It's Good Friday Now...But Easter's Coming!

 Yes, today is Good Friday, April 3, 2026.  

As I went outside early this morning to put out our flag, I was struck by the beauty of the skies...beautiful, and yet kind of moody and foreboding...as if they knew what this day was all about.

As I placed the crown of thorns on the cross, I was once again struck by how sharp they are, and how painful they must have been as they were forced down upon Christ's head as they mocked Him and hailed Him as the King of the Jews in jest...

This past week we took a little ride and I saw these thistle plants blooming alongside the road, so I asked hubby to pull over so I could take some pictures...Once again, I was struck by how painful those thorns would be if I happened to bump into them or tried to pick the flower from the stem...

The flower certainly is beautiful by itself...but I know better than to try and pick it for a bouquet...

Oh My! Once I again I was blessed with the sudden appearance of a beautiful Swallowtail Butterfly who wanted to get some nectar from the thistle flower! He didn't seem to be afraid of the thorns at all...

I was amazed at how this magnificent creature showed up just as I approached the plant...I felt like it was a gift from God at that particular moment...a reminder that He is always very close to us...and also that His Son endured the pain of those thorns just for us...

Because He loved us so much...He was willing to go to the cross and die for our sins so that we might be saved...

What a beautiful reminder...

Thank You, Lord, for what you did for me and for all mankind on that day...and what you are still doing for us today.

So, as I decided to share those pictures today for Good Friday, I remembered that I had already shared something very similar here many years ago, and have revisited it several times through the years.  I thought I should come up with something new today, but this message really says it all and I can't think of anything more to say,  so: 

I am revisiting this post again for today, Good Friday, April 3, 2026.  The message is still the same. May we honor and revere His Holy Name today...

Original Message 3/30/2018:

Dear  Friends...Please bear with me as I share these pictures with you and tie them into Good Friday...a very sacred and Holy Day...The day our Lord was crucified for our sins...so that we might live forever with Him in heaven one day! What an amazing day this is...

Sunday morning as we went forward to take communion, I knelt before the altar to pray, and I was struck by the emblems displayed there on the communion table...the whole of Holy Week was right there before my eyes...The palms for Palm Sunday,  The Bread and the Cup for the Last Supper, and the cross with the crown of thorns that Jesus wore...

 and upon a closer look, I was shocked to see the nails that pierced His hands and feet, and the whip of cords that struck His back and body over and over again, and the money bag with the thirty pieces of silver that Judas received for betraying our Lord...

These items took my breath away...I wasn't expecting to see them there...and it brought me face to face with the agony that our Lord endured that week on my behalf...and as I ate the bread and drank the cup, I prayed that God would forgive my sins and make me worthy of His shed blood...I am only worthy because of His shed blood...His sacrifice that made me whole and declared me to be holy...what a humbling and beautiful experience...such joy in knowing Christ died for me...because He loved me! And He died for YOU, too, because He loves YOU.  I hope you know this to be true in your own life...

Earlier last week during one of our walks I noticed this thistle plant growing alongside the road...look at those thorns...can you imagine the pain of bumping into this plant?  Now imagine having a crown of thorns forced upon  your head...and nails hammered into your hands and feet...No, I can't imagine how painful that must have been...

"Who has believed our report?

And to whom has the arm of the Lord been revealed?

For He shall grow up before Him as a tender plant,

and as a root out of dry ground.

He has no form or comeliness;

and when we see Him,

there is no beauty that we should desire Him.

He is despised and rejected by men,

a Man of sorrows and acquainted with grief.

And we hid, as it were, our faces from Him.

He was despised, and we did not esteem Him.

Isaiah 53:1-3

Surely He has borne our griefs

and carried our sorrows;

Yet we esteemed Him stricken,

Smitten by God, and afflicted.

But He was wounded for our transgressions,

He was bruised for our iniquities;

the chastisement for our peace was upon Him,

And by His stripes we are healed.

All we like sheep have gone astray;

We have turned, every one, to his own way;

And the Lord has laid on Him the iniquity of us all."

Isaiah 53:4-6

A few days later we passed by this same thistle plant, and look!!! Out of something so wicked and evil as these thorny thistles came a thing of great beauty...All of these beautiful butterflies were drawn to this prickly plant to find food and sustenance for their lives!  There were so many they had to fight each other for a place on the flowers to sip its nourishing nectar and live...

Who would have thought that out of something so full of "sorrow" as this thistle would come such life giving food?

Isaiah 53:10-12

"Yet it pleased the Lord to bruise Him;

He has put Him to grief.

