Our First Christmas! (or, An Attempt to Bring Things Up to Speed: Part 1)

     For someone who loves to write and has had lots to write about, I've been terrible at it! I could pitch you a series of convincing, half-true excuses why I haven't been able to keep up with this blog, but I'll save you that and cut to the first installment of my massive catching-up update: my first Christmas spent with Kaitlin (and family!)

     As is the case every major holiday, the struggle to sort out how to visit both of our extended families began about a month before Christmas. This year proved to be less simple than years past, because while we both wanted to visit our families, we also kinda wanted to have Christmas time to ourselves, with it being our first. Most of the ideas to solve this dilemma involved too much stress (and gasoline) than our minds and bodies would be able to handle (driving from Rome to Marietta on the Eve of Christmas Eve... going to the Christmas Eve celebration at my grandmothers house in Woodstock the next day... then driving back to Rome that night to spend Christmas morning together alone the following morning... only to try to make it all the way to Macon by lunch time!). Not to mention Christmas fell on a Sunday that year, which brought church attendance into the equation!

     It was somewhere during that whole deal when one of us (I want to say it was me, but I cannot be sure =P) thought of the brilliant idea of spending the weekend before Christmas in a cabin in Tennessee, celebrating Christmas together there instead of Christmas morning. I have to admit, being too much of a sentimentalist made this hard, but after I let go of religiously and emotionally HAVING to celebrate Christmas on Christmas Day, it became the funnest Christmas idea ever!

     This was our view from our cabin in the Great Smoky Mountains! I find that I'm more of a mountain person than a beach person. There is nothing like enjoying a view like this, and experiencing God's beautiful design in creation. The Great Smokies are a personal favorite of mine, having visited multiple times during my youth (not to mention my honeymoon!). Kaitlin always gets a kick out of me never leaving out the "Great" in Great Smoky Mountains. It turned out to be a fairly cheap and endlessly fun Gatlinburg getaway Christmas, mostly spent at Dollywood (with rain checks from the time we went during our Honeymoon and it closed because of a storm), eating, and shopping.
     Although ridiculously overpriced, Dollywood is such a fun place to go, and doesn't get old (or at least hasn't gotten old yet). Being the holiday season, they had the whole place lit up, like this:

I don't remember what the name of that chapel is. It's on the picture, but pretty fuzzy. It amazed me how many people put honest, personal prayer requests in the guestbook. It really had the feel of a church rather than a part of a theme park. Kaitlin and I did a little bible study hear and then continued a long the park. Can you imagine having to put Christmas lights on buildings like that? The chapel was pretty tame compared to the countless lights put up on all the buildings in the entire park. Over 6 million lights in all! At least, that's what they told us when we were on the train:

     Kaitlin snapped this jewel. Pretty cool, actually! This train really put the one at Six Flags to shame. We soon found out (thanks to the guide) that this train doesn't stop for NOTHIN'; if you pulled the emergency line, you better have a good reason (dropping your cell phone/camera/iPad is not considered an emergency (nor is getting a cinder in your eye (I guess they get that a lot))). Aside from the lights and the train (and the rides, which I sadly have no pictures of), the blacksmith is always a winner:

     If I remember correctly, it's Kaitlin's favorite part of the park. We spent at least half an hour watching the blacksmith work his magic with the fire (and knocked out some people on our Christmas gift list too!).

     And what would Christmas (or anything in life) be without great food? If you ever go to the Great Smoky Mountains/Gatlinburg/Pigeon Forge, there are three restaurants that you absolutely have to go to:

Bubba Gump Shrimp Co.,

The Old Mill Restaurant,

...and the Smoky Mountain Pancake House.

     If you happen to have ever driven all the way to this part of Tennessee and did not come across these fine eating establishments, you seriously missed out to say the least. Arrive hungry and order what you want, because it is going to be one of the best dining experience your mouth has ever encountered, hands down. If you go to Bubba Gump, freshen up your Forrest Gump trivia, because you will be tested! Also, go ahead and order the hush pups. Just do it. At the Old Mill, just about anything on the menu will be great, but make sure you order extra corn fritters. They are the best in the world! Seriously. What you see in the last picture is the Hungry Bear Breakfast! I recommend it.

