Anger Management

Question of the week: Is it OK to be angry? Is it OK to yell, scream, shout, or should we keep it to ourselves?

I ask because of an incident involving my spectacularly bad pet sitting skills. My parents left me at home on vacation to pet sit. Now, I am not a pet lover. Animals are OK, I just don't think people should keep them indoors around everything you hold near and dear...they have a remarkable tendency to destroy everything you hold near and dear, including sanity.

We have an Australian shepherd who's about a year old. I hate him. I truly do. He always wants me to play with him, always wants me to feed him, always gets in the way, always pees on the floor, always is just flat out 100% annoying.

And they left me in charge of him.

No, I didn't break out the guillotine (OK, maybe Thor's Hammer once in a while). I did yell though. A LOT. I'd let the dog out for twenty minutes or more to do its business, and the second it got back in? Magic yellow puddles appeared.

I feel bad because as Christians we are supposed to be loving. That doesn't include pets right? Its not like I'm abusing the dog or anything...I just don't like him. Such a conundrum.

So, riddle me this, is it still OK to get angry at someone?

Day of Rest

Life offers so much, but it seems like it constantly drains us of, well, life. Think about it. You spend your whole week working, going to school, taking care of family and friends, and doing your own stuff. Its amazing how much can happen in one week, and how much we can miss.

Sometimes I find myself falling into the sway of things, blowing off reading my Bible, praying because I need to, not because I want to. It happens to everyone. The Christian life is one of discipline, and that can make it hard at times. It's not like we can all go out and meditate every afternoon, or pray a thousand holy prayers, or do all the good things that are important to a spiritual life. Everyday life gets in the way.

What can keep us from losing our faith? Answer: church.

Church is not just there to fit us into a religious conformity. It is meant to strengthen our belief with other believers and allowing us to worship God. Sunday is our day of rest, not just physical rest, but a time when we can put our souls at rest to the worries, fears, and adversities life chucks us through the week. Church also helps us stay strong during the week, and helps us do the the things God wants us to do. That's why God rested on the seventh day.

When God rested after creating the universe, we were meant to take note. He set the example that the Jews would follow, keeping the Sabbath holy. God told the people not to work on the Sabbath, but instead to worship. Some religious leaders to this to the next level by making strict restrictions on the Sabbath, but that defeated the real purpose of the day: if we do not rest at some point, we will become burnt out, empty, hollow shells of people. God didn't just put in the seventh day because He could...he did it for our own good.

That in mind, have a Happy Sunday! Praise the Lord, for He is good!

Figs the Hebrews Ate

As a guy, I have a fond interest in history, science, literature, and women. Being a teenage guy, the latter is most important to me. I do desire true love, that is my greatest wish (laugh if you want), and it is hard to find, or so it seems, in this modern church.

I have learned that there are two kinds of teenage, Christian girls. The first are the Saints. The Saints are usually pretty, modest in their dress, and love God more than anything. Half the time, being around them, you feel spiritually insuperior...as if your novel just was compared against Stephen King's. They are often very nurturing, very smart, very good people.

They never want to date though. For reasons I've never understood, they have been raised that God will somehow provide the perfect man while they are studying in divinity school, or some Christian college. This man, I imagine, will be good looking, love dogs and babies, and never break their hearts. He might be studying to be a pastor or a missionary, maybe a doctor or something else noble. They consider teenage guys as unfaithful, unloving, in it for the sex. Now, I know some of us are rotten, but so are some of them. Does this mean they need to give up dating now? What if their future husband is the one they find right here, right now?

Then you have the second kind of church girl stereotype, which is the Pharisee. These girls say all the right things, do all the right things, but when no one is looking, forgo all the right things. They do often date, but their love for Jesus just seems to be something they put on for display, not something they treasure. It's sad.

Why can't their be serious Christians who want to date? Am I missing something? All this is illogical madness from my perspective.

Why Are We So Scared?

My homepage, like millions of other people, is Yahoo.com. Maybe its not the most reliable source of news out there, but it works for me. I like to see a little bit of everything, even it is a cat screwing around with an ipad. Even though my homepage is Yahoo, I spend a majority of my time on another website: facebook.

Facebook is perhaps the greatest invention of the 21st century thus far, because it completely redefined communication. The internet became a place where information was king, to a place where people could spend their social lives, without leaving their house. Now, I don't have to call my friend, or meet them for lunch to see how they are. I can go on facebook, check on their status update, and maybe even chat them up. It's genius.

But what does that mean?

It means, for many people, they can say things they wouldn't say in real life. People can hide behind facebook. Shy, nervous people, can talk like anyone, because they don't have to look someone in the eye. It also works, unfortunately, that sexual predators can come off looking like pretty nice guys. Regardless, it begs the question, why are we hiding? Why can't we talk to people in person anymore? I understand friends who live across the globe, but close to home? It is an interesting question...

We all tend to be paranoid once in a while. Its part of being an American these days. Turn on the news, and what do you see? Everything that says the end is near. Our imaginations, fueled by TV and movies tend to get the better of us, myself included. In the 'modern era' a majority of the population is on Xanax. Shouldn't that tell us something is wrong?

Fear is a natural part of the human experience, the Israelites and being prime examples. The Israelites are a people we can sympathize with. They go out into the desert with Moses (see Exodus), and they spend the whole time complaining, just like we inevitably would. They're also afraid though, afraid of the land they are invading that God has given to them(see Joshua). Why are they afraid of the enemy if God is right there with them, and has promised them the land?

We should ask ourselves the same question the the 21st century. God is just as alive and well as he was then, and is just as active in our lives, planning things out for us, showing the way, using the bad for the good. Yet we still run away. We have God though, and sometimes, we just need to know that. He is our protector; he loves us more than anyone ever will, and that in of itself should comfort us.