When You make His soul and offering for sin,

He shall see His seed,

He shall prolong His days,

and the pleasure of the Lord shall prosper  in His hand.

He shall see the labor of His soul, and be satisfied.

By His knowledge My righteous Servant shall justify many,

for He shall bear their iniquities.

Therefore I will divide Him a portion with the great,

and He shall divide the spoil with the strong,

Because He poured out His soul unto death,

and He was numbered with the transgressors,

and He bore the sin of many,

and made intercession for the transgressors."

Thank You, Lord, for Your sacrifice for my sins. Out of Your suffering and great sorrow came new life and extreme joy.  Thank You for the beautiful gift of Your grace and salvation...and food for our souls so that we might live, and that more abundantly.   Amen.

It's Good Friday, But Easter is coming!!

Have a Blessed and Glorious Easter, my friends!

Monday Monday ~ Blessings

 Psalm 96:1-6

Oh, sing to the Lord a new song!

Sing to the Lord, all the earth.

2 Sing to the Lord, bless His name;

Proclaim the good news of His salvation from day to day.

3 Declare His glory among the nations,

His wonders among all peoples.

4 For the Lord is great and greatly to be praised;

He is to be feared above all gods.

5 For all the gods of the peoples are idols,

But the Lord made the heavens.

6 Honor and majesty are before Him;

Strength and beauty are in His sanctuary.

Happy Monday! I thought I'd start out with that beautiful Swallowtail Butterfly enjoying sipping the nectar from the Bottlebrush Tree in our yard.  When I first planted that bush, it was small, and I really didn't think about how large/tall it would get. I mainly wanted it for my butterfly garden area so it would attract butterflies and hummingbirds. 

 It is definitely doing exactly what I wanted it to do! My only complaint is that it is getting quite tall and is starting to obstruct a part of our view of Still Waters Pond!

I thought about transplanting it to a different location not quite so central to our view of the pond, but then we wouldn't be able to see the hummingbirds and butterflies when they are on there...so I guess we can sacrifice the one to be able to enjoy the other, and yes, we can still see the pond.  And actually, once the blooming season is over and the hummingbirds and butterflies have moved further south for the winter we can trim the bush back down to a more reasonable level and let it grow stronger before the next blooming season begins.

Oftentimes in life we do have to learn to make some sacrifices of something that seems really good to achieve something even better.  It's not always easy to do, but when we think about the overall bigger picture, it makes sense. 

2 Corinthians 4:16-18 seems to sum up this thought about making sacrifices in our lives now for that which is greater for us in the long run...that is, for eternity!

"16 Therefore we do not lose heart. Even though our outward man is perishing, 

yet the inward man is being renewed day by day. 

17 For our light affliction, which is but for a moment, 

is working for us a far more exceeding and eternal weight of glory, 

18 while we do not look at the things which are seen, but at the things which are not seen. For the things which are seen are temporary, 

but the things which are not seen are eternal."

That is a good reminder for me today.  It seems like lately I've been making little sacrifices here and there in being able to do some of the things I enjoy because of my hubby's health issues, and then even this past weekend because of my own health issues. Nothing serious, just a virus of some sort, but I had to forego attending a baby shower at our church on Saturday and then also church services yesterday.  But I definitely didn't want to "share" any germs with the expectant mother or anyone else, and it was truly better for me to stay home and rest and get over whatever this is. Today I am just kind of washed out and still tired, so it is definitely best to just stay put and rest and recuperate.  

Friday evening we invited the kids over for "Taco Friday" (instead of "Taco Tuesday"). I was feeling fine then, and we wanted to give them a break from their kitchen redo that they were tackling all last week.  And no, they didn't get it finished yet, but at least they made some good progress. I will definitely post pictures when the job is done. 

And lest you think we don't pay enough attention to our Grandpuppies now that we have our own porch kitties...here's Rose holding Spice up to look out the window above the curtain we put up to keep the pups from seeing the cats out there.  Apparently the cats were not in sight at this moment or she wouldn't have been able to hold a squirming pup for long...LOL. 

And there's Sugar waiting her turn to look out the window, with her doggie toy squeaking away... LOL.

They sure are sweet pups and we enjoy them coming to visit...but the curtain idea really helps keep them from going crazy over seeing the cats.  At one time Sunshine peeked up over the curtain while sitting in the chair that it was fastened to, so we had to distract the pups really quickly and Sunshine was satisfied that there wasn't much going on so he moved on.  Blackie also peeked once as well, and again, quick thinking inside averted a noisy uprising. LOL.  

