nba playoffs: round 2 picks

so the first round of nba playoffs are in the books. my upset picks of the knicks and blazers didn't pan out. knicks had opportunities in the first 2 games to get victories, but just couldn't execute down the stretch. having billups and amar'e injured didn't help either. the mavs simply outplayed the blazers. it was fun to see roy go off in one game, but he's definitely not his old self. the big upsets were the grizzlies beating the spurs. the spurs finally looked their age as the young guns of memphis came through. the other upset was the hawks beating the magic. dwight could only do so much. the rest of the team didn't show up to play. the same could be said with cp3. he could only do so much before the lakers finally went inside and took their series. okc/nuggets were a fun up-and-down game, but the thunder were just too talented for the nuggets. the heat and bulls took care of their pesky opponents as again, talent simply was too much for the 76ers and pacers.

the second round looks to be just as entertaining as the first round. here's my picks:

[chicago bulls vs. atlanta hawks]
the bulls have been relying on derrick rose to carry the team and he has done so so far. hinrich was injured in the last game and that's gonna be a problem for the hawks. he's a feisty defender, but now that he's injured the hawks really don't have anyone on the perimeter who can slow rose down. but, the bigger problem for the hawks is that they have a hard time focusing for all 4 quarters. and to ask them to do that for 4-7 games is even more of a task. i think that the bulls are just more disciplined and play smarter and better defense and will be too much for the hawks.

my pick: bulls in 5

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[miami heat vs. the boston celtics]
i think that this is going to be a fun fun series. a lot of stars here in this matchup. you have the previous big three in kg, pierce, and allen vs the new big three of lebron, wade, and bosh. of course, the celtics also have rondo. but the heat are more athletic and boston is looking old. yes, they were able to sweep the knicks, but they barely beat them the first two games and the knicks were playing injured. still, last year, everyone was counting the celtics out and they were 1 game away from winning it all. however, i still think the heat's talent and athleticism win out. it's gonna be a close one, but i'm picking the heat.

my pick: heat in 7

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[los angeles lakers vs. dallas mavericks]
i honestly think the lakers got lucky to play the mavs rather than the blazers. but, the mavs have been playing better than i expected them to play and the lakers aren't looking as sharp. dirk is still a handful and chandler is playing some really good defense. kidd is raining 3s, marion is a good perimeter defender, and they have terry off the bench to score more points. the lakers finally put things together in their last 2 games and went inside to destroy the undersized hornets. the mavs have more height, but the lakers should still dominate down low. bynum has been playing out of his mind and artest has been playing a lot better offensively as well. fisher and kobe are vets and the pressure doesn't faze them at all. they have their own spark plug off the bench in lamar and the rest of their "killer b's." the big question mark is pau. what happened to him? he looks out of it and they really need him to show up. after seeing both teams play, i think it's gonna be closer than people think. still, i give the edge to kobe and the lakers.

my pick: lakers in 6

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[oklahoma city thunder vs. memphis grizzlies]
you gotta give a lot of credit to the grizzlies. most people didn't really give them a chance, but they took care of the #1 seed spurs and they weren't lucky wins either. they played hard and played better than the spurs. z-bo and gasol dominated that front line and conley did a good job at point. tony allen and battier are their perimeter defenders and can knock down a key jumper when needed. they are young and athletic. the problem is that they are playing a thunder team that is just as young and athletic and have the key pieces to shut them down. i think that perkins and ibaka will shut down memphis' front line and that is where most of their offense comes from. westbrook is gonna give conley headaches and even though battier is a great defender, durant is just that much better of a scorer. thabo is a good perimeter defender and harden off the bench give the thunder that extra punch. i think this is also gonna be a fun, exciting, close series, but the thunder win it in the end.

my pick: thunder in 6

g.o.s.p.e.l

saw this video from my friend steven.

g.o.s.p.e.l
God. our. sins. paying. everyone. life.

with easter in our back-view mirror, it's easy to simply go back to our everyday life. back to the way it was before. similar to retreat or praise nights, a one time event. but i don't want to forget. i don't want to let this truth go in one ear and out the other. God set His Son, Jesus Christ, to die on the cross for our sins, which paid the penalty, so that you, me, everyone, may have eternal life with Him in heaven. this is the good news. this is the gospel. amen.

easter sunday (re-post)

i wrote this a couple years ago. thought i'd repost it here :D

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-passion week-

[sunday]

He is risen!

He is risen indeed!

death overcome

satan defeated

sins forgiven

past

present

future

forgiven

cleansed

white as snow

freedom

salvation

He is risen!

He is risen indeed!