The kind of stuff folks just don't want to know about...
It's the appointed time to solve the mystery about the four intended meanings behind the name of this blog. As a special bonus for our long-time readers, I'll throw in a fifth meaning at no extra charge.
[1]Sittin' Up with the Dead is a music video by Ray Stevens Post 001 which serves as a great inaugural example of the kinds of humor you will often find referenced in this blog. Humor is essential, given the seriousness of the content I tend to discuss.
[2]Sittin' Up with the Dead contains a line in its lyrics Post 001 which became the tag line of this blog. Truly, my topics are _"the kind of stuff folks just don't want to know about." Of course, I wouldn't write about them if they weren't of literally earth-shattering importance.
[3]Sittin' Up with the Dead is tongue-in-cheek acknowledgement the Chicken Little nature of this blog's mission Post 002. (The Sky really is falling and the black swans are circling.) But when we find ourself in the midst of a population generally oblivious to the risks they are facing, it does sometimes feel like we are trying to awaken the dead. Normalcy bias is what psychologists call it.
[4]Sittin' Up with the Dead is a realization that our spiritual risks exceed our physical risks Post 003. To misquote Ronald Reagan, "Well, the trouble with our [fellow Christian] friends is not that they're ignorant; it's just that they know so much that isn't so." Lack of ongoing Bible-based education means we often accept deadly "false truths" seeping in from our secular culture.
[5]Sittin' Up with the Dead is a reminder Post 004 that, no matter how bad it gets in this world, we can take heart (and heed) that we will soon be a sittin' "Up Yonder" with those who have gone through similar tribulations in their day. Pray that we will be counted worthy to sit among them.
So each of these meanings is something that I am passionate about and feel compelled to share with others. In the past, I have annoyed friends and family (most of whom are already awake enough) by spamming their in-boxes with articles I hope they will read (and share) - almost always motivated by one of these five entendres. Those days are over.
Now, if the topic is not worth the time it takes me to boil it down to a one-page posting, it is not worth clogging someone else's in-box with either. And now I can make it available without annoying those I care about. It's here if they care to read it, and I will have done my "watchman's duty" by them.
God has not appointed me as any special kind of Watchman for anyone. (Other than giving me a sheep dog's instinct to confront danger facing others.) But I still take His famous Watchman's warning to Ezekiel very seriously.
That way I can always say, "I told you so!"