I guess there isn't much else to share today. I just wanted to check in with you and let you know I'm still here. I didn't get around to read very many posts over the weekend so I am a bit behind in knowing how all of you are doing.  Hopefully I will get caught up this week.  

Oh, one more special story...This is a picture of my dear friend Sharon and her son Robb. Sharon passed away from cancer in 2019.  Sharon adopted Robb when he was about two years old. Although Sharon was single, she raised Robb with so much love and care. He had some special needs and life was pretty challenging for them for a while, but with God's love and guidance, Robb grew to be a very fine young man.  They lived here in Florida for a good while, which is where we became acquainted, and we became their "Florida Family".  However, Sharon was originally from a very large family in Minnesota, and in her final days she went to live with one of her sisters there until she passed away.  Robb also went to live in Minnesota and eventually got a good job and met a very sweet young lady.  

We have stayed in touch with Robb through Facebook and also other family members. I was very thrilled and blessed to receive these pictures from Robb over the weekend:

Meet baby Ellie!  I knew she was expected, but she came a little bit early, so this was a pleasant surprise:

And here's Baby Ellie and her happy Mama:

Of course my first thought was how happy my friend Sharon would be to know that her Robb is now a Daddy, and that he has grown to be a very responsible and thoughtful man.  I know Sharon would've been thrilled to be a grandma, and I hope she can see Baby Ellie from heaven.  Who knows about these things? Only God knows for sure, but I have a feeling Sharon already knows all about little Ellie, and if people in heaven can pray for us here on earth, you can well imagine that little Ellie has been bathed in heavenly prayers and love ever since her conception.  

Psalm 139:13-16

"13 For You formed my inward parts;

You covered me in my mother’s womb.

14 I will praise You, for I am fearfully and wonderfully made;

Marvelous are Your works,

And that my soul knows very well.

15 My frame was not hidden from You,

When I was made in secret,

And skillfully wrought in the lowest parts of the earth.

16 Your eyes saw my substance, being yet unformed.

And in Your book they all were written,

The days fashioned for me,

When as yet there were none of them."

I wish they weren't so far away, as I would love to play surrogate Grandma for little Ellie, but thankfully Robb has many doting Aunts and cousins and family members nearby who will definitely make sure that Little Ellie gets LOTS of "grandma"  kind of love.  She will be much loved and blessed for certain. I know that she will be added to my prayers and who knows? Maybe I'll get to meet her and hold her someday. 

Okay, that's all for now. Thank you for listening. Have a blessed and wonderful week my friends.

Friday Foto Friends, It's Good Friday...(Revisited)

Note to my readers: I have posted this same post twice today...one was the repeat of the old, and the other was a new copy w/o the old comments. Sorry if that is confusing to you...I wanted a 'fresh copy' to post on my church's facebook page. Anyway, I hope you'll forgive me for posting it twice in one day! Thank you for understanding. I should have done the new one first, but as usual, I'm slow to think these things out.  Have a blessed an prayerful "Good Friday" my friends.

This is another repeat of a previous year's Good Friday post.  As I re-read it just now, I was so touched by the message that God gave me here in 2018, that I wanted to share it with you again. Many of you may have already commented on it in previous years, but I hope you will appreciate the wonder of this day with me once again as we reflect on God's great sacrifice for our sins today.

Original Message 3/30/2018:

Dear Friday Foto Friends...Please bear with me as I share these pictures with you and tie them into Good Friday...a very sacred and Holy Day...The day our Lord was crucified for our sins...so that we might live forever with Him in heaven one day! What an amazing day this is...

Sunday morning as we went forward to take communion, I knelt before the altar to pray, and I was struck by the emblems displayed there on the communion table...the whole of Holy Week was right there before my eyes...The palms for Palm Sunday,  The Bread and the Cup for the Last Supper, and the cross with the crown of thorns that Jesus wore...

 and upon a closer look, I was shocked to see the nails that pierced His hands and feet, and the whip of cords that struck His back and body over and over again, and the money bag with the thirty pieces of silver that Judas received for betraying our Lord...

These items took my breath away...I wasn't expecting to see them there...and it brought me face to face with the agony that our Lord endured that week on my behalf...and as I ate the bread and drank the cup, I prayed that God would forgive my sins and make me worthy of His shed blood...I am only worthy because of His shed blood...His sacrifice that made me whole and declared me to be holy...what a humbling and beautiful experience...such joy in knowing Christ died for me...because He loved me! And He died for YOU, too, because He loves YOU.  I hope you know this to be true in your own life...

Earlier last week during one of our walks I noticed this thistle plant growing alongside the road...look at those thorns...can you imagine the pain of bumping into this plant?  Now imagine having a crown of thorns forced upon  your head...and nails hammered into your hands and feet...No, I can't imagine how painful that must have been...

