Random/Exciting Event of the Day

Well I’ve got my first game of the spring season today, I’m really excited this year because I’ve worked so hard on my swing, I’m hoping to get a good amount of extra-base hits. I am also making my first appearance behind the plate since October which will be exciting. I’ll add my stats for tonight later, probably around eight o’clock.

It's late but here is a summary: I went 0 for 2, I had three at-bats, I walked in the first, stole a base, got to third on a ground ball and scored a run. In my second at-bat I popped up and in my third I grounded out to short. I made no errors in my first game as a shortstop.

Not Army Strong, God Strong

I was reading my Bible the other day, the passage I was reading was 2 Chronicles 32. There was one verse in particular that stood out to me in was 2 Chronicles 32: 7-8, well okay two verses. At the time the king of Assyria, Sennacherib is about to invade Judah, Israel (the northern part) was already invaded by Assyria so you can imagine how stressful this was. But here is what Hezekiah; the king of Judah said to his army “Be strong and courageous. Do not be afraid or discouraged because of the king of Assyria and the vast army with him for there is a greater power with us than with him. With him is only the arm of flesh, but with us is the Lord our God…” Wow, in the most stressful time, in the scariest situation Hezekiah knew that God was with him and that he would be protected. Israel fell to the Assyrian army, Judah was greatly outnumbered but Hezekiah trusted in God and guess what, he won. Chances are we won’t be facing the Assyrian army on a daily basis but there are days when life gets hard, whether it is financial, physical, or spiritual trouble will come our way but we must remember that God is with us and that He is bigger than any roadblock in our life.

GO RED SOX

That game last night was amazing, Lester was on fire as usual and the offense kicked in right when needed. I was sitting in the living room with my cousins remarking in the 7th inning how the Sox were going to lose and my uncle said “Ya never know,” I guess he was right and I feel bad because when he left Jason Bay got a two run homer off of a Mariano cutter, then Youk’s home run over the green monster (not into, over) to end the game 5-4. Also even though Ortiz was hitless, in his final at bat versus Mariano he really worked him, who knows the Sox might not have won if Rivera wasn’t overworked. Well now the Sox are 10-6, hopefully Beckett can pitch a good game today and hopefully there will be a lot of run support.

Random Event of the Day

Well, time for the random/funny event of the day (because this is supposed to be a random blog). So here’s what happened, I was out to lunch with my family in Cape Cod; we were going to go to the “original seafood company” but instead we went to the “Chatham Squire” (which was a story in itself). Anyway when we were finished I went outside to wait for my family there was a bench by the restaurant so I sat down. I was sitting looking around thinking absentmindedly how it was too cold to wear shorts when some kid dressed in a skater outfit and his girlfriend walked by. They were looking at me and whispering as they walked past me and then as they were about a stone’s throw away the kid comes back. Now I was just sitting there and I saw him talking to his girlfriend and he started walking toward me, I was getting nervous and I thought “Oh no, here’s trouble” cause he kind of looked like a punk, but guess what happens instead. The kid comes up to me and says “Um, excuse me… can you get me a pack of cigarettes?” I was shocked so I just said “Um…no sorry.” Imagine that, this kid is probably 17 or something and he is coming to me, and the funny thing is he is clearly older than me! I won’t say my age but I can say that I’m pretty sure I can’t legally buy, well anything. Anyway I got a good laugh out of that, I don’t know what it is I guess I look old.

Pictures of Last Night's Sox Game 7-3

Post Game Report

Well the Sox have really turned things around, it seems that from game one of the series to game four they returned to form. Lester bounced back and pitched amazingly, 7 shutout innings. Masterson came through when we needed him, and the offense flooded in yesterday. 12-1 and only 1 of 12 runs was a homerun the rest was from the whole lineup contributing. Ortiz was great, he wasn’t fooled on pitches and he used the opposite field, hopefully he can continue to do so. Ellsbury was amazing yesterday the first two hits were kind of cheap but the last single he got was great and as Jerry and Don said when Ellsbury gets on base it makes a huge difference in the rest of the offense. It really looks like the Sox are turning around; hopefully they can get ahead of the Yankees and secure a spot in second.

