Showing posts with label Easter. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Easter. Show all posts

Monday, April 21, 2014

Down with the old man, up with the new

It's the Monday after Easter and while I don't actually have an office to go to, I am still reluctant to "go" to work today. I hope everyone had a great Easter! It was bittersweet for me this year since it was the first time not celebrating with my family in North County.  But at the same time, I was able to attend an amazing church service and start some fun new traditions right here in San Dimas with the Kolbeck family.

We attended the CCV church service as we did last year. Because of the influx of people during the holiday, the services are held at Azusa Pacific University so they really make it a neat event. I volunteered during Saturday's service and couldn't wait to attend on Sunday. 

Each year they set up baptism pools and give everyone in the audience (that's hundreds of people!) a chance to give their life to Jesus, start fresh or simply recommit. John and I decided to take the plunge! Pat also wanted to make the commitment so together at the end of the service we approached the pools. The first person we came across was none other than Pastor Dane Johnson...the pastor who married us! We asked if he could also baptize us. It was an incredible experience and I'm so glad we were able to do it together as a married couple. I haven't been able to get Kenny Chesney's song "Baptism" out of my head since! God is good!

After church we headed to the Kolbeck's for some swimming, puppy playtime and family fun. Since we are all adults, we came up with our own egg hunt. We'd each filled five eggs ahead of time with anything we wanted, had a friend hide the eggs and off we went! It was so fun to be a bit competitive with each other and then see what goodies we each received. The treats ranged from chocolates and jelly beans to Chapstick and nail polish to bottles of wine. There was even a "golden" egg with $100!! 



As for John and I...the Easter bunny made a quick stop at our house too. Along with some other things, he left these adorable mason jar candle holders! I have them on our entry table for a rustic, springtime feel but hope to use them on our patio table soon.



Friday, April 18, 2014

What an Amazing Day

Congratulations on making it through another week! Today I'm hoping we can all stop and take a minute to reflect on what this Friday means...Good Friday.

Today is when we, as Christians, commemorate Jesus' death on the cross. Sometimes I wonder how we can call it Good Friday. How can such a brutal, hate-filled death be considered good?! But the fact is that this entire day happened for US. Jesus laid down His life for you and for me. Wow, what an act of love.

I've been listening to my Hillsong Pandora station all morning and the song "Jesus Paid It All" came on. How perfect for today. The lyrics say:
"Jesus paid it all,
All to Him I owe;
Sin had left a crimson stain,
He washed it white as snow."

Take a minute out of your Easter preparations, candy eating, and egg coloring, and let that sink in. This is the essence of Good Friday. And hopefully that brings a smile to your face.