Easter Weekend
This past weekend had to be one of the best weekends we've had since being up here. My mom, stepdad, and brother Landon made the long haul (8.5 hours) from Missouri on Friday and left today. I practically ran everyone (including myself) ragged from morning to night, but we all had a blast. Friday night, we treated them to Chicago-style, "stuffed pizza" for their first time. Saturday morning, while Melissa was at work, I took them on a driving tour of the North Shore via Sheridan Rd. from Evanston to Highwood. We stopped by Trinity on the way back to Wheeling and completed the loop. I fixed Moroccan Beef with Couscous for lunch, which turned out great! Then we headed downtown, picking up Melissa on the way. After a very long ordeal of trying to find the parking garage, we made our way to the Field Museum, where we explored ancient Egyptian tombs, African cultural artifacts, dinosour bones, and a few other exhibits. Here is a picture of Sue, the largest, most complete T-rex skeleton in the world, with Mom, Greg, and Landon posing in front of her. 
After that, we took them to the Sears Tower, and then to China Town, where we ate some of the most scrumptuous authentic Chinese food in Chicago at Lao Se Schuan.
Easter Sunday was incredible. Our church met together with its two daughter churches at the Sears Center to celebrate the glorious, hell-crushing, soul-redeeming, life-giving resurrection of our Lord, Jesus Christ. What a morning (and afternoon)! Pastor James (MacDonald) spoke on the "Easter Principle", which is that we must die if we want to live, and that this must not only be true at our conversion, but also as a daily discipline of joy. If we want to experience the life and victory of Christ in anything, we must first die to it!
I died a death last night after watching The Pursuit of Happyness, and again this morning as I reflected on it during my daughter's nap. There is a lot more in me that must die if I am to truly live. Materialism...successism...ministryism...pleasing-othersism...coolism...musicism...lazyism...blogism...intellectualism...the list could go onism.
At the end of this historic, redemptive weekend is Christ.
Oh Christ, help me die today--right now--once again, that I might live today--right now--in the joy of your Presence, the fullness of your Spirit, the goodness of your Purpose, the compulsion of your Love, and the purity of your Holiness.
After that, we took them to the Sears Tower, and then to China Town, where we ate some of the most scrumptuous authentic Chinese food in Chicago at Lao Se Schuan.
Easter Sunday was incredible. Our church met together with its two daughter churches at the Sears Center to celebrate the glorious, hell-crushing, soul-redeeming, life-giving resurrection of our Lord, Jesus Christ. What a morning (and afternoon)! Pastor James (MacDonald) spoke on the "Easter Principle", which is that we must die if we want to live, and that this must not only be true at our conversion, but also as a daily discipline of joy. If we want to experience the life and victory of Christ in anything, we must first die to it!
I died a death last night after watching The Pursuit of Happyness, and again this morning as I reflected on it during my daughter's nap. There is a lot more in me that must die if I am to truly live. Materialism...successism...ministryism...pleasing-othersism...coolism...musicism...lazyism...blogism...intellectualism...the list could go onism.
At the end of this historic, redemptive weekend is Christ.
Oh Christ, help me die today--right now--once again, that I might live today--right now--in the joy of your Presence, the fullness of your Spirit, the goodness of your Purpose, the compulsion of your Love, and the purity of your Holiness.
What a great "ism" list.
ReplyDeleteLet's replace all of that with "Christism"... an obsession with our Savior.