Category: Holidays

Sunday Scripture

Post author By Chris M. Day
Post date December 1, 2019

WELCOME to the “Winter Season Premiere” of my blog. Today – December 01ST 2019 – is the 12TH anniversary of this blog here on WordPress. It officially began on this date in 2007, but it was actually a continuation of my blog that started on Myspace a little more than 6 months earlier.

I’ve been on hiatus since my last post was published almost 2 weeks ago, but now I’m back. I got to spend quality time with immediate family over in North Texas, and we celebrated our annual tradition known as #ThanksChristmasGiving – 8 fun-filled days and nights of Thanksgiving and Christmas combined leading-up to the traditional Thanksgiving Day Dinner.

Over the next 3½ weeks I’ll celebrate Christmas here in South Florida with church family and work family. I’ll also be here online resuming blog posts every Thursday, Friday, Sunday, and Monday – starting today – with a special end-of-year post on New Year’s Eve.

Today I preached my sermon on the prophet Habakkuk to my church family.

Here’s how I started today’s sermon – before preaching on Habakkuk:

Well Good Morning (again) Church Family ! It is so great to be here – in the house of the Lord. You know this is a nice sanctuary that we have here – with this nice pulpit – on this nice big stage – and we have nice new chairs on our nice new carpet. We have an A.C. that works great. We have a roof that doesn’t leak.

This is the Lord’s house – but only because – we are here right now, and the Lord is with us. You know our bodies are the Lord’s house. That means that everywhere we go – is the Lord’s house. God’s presence – is there – right where we are. God lives within us – in our hearts. The Bible says that your body is the temple of the Holy Spirit – who lives in you – and was given to you by God. You do not belong to yourself. (1 Corinthians 6:19)

I like Psalm 27 & 4:

The one thing I ask of the LORD – the thing I seek most – is to live in the house of the LORD all the days of my life – delighting in the LORD’s perfections and meditating in His Temple.

That’s why we praise and worship Him. That’s why we have faith in Him.

Here’s how I closed today’s sermon:

As today’s prophets – with the temple of the Holy Spirit living within us – we must continue to go forth – together – as a church body – towards His bright light. We must remember what He has done for us in the past. We must accept what He is doing for us right now. We must trust what He will do for us in the future. We must believe in Him, for He is the only way. And we must invite our loved ones to join us for this journey. We want our loved ones to know the God that we know. That’s how we bring the church in everything we do – and in everywhere we go.

(And that Conclusion was actually a hidden “sneak-preview” of my next sermon to preach.)

1980s Blogging Holidays Home Music Radio Television Travel Weather

Weekend Kickoff Mini-Thoughts

Post author By Chris M. Day
Post date November 14, 2019

Let’s try this again – a rapid-fire session of thoughts on my mind right this minute:

It’s been awhile since I last did this.
In fact it’s been 5 weeks.
I enjoy writing these spontaneous off-the-top-of-my-head “Mini-Thoughts”.
Let’s get started, as I look at my wall calendar.
Can you believe that November is nearly half-over ?
Thanksgiving Day (here in the U.S.A.) is 2 weeks from today !
This will be my final Thursday blog post of November.
I’m going offline again next week, so no new blog posts.
I’m going on a 12-day hiatus from blogging and social media.
After this weekend’s full slate of posts I won’t post again until December.
That’s December 01ST when I return with “Sunday Scripture”.
This has been a big year for attending shows and concerts.
My 9TH concert of 2019 was this past Sunday night.
I enjoyed Casting Crowns, Hillsong Worship, and Elevation Worship.
I wrote a nice review of it this past Monday here on the blog.
My 10TH concert is coming up on December 22ND.
I’m seeing comedian Jim Gaffigan LIVE in concert in West Palm Beach.
10 shows and concerts in a single year makes it one of my biggest years ever.
33 years ago tonight I was at the Oxford (England) Apollo at a concert.
I saw Ultravox back when they were big in England.
I still have my original tee-shirt that I bought at the concert !

That tee-shirt doesn’t fit me anymore.
I weigh over 40 pounds more now than I did back then when I was 19.
Ultravox scored with a minor Top 40 hit at the time – “Same Old Story”.
I always thought that the song underperformed.
It didn’t get much airplay on national radio, and that stunted its growth.
I think it’s one of the greatest songs of my life.
I still love it 33 years later.
Its style of music wasn’t particularly popular in the U.K. in 1986.
Check out lead singer Midge Ure practically inventing the “selfie stick”:

I don’t think I’ve ever featured a music video as a “Mini-Thought” before.
That was Midge Ure at 33 – half his age than he is now.
I had a wonderful 2-year stay in the U.K.
This weekend marks 32 years since I left and moved back home stateside.
I haven’t been back since, but sometime I’ll make it back.
Well the Arctic Blast has avoided South Florida so far.
Our lowest temperature recorded so far is a mere 67°F.
But much cooler air should invade us this weekend.
We could actually drop into the upper-50s by Sunday morning !
The natives will be breaking out their flannels, coats, and hats.
We may not reach 80°F all weekend !
Incidentally I live in Homestead Florida.
This is the home of the NASCAR Championship !
The Homestead-Miami Speedway is just 3 miles from my home.
I’ll actually be able to hear the echo of the cars racing this weekend.
You can watch all of the action LIVE on NBC-TV this Sunday at 2 PM.
Well that’s gonna do it for this edition of my “Mini-Thoughts”.
I’ll be back again tomorrow for my regular Friday feature. #RETRO

Career Holidays Military Travel

Honoring My Fellow Veterans

Post author By Chris M. Day
Post date November 11, 2019

It’s Veterans Day here in the U.S.A.

This past weekend marked the 34TH anniversary that the United States Air Force shipped me off to a foreign country solo for the first time in my life. As an 18½-year-old I flew from Washington Dulles Airport nonstop to London Heathrow Airport. It was an overnight flight from November 09TH into November 10TH of 1985. From there I took British Rail westward to Swindon, and then from there I hired a cab up to RAF Fairford – my home for the next 2 years. (It was my first permanent duty station.)

I’ve been a member of the United States Air Force for the past 35 years now – going back to when I first signed on the dotted line of the delayed enlistment program near the start of my senior year in high school. I was hesitant in joining the military way back then, but it all turned out just right, and it’s become my career. I’d do it all over again.

To my fellow Veterans – this is our day. From one Veteran to all of the others – I thank you for serving your nation so that we may be free indeed.

Tags Veterans

Holidays Music Radio Television

Monster Mash

Post author By Chris M. Day
Post date October 31, 2019

That’s from the Saturday October 31ST 1964 edition of “American Bandstand” on ABC-TV hosted by the late great Dick Clark, and that’s guest Bobby ‘Boris’ Pickett performing his # 1 smash “Monster Mash”. What a fascinating facial performance that is too !

It was actually the # 1 smash all across the U.S. 2 years earlier during the week leading up to Halloween of 1962 (during the Cuban Missile Crisis), but just like in 1964 and every year since then it’s the unofficial radio song of Halloween. I even add it to my iPod Shuffles that play at my workplace. I usually add it right around October 01ST of each year, and it plays almost every day all month long.

Come November 01ST (tomorrow) I’ll remove “Monster Mash” from my iPod Shuffles playlist, and I’ll add about a half-dozen Christmas songs. ‘Tis the season …

Tags Halloween, Monster Mash

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