We Have Help

I stand corrected; I wrote a post a few days ago about Easter and about sacrifices. A commenter wrote that the sacrifices we are faced with are training for the future and that God won’t allow what we can’t handle. Well they are right about that and that’s why I am going to write about sacrifices. Sin is unfortunately a very common thing in our lives and the worst past about that is that is separates us from God. In order to grow closer to God we must sacrifice this part of our lives, we must do our best to give up the sin that weighs us down. This can be extremely hard, it is a very great challenge to give up anything, but that is why the Bible says this “No temptation has seized you except what is common to man. And God is faithful; He will not let you be tempted beyond what you can bear. But when you are tempted, He will also provide a way out so that you can stand up under it.” 1 Corinthians 10:13. I really like that verse, I like it because it is a promise from God. Many people get this idea that God is waiting around to catch us when we screw up, but this goes directly against us it says that God is going around to help us not screw up. Giving up a sinful part of our lives can be a great struggle it can even seem like torture at some point but we must remember that we are not alone in our struggle and that we always have God to back us up. Will we fail? Yes but we must try not to and we will always have help and God will always forgive us.

AHHHHHH!

In my church last Sunday we talked about fear; there can be a lot on the world to be afraid of; I for example am scared of spiders, the dark, and being alone. Everyone is afraid of something, sometimes we even laugh at others for their fears but the point is at one time or another we all get scared. The Bible says something different, Psalm 23 says “The Lord is my shepherd, I shall not be in want. He makes me lie down in green pastures, he leads me beside quiet waters He restores my soul. He guides me in the paths of righteousness for His name’s sake. Even though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil for You are with me, Your rod and Your staff comfort me” Psalm 23: 1-4. What a beautiful message from God, yes there are many things in the world that can scare us but one thing we must understand is that this is God’s world, and that we are in God’s hands and that there is nothing to be truly afraid of. Does this mean that we won’t get scared? Of course not, but when we do we can remind ourselves that God is with us and will comfort us in our time of need, Psalm 121: 7 says “The Lord will keep you from all harm - He will watch over your life.” Even Jesus was scared, but in the Garden before His death He called upon God for strength and help. God loves us very much and He will always be with us to give us strength and comfort us in our time of need.

Baseball Report

That sure was an amazing game last night, probably the best hitting so far this year. The Sox were down 7-0 in the 2nd inning, and they came back to win 10-8. The biggest problem with the Sox so far has been the starting pitching, Lester and Matsuzaka have both underperformed all we can do is hope they snap out of it and pitch like they did last year. Wakefield has done extremely well, both of his starts have minimized runs and gone farther than expected into the game, Beckett has played pretty much as expected. The Offense is okay there are too many hitters batting .200, but the real weak links are Ellsbury, Ortiz, and Lowrie, hopefully as the season goes on these players will improve. There are also some very strong hitters, for example Drew, Bay, and Youkilis have been very good at the plate and even Varitek has been a strong hitter when needed. Josh Beckett makes his third start today hopefully it will be a good and long one considering Masterson cannot pitch because he is filling in for Matsuzaka. So far the AL standings look like they have flipped in the East the Jays and Orioles are in first, in the Central the Royals are in first, and in the West the Mariners whom my dad called “the worst team in baseball” last year are now the best. All I can say is that this is going to be a very weird and interesting season.

