This past Sunday, Christians around the world celebrated the resurrection of Jesus.  Easter Sunday is the Super Bowl for the church. A lot of planning, energy, and resources go into making this day special for all who gather.

After worship, most of Easter Sunday afternoon is spent with family and friends sharing a meal, having several engaging conversations, and looking for a few hidden easter eggs. As a kid, I recall all the Easters at my grandma’s along with my cousins.  My grandma prepared a spread of ham, chicken, dressing, and potato salad.  Following dinner, the adults circled up in lawn chairs in the front yard while we kids ran crazy looking for plastic colored eggs hidden in bushes, under rocks, and one or two money eggs tucked into my uncle Sonny’s baseball cap under his chair.

But isn’t Easter Resurrection supposed to be more?

March madness is here!

Last year, the only madness we experienced in March had to do with Covid: hospital patient count was surging and restaurants, bars, movie theaters, and churches were shutting down. Caught in the crosshairs of the pandemic, college basketball’s annual tournament was canceled. 

I didn’t realize how much joy and excitement I would have this March to see college kids once again dart up and down the basketball court shooting three pointers, blocking layups, and swishing the winning basket in the closing seconds of the game. After playing a regular season that began back in November, these top teams now enter into a dash to the championship finish line.

While watching several of the games this past weekend, I realized how this sixty-eight team, single-elimination tournament offers us life lessons as it captures life’s ups and downs along with all the emotions.

Are you wearing green today? Have you pinched someone for not wearing green? Any luck looking for the leprechaun’s pot of gold at the end of the rainbow? How about your menu for today - does it include corn beef and potatoes? For dessert you can add a Key Lime Pie from Publix where they have tinted the whip cream green for this special day.

While most of us associate Saint Patrick’s Day with wearing green and having a parade or party, did you know that the reason for celebrating this man’s life was because of his missionary efforts?

“Quick, hide!” I said to my little brother as we heard mom pull up the driveway.  We had convinced her we were old enough at the ages of ten and seven to stay at home while she made a speedy trip to the Stop-N-Go up the street.  Once she left, we enjoyed our newfound freedom by running into the den and celebrating by jumping up and down on the sofa. With the pillows on the sofa bouncing in the air from our jumping, the natural progression moved to throwing the pillows at one another as our den became a fun-filled battleground. I don’t remember who threw the pillow that hit the lamp, but I can still see it crashing to the floor. And then, I heard the sound of mom’s car pulling into the carport.

I look back on that incident and realize how foolish we were in thinking that hiding was going to keep us from facing the consequences of our actions.  Did we really think that mom would never find us or the broken lamp on the den floor? I’m sure I was not thinking long term at that moment. 

Have you ever thought, “How can I see life one way and others see it completely different?”  Or even more specifically, “How can professing Christians have such opposing thoughts and viewpoints?”  Christians line up on opposite sides and across the spectrum when it comes to current issues such as Covid-19, the vaccine, climate change, gender equality, LGBTQ, abortion, and capital punishment. Have some brothers and sisters in the faith been swayed incorrectly by the media, politicians, or preachers?

Do you like your name?

Most of us did not get to choose our name.  It was given to us by our parents. Some of us have shifted from the formal name we were given at birth to a shorter version or to a nickname that we picked up in childhood or teenage years.

I only ever heard my full first and middle name, Michael James, when I was being scolded by my mom.  Other than my mom, my wife is about the only other person who calls me Michael anymore.

As usually happens with the name Michael, Mike became the shorter version used by friends.  For some people, their friends gave them a name that stuck, yet in no way resembled their given name.   For example, I have friends who go by nicknames such as “Scooter,” “Red,” and “Peewee.” With my first granddaughter being born this past December, I’ve taken the name “Sparky” to be called by her and future grandchildren.

Did you ever send your child to time out? I recall times when we told one of our children to go to their room or over to the corner of the family room and sit in time out. Time out was a way of pulling them out of the misbehavior they were presently exhibiting and giving them a few moments to think about their actions.

Have you ever wished you could send adults to time out?

Have there been occasions when you know you probably should find a chair and go sit in time out yourself?

This Wednesday, February 17, is Ash Wednesday on the Christian calendar. I like to look at Ash Wednesday and Lent as an opportunity for a self-imposed time out. I didn’t grow up observing this tradition, but over the years, this season before Easter celebration has become a meaningful time.

Valentine’s Day is drawing near.  Do you remember giving Valentine cards in elementary school?  Rather than giving one card to your chosen valentine, you were tasked with giving a Valentine card to every person in your class.  And to hold all those cards, we were all assigned to make a Valentine box. With an old shoe box provided by mom or dad, we taped the lid on, and then covered it with red or pink construction paper and heart shaped paper doilies.  The more artistic classmates showed off their creativity by adding colorful paper flowers and bow-tied ribbons.  For me, most of my “creative time” was spent wiping the Elmer’s glue off the table and attempting to peel it from my fingers. The most important feature of the box, however, was the cut slit in the center of the box providing an opening to receive all the cards.  

At home, we wrote the classmate’s name on the small white envelope and stuffed it with a few heart shaped conversation candies along with the card.  The candies were imprinted with an innocent saying such as “Be Mine,” “Kiss Me,” or “I Love You.”  The three to four inch colorful cards had artistic images with silly sayings to match the image. Do you remember any of these cards? 

Super Bowl Sunday is here again!  

Unlike last year’s Super Bowl where we naively thought our world would remain the same as a virus, labeled Covid-19, began to get a little attention, this Super Bowl will remind us what has transpired over these past twelve months. Rather than a packed stadium at game time and parties held in homes and sports bars throughout our nation, the Tampa Bay stadium will be limited to 22,000 fans, and parties will be reduced to individual families or couples.

In the past years, I’ve gathered with friends to enjoy snacks and laughter, and watch ridiculously expensive commercials with singing frogs or the iconic Clydesdale horses.  The first half of the game served as a prelude for the halftime show.  After the Janet Jackson mishap, most of us tuned in to the performance anticipating another wardrobe malfunction. By the end of the third quarter, most of us had seen enough football and heard more than enough commentating.  Unless the game was a nail biter, we usually called it a night and decided we could wait until morning to see the final score.

Do you wake up some mornings feeling like the Tin Man?  Your alarm clock tells you it’s time to hop out of the bed and start your day, but your body doesn’t want to move. The older I get, the more experiences I have where my body is not as eager to go as my mind.  My back and legs cry out for a shot of oil to loosen the muscles and ease the joints.  Fortunately, a morning routine of stretching and exercising helps me get on with my day.

While most of the time we associate stiffness to our bodies, this same descriptor can highlight how we are emotionally or spiritually.  We’ve all known people that come across as rigid or inflexible. We usually say these people are “set in their ways.”  They are unwilling to hear new ideas or try new experiences.  Similarly, the Bible speaks of people having a hardened heart or a stiff neck. These people are noted for being so obstinate that they are not open to God working in their lives.  

I decided this morning that if I’m determined to physically stretch and exercise to help my body be more flexible, I should also consider stretching my heart and mind each day to be receptive to God. Here’s a few spiritual exercises that may help us live with more zest throughout the day.