Christ is risen!

On Friday, He was beaten + mocked + crucified, but today, He is the Victor over death + sin + Satan. The grave could not hold Him, therefore, He is no longer in it. Christ died in our place, and now we can live through His life. Through His perfection. Through His selflessness. If we are to be called sons + daughters of the Most High God, we must do as sons + daughters do: love their Father.

Won't you come to Him today, wanderer? Won't you come to the arms that are opened wide for you, eagerly awaiting your confession of who He is + your submission for His will to be done in your life? Going to church on Sunday mornings doesn't save us, but rather it strengthens + rejuvenates us. We are surrounded by fellow believers, and are further built up by our Father. The church is why Christ died; to reconcile us back to God. We are commissioned to go to the nations and tell of the name + glory of Jesus Christ to everyone we meet. Matthew 28 was not an option or a mere suggestion, but rather a command given to us to share His love for His creation, His people, His church. We are His bride, those for whom He offered up His life for.  May those whom He has transformed with His light be shameless in declaring Christ Jesus to be risen + reigning, and may those who are clinging to something other than the one true God depart from weariness + return to His rest.

His robes for mine: O wonderful exchange!

Clothed in my sin, Christ suffered 'neath God's rage.

Draped in His righteousness, I'm justified.

In Christ I live, for in my place He died.

His robes for mine: what cause have I for dread?

God’s daunting Law Christ mastered in my stead.

Faultless I stand with righteous works not mine,

Saved by my Lord’s vicarious death and life.

His robes for mine: God’s justice is appeased.

Jesus is crushed, and thus the Father’s pleased.

Christ drank God’s wrath on sin, then cried “‘Tis done!”

Sin’s wage is paid; propitiation won.

His robes for mine: such anguish none can know.

Christ, God’s beloved, condemned as though His foe.

He, as though I, accursed and left alone;

I, as though He, embraced and welcomed home!

I encourage you to listen to this beautiful declaration of truth, and join in singing with the angels (lyrics are above). May our praise + our all be to Christ alone. Let us come together as one voice and shout this from the rooftops at the top of our lungs so that every nation hears:

JESUS CHRIST IS RISEN!

"But the men said to them, ''Why do you look for the living among the dead? He is not here; He has risen!'"

-Luke 24:5b-6a

His name is Jesus.

Today may just be another Friday to you, but to me, it represents the most sorrowful day in the history of the world: the day that represents when the Savior of mankind + Redeemer of creation was crucified.  The weight of all our sin rested on His shoulders, and He suffered in place of His people. On His right + His left, there were two criminals: one who mocked Him, and another who confessed belief in who He was + was told he would be with Him in paradise that day. Who will you chose to be? Will you side with everyone who put Him on the cross like the hopeless criminal or will you call on His name, depending on Him as your Eternal Refuge as the humble criminal did? In Matthew 1:21, the angel of the Lord appeared to Joseph before the birth of our Savior and said, "You are to give him the name Jesus, because he will save his people from their sins."

Will you call upon His name, the name of Jesus Christ, and be saved? Will you receive the gift of life that He offered to us by His crucifixion + resurrection + defeat of death? Won't you, as Galatians 2:20 says, be crucified with Christ so you can truly live? If you call on His name + accept the saving grace He offers + repent in submission, you will be hidden with Christ, and will appear with Him in glory when He comes for His holy ones (Colossians 3:3-4 + 1 Thessalonians 3:13).

"He was despised and rejected by men, a man of sorrows, and familiar with suffering. Like one from whom men hide their faces he was despised, and we esteem him not. Surely he took up our infirmities and carried our sorrows, yet we considered him stricken by God, smitten by him, and afflicted. But he was pierced for our transgressions, he was crushed for our iniquities; the punishment that brought us peace was up him, and by his wounds we are healed. We all, like sheep, have gone astray, each of us has turned to his own way; and the LORD has laid on him the iniquity of us all. He was oppressed and afflicted, yet he did not open his mouth. By oppression and judgment he was taken away. And who can speak of his descendants? For he was cut off from the land of the living; for the transgression of my people he was stricken. He was assigned a grave with the wicked, and with the rich in his death, though he had done no violence, nor was any deceit in his mouth."

-Isaiah 53:3-9

This is my Jesus. This is my Hope. I praise Him that He loved me first (1 John 4:10 + 4:19). I, also, praise Him for although He undeservingly died a criminal's death, the grave could not hold Him. The third day is coming, and those who are in Him will rejoice! Our God is not dead.

alleycats.

For the last seven months, our friend, Charity, has been staying with us at the bungalow while she's been attending PTA school. Her first year of school has come to an end, and since this past weekend was our last hurrah all together, we spent our last night as roomies at the bowling alley. We had so much fun, and all of us we sore the next morning from how many games we played. Dinner at Monterrey followed by two straight hours of bowling was what our agenda for the evening looked like, and I wouldn't trade that night for anything. We love our roomie + McJon (as Teesh has nicknamed Jonmicah), and we're looking forward to many more date nights with these two lovely people. Now that we won't see her every day, a regular date night will have to be installed, of course!

#colormehappy

On Saturday morning, Teesh + me + Troy + Angie + Savanah made our way to the best place in South Carolina for The Color Run. It was great to be back in Clemson, even if for a few hours, because of all the precious memories I made there while I was in college. I got to add another item to my list of favorite things done in Tigertown, and it was definitely one of my most favorites! Troy was the leader of the pack, and we were trying to keep up with him all morning. After we were painted from head to toe, we ate breakfast at the best place to eat in Clemson: Paws Diner. Mmm, my mouth is watering now just thinking about it.

Before:

After:

Who can't wait for the next Bargeron adventure? Me, me, me!

cara.

Today is our sweet Cara's birthday, and most of the Phillips clan gathered to celebrate her turning three on Sunday! There are a lot of traditions that I love, and our family birthday parties rank high up on the list. Cara was cute as can be, which was no surprise to any of us, and her princess-themed party made for a royal afternoon of fun!

Happy birthday, Cara!

You are loved by so many, and that love gets bigger + stronger every day!

p.s. Have I mentioned how thankful I am for my family? Too many times to count, you say? Well, here's another one to add to the list: I am SO thankful for my family!

family fun day | 2k14.

This past Saturday, TJ's whole family got together for our first annual #familyfunday, and its title describes it perfectly: fun! We played wiffle ball + volleyball + badminton + had a corn hole tournament + grilled out hot dogs with all the works + ended the night around the fire with marshmallows in-hand. We had the best time all afternoon, and most of us were sore the next day when we tried to get out of bed because of all the running + jumping + laughing we did. I think all of us are ready for our next gathering, and we'll be talking about this first round until the second round is upon us.

"Rejoice with your family in the beautiful land of life!"

-Albert Einstein

baseball.

Spring means a lot of different things to a lot of different people, but to my family, it holds one special meaning in particular: baseball is back! Trent moved up to coaches pitch this year, leaving us all filled with wonder about how he got so big so fast + pride in watching him hit the ball and run the bases so wholeheartedly. Aunt Anna could take pictures of this handsome fella all day long, especially when he's playing his favorite game.

Oh, spring, I'm so thankful you're here!