At the Cross

The other day I was reading one of my school books and read something that I just found profound. Anyone that knows me knows that I enjoy learning about the background history of the biblical times. They often give a lot of insight, debt and context to the message that is being told. This was just that sort of information. On Thursday at the church I had these thought bouncing back and forth in my head but didn’t share them, so here it is.

Back in Jesus’ day there was a word that was so nasty, so ugly, and so vile, that not only would you avoid using it in polite conversation but you would avoid it nearly at all to the point that people had terms to soften the word. This word would cause people to become nauseous just hearing it. This word was a constant reminder to the Jewish people that they were not free, but that they had been subjugated to the Romans. This word was a form of the worst torture. The word CROSS. Today we look at it far more different, at any given church you can usually see several; prisoners wear them as jewelry or as tattoos. To soften the blow they would say "he was lifted up” or “he stretched out his hands.” when talking about the cross and crucifixion.

The author was using this while talking about selflessness in Philippians 2:8 “…and becoming obedient to the point of death, even the death of the cross, he didn’t soften it with the typical “stretched out his arms” or “will be lifted up” in this instance, he gave the raw unfiltered word CROSS.

It had been just a few days prior that Matthew 16:24 caught my attention, it always does to some extent while reading though Matthew but for some reason it struck that this call to carry the unmentionable word CROSS happens right after Jesus’ foretelling of his death and resurrection but that this foretelling doesn’t mention the CROSS. The Amplified Bible version reads like this"

Matt. 16:24 
"Then Jesus said to His disciples, If anyone desires to be My disciple, let him deny himself [disregard, lose sight of, and forget himself and his own interests] and take up his cross and follow Me [cleave steadfastly to Me, conform wholly to My example in living and, if need be, in dying, also]."

 Having read this bit about the repulsiveness of the cross I went back and reread this verse, it gave new depth and that is why I share this now, when you think of or look at the cross remember the ugliness of it, also remember that the King of all wasn’t above the lowest death on it and it is only for that reason that we see beauty in this inhumane article of torture and death.

                                                                                                                -Mark

Happy New Year

December was a whirlwind!  The holidays are always busy, but this year was outright crazy.

You see what had happened was:

Mark finished yet another semester.  Five months older and wiser with scores of new information to tuck into his pockets for later.  Who am I kidding, he managed to not have a nervous breakdown over Philosophy and finally finished his last English class.  There was much rejoycing.
In his spare time, he managed to get some time in the saddle.  He's looking forward to several big organized rides in 2014.  More on that as they come around.

I (Kim) also managed to complete her first semester back (again) with a 3.25 GPA.  I am working as a dispatcher/ customer service representative at a local HVAC repair company.  I love the job!!  Sometimes it's a bit like herding cats, but I really like the guys.  Everyone in the office is a believer so there is an air of grace there unlike any other job I've ever had.
Back in October I had back surgery to correct some herniated discs.  Thankfully the surgery was a complete success and I got out of the hospital bed that evening pain free!  I am still doing well, and have have had no other issues with my back.

The second week of December Camber went to her first overnight camp.  The fifth graders at her school traveled a few hours north and stayed at an environmental science camp for four days.   She had a blast!!  We missed her greatly and when she returned we informed her that she was never allowed to leave ever ever again!
She also got the incredible opportunity to dance during halftime at a Houston Rockets game with her dance crew The Noize.  (You can watch it here.) Every Saturday the sweet people from Grace Community Church gather and teach a wild group of kids what worship looks like.  They dance, they sing, they study scripture, and they pray.  She LOVES it!

December is a special month for Cooper.  This year he turned 9.  Because this was an off year for birthdays we celebrated at a local Mexican Restaurant.  He is now a proud owner of a sonic screwdriver (his favorite gift)!

Christmas started with a candlelight service with our church family at OneLife.  Thankfully no one caught anyone else on fire!




Mema provided the kids with the opportunity for broken limbs in the form of a trampoline.  The first couple of days they had it we could barely get them off of it.  Now that it's about 30 degrees outside they have second thoughts about the amount of time they spend away from the fire.



While Christmas is traditionally spent lounging and eating, and eating and lounging this year was a little different.  For the first time the ENTIRE family was in the same zip code.  It was necessary that we take a family photo.

Because I think pictures should tell a story we headed down to the Kemah Boardwalk to snap some memories from this season in our lives.






Just three short days after Christmas, on December 28, 2013, we added a new member to our family.  Jonathan married Amanda.
 

We traveled to the booming metropolis of Beeville, Texas to celebrate with them.
Camber and Cooper were part of the wedding party, although Coop wasn't super thrilled about it.

 
I made the cakes and handled the dessert bar while my best friend, Sam, did the catering.  The food was amazing, and the cakes looked pretty good too, if I do say so myself!


We laughed, we cried, we danced the night away.  And at the end of the day I had a sister and my brother had a wife!



We are WICKED excited to see all that God is going to do in 2014.