This weekend has me excited about life! Over the past month or so I have had a chance to celebrate life in different ways and with different people. From a newborn baby, to the death of a loved one, to the baptism of a child, it's been such a joy to celebrate life in this past month.
About a month ago, I stood in the waiting room and looked over my nephew Luke Rocco Ochoa. He was beautiful and literally new life. He was so small and brought so much joy to the people around him. Over the past month he is getting bigger and bigger. He is healthy and taken care of by two great parents and a family that loves him. He is a new creation that is about to embark on the journey of life.
This week we received the news that Ashlyn's great grandfather had passed. It was sudden and heart breaking. I have only one experience of being in the same room. After this weekend I was able to hear many stories and experiences that family and friends had with and of Melvin Clinton. These stories allowed me to get to know a man that I had only encountered once. I think its safe to say, after hearing these stories, that Melvin Clinton had a full life worth celebrating.
About a month ago, I stood in the waiting room and looked over my nephew Luke Rocco Ochoa. He was beautiful and literally new life. He was so small and brought so much joy to the people around him. Over the past month he is getting bigger and bigger. He is healthy and taken care of by two great parents and a family that loves him. He is a new creation that is about to embark on the journey of life.
This week we received the news that Ashlyn's great grandfather had passed. It was sudden and heart breaking. I have only one experience of being in the same room. After this weekend I was able to hear many stories and experiences that family and friends had with and of Melvin Clinton. These stories allowed me to get to know a man that I had only encountered once. I think its safe to say, after hearing these stories, that Melvin Clinton had a full life worth celebrating.
On Saturday I had a chance to do that with my new family. We celebrated the life of a MAN. Grandpa Melvin loved his country. He served in WWII and had stories to tell for days about it. He loved his family and made sure everything was in order before his passing, so that he would not cause any problems for his children. Most importantly he loved God as seen by the experience the preacher shared with him confessing His faith in Christ, to the song he sang with his daughter weeks before his passing, he had a relationship with Christ. These are three attributes that are rare to see in any man today. He had all of them and that gave him a full and blessed life. Though through the week we mourned his death, on Saturday we celebrated it!
On Sunday I had a chance to celebrate life in a different way. I was blessed to have the opportunity to play a part in baptisms today with my church family. It was a celebration of a new life in Jesus Christ. There is no bigger decision in your life than deciding to follow Christ fully and accepting him as your Lord and Savior. All the baptisms I was a part of were involving children and teens that at a young age have decided to fully commit their life to Christ. My favorite part is that a lot of the baptisms of the children were done with fathers, siblings, even grandparents. It was such a blast and I was honored to take part in those decisions.
On Sunday I had a chance to celebrate life in a different way. I was blessed to have the opportunity to play a part in baptisms today with my church family. It was a celebration of a new life in Jesus Christ. There is no bigger decision in your life than deciding to follow Christ fully and accepting him as your Lord and Savior. All the baptisms I was a part of were involving children and teens that at a young age have decided to fully commit their life to Christ. My favorite part is that a lot of the baptisms of the children were done with fathers, siblings, even grandparents. It was such a blast and I was honored to take part in those decisions.
There is so much in life that is worth celebrating. When we look at a newborn baby we see a life waiting to take shape filled with joy and laughter. When we look at a veteran we see a full life of dedication and love. Finally, when we see someone accept Christ we see a new life that has been washed away from its past sin and made new and thats something to celebrate!
2 Corinthians 5:17 " Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation. The old has passed away; behold, the new has come."
2 Corinthians 5:17 " Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation. The old has passed away; behold, the new has come."