Day 45: Grandma got run over by a reindeer for not eating enough chicken

There are two places I've never expected to do a concert. The first is Glastonbury, the largest green-field festival in the world to the tune of 177,000 souls. The second is Chik-Fil-A. I can now cross one of those off my list, and it's not Glastonbury.

So I was part of a group that played what was probably supposed to be a Christmas Carol only thing, but we threw in a few others, most notably "Grandma Got Run Over By a Reindeer" and "Lean On Me". We threw in both as jokes because we had the music for it, and we figured they'd draw a laugh. "Grandma" got no laughs other than the joke that we sang it because she wasn't there to defend herself, in which case the only person who laughed was the old man in the back corner whose wife had ironically just gone to the restroom. "Lean On Me" didn't get any laughs, but I think more people sang along with us on that one than "Rudolph" which I think is pretty dang sad for a Christmas Concert.


14-16 I can anticipate the response that is coming: "I know that all God's commands are spiritual, but I'm not. Isn't this also your experience?" Yes. I'm full of myself—after all, I've spent a long time in sin's prison. What I don't understand about myself is that I decide one way, but then I act another, doing things I absolutely despise. So if I can't be trusted to figure out what is best for myself and then do it, it becomes obvious that God's command is necessary.

17-20 But I need something more! For if I know the law but still can't keep it, and if the power of sin within me keeps sabotaging my best intentions, I obviously need help! I realize that I don't have what it takes. I can will it, but I can't do it. I decide to do good, but I don't really do it; I decide not to do bad, but then I do it anyway. My decisions, such as they are, don't result in actions. Something has gone wrong deep within me and gets the better of me every time.

21-23 It happens so regularly that it's predictable. The moment I decide to do good, sin is there to trip me up. I truly delight in God's commands, but it's pretty obvious that not all of me joins in that delight. Parts of me covertly rebel, and just when I least expect it, they take charge.

24 I've tried everything and nothing helps. I'm at the end of my rope. Is there no one who can do anything for me? Isn't that the real question?

I thought about typing something out, but what more is there to be said?