But God...

There are currently two words in the New Testament that have absolutely captured my fascination, as they both reference and imply quite profound ideas. For example, I was dead in my trespasses, disobedient, and a child of wrath. I did not care for anything that did not benefit me, and was thus very worldly. From a worldly perspective, I was rather unpleasant. From a spiritual perspective, I was dead. Nothing in me would attract the attention of a Creator-King, at least in the positive sense. I was condemned to eternal punishment. My methods of escape were limited (meaning none) and faulty. I was a hopeless wreck.

But God.

And with these two words, my entire life, future, and eternal state were quite literally reversed. 

"But God, who is rich in mercy, because of His great love with which He loved us, even when we were dead in trespasses, made us alive together with Christ (by grace you have been saved), and raised us up together, and made us sit together in the heavenly places in Christ Jesus, that in the ages to come He might show the exceeding riches of His grace in His kindness toward us in Christ Jesus. For by grace you have been saved through faith, and that not of yourselves; it is the gift of God, not of works, lest any man should boast." Ephesians 2.4-9 (emphasis mine)

That says it all. What could I add to that? To think that God loves me for no reason at all, save that He does, is completely beyond my comprehension. 

I cannot recommend the following artists, Casting Crowns, but these lyrics hit it absolutely bang on (the entire song is not repeated here).

"Who Am I"

Who am I, that the Lord of all the earth
Would care to know my name,
Would care to feel my hurt?
Who am I, that the Bright and Morning Star
Would choose to light the way
For my ever wandering heart?
...
Who am I, that the eyes that see my sin
Would look on me with love and watch me rise again?
Who am I, that the voice that calmed the sea
Would call out through the rain
And calm the storm in me?

Not because of who I am
But because of what You've done.
Not because of what I've done
But because of who You are.

...

"Thanks be to God for His inexpressible gift!" II Corinthians 9.15

A Fairy Tale Continued

(to read part one)

Once upon a time…long ago…in times past…

         
  Thanks, Ben.

There was a prince...

  Wait a second, there's always one prince. What could we do to change it up (without it being overly weird)?
  I don't know, Josh. How 'bout make the prince have brothers? That way, the princess has a couple options to choose from.
  Great idea, Ben! Thanks!

There were four princely brothers. They were, as stated, brothers, who shared the occupation of princes (their resumes were quite impressive). However, the four brothers were rather eccentric, each in his own way. Of course, if they weren't eccentric, this tale would be nigh-on boring. Therefore, they are eccentric.

The first and eldest of the brothers was Charles Charming (of course the last name is Charming...what else could it be?). Of the four brothers, Charles was the first to accept the full-time position of prince, and was therefore the most experienced

The second and second eldest of the brothers was Maximilian Augustus Charming.

  Josh, you better not make Maximilian's bio as boring as Charles's...
  ...okay Ben.

 Max was in a strange quandary at the time of our story, but his quandary requires a short story. Several years previous, he had had the misfortune to be turned into a frog. Of course, the only way to turn him back was for a princess to kiss him. He was most fortunate in an unfortunate way. He was fortunate to find a princess in distress, who had dropped her magic mirror down a well (it had been dried out many a year - do not ask what the princess was doing that caused her mirror to drop down such a hole, as that's another story). Being nimble in frog limb, he immediately made it known that he would fetch her magic mirror. In one bound, he was down. He began to tug on the mirror. However, it took him some time to figure out a way to carry it. That's the unfortunate part of the story. The princess was so taken by the little frog's endeavor, that she blew him a kiss; since everything's wireless nowadays, it had very much the same effect as a physical kiss: it changed the frog prince into a prince prince (a human one, that is). Dear Reader, a frog may easily escape the warming pot, but a prince has no chance. He was therefore, and still is, stuck at the bottom of the well, his only consolation being the magic mirror, by which he began to know everything, and write books and periodicals on the same. His weekly, the Prince's Deeply, is a well read newspaper, and very informative.

The next brother was Philosophically Charming, or Phil for short. In the nature of his name, he sought humanitarian relief for all underprivileged classes. He even went as far as to subsidize poor, forgotten animals. His housing plans for such creatures were his greatest failure, as his pilot program involved determining the structural analysis of various building materials for the razorback breed, being of straw, sticks and bricks. His initial plan called for three of the breed to be housed in each of the buildings. This failed because of the carnivorous and enchanted nature of his younger brother Fred.

The last and final brother, as well as the youngest, was Frederick Charming. Like Max, Fred had the inconvenience of being shape-shifted, but he into a carnivorous canine. You see, Fred, a vegetarian, liked dogs so much that he had 127 different breeds, hosted 3 dog shows a week, and provided the famous Canine 9k Scholarships for veterinarian students. However, when a representative from the Safeguarding Animals Against the Tyranny of Living in Cramped Quarters with Others of Different Breeds Legal Association (SAATLCQODBLA) arrived and determined that 127 dog breeds living on 381 acres was too cramped, he complained to the Princes Behavior Correction Agency (PBCA), which determined Fred's sentence: he was to be turned into a generic dog and be carnivorous, unto the point that he had been kissed by a princess (which they were sure was never going to happen).

And so...

...At a date undetermined, in a land not found on modern maps, there once was four princely brothers...

  That's great Josh! Much better than "There once was a prince..."
  I'd quite agree. It'll keep our readers guessing...

  Stay tuned on Ben's blog.

A post about Not-Much

I've finally done it. Since I'm lacking inspiration for things to write, I went ahead and videoed myself playing the bagpipes...rather vain, in my opinion. But oh well. Since this is the first video that I've uploaded, I'm not quite sure I have all the strings tied on how to do it, so forgive the mishaps. 

And on that note...

I do know that the drones are not in unison. This does not help with the effect of the bagpipes. I need to learn how to tune them accurately. It's quite a chore, believe me!

In regards to the challenge issued, the first part has been published! I will be posting a second part on Monday the 10th. Just a hint - Ben and I will be trying to get every single fairy tale possible mentioned throughout this story. Be alert.

Until Monday!