A Really Good Day

"For the wages of sin is death but the gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord" (Romans 6:23).

Just returned from Easter Weekend and "Son"rise service at Melton Rock in Eustace, Texas. Melton Rock is a giant rock formation that looks like Golgotha or Calvary Hill (same joint where Christ was crucified but it has different names depending on denomination/language). This is my second year at Melton Rock for Easter and I have to say it is soul inspiring. I tried to find some pictures online to share the look of the place but I cannot describe how much it makes me think of Golgotha where Christ was crucified.

This joint has a strange mix of sand, grass, and trees that give a wilderness look strait out of the 10 Commandments. When the wind blows you just feel the presence of the Lord. I actually felt like there were angels present on the rock, and that they were rejoicing in our celebration of our Lord Jesus Christ's Resurrection. It reminded me of the angels who spoke to Mary after the resurrection when the disciples when looking for Jesus because their first instinct at coming into contact with something divine was to bow before them. As the Gospel of Luke states, "Now upon the first day of the week, very early in the morning, they came unto the sepulchre, bringing the spices which they had prepared, and certain others with them. And they found the stone rolled away from the sepulchre. And they entered in, and found not the body of the Lord Jesus. And it came to pass, as they were much perplexed there about, behold, two men stood by them in shining garments: And as they were afraid, and bowed down their faces to the earth, they said unto them, Why seek ye the living among the dead? He is not here, but is risen" (Luke 24:1-7). To be honest if I were one of those three ladies who had come to search for Jesus and saw two angels I would have probably hit the deck also. I always love that line, "Why seek ye the living among the dead? He is not here but is risen." It never fails to give me the chills. I felt that way today. Like I need to hit the deck and bow before God and renounce my sins. I really believe that Jesus died for my sins and I always feel that I am poorly repaying the great deed he has done for me.

I also spent Saturday watching "The Ten Commandments" and grading papers. I love that movie. I used to watch in every Easter with my grandmother. My favorite part is where Moses casts down his staff and it turns into a snake, and pharaoh mocks it as a parlor trick, and has his magicians turn their staffs into snakes. Pretty cool until Moses' snake eats the other three snakes. As my man Luke says, "For with God nothing shall be impossible" (1.37). I always feel bad for pharaoh in that movie because he is always on the brink of doing the right thing and Nefrititi always mocks and scorns him and he hardens his heart. Things never go well for people who mock and refuse the power of the Lord.

The strange thing is that my weekend of Jesi-palooza has made me realize one thing: I need to find a new church. I like celebrating and rejoicing the Lord's work and I miss that sense of faith I felt all weekend. It is easy to become removed from the Lord's presence today and take on an "out of sight out of mind" mentality that makes you forget to work toward salvation. You get so used to immersing yourself in sin that the Lord seems to fade from your life, and I think when you immerse yourself in the Lord he is first and foremost in your life, and it is very hard to make him first and foremost without getting together with others to rejoice and celebrate the sacrifice Jesus made for us that day on Golgotha. I think God is hope, and without him in my life it feels very empty, and without a sense of meaning or purpose. It has been said that anyplace out of the sight of God is Hell, and I think I would concur with that statement. It is times like this weekend that I realize how far I fall from the sight of the Lord sometimes.

I leave you with this today from Romans, "That if thou shalt confess with thy mouth the Lord Jesus, and shalt believe in thine heart that God hath raised him from the dead, thou shalt be saved. For with the heart man believeth unto righteousness; and with the mouth confession is made unto salvation. For the scripture saith, Whosoever believeth on him shall not be ashamed. For there is no difference between the Jew and the Greek: for the same Lord over all is rich unto all that call upon him. For whosoever shall call upon the name of the Lord shall be saved" (10.9-13). Amen.