     When we got back home, we still had a day to rest and prepare for all the traveling. We celebrated Christmas with my family at my grandmother's (Nanny!) Christmas Eve party, and headed to Kaitlin's house to celebrate with her family on Christmas Day. All in all, it was such a peaceful and fun alternative to running around across the state that week. Who really wants to get stressed out during Christmas? It's hard to avoid it, but should we really celebrate the birth of our Savior by stressing out, running around like chickens with our heads cut off, buying people things they don't need just because it's what we're supposed to do, etc. I'm not trying to be a Grinch at all here; Christmas is actually one of my favorite times of the year, and I don't have anything against buying Christmas presents (I bought Kaitlin a new study bible and a barn coat, and she bought me an iPhone (which produced all the pictures in this post!). I just think that anything that can be done to make Christmas more of a joyous celebration and peaceful fellowship with family should be wholly pursued, and we had such a great time pursuing it this year.

Such a great time, that Christmas in the Smokies may become our first family tradition. =] Well just have to see.

Reading the Bible in a Year: Day 1 (Part 2)

I guess it's time that I at finish sharing day one (even though I'm on day 14 right now...). I think I left off towards the end of Genesis 2, where God showed me something pretty cool about marriage that I never really thought of before.

In verse 24, the Word declares that "therefor a man shall leave his father and mother and cling to his wife, and they shall become one flesh." Whenever the Bible (or any book) says "therefor," you gotta step back and ask yourself why. Some versions will say "for this reason..." For what reason? I had read this a while back and came to the conclusion that, like the Bible says, marriage was created because it is not good for man (or woman) to be alone. We all need a suitable helper. When God saw that it was not good for man to be alone, he designed and purposed a helper for him.

But now I see that it, perhaps, is a little more than that. God created Adam from the dust of the ground and very well could have done the same for Eve. He did not, though, and I believe that is important. In verse 23, the man says:

"This is now bone of my bones
and flesh of my flesh;
she shall be called 'woman,'
for she was taken out of man."

Then, we see the "therefor." To me, that painted a more powerful picture of the bond God intends a man and his wife to share, and of the duty the man has for his wife. As men, we should hold fast to our wives, and treat them and provide for them just as well as we would our own bodies because they ARE of our own bodies. We should honor, respect, nourish, love, cherish, and protect them as we do ourselves, because together, a man and his wife are one. God says that not only in a sexually physical way, but in a literally physical way, as well as spiritually and emotionally. God gave women each so many unique gifts and strengths that men are missing, and vice versa. God created the two out of each other so as to eternally bond them together. Marriage was the first covenant God created. He values it infinitely, and desires us to do the same.

Reading through the Bible chronologically, I have come across so much OT scripture that represents Christ. I believe this is one of them. Christ left His father to be here with us on Earth, and to cling to US, the Church, and the two of us have become as one! If you let Christ live out in you and strive to die to yourself everyday, you are a part of this illustration of God's perfect view of marriage.

[Genesis 3] This is the fall. The consequences of the events in this book are told throughout the Bible and end with the mess of a world we live in today. As I was reading through the fall, though, I can't help but think that we're all like Adam and Eve. Sin takes almost the exact same route as it did in that book. Basically the serpent tempts Eve, who sins, and then tempts her husband, who sins. When asked by God about it, the sin takes the opposite path. Adam blames his wife, who blames the serpent. Who is at fault?

Everyone.

That sequence is so real, that I bet everyone can relate to it. Satan tempts you or your friend or your significant other. He clouds your thinking and tricks you into compromising. Once one person sins, it can quickly tempt others or you (i.e. gossiping, impurity, lying/cheating). Afterwards you may think "I can't believe whats-her-face talked me into that" or "I can't believe he/she let us fall like that".

