Holy Weekend

We had a great Good Friday. We worked around the house, unpacking, cleaning, rearranging. It was good for all of us to be home together all day and focus on family for a change. We enjoyed the DirecTV Songs of Praise which is running all weekend, and is unabashedly evangelical Christian. We grilled hamburgers tonight for supper, the first time we've grilled since we've moved to the parsonage, and they were so good.

For those of you who were praying, yep, I got that paper turned in for New Testament on time last week. I did an exegesis paper on 1 Timothy 2:9-15, that controversial passage on women.

Our Passover Seder on Maundy Thursday night was a blast! I would have been satisfied if 25 had shown up, but we had at least 80 attend. Plus, the hospitality team did so well in putting together all the fixins. We had a lot of participation, including two young brothers, one of whom read the four questions and one of whom opened the door for Elijah.

I was blown away by the response, especially afterwards with the comments from everyone about how much they learned, how much they liked it, etc. But we didn't have that many nice comments about the food! Horseradish, parsley, salt water, boiled egg, and apple-cinnamon together just don't sound appetizing in these parts. But everyone appreciated the lessons of truth through the senses and all the shadows of Him who was to come and is to come again, our Messiah, Jesus Christ.

Tomorrow we have two kids' Easter parties to attend for Luke.

On Resurrection Sunday, the highest holy day of the Christian calendar, we start early with a 6:30am Sunrise service (they get up early in these parts and actually know what time the sun comes up) which will include the Lord's Supper by families, followed by breakfast, then the regular Sunday schedule. I'll be preaching on Psalm 22 and doing a children's sermon on the dogwood bloom. We will be enjoying Easter dinner with the Glasscock family.

Next Saturday, our little dog Cleo will be arriving (and we are thinking of changing her name to Dixie when she arrives). Two and a half pounds of happy, jumping, loving, yiping, light-chasing rabbit dachshund, and she was the runt on top of that. She was not allowed in seminary housing in Wake Forest. Amanda's parents are bringing her next Saturday from their home in Clermont, FL. Though we're sure they are glad to be taking Cleo back to her rightful owners, we think they are probably more excited about coming to see Mr. Luke, and they are in for a treat. He has learned to give kisses in the past few weeks.

Next Sunday, April 23, I'll be performing my first baptism as a pastor. I've baptized guys before whom I've led to Christ and discipled at Presbyterian College, both in the Enoree River and the Little River in Laurens County, SC. But this will be the first official, post-ordination, church baptismal tub immersion I've done. I have the privilege of baptizing Nicole Williamson, nine years old, who gave her life to Christ during the recent revival services we had with Phil Thrailkill.

Tell me how you like these pictures of an African Communion, Crucifixion, and Resurrection. Click the comment link below to respond. Wish I had had these pictures in Liberia where every Jesus is a 1950's white American with blond hair and blue eyes.


That's more than enough fat chewed for a while.