The Ultimate Sacrifice

I am sorry for the very late post, but with the combination of baseball and schoolwork I have had no free time, anyway here is my post about Easter. Easter is such an amazing day; it is the day that everything that went wrong suddenly went right. Ever since Adam and Eve picked the fruit the world was set off balance, a void was created between man and God. It was as if a vast crevice was between God and the world and the Bible from then on is God’s story of how He built a bridge over the gap. Before Jesus people were bound to the law, if you broke any rule you had to pay for it in sacrifice. It was all about legalism, God set down the requirements that were impossible to keep and He knew that, that’s why He sent His Son down to earth. When Jesus died He fulfilled the law (remember He said He didn’t come to abolish it) in the book of Leviticus the people of Israel are told that they need to atone for their sins through regular sacrifice, primarily lambs. Jesus was that lamb, He was born without sin and on that cross he bore our sins on His shoulders. God paid the ultimate sacrifice just to get closer to us, he gave up His only Son so that we, think sinners like us, could go to Heaven and spend eternity with Him! Because of that sacrifice Jesus made we have a clean slate, the separation from God is gone and we can fully enjoy a relationship with Him. But in order to fully enjoy the relationship offered to us we must take up our own crosses and follow God and live by His word. I know, it sounds like one of those “but there is a catch” things, but think of it this way, God paid the ultimate sacrifice by giving up His Son, Jesus suffered through the most horrible death ever devised by the Romans, the least we can do is make the small sacrifices in our lives so that we may grow closer to God. Of course we will still sin, but that is why Jesus came, so that we may be forgiven when we do.

Go Angels

This is the only time I’ll ever say this but I am happy that the Red Sox lost last night. After what happened to Nick Adenhart I think the Angels really needed the win. It’s just horrible what happened, Nick had the best night of his career, his parents were there to see him and then it all ended because of someone’s irresponsibility. Well the Angels won so that’s good for them but as much as I like to see them get a win for the Adenhart family I really don’t like to see the Red Sox lose; Brad Penny has his first start in 2009 4:00 this afternoon so let’s see how his arm is, Go Sox, and Go Adenhart!

Moons and Mirrors

I was about to go to bed last night and I couldn’t help but notice the bright full moon shinning through my window. My bedroom windows face the east, so I always get a front row view of the moon and rising sun. But it made me think about our life in Christ. I wrote a post about Good Friday and how Jesus brought us new life but that raises the question what do we do with our new life? As I lay in bed the bright moon’s light flooded my dark room, it was so bright I could have sat up and read a book (as much fun as this sounds it’s not, I couldn’t get to sleep!) but this made me think. The moon doesn’t shine its light on its own, the sun reflects light off of it (think giant mirror). I know it’s a weird analogy but it is similar to our life in Christ. When we truly know that God loves us and take the steps to live it out that love of God reflects off of us like the moon. Ephesians 4:8 says “live as children of light” and Jesus tells us to “let our light shine before men” Matthew 5:16. In the darkness of the world we must take the love and grace God showed us and shine it, reflect it, we must live our faith out so much that we light our surroundings up. Maybe you’re the friendly coworker who helps out the new guy or perhaps you’re the veteran on the team who gives some pointers to the young rookie. I say this, I say next week we take the grace Jesus showed us through His death and resurrection and reflect it to those around us.

The Good thing about Good Friday

Today is Good Friday the day Jesus died and that also means that this Sunday is Easter Sunday the day He rose from the dead. If I were to write everything I had to say about Good Friday and Easter it would be enough to fill a book. There is a ton of stuff to write about, but because I need to keep my posts to a moderate length I’ll have to settle for one subject at a time. Being caught in the middle of the triumphant Palm Sunday and Easter I feel that Good Friday is somewhat overlooked; there are no Palm leaves, joyous sermons and hymns yet it is one of the key events in the Gospel, it is what Jesus has been preparing for and dreading for His whole life. The devil tempted Jesus twice, once in the desert and the second time was before His arrest, Jesus could have backed out of the whole thing throughout the beating, humiliation and torture He could have called down legions of Angels from Heaven to rescue Him. Jesus could have been the King that He was but He didn’t, instead He chose to fight the pain for us. Crucifixion was a rare and extremely painful punishment; it was reserved for the worst murderers, thieves, and political prisoners, it was light-years away from what Jesus deserved and even sentenced to (it was originally to be whipped), but He knew that it had to happen. When Jesus died it wasn’t the end of the story the curtain in the temple separating God from man tore in half a bridge was built over the chasm the devil created. Ever since Adam and Eve’s sin a wall was built between man and God and that day when Jesus died on the cross, when He cried out that it was finished, when His body was laid in the tomb that sin was erased and the wall was knocked down. The devil thought he had won, and in time God showed him how badly he lost. Good Friday has been a day of sadness, and it is it was the day our Lord and savior made the greatest sacrifice in history but today I ask you this, aside from the mourning and fasting and usual prayer make today overall a day of thanks and appreciation for the sacrifice God made and the gift of life He offers freely.

