Have a Happy and Blessed Easter

 Here are two cards with Easter greetings.

Yes, Christ was crucified and rose from the dead, and he offers eternal life in heaven to all who say yes to him and become Jesus followers. That is the best gift offered to anyone ever. The certainty of seeing our loved ones again in heaven and being ever joyful there.

Thank you Monica for this adorable bunny card that flew to me all the way from Sweden. And now we all know how to say Happy Easter in Swedish, Glad Pask.

My sons and I attended church today, saw many baptisms, about 8, and we cheered for each person as they were submerged in water and committed to follow Jesus. Then we went to my house and had an Easter feast. A very good day. Best wishes to all of you no matter your religious views.

My new exercise bike and a Heart Monitor for Me!

 Do you sometimes put off doing something? I've been thinking about buying a recumbent exercise bike for a long time, maybe a year, mentioning it to family and friends. 

Well I have one! On March 12 my sons surprised me with the gift of the above JeeKee brand bike, they brought it over and set it up. No more procrastination. It is in my living room and I can sit on it and read a book or watch TV. It even tells me my pulse rate and how far I've gone and how many calories I've burned. I think we all know it takes a LOT of exercise to work off the calories of ice cream for dessert.

So far I am using it a few minutes each day. It is completely silent and uses magnets so there is no friction to create noise. My main goal with it is to raise my heart rate a bit. Sauntering with my pup twice a day is good for body and soul, but pup likes to check and send his email/AKA pee mail so we stop along the way. Anybody else have an exercise bike and any tips on using it?

My Heart Monitor

I added this note on April 14 to this post and will post more soon in a new post. I will get a heart monitor next week, it sticks to your chest for about 2 weeks. The reason for this is that on April 7 while walking my dog I suddenly felt exhausted, it was hard to walk home and when I sat down at home my heart was pounding hard for about 10 minutes. My younger son drove me to the Emergency Room on Saturday where they did lots of tests which all show my heart is healthy. It was scary! So the heart monitor will gather more info. More later. Have you worn a heart monitor?

My sons and I were happy that we continued our Easter plans and went to church the next day. It was joyful, about 400 people, more people there since before Covid, and 16 people were baptized, from age 10 and up, with many in their 20s, 30s and 40s. This gives us hope for the future of the church, new young members. After church I rested and my sons prepared our Easter feast.

Happiest News, Easter Promise

 

He is not here

He has risen,

Just as he said.  Matthew 28:6

Yes, if you say yes to Jesus' offer to follow him he promises eternal life with him in heaven and on the new earth. That is a joy to know him and to know we will have happy reunions in heaven. 

Philippians 2:5-7 “Have this mind among yourselves, which is yours in Christ Jesus, who, though he was in the form of God, did not count equality with God a thing to be grasped, but emptied himself, by taking the form of a servant, being born in the likeness of men.”

I hope you all have a weekend of beauty and grace whether with family or friends or alone. There is much in this world of beauty.

Yellow and Purple for Easter week in my garden

Yellow and purple in my garden this Easter week. 

The yellow shrub is Leucospermum from South Africa, AKA Pincushion. I also planted an orange colored variety 'Sunrise'. I planted the Leucospermum and the purple Pride of Madeira in June 2019 and I love how they have grown a lot. The Pride of Madeira, Echium fastuosum, is now 6 feet tall and wide and the bees love it. The photo below of High Gold Leucospermum shows how they get their nickname of Pincushion.

These plants are in my front yard where all passersby can enjoy. In my previous post you can see the devastation caused by my next door neighbor's tree falling, which stood near these beauties. Happily my garden was not harmed, the main problem was the tree knocked out power to three homes. So I am happy to be able to share these photos of beauty with you.

Easter Joy, He Is Risen

 

Yes, He is risen, a time of joy for Christians, as he gives us the promise of eternal life with him. Christ offers to each and every person in the world this promise, if you say yes and follow him.

Matthew 27:50-54 describes what happened at the moment of Christ's death: the earth quaked, the huge curtain in the temple was torn in two from top to bottom and tombs opened up. "When the centurion and those who were with him, keeping watch over Jesus, saw the earthquake and what took place, they were filled with awe and said 'Truly this was the Son of God.'"

I hope each of you blog readers has a fulfilling Sunday and week and time with loved ones. The eggs below may be Ukrainian eggs, even more precious this year.

Easter Blessings, A Flower Cross and a Bulldog

 

I love to see flower crosses in churches. Some years ago I was a member of a church that created one each year at Easter, and during the service we could all go up to the front of the church and add flowers. A symbol of hope and beauty.

Bull dogs make me smile. 

Years ago when I was in college (yes, many years ago) I visited Jerusalem at Easter and walked the Way of the Cross, it is amazing that you can walk in such an ancient city, and walk where Jesus walked, possibly your feet touching the same stones or road he walked upon. It is a deep religious experience.

Jesus is risen. The Victory is won. Sins are forgiven. Praise God for His Son. Jesus promises all who follow him that he is preparing a home for us in heaven.

