISEN, INDEED!

Obit

Good Friday, 2008. The day believers in The Way commemorate and memorialize the death of Jesus, the Christ. People who know a lot more than I do must have thought he was pretty important. His birth separated our calendar and our history as humans into all that came before him, and all that has come since. I'm not about to argue with them.

He was important. He is important. He will always be important. Jesus is the ultimate V.I.P. Yet the Bible teaches he gave up everything he had so that you and I should not perish. He couldn't love us any more than that, and he refuses to love us any less than that.

:::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::

FROM THE "JERUSALEM TIMES" OBITUARY PAGE

Jesus Christ, 33, of Nazareth, died today on Mount Calvary, also known as Golgotha, the Place of the Skull.

Betrayed by the apostle Judas, Jesus was crucified by the Romans, by order of the ruler Pontius Pilate. The cause of death was crucifixion, extreme exhaustion, severe torture, and loss of blood.

Jesus Christ was a descendent of Abraham, and a member of the house of David. He was the son of the late Joseph, a carpenter of Nazareth, and Mary, his devoted mother. He was born in a stable in Bethlehem, in Judea, and is survived by his mother Mary, his faithful apostles, numerous disciples, and many other followers.

Jesus was self-educated and spent most of his adult life working as a teacher. He also occasionally worked as a medical doctor and it is reported that he healed many patients. Up until the time of his death, Jesus was teaching and sharing what he called the "Good News," healing the sick, touching the lonely, feeding the hungry, and helping the poor.

Jesus was most noted for telling parables about his father's kingdom and performing miracles, such as feeding more than 5,000 people with just five loaves of bread and two fish, and healing a man who was born blind. On the day before his death, he held a Last Supper with his disciples, celebrating the Passover feast, at which time he actually foretold his death.

His body was quickly buried in a stone grave, which was donated to the family by Joseph of Arimathea, a loyal friend. By order of Pontius Pilate, a boulder was rolled in front of the tomb. Roman soldiers were also put on guard.

In lieu of flowers, the family has requested that everyone try to live as Jesus did. Donations may be directed to anyone in need.

[graphic submitted by list member Pam W.]

:::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::

Of course, this is only half of the story. The other half happens Sunday morning. Be sure you check this space on Sunday, too. You'll find a really neat video here. But if I don't see you this weekend, I'll see you on Monday.

Mark

:::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::

WEB SITE of the WEEK: If you have a long commute or your job allows you to wear headphones while you work, you might enjoy downloading a free classic book in an MP3 format (for Windows Media Players, CD players, etc.) or M4B format (for your iPod). Go to http://freeclassicaudiobooks.com/. The list has a baker's dozen of books read by a real human, and another half dozen of classic books converted to audio by "advanced text to speech" software.

:::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::

Mark's Musings is a Habeas-certified spam free mailer. Subscribe, view past issues in the Archives, or help defray publishing costs - and be the first to donate this year - at Mark's web site. If you need to change your e-mail address or, even worse, unsubscribe, use the "Change Subscription" or "Cancel Subscription" links at the very bottom of this page. To contact Mark, click here. To answer the call of nature when you're out in the woods, it is wise to toss a handful of pebbles or debris into the area you intend to use. This will theoretically flush out - no pun intended - any small animals you don't wish to have access to intimate areas of your body. You can forward or reprint "Mark's Musings" freely but please keep the credits attached. Would Jesus remove the credits? I don't think so. Original material and commentary © 2008 by Mark Raymond. This includes the fine print you're reading now. I update my blog with a copy of this post daily, and extra thoughts, videos, and things that go bump in the night periodically on the weekends. My personal mission statement is John 3:30. Well, look at the time. I gotta go.

:::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::

WORDS for YOUR WEEKEND: "I believe in Christianity as I believe that the sun has risen. Not only because I see it, but because by it I see everything else." (C.S. Lewis)

Tree and Dog

Maundy Thursday, 2008.

List member friend LaVonne T. tells me that this is the earliest Easter will ever happen in our lifetime. The date for Easter is actually based on a lunar calendar used by the Hebrews to identify the date for Passover. That's why it moves around on our calendar. Easter is the first Sunday after the first full moon after the first day of Spring.

Which is today, actually. Spring begins today. The very next full moon is tomorrow.

This is the earliest any of us will ever see Easter. The next time it comes so early in the year our calendars will have 2228 printed on them.

+++

AN OLDIE BUT A GOODIE

Unexpected cold snaps had destroyed the buds on my father's young peach tree for two years in a row. This spring Dad was ready. He replanted the sapling into a large box, mounted the box on wheels, and rolled the tree into the garage every time the temperature dropped.

One warm April day Dad was wheeling the tree out of the garage and he stopped to pick up the hose and give our old dog a drink before he watered the tree.

A neighbor was watching the scene with amusement. He finally called out to my father, "Frank, you're the only man I know who walks his tree and waters his dog!"

[seen everywhere but I'm blaming the Good, Clean Funnies List via Doc's Daily Chuckle]

+++

WISDOM for YOUR WEEK: "Do not let any unwholesome talk come out of your mouths, but only what is helpful for building others up according to their needs, that it may benefit those who listen." (Ephesians 4:29)

+++

Mark's Musings is available via email each weekday for free. Wheel your mouse on over here and get your very own subscription here.