Getting off the Couch and Other Nearly Insurmountable Tasks

My spring break is over. It was glorious. This morning I woke up multiple times wanting to throw up before my alarm went off . No, I'm neither sick nor pregnant (I always have to clarify that). I've just been dreading going to work lately. It's not that I work in a miserable environment. In fact, it's a pretty good environment. I just keep conjuring up these impossible situations in my head. Once I got in my classroom and started chatting with my students, I was completely calm and remembered why I enjoyed teaching. It's the getting up and moving part that stinks.

My parents left on Sunday afternoon after my husband left for work. When they left, I ate a bunch of leftovers and watched a chick-flick. I didn't try too hard to clean up my messes. Monday I woke up in a foul mood. I didn't really want to go fishing as my husband and I had previously planned. I just wanted to mope around on Facebook looking at other people's "glamorous" lives while I was stuck in crummy Pennsylvania. My husband's messes were added to my messes. I just kept telling myself that my life was miserable. Once we got on the pond and I started catching fish left and right I remembered why I love being outside so much and why I am so happy with my current life. It's the getting up and moving part that stinks.

My apartment is now really, really, really, really, really messy. It's Hoarder's quality. It's a perfect reflection of my heart and mind right now. Messy. My husband is miserable in this state, and I'm miserable in this state. Once I get up and start cleaning, I know I will be happier. Once the house is clean, I will have an overwhelming sense of accomplishment sweep over me. It's the getting up and moving part that stinks.

Here goes.

                                                                                  Source: citygirlchichome.blogspot.com via Melissa on Pinterest

What Should We Call the "Easter" Holiday?

Today is Easter. A lot of people have a problem with calling it Easter. I don't. Sure, it did originate from a pagan holiday worshiping a goddess of spring, according to my favorite website Online Etymology Dictionary. Here's what the entry for Easter said:

Easter

O.E. Easterdæg, from Eastre (Northumbrian Eostre), from P.Gmc. *Austron, a goddess of fertility and spring, probably originally of sunrise whose feast was celebrated at the spring equinox, from *austra-, from PIE *aus- "to shine" (especially of the dawn). Bede says Anglo-Saxon Christians adopted her name and many of the celebratory practices for their Mass of Christ's resurrection. Ultimately related to east. Almost all neighboring languages use a variant of Latin Pasche to name this holiday. Easter egg attested by 1825, earlier pace egg (1610s). Easter bunny attested by 1909.

 But, I firmly believe the meaning of the word "Easter" has come to be synonymous with "Resurrection Day." Now I could be wrong, but I think one of the reasons the early Christians kept the name "Easter" was they wanted to create an alternative holiday for the pagans who were converting to Christianity. Keeping the name "Easter" maybe made the transition a little smoother. I dunno.

What I do know is correcting every individual who say's "Happy Easter" is awkward and makes you look like a bit of a weirdo. Non-Christians often think Christians are weirdos already. Why give them one more reason to think that? The Bible does say we are to be a peculiar people, but it also says that we shouldn't spend a great deal of time squabbling over meaningless jargon.

So instead of correcting those who greet you with "Happy Easter," smile and say "Happy Easter" right back. Focus on fostering healthy relationships, not on creating enemies over an innocent phrase. As always, keep the spread of the Gospel your main focus.

Happy Easter, everyone! He is risen!

**If you have no idea what I'm talking about, check out this link to find out more. If you are still confused, please send me an e-mail at melissajrhine(at)gmail(dot)com.

What's the big deal about Good Friday?

As a Baptist, Good Friday is something we never really celebrate too much. Sure we have the occasional Good Friday service, and most of us think about the significance of the day. But, overall we tend to shy away from celebrating it too much. We have liturgical phobia. The Baptist church was born out of other denominations which were much more liturgical in how they did things. We tend to reject liturgy because it often leads to dependence on works over grace as a means for salvation.

When I was in Bible college, we were in a very Catholic town. In fact, our campus was purchased from Notre Dame. It used to be some form of a military school or something. We didn't have Good Friday off from classes. We never had any required Good Friday services to attend. All the college did was tell us not to participate in any outdoor activities that day because it would offend the locals.