"Who has believed our report?

And to whom has the arm of the Lord been revealed?

For He shall grow up before Him as a tender plant,

and as a root out of dry ground.

He has no form or comeliness;

and when we see Him,

there is no beauty that we should desire Him.

He is despised and rejected by men,

a Man of sorrows and acquainted with grief.

And we hid, as it were, our faces from Him.

He was despised, and we did not esteem Him.

Isaiah 53:1-3

Surely He has borne our griefs

and carried our sorrows;

Yet we esteemed Him stricken,

Smitten by God, and afflicted.

But He was wounded for our transgressions,

He was bruised for our iniquities;

the chastisement for our peace was upon Him,

And by His stripes we are healed.

All we like sheep have gone astray;

We have turned, every one, to his own way;

And the Lord has laid on Him the iniquity of us all."

Isaiah 53:4-6

A few days later we passed by this same thistle plant, and look!!! Out of something so wicked and evil as these thorny thistles came a thing of great beauty...All of these beautiful butterflies were drawn to this prickly plant to find food and sustenance for their lives!  There were so many they had to fight each other for a place on the flowers to sip its nourishing nectar and live...

Who would have thought that out of something so full of "sorrow" as this thistle would come such life giving food?

Isaiah 53:10-12

"Yet it pleased the Lord to bruise Him;

He has put Him to grief.

When You make His soul and offering for sin,

He shall see His seed,

He shall prolong His days,

and the pleasure of the Lord shall prosper  in His hand.

He shall see the labor of His soul, and be satisfied.

By His knowledge My righteous Servant shall justify many,

for He shall bear their iniquities.

Therefore I will divide Him a portion with the great,

and He shall divide the spoil with the strong,

Because He poured out His soul unto death,

and He was numbered with the transgressors,

and He bore the sin of many,

and made intercession for the transgressors."

Thank You, Lord, for Your sacrifice for my sins. Out of Your suffering and great sorrow came new life and extreme joy.  Thank You for the beautiful gift of Your grace and salvation...and food for our souls so that we might live, and that more abundantly.   Amen.

Have a Blessed and Glorious Easter, my friends!

Waking Up to New Life

"Through the Lord's mercies we are not consumed,

Because His compassions fail not.

They are NEW EVERY MORNING;

Great is Your faithfulness.

'The Lord is my portion,' says my soul,

'Therefore I hope in Him!'

The Lord is good to those who wait for Him,

To the soul who seeks Him."

Lamentations 3:23-25

This was the sight that met me when I opened our drapes and looked outside our bedroom window early this morning!  This absolutely perfect Giant Swallowtail butterfly was resting on the holly tree, and when I went outside to take its picture it didn't even attempt to move.  The sun was still coming up and it was still a little too dark to get a really good picture, so I thought I would go back out when it was a little brighter, and he was gone.  I feel so blessed that I was able to capture this picture at all!  Ordinarily I wouldn't have even opened the drapes that early, but there was a "red sky" sunrise shining through the drapes, and I didn't want to miss it...and look at this wonderful surprise that God had waiting for me!

I wondered just why the butterfly chose this particular tree to rest on perhaps through the night?  Maybe he felt safe there, close to the house and away from possible predators...or maybe somehow he knew that there were pictures of butterflies hanging on the wall just inside this window!?

Do you see him through the window below?

Whatever the reason, to me it was a definite blessing and gift from God...like the verses from Lamentations above...

"Because His compassions fail not, 

They are NEW every morning...Great is Your Faithfulness!"  

What a beautiful way to start the day! Praise God!!

Let's Sing along with and old favorite hymn:
"Great Is Thy Faithfulness"

“Great is Thy faithfulness,” O God my Father, There is no shadow of turning with Thee; Thou changest not, Thy compassions, they fail not As Thou hast been Thou forever wilt be.  Refrain: “Great is Thy faithfulness!”  “Great is Thy faithfulness!” Morning by morning new mercies I see; All I have needed Thy hand hath provided— “Great is Thy faithfulness,”  Lord, unto me! 2 Summer and winter, and springtime and harvest, Sun, moon and stars in their courses above, Join with all nature in manifold witness To Thy great faithfulness, mercy and love. 3 Pardon for sin and a peace that endureth, Thine own dear presence to cheer and to guide; Strength for today and bright hope for tomorrow, Blessings all mine, with ten thousand beside! © 1923. Ren. 1951 Hope Publishing Co., Carol Stream, IL 60188 www.hopepublishing.com