People naturally like to blame others when they see sin manifest itself in the world or in their own life, but the truth is we all need to rise up and be accountable and humble. Silence Satan's lies with the name of Jesus, and stop sin from spreading before it already does. Ditch the idea that perfection is obtainable, and embrace God's grace.

The fall is referred to as an event, but in reality it is a condition. Without the cross, we would all be continuing to fall away from God. The sooner we can admit to ourselves (and to others and to God) that we are weak and are incapable of leading a sinless life, the sooner God can help us combat Satan through Christ and the guidance of His Spirit in us. We can do nothing alone but fall.

God's love and mercy, through Christ's sacrifice of atonement, allows us to stop falling and start rising. Check out this pretty sweet verse from St. Paul:

"For if, when we were God's enemies, we were reconciled to Him through the death of his Son, how much more, having been reconciled, shall we be saved through his life!"
-Romans 5:10

PS - There is no way with school and work and letting this Bible plan sink in that I'll be able to give an update of every day. Maybe next year when I am done, but it is just so overwhelming right now (in a good way!). All I can say is that if you have never committed to a plan to read the whole Bible, try it out! It's such an amazing experience.

PPS - I pray that what I post on here is representing the true Gospel. Please, as my brothers and sisters in Christ, let me know if the Spirit is telling you otherwise.

Reading the Bible in a Year: Day 1 (Part 1)

I'm only on Day 5 of my chronological reading plan of the Bible, and I can already tell this is one of the best commitments I have ever made. Most of what I have read so far are passages that I have already read before - Genesis 1-11, Job 1-9. It's amazing though how God can teach or point out something totally new to you nearly every time you read something. Honestly I came into this dreading the first week or so when I would be reading chapters I'm already familiar with, but God totally rocked my quiet times and put me back in my place.

Who am I to even think that I don't need to read the book of "X" chapter "X" verse "X" because I have already read it a thousand times? Isn't it referred to as a living book? The very words of God? It reminds me of a passage from Isaiah:

"As the rain and snow
come down from Heaven,
and do not return to it
without watering the Earth
and making it bud and flourish,
so that it yields seed for the sower and bread for the eater,

so is my word that goes out from my mouth:
It will not return to me empty,
but will accomplish what I desire
and achieve the purpose for which I sent it."
-Isaiah 55:10,11

When I first read that passage a while back, it made me think of missions witnessing. It was a comforting verse I thought of when I needed to know that despite how things looked, God was using His word through me whenever I shared it. Now, though, I can apply that to any reading. God has a purpose and desire for every quiet time you spend with Him. He can and wants to teach you something about Himself. He wants to grow with us intimately everyday!

My first day of reading included Genesis 1-3. I don't really want to summarize anything, but rather my thoughts and what stood out to me.

[Genesis 1] First off, the creation sequence bears a striking resemblance to what scientists believe the "evolution" of life on earth was. Photosynthesizing creatures, then sea creatures, then land. I don't really give any thought or credit to scientific origin theories, but the fact that their arriving at the same conclusions despite efforts to alienate themselves from creation-thinking is just really cool and satisfying to me.

In verse 2, the Spirit of God is described as "hovering over the waters." What a loving and beautiful picture of God! I read probably a million times before, but this time it just stuck out to me and really comforted me. It made me think of a similar verse from 2 Chronicles that we read during my mission trip to Los Mochis:

"The eyes of the LORD run to and fro throughout the whole Earth, to give strong support to those whose heart is blameless toward him."
-2 Chronicles 19:9

In the first few verses of scripture, we see the essence of our marvelous God and Creator. He is loving and caring towards His creation. He hovers across the waters (even when the Earth was new and formless) to make sure everything is just so, and probably also to enjoy what He has done. Try to just picture that scene: God's spirit hovering over the waters. Awesome, isn't it? Truly awesome.