A lot of Baptists go as far as downplaying the day. They come up with all of these excuses about how it's not mentioned in the Bible, it should actually be on Thursday, etc. This frustrates me. The day Christ paid the punishment for my sins is a day I should hold in reverence. I really couldn't care less what day of the week it was supposed to be. Jesus wasn't born on December 25th either. So what? Without his death on the cross, I would have to pay my own punishment for my sin with eternity in hell.

Our church has a service tonight. I'm not going because my family is here, and we feel the need to spend time with one another at home. However, I'm taking this day very seriously and will be thinking about my Savior's sacrifice throughout the whole day.

If you don't really understand the whole significance of the day, check out Matthew 27. Or, check out this great website: www.needhim.org

If you're still confused, please contact me at melissajrhine(at)gmail(dot)com. I'd love to share my faith with you!

Spring Break.....ahhhhhhh

I'm so relaxed right now. I'm on spring break! Since January 4, I have had two days off of work not counting weekends. I'm sure many people have had even fewer days off of work than that. But, I had 23 middle-schoolers to deal with who also had only 2 days off since January 4. I was fast-approaching  extreme burn-out. I was waking up nauseated every morning  (no, I'm not pregnant) dreading the day to come.

Today I plan to get my house back into some semblance of order before my family arrives. When I'm stressed/depressed my house falls into shambles. I'm currently sitting on clean clothes I folded on Sunday and never put away. I hate it when that happens.

Even though I had a rough few weeks, God really blessed me yesterday. He sent the principal to take over my dreaded lunch duty and caused a family to cancel their parent/teacher conference with me (which was the main reason I was miserable every morning). Lamentations 3:22-26 (ESV) pretty well sums it up:  

²² The steadfast love of the Lord never ceases;
   his mercies never come to an end;
²³ they are new every morning;
   great is your faithfulness.
²⁴ “The Lord is my portion,” says my soul,
   “therefore I will hope in him.”

²⁵ The Lord is good to those who wait for him,
    to the soul who seeks him.
²⁶ It is good that one should wait quietly
    for the salvation of the Lord.

My Jesus, I Love Thee...

My Jesus, I love Thee, I know Thou art mine;
For Thee all the follies of sin I resign;
My gracious Redeemer, my Savior art Thou;
If ever I loved Thee, my Jesus, ’tis now.

I love Thee because Thou hast first loved me,
And purchased my pardon on Calvary’s tree;
I love Thee for wearing the thorns on Thy brow;
If ever I loved Thee, my Jesus, ’tis now.

I’ll love Thee in life, I will love Thee in death,
And praise Thee as long as Thou lendest me breath;
And say when the death dew lies cold on my brow,
If ever I loved Thee, my Jesus, ’tis now.

In mansions of glory and endless delight,
I’ll ever adore Thee in heaven so bright;
I’ll sing with the glittering crown on my brow,
If ever I loved Thee, my Jesus, ’tis now.

-William R. Featherston

This song was playing through my head over and over and over again as I watched The Passion of the Christ in church tonight. I wasn't sure I wanted to go to church tonight when I heard they would be showing The Passion. I watched it my senior year in high school right after it came out on DVD. I watched it alone after my family went to bed. I have never sobbed such wretched sobs as I did that night. Watching my Savior be treated like scum of the earth ripped my heart out.

I was worried that I would start sobbing uncontrollably in church. I tried to see if it was on Netflix Instant Play so I could watch it in the privacy of my own home. It wasn't. So, I headed over to church hoping I wouldn't make a big scene. Thankfully, God helped me to be calm. 

As I was watching it, my sin struck me. Jesus endured excruciating agony and unbelievable shame because of my selfish sin. He was perfect, blameless, yet he took on my guilt and my shame. All I could think was "My Jesus, I love thee..." over and over again. 

The scenes with the devil and the devil baby really disturb me. I don't really like Mel Gibson's portrayal of him (especially since a girl with shaved eyebrows played the part), but it did cause me to want to claw out the devil's eyes every time he showed up.

Jesus had to endure a great deal of unfairness. Right now, I'm dealing with a situation that seems unfair to me. Watching Christ suffer for me reminded me that he had to deal with far worse unfairness than I ever will. None of this life matters after Christ returns. I need to stay focused on him and on leading others to him rather than focused on my own petty problems.

I'm praying this movie helps to jump-start my spiritual revival. I've been lagging behind lately. I need to keep the power of the cross at the forefront of my heart and mind.

***Sidenote: I've lost a total of 4.4 pounds!