Easter: What It Really Means..

Easter. No bunnies. No eggs, no chicks. No candy and chocolate. Those are all nice pleasant things to focus on in order to avoid the reality of the events that make up Easter. Instead, on Good Friday we make an effort to remember pain and suffering endured and that Jesus was willing to carry our sin for us into the depths of hell so that we wouldn't have to. He spent 3 days there paying the penalty. When the debt was paid He rose out of the grave and walked on the earth once again, being seen by people, before ascending into heaven.

He never sinned. But he was willing to die so that we could join Him in heaven one day. It's like taking a bullet for someone and dying. Would YOU take a bullet for someone who hated you? Would YOU be willing to be tortured for them? That's what Jesus did for us all. In all honesty, I'm not sure I would even though it's nice to think that I would.

Mixed emotions are what I feel when I think of Easter. Happy and sad all at the same time. I am happy to have the opportunity to have eternal life. I'm sad that someone had to DIE and be tortured in order for me to have it. How about you? Are you grateful for life everlasting?

Dee..

*GOOD* Friday..

Good Friday. Most people would agree that Fridays are good - especially if their work week happens to be Monday to Friday. It signals the beginning of the weekend, which the vast majority of people long for repeatedly.

For a Christian, this particular Friday is labelled as good for a very specific reason. It is the day set aside for remembering what historical records refer to as the crucifixion of Jesus Christ of Nazareth. Not everyone agrees on His place in history but the Christian community as a whole believe Him to be the Saviour of the world. He is the one who was fully God and fully man, born of the Holy Spirit and the virgin Mary over 2000 years ago. The majority of people will know the story, even if it doesn't fit in the realm of their belief system.

So, the death of Christ was said to buy our entrance into heaven. Believing that to be true leaves us grateful for His sacrifice since He willingly gave Himself over to death. It's nice that there are two specific days in a year to focus on being thankful. Both Easter and Thanksgiving allow us the opportunity to be specifically grateful for all our God does for us in this lifetime and beyond. Take a moment this weekend, to express thanks to the Creator for the good things you have in this life. It's a good feeling.

Dee..

"stepping" your way to health..

I came across a website a few days ago posted on Twitter that was intriguing to me. It's all about getting exercise and becoming more healthy because of it. It was something new to me and I never expected that I'd find a local group. Now when you hear the term "stepping", one would think it was in reference to a step bench that one would step up and down on in a rhythm in place. There are plenty of programs for that type of thing. No, this was different.

What I'd stumbled upon was a website for stairclimbing. It might be along the same lines as the other "stepping" except that you do a lot of up and then a lot of down and then repeat instead of up, down, up, down. What I really found interesting was that this is becoming an organized sport! There are various events and even competitions to go to!

I'm not sure how I feel about it because it somehow sounds a lot more difficult to me. I guess because I do some of that kind of thing at work and, after a while, it really plays me out. I also notice that the stairclimbing that I do can make my knees seem to creak more. I would think that both stairclimbing and stepping with a bench might be harder on the joints than something like walking. It was an interesting concept but I don't think I'll be trying it very soon.

Dee..

procrastination..

Even when I feel like being productive, it is so easy to procrastinate! Sometimes it is on one specific task... and sometimes it's on EVERY task. What's up with that??

I think the biggest thing for me lately is that there are still renovations that need doing but we are waiting for the weather to co-operate. It's frustrating to feel that one thing depends on another, on another, on another. That's how life often is though. Before we can wash the laundry it has to be sorted. Maybe we don't mind washing, drying, folding... but we hate sorting and so the job ends up taking a long time to complete because one step is difficult to want to get done. Sometimes it's just that one task is best done before another. Cleaning is best done top to bottom. Dust before you vacuum or sweep.

Honestly, most of the time I just like to do what I want to do and it takes self-discipline to push myself to get it done. And speaking of getting it done, I better go clean my bathroom!

Dee..

discrimination? or lack of work ethic?

I read a news article a week or so ago that really got me riled. The article entitled Hire Canada's Indigenous Peoples Before Foreign Skilled Workers, says Chief upset me because of the implication of a handout. To be fair, perhaps that was not the intent of the message being sent by this Chief or by the media. I really hope it wasn't.

There is nothing wrong with needing a helping hand and there is nothing wrong with getting some of that help along the way. What really gets to me is the implication that it doesn't matter if these indigenous peoples are skilled or not. It bothers me that this chief seems to want for his people to not have to work for the positions. That might take finishing high school and taking a student loan to further their education. It might take being willing to do what it takes and being persistent. I understand that sometimes there is discrimination at work with regard to certain people groups but, for the most part, if the same steps were followed that anyone else needs to do to get those jobs, they would have as good a shot at being hired... if not better! Let's not forget that they are part of a "visible minority" in Canada and, as such, can often be hired even more easily than the general population.

Dee..