BANG!

The Red Sox were off to a bang yesterday, Josh Beckett was more than good he was amazing. Beckett fired 7 innings gaining 10 strikeouts and giving up 1 run. Shields on the other hand lasted 6 innings gave up 5 runs and struck out 2. All batters outside of Jacoby were great, Pedroia and Varitek started out the season with homeruns and Drew, Lowell, and Youk doubled. The Sox are tied at second with the Oriels and Blue Jays are in first while the Yankees and Rays lag behind. Hopefully the Red Sox can continue their amazing performance today as Lester takes the mound. The only weak link in their hitting is Jacoby, my opinion (and I may be wrong) is that they should have gotten rid of Jacoby and kept Coco, Coco is equal in defense, has a stronger arm, and has a much better bat. Other than that the Sox played very well yesterday and this looks like an interesting season, GO SOX.

April 6

Opening day is this Monday 2:05 pm versus the Rays, Becket vs. Shields, again. The Sox have been strong so far in the spring so this will be an exciting series. I just wonder how the Yankees will turn out with all the new players. Hopefully the Sox can make it to the playoffs and win another championship!

The true King

Well today is Palm Sunday which means this Friday is Good Friday and next Sunday is Easter. I always liked Palm Sunday, I remember when I was younger that I would get a bunch of Palm leaves to wave around and how my dad would make me crosses out of them. Sometimes we can walk away like that, we get our palm leaves listen to a sermon about how Jesus came to Jerusalem and leave, but as I sat in the pew and listened I had a thought. When I stop to think about what happened some odd 2000 years ago it is truly mind blowing, the excitement must have resembled the parade in Boston after the Sox won the World Series. King David was Israel’s second king after him Israel slowly went downhill. There was a civil war that split the north and south, idol worship, and eventually the Armenians and Babylonians came in and took over. Now shift the focus about 500 years, you’re walking down the road and suddenly you hear a loud cheering, and then a man on a donkey turns the corner and you see people waving palm fronds and setting down their coats praising him “Hosanna to the Son of David”. Jesus came to establish God’s kingdom, He fulfilled the promise God made to David, Herod may think he is king, the Romans may think they are in charge but Jesus came to defy that. In the sermon today the pastor commented that this entry signified peace; Jesus didn’t come to condemn His people but to save them, He is the true King. It’s like the post I wrote earlier Jesus is our Savior but also our Lord, when the Jews thought of the Messiah they imagined a fierce warrior that would overthrow the Romans but that is not the Savior God had in mind, Jesus is the King but not the political giant people thought of but King of our hearts. God sent His son on the cross to draw us near to Him, so that we may enjoy a relationship with Him and a life with Him it’s up to us to follow.

Praise the Lord

My dad and I were taking the other day about something he heard in his men’s Bible study. One of the group members brought up a point about spirituality among Christians. Before I became I Christian, like many people I was told that if I accepted Jesus as my Lord and savior I would be saved and could go to Heaven. It’s easy to accept Jesus as a savior, whenever we sin we can go to Him and start over that’s a relatively easy message to convey. But when does Jesus become Lord? A lord is a boss, king, a guy in charge; you can fill in any term you prefer. Seriously though it’s easy to call Jesus a savior but what does Lord mean? Jesus becomes Lord when we wake up in the morning and decided to live for Him, when Jesus become Lord He is like the boss of our lives He is the basis for our decisions. Which choice would someone with the Lord Jesus pick? You’re at a store and the cashier mistakenly gives you a $10 bill instead of a $5, 1) tell the cashier that they made a mistake, 2) keep it, serves em’ right for messing up. Jesus becomes Lord and Savior when it is no longer enough to just believe, when we feel compelled to go out into the world and live out our faith. I’ve been duped for quite a while into thinking I could get by with the Savior Jesus, the one that doesn’t intrude into my sinful lifestyle but unfortunately it doesn’t work that way. It’s like the post I wrote “Lose my Life?!” following Jesus is not free, there is a price tag when we take the step from believing to following but like I also said the cost is great but the reward is greater.