"God's power was at work in Christ when God raised him from the dead and sat him at God's right side in the heavens." Ephesians 1:20

[Added on April 5: My adult sons and I attended church indoors for Easter. It was very joyful. Our church is now open for indoor services and the new young lead pastor, the praise/worship band, and the congregation were all energized to meet in person and worship together. What joy. Then my sons and I had an Easter feast at my house and we all pitched in with preparation. We had roast boneless leg of lamb cooked by me, Colt prepared coleslaw, Lane prepared baked asparagus wrapped in prosciuto, we also had baked yams and wild rice. I made a side dish of plain yogurt with lots of fresh mint from my garden. Delicious and a happy day. The guys each took home food for the next day and I have plenty left for today. I hope your day was joyful too].

Easter Sunrise Service at the Ocean

It is foggy and of course dark at this sunrise service on Easter and many people gathered to hear the sermon and worship and I was happy that many strangers came too, some of whom I am sure were just walking along the cliff when they saw us.

Easter is a new creation

  

"On the third day the friends of Christ coming at daybreak to the place found the grave empty and the stone rolled away. In varying ways they realized the new wonder; but even they hardly realized that the world had died in the night. What they were looking at was the first day of a new creation, with a new heaven and a new earth; and in a semblance of the gardener God walked again in the garden, in the cool not of the evening but of the dawn."

Gilbert K. Chesterton

I admire the talent of people who decorate eggs like the above. They are works of art, aren't they?

A Joyful Easter and Spring to All

"... these are written so that you may continue to believe that Jesus is the Messiah, the Son of God, and that by believing in him, you will have life by the power of his name." John 20:31

"Then Jesus told him, Because you have seen me, you have believed; blessed are those who have not seen and yet have believed." John 20:29 Jesus spoke to Thomas after Jesus was crucified and resurrected.

Easter Joy to All

The Easter news brings us great joy, Jesus' resurrection from death on the third day is proof that we too will have eternal life in heaven, as Jesus promises us.
Paul said "I passed on to you, as of first importance: that Christ died for our sins according to the Scriptures, that he was buried, that he was raised on the third day according to the Scriptures."
1 Corinthians 15:3-4
Paul wrote Romans in about 57 A.D. when he was on the road to Jerusalem, perhaps in Turkey or Greece. In this letter he introduced himself and his beliefs to the Christians in Rome as he planned to visit them, on this missionary trip which turned out to be his last.
Romans 1:4-5
And Jesus Christ our Lord was shown to be the Son of God when God powerfully raised him from the dead by means of the Holy Spirit. Through Christ, God has given us the privilege and authority to tell Gentiles everywhere what God has done for them, so that they will believe and obey him, bringing glory to his name.

Such good news for all who believe in Jesus.

Have a Blessed Easter

Amaryllis and daffodils on our table today.

"For God so loved the world that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in Him should not perish but have everlasting life." John 3:16

I like to think of a love that big. He loves us. He loves you.

Easter Joy

Easter
Sing, soul of mine, this day of days.
The Lord is risen.
Toward the sunrising set thy face.
The Lord is risen.
Behold he giveth strength and grace;
For darkness, light; for mourning, praise;
For sin, his holiness; for conflict, peace.
Arise, O soul, this Easter day!
Forget the tomb of yesterday,
For thou from bondage art set free;
Thou sharest in His victory
And life eternal is for thee,
Because the Lord is risen.
                       Author unknown, from book "1,000 Quotable Poems".

Easter Flower Cross "He is Risen"

Easter Flower Cross
Originally uploaded by Avondale Pattillo UMC

⁴ But when they looked up, they saw that the stone had been rolled away—for it was very large. ⁵ And entering the tomb, they saw a young man clothed in a long white robe sitting on the right side; and they were alarmed.
⁶ But he said to them, “Do not be alarmed. You seek Jesus of Nazareth, who was crucified. He is risen! He is not here. See the place where they laid Him. ⁷ But go, tell His disciples—and Peter—that He is going before you into Galilee; there you will see Him, as He said to you.” 
Mark 16:4-7 NKJV

Church of the Holy Sepulchre

Church of the Holy Sepulchre
Originally uploaded by still searching...

He gave everything, that we might live.

Happy Easter to All my dear blog friends, of all faiths, and those still searching.

Easter's Gift

Did you see yesterday's post with the photo of the flower cross?
Today is Easter and this photo sums up why we celebrate Easter and love this day, and this gift, so much.
I hope each of you who read this post will have some celebration today, whether modest or grand, and trust that if you are alone or burdened, know that God loves and cares for you completely, and so do lots of prayer warriors around the world.

Easter flower cross

Easter flower cross
Originally uploaded by Avondale Pattillo UMC

The first time I saw a flower cross in church, I was enchanted by the beauty of the cross, the flowers, and all of us taking a flower up to it, and adding it to the cross on Easter.
We gardeners had all been asked to bring flowers from home, so that made it a true communal project. What a perfect combination of flowers and Jesus, for this Christian gardener.
Happy gardening to all, and Happy Easter too.