Superbowl Sunday
A further attestation to my thrilling life...
My wife had to work Saturday night, so it fell to me to have the children ready for church. This was not as difficult as many fathers suppose, leading me to question what the rationale is for so many men being so hands-off with their own offspring. Our church has two services, and as part of the praise and worship ministry (the Voices of Life choir), I have to be present at both services, plus show up even earlier than that to pray and do some last minute preparation. The usual routine is to leave while everyone is still asleep, and my wife wakes up later and joins me at the second service. But with the seismic shifts our household is going through, this routine may not return for a while. Thankfully my kids are hardy and enthusiastic, they don't mind spending a little more time at church than normal, as long as they aren't hungry! So I was up late Sat. night studying while the kids were asleep, and knocked off around 3:30AM. I got up at 6:15 and got them up and cleaned and dressed and fed. My voice is not 100% due to my congestion, but I am committed to giving this my best effort. We sing through the first service some really nice songs. One song, Better is One Day, often makes me cry (how's THAT for being in touch with your feminine side). The chorus goes:
Better is one day in your courts
Better is one day in your house
Better is one day in your courts
Than thousands elsewhere.
I don't know what it is about that song. It conjures up a concept of a relationship so intimate that relative immortality is something worthy of sacrificing just for a limited amount of time with God. To me, that is truly profound. As I have sought to deepen my understanding of myself and my purpose, and walk closer with God, being in His presence is something I greatly desire now. The closest secular parallel that comes to mind is from the Lord of the Rings, where Arwen, the Elf princess chooses to give up immortality because the man she loves is a Human. Elves, for those not in the know, live forever unless killed in battle. She knows Aragorn will grow old and die, but she loves him so much, she wants to grow old and die with him. If that's not awesome, I don't know what is.
Anyway, first service comes and goes, Pastor preaches a good sermon. He is wearing a Georgia Bulldogs jersey, because this is a casual Sunday, and most people are wearing sports jerseys. I don't really have the disposable capital to go out and buy an Eagles jersey, so I opt to wear something representing my Alma Mater, the University of Illinois. Cory, another tenor, is wearing a Perdue shirt. This causes some friendly jabs to be thrown. It's all good. My grandmother once worked at Perdue as a sorority house mother. Perdue is okay in my book, even if it is in Indiana. You know why? Because when I was there, I found a Garcia's Pizza near the campus. Garcia's is the finest pizza on the nine planets. I thought only U of I had it, but seeing that Perdue had it too, how bad could they be??? So we get through the service, and as we lead the praise and worship in the second service, the 11am, a strange thing happens. I am overcome with emotion while singing Ignite My Fire, Lord -to the point where my voice breaks and tears are streaming down my face. I was momentarily embarrassed -the whole church could see me. It is one thing to have an experience when you are in the pew, when everyone is doing their own thing and most likely not paying you any mind; this however, was something altogether different. I was on the stage and vulnerable for all to see. I didn't know what to make of it. Eventually, I realized that no one else mattered, and I just basked in God's love and mercy. He's been pretty good to an old dog like me. I wasted many years pursuing my own agenda, and I think that the words to Ignite My Fire, Lord just illuminated how much of a change I have gone through. I am living for him now!!! That is news good enough to bring tears to this cynical bastard's eyes. If anyone asked me what that was about, I'd tell them it was between me and God, but nobody asked. I just dwelt in that moment, and experienced something very special. I am not prone to religious ecstasy, thus my initial reaction. I was like, "What the heck is this? Why are you crying?" My mind didn't know what my spirit was up to. Truly amazing.
After the praise portion ended, I gathered my children and left. I grabbed some pizza some Little Caesar's, and fed them when we got home. My wife has home, asleep, and we all followed suit. We got home by about 1, and by 2, everyone was napping. I woke up at 4:30 and started to study for Humanities. I'll write about the Superbowl later.
My wife had to work Saturday night, so it fell to me to have the children ready for church. This was not as difficult as many fathers suppose, leading me to question what the rationale is for so many men being so hands-off with their own offspring. Our church has two services, and as part of the praise and worship ministry (the Voices of Life choir), I have to be present at both services, plus show up even earlier than that to pray and do some last minute preparation. The usual routine is to leave while everyone is still asleep, and my wife wakes up later and joins me at the second service. But with the seismic shifts our household is going through, this routine may not return for a while. Thankfully my kids are hardy and enthusiastic, they don't mind spending a little more time at church than normal, as long as they aren't hungry! So I was up late Sat. night studying while the kids were asleep, and knocked off around 3:30AM. I got up at 6:15 and got them up and cleaned and dressed and fed. My voice is not 100% due to my congestion, but I am committed to giving this my best effort. We sing through the first service some really nice songs. One song, Better is One Day, often makes me cry (how's THAT for being in touch with your feminine side). The chorus goes:
Better is one day in your courts
Better is one day in your house
Better is one day in your courts
Than thousands elsewhere.
I don't know what it is about that song. It conjures up a concept of a relationship so intimate that relative immortality is something worthy of sacrificing just for a limited amount of time with God. To me, that is truly profound. As I have sought to deepen my understanding of myself and my purpose, and walk closer with God, being in His presence is something I greatly desire now. The closest secular parallel that comes to mind is from the Lord of the Rings, where Arwen, the Elf princess chooses to give up immortality because the man she loves is a Human. Elves, for those not in the know, live forever unless killed in battle. She knows Aragorn will grow old and die, but she loves him so much, she wants to grow old and die with him. If that's not awesome, I don't know what is.
Anyway, first service comes and goes, Pastor preaches a good sermon. He is wearing a Georgia Bulldogs jersey, because this is a casual Sunday, and most people are wearing sports jerseys. I don't really have the disposable capital to go out and buy an Eagles jersey, so I opt to wear something representing my Alma Mater, the University of Illinois. Cory, another tenor, is wearing a Perdue shirt. This causes some friendly jabs to be thrown. It's all good. My grandmother once worked at Perdue as a sorority house mother. Perdue is okay in my book, even if it is in Indiana. You know why? Because when I was there, I found a Garcia's Pizza near the campus. Garcia's is the finest pizza on the nine planets. I thought only U of I had it, but seeing that Perdue had it too, how bad could they be??? So we get through the service, and as we lead the praise and worship in the second service, the 11am, a strange thing happens. I am overcome with emotion while singing Ignite My Fire, Lord -to the point where my voice breaks and tears are streaming down my face. I was momentarily embarrassed -the whole church could see me. It is one thing to have an experience when you are in the pew, when everyone is doing their own thing and most likely not paying you any mind; this however, was something altogether different. I was on the stage and vulnerable for all to see. I didn't know what to make of it. Eventually, I realized that no one else mattered, and I just basked in God's love and mercy. He's been pretty good to an old dog like me. I wasted many years pursuing my own agenda, and I think that the words to Ignite My Fire, Lord just illuminated how much of a change I have gone through. I am living for him now!!! That is news good enough to bring tears to this cynical bastard's eyes. If anyone asked me what that was about, I'd tell them it was between me and God, but nobody asked. I just dwelt in that moment, and experienced something very special. I am not prone to religious ecstasy, thus my initial reaction. I was like, "What the heck is this? Why are you crying?" My mind didn't know what my spirit was up to. Truly amazing.
After the praise portion ended, I gathered my children and left. I grabbed some pizza some Little Caesar's, and fed them when we got home. My wife has home, asleep, and we all followed suit. We got home by about 1, and by 2, everyone was napping. I woke up at 4:30 and started to study for Humanities. I'll write about the Superbowl later.
posted by Jahan at 12:18 AM
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