Sunday, March 23, 2008

He is Risen!

He is risen indeed! I had the privilege of singing these two songs with our church choir this morning. I can't describe the emotions we all felt while singing them...singing of the hope we have in our resurrected Saviour. I hope just reading these words will bless you as they did us.


Day Three
Words and Music by Jerry Salley


Day one, they found Him guilty and sentenced Him to die.
When the crowd heard the news, they shouted, "Crucify!".
Crowned with thorns, they mocked His name and nailed Him to a cross.
He hung there 'til His dying breath.
Day one, all hope was lost.

Day two was still and quiet, the crowd had all gone home;
His broken body in the tomb, sealed with the soldier's stone.
Believers who had followed Him grieved and questioned why.
Seeds of fear and doubt take hold.
Day two, disciples hide.

Day three, His body's missing, the stone was rolled away!
An angel of the Lord appeared when the women came.
Trembling out of fear and joy, amazed at what they find,
they quickly run to spread the word.
Day three, He is alive!

Day one the hill ran crimson red, the blood to cleanse all sin.
Day two reminds us, keep the faith when the doubts set in.
What a diff'rence one day makes from death to victory.
The cross became an empty grave on day three.

They nailed Him to a cross; He was condemned to die.
They placed Him in a tomb, no hope that He'd survive.
He rose from the grave, and now He is alive!


In Christ Alone
Travis Cottrell

In Christ alone, my hope is found;
He is my light, my strength, my song.
This cornerstone, this solid ground,
Firm through the fiercest drought and storm.
What heights of love, what depths of peace,
The fears are stilled, when strivings cease.
My Comforter, my All in all,
Here in the love of Christ I stand.

In Christ alone, Who took on flesh,
Fullness of God in helpless Babe.
This gift of love and righteousness,
Scorned by the ones He came to save.
'Til on that cross, as Jesus died,
The wrath of God was satisfied,
For every sin on Him was laid;
Here in the death of Christ I live.

There in the ground His body lay,
Light of the world by darkness slain.
Then bursting forth in glorious day,
Up from the grave he rose again!
And as He stands in victory,
Sin's curse has lost its grip on me;
For I am His and He is mine,
Bought with the precious blood of Christ.

No guilt in life, no fear in death,
This is the pow'r of Christ in me.
From life's first cry to final breath,
Jesus commands my destiny;
No power of hell, no scheme of man
Can ever pluck me from His hand;
'Til He returns or calls me home,
Here in the pow'r of Christ I'll stand!

Friday, March 21, 2008

"Celebrating" the death of Jesus?

Why is Good Friday referred to as “good”? What the Jewish authorities and Romans did to Jesus was definitely not good (see Matthew chapters 26-27). However, the results of Christ’s death are very good! Romans 5:8, “But God demonstrates his own love toward us, in that while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us.” 1 Peter 3:18, “For Christ also died for sins once for all, the just for the unjust, so that He might bring us to God, having been put to death in the flesh, but made alive in the spirit."
This is a beautiful song...and perfect for Good Friday. If you get a chance, I recommend looking it up online to listen to it.


Why-Nichole Nordeman


We rode into town the other day
Just me and my Daddy
He said I'd finally reached that age
And I could ride next to him on a horse
That of course was not quite as wide
We heard a crowd of people shouting
And so we stopped to find out why
And there was that man
That my dad said he loved
But today there was fear in his eyes


So I said "Daddy, why are they screaming?
Why are the faces of some of them beaming?
Why is He dressed in that bright purple robe?
I'll bet that crown hurts Him more than He shows
Daddy, please can't you do something?
He looks as though He's gonna cry
You said he was stronger than all of those guys
Daddy, please tell me why
Why does everyone want him to die?"

Later that day the sky grew cloudy
And Daddy said I should go inside
Somehow he knew things would get stormy
Boy was he right
But I could not keep from wondering
If there was something he had to hide
So after he left I had to find out
I was not afraid of getting lost
So I followed the crowds
To a hill where I knew men had been killed
And I heard a voice come from the cross

And it said, "Father, why are they screaming?
Why are the faces of some of them beaming?
Why are they casting their lots for My robe?
This crown of thorns hurts Me more than it shows
Father, please can't You do something?
I know that You must hear My cry
I thought I could handle a cross of this size
Father, remind Me why
Why does everyone want Me to die?
When will I understand why?"

"My precious Son, I hear them screaming
I'm watching the face of the enemy beaming
But soon I will clothe You in robes of My own
Jesus, this hurts Me much more than You know
But this dark hour I must do nothing
Though I've heard Your unbearable cry
The power in Your blood destroys all of the lies
Soon You'll see past their unmerciful eyes
Look there below, see the child
Trembling by her father's side
Now I can tell You why
She is why You must die"

Monday, March 10, 2008

Yeeeeaaaaahhhhh Robert! (And Dillo too!)

Have I mentioned lately how proud I am of my husband? Since May 1st, 2007, he has lost about 115 pounds. He has worked so hard and has been so diligient. Many years ago...20 to be exact...he and his friend Dillo flew up to San Francisco and rode their bikes home over an 8 day period. Since Robert started losing weight, he wanted to get back into bicycling. I don't remember when exactly he decided to ride the Solvang Century, but it was several months ago. He invited Dillo to go along with him for the ride. Robert has been training very hard and it sure paid off! He clocked 104 miles on Saturday. I have never been more proud of my husband than when I saw him cross that finish line...maybe with the exception of the first time I saw him holding our daughter. Here are some pictures of his amazing day.



At the starting point very early Saturday morning. The day started out pretty foggy, but it all burned off into a beautiful summer-like day.


Robert took pictures along the way using his cell phone. Gotta love cell phones!



Robert's sister Ellen joined us later in the day. Here she is following the real leader!


Lily did so well all day. She had a great time and played a LOT! About 10 minutes before Robert and Dillo finished, she finally had a melt down. That was TONS of fun! Poor baby. I can't blame her...she sure was a trooper for most of the day. So here is the documentation of said melt down for future bribery.;o)



Crossing the finish line....Wooooohooooo!



The end of a very long day.


Proud daddy...tired Lily.

Thursday, March 6, 2008

Rocking Lily!

Lily can now get into her rocking chair all by herself. We crack up every time we watch her scoot back into it!

Wednesday, March 5, 2008

Happy 100th Post!

I did a very informal sort of semi photo shoot with Lily in her lovely purple Chinese outfit (thank you Auntie Jenny!). And what goes better with a Chinese outfit than a Chinese Panda!?!







Lily wearing her first pair of two piece non-footie pajamas. They were cute, but still not as cute as the footie kind (even though they were purple!).









We went on a playdate for Auntie Jenny's birthday at the mall the other day. Lily loved playing in the little kiddie area. This little girl is really on the move. She is no fan of her stroller anymore. She wants to run...not walk...everywhere! She also likes to push her stroller around now. She is such a big girl!


By the way...the oufit she is wearing here is one she wore when we first came home last summer. It is a size 3-6 months...she is 18 1/2 months old! The bottoms were supposed to be pants, but on her now they are more like bermuda shorts.;o) I just thought it was hilarious that she could still wear it...and I was glad because it's really cute!