On Sunday, though, Michele also found out that one of her best friends’ father unexpectedly passed away in an accident. Over the weekend we spent time mourning and grieving along with Jett during her time of loss.

These two events sharply contrasted each other because of their immediate timing with relative to one another. However, a lot has been going on around us lately that are in addition to this weekend. We have had friends have babies, close friends of the family family losing their husbands, friends getting new jobs after a bout with unemployment, Mom getting sick and then getting better, and also other friends around us dealing with illnesses and sickness.

As I was thinking of this weekend, this Bible verse kept popping into my head. I figure Solomon probably meant that these times/seasons are spread out during our lives. Apparently, though this weekend brought a little of two seasons back-to-back.

For everything there is a season,

a time for every activity under heaven. A time to be born and a time to die.

A time to plant and a time to harvest. A time to kill and a time to heal.

A time to tear down and a time to build up. A time to cry and a time to laugh.

A time to grieve and a time to dance. A time to scatter stones and a time to gather stones.

A time to embrace and a time to turn away. A time to search and a time to quit searching.

A time to keep and a time to throw away. A time to tear and a time to mend.

A time to be quiet and a time to speak. A time to love and a time to hate.

A time for war and a time for peace. (Ecclesiastes 3:1-8 NLT)

Focusing on the awesome part of our weekend, congratulations, Scott and Amy!! Thank you for letting us share in your joy, laughter, dancing, and love. May you always lean on one another and serve each other faithfully for the rest of your lives.

We took a family trip to my station and I showed Ashe around the truck. Here are some pictures along with what we do.

Firefighting, of course. No talk about our job would be complete without talking about the most exciting part of our job.

Hazardous materials calls. I showed Ashe a four-gas meter and showed him how we monitor the air to see if anything bad is around us.

Inclement weather responses. We talked about how we have to go out in all types of weather and assist people who are in danger. Sometimes we have to even cut trees and other debris that is in the road or in the way of helping someone.

Water rescues.

Community service. Ashe is showing Becs a fire safety coloring book.

Medical calls. By far, these are the bulk of our call volume. I let him pretend he was helping Becs when she was injured.

These are some fun photos of Becs and Ashe around the fire truck.

Today, we celebrate the victory and truth of Jesus’ resurrection. May these verses resonate deeply within you as they are within me. For, as Paul says below, without the resurrection from the dead this whole faith thing is useless.

The resurrection did happen, though! As the eyewitnesses testified (below and elsewhere), Jesus rose from the dead as was predicted in the Scriptures and what a glorious day that was.

The Faithful Women Are the First Witnesses of the Resurrection
But very early on Sunday morning the women went to the tomb, taking the spices they had prepared. They found that the stone had been rolled away from the entrance. So they went in, but they didn’t find the body of the Lord Jesus. As they stood there puzzled, two men suddenly appeared to them, clothed in dazzling robes. The women were terrified and bowed with their faces to the ground. Then the men asked, “Why are you looking among the dead for someone who is alive? He isn’t here! He is risen from the dead! Remember what he told you back in Galilee, that the Son of Man must be betrayed into the hands of sinful men and be crucified, and that he would rise again on the third day.” (Luke 24:1-7 NLT)

The Message Passed Down
And he said, “Yes, it was written long ago that the Messiah would suffer and die and rise from the dead on the third day. It was also written that this message would be proclaimed in the authority of his name to all the nations, beginning in Jerusalem: ‘There is forgiveness of sins for all who repent.’ You are witnesses of all these things. (Luke 24:46-48 NLT)

Why the Gospels (Eyewitness Accounts) Were Written
The disciples saw Jesus do many other miraculous signs in addition to the ones recorded in this book. But these are written so that you may continue to believe that Jesus is the Messiah, the Son of God, and that by believing in him you will have life by the power of his name. (John 20:30, 31 NLT)

Why Is the Resurrection So Important
And if Christ has not been raised, then all our preaching is useless, and your faith is useless. And we apostles would all be lying about God—for we have said that God raised Christ from the grave. But that can’t be true if there is no resurrection of the dead. And if there is no resurrection of the dead, then Christ has not been raised. And if Christ has not been raised, then your faith is useless and you are still guilty of your sins. In that case, all who have died believing in Christ are lost! (1 Corinthians 15:14-18 NLT)

Apparently, though, that thinking was completely understating the full impact of eating red meat. I always thought every person dies, but according to this news headline on Yahoo! “eating read meat increases chances of death.” So, if I have never eaten red meat before in my life can I remain immortal? Sweet!

Unfortunately, it is too late for me. I have already had plenty of bacon, hamburgers, and steak. As a result, I guess I have a good chance of dying someday. At least I enjoyed all of those yummy red-meat treats along the way – in moderation of course!

Now that we have solved this whole immortality thing, I think it is time to discover how to make people superheroes. I call dibs on Batman.

He’s been shopping, painting, stamping, cutting, tracing, and writing. When he initially talked about trying to raise money I am not sure he realized how much work would be behind preparing all of the items. Despite that, I am proud of Ashe as he has plugged away at each task and has done a good job.

Ashe already has five orders and has a few more weeks to continue raising money. If you are interested in getting some cards; an “I like you” heart; or your porch swept, Asher is your man. Every dollar spent on these goes directly to his fundraising efforts.

1. “I like you” hearts are $1
2. Sweeping front porches and front steps are $2
3. Animal note cards are $5

Go to Asher’s post and add a comment to order the aforementioned items.

Front of Cards (As They Are Drying)

Front of Cards

Back of Cards (As They Are Drying)

Back of Card

“I Like You” Hearts All Ready To Be Delivered

After church, Ashe approached Chele and me and asked us about wanting to raise the money. We sat down with him and talked about some ways he could raise the $20. During our discussion, Ashe came up with three ways to raise money. He is going to sell hearts that say “I like you” ($1); sweep people’s front walkways, porches, or steps ($2); and sell animal-stamped note cards ($5).

You can check out Asher’s blog at A Few More Minutes for all of the details. If you are interested in helping him raise money put a comment in his blog post and we will make sure he gets the comment.

He has to return the water bottle and all donations by March 18 and that is going to be our deadline for collecting money also.

You can also hit me up with any questions or thoughts.

Ashe, Becs, and I took off for a walk around the neighborhood. I hope I got some sun to knock the ghost white off my legs.

If you live in Charlotte, I hope you were also able to get outside and enjoy the winter reprieve. If you don’t, I hope you are having some fun weather also.

Keeping Up With My Big Brother

Picking Clovers

Watching Out For Sis’

Taking A Break

Thanks to The Dagger for the heads-up on this video.

Becs and I spent the evening at a day spa/salon in our house. We “styled” her hair, put on lipstick chapstick, and painted her toenails. We then got to dance around while listening to some music.

We both had a great time and Becs was a perfect date.