Easter Sunday

Now that I have recovered a little bit, I can give a small summary of the Easter services I was involved in over Saturday evening and Sunday morning.

First of all, I was very surprised to see so many people come out for all of the services. My early estimate of 11,000 plus was most likely surpassed. The grand total won't be told until Wednesday night at choir rehearsal. The temperature was only 15 degrees when I drove to the church building Sunday morning a little after 7, but the sun was shinning and there were no clouds in the sky. Perhaps people thought it was too cold to be outside at the parks or lakes, so decided to go to church.

The music was just wonderful (and not because I was participating). Everyone was "right on" with the director and the audience seemed to really enjoy it. The audience participation was super! I know the Lord was pleased and praised. It was truly a blessing.

I shared this with Rachel already, but on Easter Sunday we do not have classes for the young people to attend, so they are in the service with their parents. It is a real treat for me to see them. Some try to sing along, others are being held. They're all adorable! I usually see a little family that reminds me of Hans, Rachel, Josiah and Annika. I have to be careful not to watch them too much during the congregational singing, or I tear up. Oh, how I miss those little angels!

One would think sitting through the same sermon 7 times would be boring, but our pastor has such a unique way of mixing things up each time, that I would find myself really paying attention to see how he was going to present it each time.

At the conclusion, two friends and I went to a lovely restaurant and had some of the best food I have ever tasted. I even took our waiter up on the complimentary glass of champagne. It was fun to sit with these gals and just take our time to eat and visit. Following that, I went home and crashed.