Skipping down to verses 7 and 8, I noticed something else really awesome. Please forgive me if this is dumb or obvious, but when I read that God separated the waters "above the expanse from the waters below the expanse" and that he "called the expanse Heaven," I immediately thought... "Woah, this is talking about waters in Heaven!" I know this sounds like a basic thing and you're probably thinking "Oh yeah, waters in Heaven, Zack, whoop-de-stinkin-do." To me, though, that was just really cool. God referenced Heavenly waters in Genesis, and I had missed it until now. These waters that God gathered in Heaven way back in Genesis are the same waters that God promises to His people through both Isaiah and Jesus Himself:

"Come, all you who are thirsty,
come to the waters.
You who have no money,
come, buy and eat!
Come, buy wine and milk
without money and without cost.
Why spend money on what is not bread,
and your labor on what does not satisfy?
Listen, listen to me, and eat what is good,
and you will delight in the richest of fare.
Give ear and come to me
listen, that you may live."
- Isaiah 55:1-3

Through Isaiah, God uses the waters of Heaven as an invitation to those who are lost and need the LORD, and advise them to stop investing themselves in worldly desires that do not satisfy the soul like only the waters of His love can.

"Everyone who drinks this water will be thirsty again, but whoever drinks the water I give them will never thirst. Indeed, the water I give them will become in them a spring of water welling up to eternal life."
-Jesus Christ (John 4:14)

Here we see God again inviting His people to drink of His waters. Not only that, but we see Him consistently making a separation between what Earthly and Heavenly satisfaction. In the beginning God set His waters aside with a purpose and plan in mind. He new that only they can truly give eternal joy, satisfaction, and life. He separated them from our own with the infinite expanse of the Heavens, and advises us to do the same with our own desires. We must greatly distance ourselves from the unfulfilling desires of this world that and cling to His waters and His Kingdom. Any other desire will disappoint us and trap us and corrupt us. This isn't an easy task, and we cannot do it without Christ! But what joy is there in thinking of the great expanse of God's living, Heavenly waters, and how He invites us to drink of it and live! He hovers over us to give us love and support when we call on Him. He intricately and carefully designed us. He offers us and promises us His waters, with which we will thirst no more, hurt no more, and suffer no more.

I thought when I started reading Genesis 1 I would be going back to the basics. Wrong! Right from the start, God is working miracles and preparing a place for me, for us. Working hard to make sure He is there when we need Him. How great is our God?

[Genesis 2] I could spend so much time sharing how fascinating this chapter is to me. It's basically a more detailed account of the creation of man and woman. The scene that is described is so incredible:

"the LORD God caused the man to fall into a deep sleep; and while he was sleeping, he took one of the man's ribs and then closed up the place with flesh. Then the LORD God made a woman from the rib he had taken out of them man, and he brought her to the man."
-Genesis 2:21,22

It reminds me almost immediately of a surgery scene, where a physician will use anesthesia and operate on a patient while they are sleeping. This is written way before the idea of putting someone to sleep for surgery (or even the idea of surgery itself) were even thought of, so we can be absolutely sure the person who is narrating this book (presumably Moses) is not making this up (I would never suggest that any part of the Bible is made up, but Genesis and the creation story get attacked so frequently by atheists that it is so sweet and legit and satisfying to note scriptures that can be used to combat those claims). There is something incredibly awesome about this scene though...

Many people have said that men have one less rib because of the creation of women. It's a myth that is certainly not true, though something even more amazing IS true: the rib is the only bone in the body that can be used to reconstruct damaged bone and...... (drum roll please...).... regenerates itself. That's right! In fact, physicians today use the bone in reconstructive surgeries. The rib has to be removed perfectly in order for it to grow back, but hey, we're talking about the Great Physician here, aren't we? He does all things perfectly (He even says so after each step in creation, calling His work "good.") and takes great pride in His work.

After reading that verse and reflecting on research I had come across, I couldn't help but just sit there in awe of His glory and wisdom and perfect design.

I think I'll stop there and pick back up in a little while. On the seventh day God rested and probably just admired it all and let it sink in. Let us do the same! Rest, and let God's perfection and glory sink in. Seek His waters and drink of them. Rest peacefully, knowing his eyes are watching over you. Rest in Him, loved and cared for.

Isn't our God amazing?