There is another type of fear though, that is brought up a lot in the Old Testament. It says we should 'fear' God, that they 'feared God'. What does that even mean? Well, when a giant, rabid German Shepherd is standing between us, a door, and a wall, what would we do? We could try to just run past the dog, but the diseased critter would probably kill us. We could just stay there, but the dog is closing in. The logical move? We slowly walk past the dog, giving it space, and make a getaway for the house. We respect its space, we recognize that it is more powerful, and because of that, we live a better-rabies-free life.

Not that being a Christian will give you rabies, or you'll be struck by lightening if you so something wrong. God is more loving than that, and we should 'fear him' because he is all powerful...but so is his love, grace, and mercy.

So, in the immortal words of Douglas Adams, Don't Panic! God is with us, and with Him, our fears vanish...

Anno Domini

On a quiet September morning, the world changed forever in a matter of seconds. Many people remember the details of this day, the clear blue sky, the rushed pace of people trying to get to work, the usual traffic, the daily grind. It seemed like this was the way things would be for all time...America was at its peak, the millennium had arrived, and we all survived Y2K....

....Then the towers fell.

If you compare pre 9/11 America to post 9/11 America, you will see radical changes. Before the attacks, America was enjoying a time of economic prosperity, of hope for the future. We didn't worry about the outside world. We were safe across the ocean from the whole thing. It looked like we could just grow and grow.

Suddenly we became aware of the world around us, of places called Iraq and Afghanistan, places people had only heard of in geography class. We started to be afraid to fly, the lines for everything got longer as metal detectors were put in everywhere. Two wars were started, with fear and opposition not seen since Vietnam. Most of all though, the damage to the American psyche was irreversible. We became different people after that day

The point is, we can look back to one moment in history that changed everything. Before and after. In this case, things changed for the worse, but there are instances where such change can be good. We see this throughout history and in ourselves.

Recorded history is divided up into two distinct measurements of time: BC and AD. Before Christ, and Anno Domini (Latin for the year of our Lord). The whole of human history is centered around one pivotal moment: the birth of a baby in a shack somewhere in the Middle East. After Christ is born, nothing is the same. Christianity spreads like butter on toast, and the Western world is changed, people's lives and eternal destinies are changed. Politics change. Human perspective changes. Everything we thought was right was suddenly wrong, and the brickwork for what became Western civilization is laid. All the values that our society holds dear come out of that. Everything after Christ, after the year of our Lord, is different.

It's not just history that pivotal moments change though. Personal history is changed by an encounter with Jesus Christ. Many times in the Bible, once someone has an encounter with God, they are different, even given a different name. God renames Abram Abraham (Genesis 17:5). Jesus gives Simon the name Peter (Mark 3;16). Saul chooses to use his Greek name, Paul, after his conversion (Acts 13:9). And these men are different entities under their new names! God leads them, he is the center of their lives, and they do great things because of it. Christians as well, true Christians, have these moments, where they are no longer the person they once were: "Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; the old has gone, the new has come!" 2 Corinthians 5:17.

Things happen in life, some things good, some things bad, but they all center around God, and the things he does with the bad and the good are totally incomprehensible sometimes. We ask ourselves how He could even use something as tragic as 9/11, but he does. Solomon says: "For everything there is a season, and a time, for every purpose under Heaven" Ecclesiastes 3:1. He can use anything for His own glory, and none of it without having a purpose in our own lives.

An encounter with Jesus, a transformative one, is the hallmark of the Christian experience. Only through this are we reborn in Him, and only through Christ are we saved.

The Basics

So, who am I, what am I doing here, why am I not asleep yet, and why on Earth am I writing this? And just what is this anyway? HUH!? What's going on? Where's the cream filling? Alright, in order:

1. Who Am I?: My name is Chris Marchello, I'm a college student living in New Jersey. I was raised a Christian, and attended a Christian school throughout elementary and middle school. Essentially I made the decision to become a Christian (or did I!?) because my Kindergarten teacher held up a picture of Heaven and a picture of Hell. Yeah, it was a no brainer which one to pick. So, I accepted Christ. Of course, the downside of being in a Christian school is your faith is never really tested. Think of it as being a Yankees fan, living in New York, chillin with his fellow pinstripes fans. Once I got to high school however, I found myself alone, surrounded by no other Christians. Now imagine our Yankees fan in BOSTON...the BAD PART. It was around then I started attending church, and youth group, and found for the first time in my life the power and love of God. I was reborn basically, and now I teach Sunday School and preach a sermon at youth now and then.

2. Why Am I Not Asleep?: That's probably because I had dinner at around midnight. I find it hard to get to sleep, mostly because I'm a creature of the night. No not a vampire, not even a wimpy Twilight one.

3. Why Am I Writing This?: Well, I'm a writer, mostly of short, fluffy romance fiction (betcha didn't see that one coming!) though I have done more serious stuff, written a novella, gotten published by my college etc. People keep telling me I have this God given ability for writing, and well, I would like to use that gift to talk about God, through this blog hopefully. The tone of my writing is either very casual or very deep (I'm a mess of contradictions).

4. What is This?: I Was a Teenage Christian is going to be a blog about, well Christian life. All the wierdness of it, the strange things, the good the bad the wonderful things. I also want a chance to sort of put things in perspective, such as prophets and early Christians. I plan to also put completely humorous stuff on here (well, you be the judge).

5. What's Going On?: People are living and dying, and God is doing some amazing things. Just think, somewhere else, something else entirely different is happening. Birth, death, love hate, all of it....right now.

6. Where's the Cream Filling?: Probably in the kitchen. Check the second shelf to the right.

And so it begins...