A Reminder of the "Golden Era" via Jars of Clay
Wednesday, March 1, 2006
[6:38am] It was a happy March 1st to the world that morning and Ash Wednesday to all those of whom actually partook of the holiday (which were many)… and now only twenty days from spring, which Collette was not entirely sure she appreciated, not having ever received her big snow. But alack the day, spring was coming, ready or not. And spring was a colorful season, a thing she could never pass down easily. Yet somehow there were palm trees on the March calendar of her refrigerator (a freebie from the Insurance company) and she wondered how that was quite possible – so soon.
The concert had been good, if that was the word for it, the night before – where came: the three Pi kids, OLeif, Collette, the Coca-Cola family (minus the two older boys), Augustus, Pablo, and their mom, Pepper, Joe, Rose, Shakespeare, Molly, and Samantha. Collette had already seen Derek Webb, of course, the February before. And it was good to hear him sing again. Another girl came up with her husband, bass player, her two little sons, and another guitarist, which was pleasant enough. And then Collette heard Jars of Clay for the first time, and the lead singer banging out some mean tambourine to a sold-out audience under an onion dome. He uncannily reminded her of OLeif, especially his hands. She could have completely mistaken his hands for OLeif’s (even his ring), at least from the big screen on the left. He even wore his collared yellow shirt untucked. But it wasn’t worth going through all the details; he would just remind Collette of OLeif now. Hearing them sing again, brought back memories from the good old days – 1999/2000, when Carrie-Bri was getting into Bible Quizzing, becoming more popular in her own realm – the golden era of choir. And this too, was the band, to which Joe had lip-synced four or so years ago, in a two-minute music video in the basement before ending it with a smack-down on Frances for interrupting his filming.
At the house, there was news that an old kid from choir was just engaged – Og Valentine – the kid with a wave of blond hair and whiter teeth, who was actually not marrying the girlfriend he had had for years (daughter of a Baptist preacher). A tenor, voice student, and stiff as a board, nice enough fellow. He must have been just twenty.
Meanwhile, Joe’s new amazing computer had arrived via UPS and Carrie decided to take a ride down the stairs to the basement, in the box.
“Get ready for the pain, baby!” She cried, pumping her fist in the air, “Whoo-hoo!”
Several moments later, she was lying at the bottom of the stairs in a heap.
“Owwwwwwwwwwwww!”
And after a ca-razy night of junior high youth games and giggling and nonsense, OLeif smoked his pipe at home over a bag of old licorice from Soulard.
“I have heard it said, ‘God didn’t die for frogs. So he was responding to our value as humans.” This turns grace on its head. We are worse off than frogs. They have not sinned. They have not rebelled and treated God with the contempt of being inconsequential in their lives. God did not have to die for frogs. They aren’t bad enough. We are. Our debt is so great, only a divine sacrifice could pay it.”
– John Piper, Fifty Reasons Why Jesus Came to Die, p.29