Start the New Year Off with a Blog!

I think the expression is "start the New Year off with a bang." But fueled by encouraging facebook friends, my competitive spirit, and a constant need for attention, I've decided to start a blog. I think this first post should explain the name of my blog, "Freakin' Angels."

Several months ago, a group of good Christian women got together to drink wine and play board games (we're not Southern Baptists, so it's okay to drink wine). During the course of conversation, one of these good women mentioned that our pastor had used the expression "freakin' angel" in his sermon the previous Sunday. Those of us who had not attended that particular service were skeptical that she heard him right. We reacted as good Christian women with "No way," "Shut up!", and "Get the flock out!" She insisted that when referencing the heavenly creature from the day's Scripture passage, our pastor had referred to it as "a freakin' angel." (Truth be told, he's always made his feelings about angels known, figuring that to be visited by one has to be a pretty intimidating, if not downright scary, occurrence.)

Well, "Freakin' Angel" resulted in raucous laughter that night, and the following day, being a smart ass tongue in cheek, I thanked our pastor on my Facebook post for providing us with material for our merriment. Wouldn't you know it? He happened to be on Facebook and read what I wrote. He acknowledged his comment and remarked that "given the week I'd had, you're lucky that's all I said!"

Needless to say, we good Christian women from a certain church in the Philly suburbs have adopted the name "Freakin' Angels," and we even have the t-shirts to prove it. Someday soon I'll try to get a photo up here.

On a more serious note, I firmly believe we're surrounded by angels. Not the winged cherubs we see in pictures or those overwhelming God-anointed messengers, but angels in the form of friends, family, and even strangers who touch our lives. A good friend of mine has been through hell and back in the past year and yet every time I speak with her, she references another angel who has blessed her by being there just when she needed one.

I challenge you to start the new year off by being someone's "freakin' angel." Happy New Year to you and yours!