Tuesday, December 27, 2011

We Three Kings (a post for Christmas Vacation)

This post title strikes significance, both in flashbacks and in the distinct representation of the phrase “we three kings”. The flashback comes from me being back in Louisville for college and I was playing Guitar Hero 3 in a friend’s room (this was before I had the game on Wii) and I hear a rock cover song of “We Three Kings” and think to myself, what an incredible way to tell people about how the 3 wise men come around and worship the greatest King of all, our Messiah Jesus.

Christmas has been very joyful for me thus far. Despite the craziness that has happened not even within the 24 hours of me being here, Satan is trying to steal my joy from me. I am driving over to my brother’s house in the attempt to do laundry, and my car dies in the middle of a major intersection of an Austin highway. I waited 2 hours for a tow truck to come and pick up my car to take it back to my uncle’s house. I posted not even a week ago about how it’s important for a Jewish person to know about Jesus being their Messiah and how that can be the greatest joy that they would ever know! How could I go about my day and not express that to people in my own life? That would be kind of hypocritical of me. So I just sat back and decided to worry about it when the time was right.

Anyway, after some time spent with the family over a Christmas show at Gateway Church and then a candlelight service, the entire family sat down for the infamous “Feast of 7 Fishes”. On Christmas Eve (in Italian families) you will eat until your face explodes from being stuffed with shrimps, scallops, mussels, clams, codfish, and of course pasta. I know it’s not the traditional seven, but in some cases you will get short changed. If I pull this off for my own family, my menu would look something like this:

1) Shrimp Fra Diablo (Spaghetti with Shrimp in a spicy Rosa cream-style tomato sauce)
2) Blackened Salmon Fillets stuffed with crab meat
3) Snow Crab legs (this is usually what my mom will make on Christmas Eve)
4) Fried Calamari
5) Mussels in a lemon butter garlic sauce
6) Pan-seared scallops
7) Lobster or crab stuffed Ravioli

As I desire to keep growing in the culinary arts, mastering Christmas Eve (as an Italian) would be vital for my career in becoming a restaurant style chef so let’s just hope that I could pull it off. It will take money and practice for me…I will do this eventually, maybe after seminary. The food preparation would be like something I could ask for the same way Julie Powell did with her blog when she wrote about cooking lobster (out of “Mastering the Art of French Cooking”) when she set up her PayPal account, I could afford to get the ingredients or dishes themselves. Always wishful thinking when it comes to me.

Right before I came down to Austin, I was working on a video game I had been playing as of late. I’m sure if you pay attention to TV, Facebook, Twitter, or to anything in general, you might hear someone mention a video game called “Skyrim”, and it is unbelievable. I play it in the attempt of trying to become a master wizard. I am doing whatever I can to level myself up to become a super powerful mage. I am going through training at a college, similar to the concept of Hogwarts. I have a character called “Nachash” (the Hebrew word for snake), and I am just attempting to level him up by any means necessary. Keep in mind however, legal matters may slow the process down, but it is still worth the effort to play the game on a consistent basis.

Before coming back to Fort Worth, Donna and I went out to the movies and saw the Muppets! We went to the famous movie theater in Austin (Alamo Drafthouse). We sat down and were able to eat a meal together while watching a movie, how cool is that?
W
ell now that I have blogged fairly sufficiently, I am taking a temporary hiatus. I will not be taking my computer with me to Florida..

I won’t have the ability to seriously blog for a while, so when you read this, know I am not giving it up, I am just taking a much needed break to enjoy my new life as a married man.

GRACE AND PEACE, AND MANY BLESSINGS

Sunday, December 25, 2011

Merry Christmas to everyone! May your holiday be blessed

Saturday, December 24, 2011

Planning a nice night out in downtown Austin with Donna; I'm thinking homeslice pizza on SoCo
Having a vacation that was must needed
Watching Christmas movies :)
Going through book of Romans for quiet time
Reading Children of Hurin by JRR Tolkien
Italian feast of 7 fishes for Christmas Eve
Celebrating Christmas...I'm in Austin celebrating with family.

Sunday, December 18, 2011

The importance of Christmas to a Jewish believer



Why would a Christian holiday be so important for a Jewish person, considering that Jews are blamed for the death of Jesus and there is so much animosity between these two groups of people?

Well, here's the deal: JESUS WAS JEWISH!!!!!

Everything that was written about a "Messiah" in the Old Testament, that all was written about one person. Jesus is the Messiah that was promised to the Jewish people, and there was lots and lots of rejoicing that should have taken place, but as a result of some hidden cover up by the authorities and high priests of the Jewish faith. The chief priests knew that Jesus was who he said he was, but they were so determined to cover up what was the truth to hold on to their power that they didn't bother to see what could happen. The Jewish people could finally have peace. A real peace that only Jesus brings.

The point I wish to make is this...

Everything that all believers on earth know about Jesus has reached a dramatic turning point. Jesus came and walked on the earth, lived a life without sin, and lived that life with the intent of giving it all away for people who don't deserve to have a life at all.

The greatest joy for a Jewish person should be to know the Messiah. Nothing breaks me down more than Christmas worship music does. It's the realization that the promises that God made to my people are all true.

"O Lord, You are my God, I will exalt you; I will praise your name. For you have done wonderful things, plans formed of old, faithful and sure!" Isaiah 25:1

Lord, Nothing breaks my heart more than the ache of knowing that my own people have rejected the most important name that there is.

I PRAY THAT THE JEWISH PEOPLE COME TO THE REALIZATION OF WHO JESUS REALLY AND TRULY IS:

"The people who walked in darkness have seen a great light; those who dwelt in a land of deep darkness on THEM has light shined" Isaiah 9:2

The list of passages that can be drawn from the Old Testament goes on and on, but the bottom line, it all only points to one person, and that's JESUS!!!! Tell people about him this holiday season. That's what we are called to do as believers.

MERRY CHRISTMAS!
GRACE AND PEACE!

Thursday, December 8, 2011

Holiday Season has started

It's now December 2011!

HOLY CRAP! Looking back on things, I have come a huge leap and bounds long way from where I was last year. It's hard to believe I have been with Donna a year, and in less than a month we are getting married. It's the overwhelming shock and awe feeling that every guy feels when they get this close to getting hitched I suppose.

Well I am working 32 hours a week still, taking 12 hours of seminary classes and struggling to find a balance in life no matter what is thrown at me. God likes to present us with challenges, and as I have been maturing and getting further and further into this new reality, God just gives me a new mindset of "Oh, this is how it's going to be, so you need to get used to it and do it the way that I say you should do it". I am one who learns things the super, super hard way, so when I am told that "no, you are no longer going to do things the way you have been doing them, but rather..." "you now have to do it this way because its expected of you to them this way," I freak out.

School is just around the corner from finishing. I have my final exam day on the 12th, and then I will be getting into the preparing mode for the wedding, finishing up the preparation and everything along those lines.

Gotta get back to studying.

GRACE AND PEACE!