A Royal Wedding Fit for the Prince and His Bride

Ah, Prince William Arthur Philip Louis, son of Prince Charles and the late Princess Diana of Wales, is finally getting married. The bride to be? Catherine Elizabeth Middleton. We have watched these two come together for years before this moment, and I don't know about anyone else, but I look forward to their future together as Prince and Princess of Wales, Duke and Duchess of Cambridge.

I watched his parents' wedding on July 29, 1981, nearly 30 years ago. I was merely 14 at the time, extremely impressionable during that time, that's for sure. :) The magic of that day lives on in my mind. The splendor of that wedding was enchanting, representative of a true fairy tale wedding.

Fast forward 30 years. It is utterly amazing how different these weddings are!! Oh sure, both were very grand weddings, but there is a different feel, a different air, about today's wedding.

It could just be me, but I honestly don't remember Prince Charles and Lady Diana' wedding being so spiritually endowed and protective as Prince William's and Catherine's today. I greatly enjoyed the service. It was said that Prince Charles chose most of the musical arrangement, including a piece or two from his own wedding to Lady Diana. I found that intriguing and was pleasantly surprised.

The music, from the numbers, the choir, the band, the orchestra. STUNNING. Absolutely magnificent.

I had quite forgotten what Westminster Abbey looked like on the inside. Oh my goodness!!!!! How immense!! There was a "ceiling shot" of the wedding at one point, and the people looked like ants!! I realize that Prince William and Catherine are athletic, but you wouldn't hafta join a gym if you walked the abbey once a week. Wow. Stunningly beautiful, too. If the walls could talk of the history made there. The acoustics there are brilliant. The choir sounded angelic. The music reverberated with powerful presence.

Speaking of presence. I'm glad to see so many recognizable faces among the crowd. I'm glad to see the support of each of their families present. There had to be a slight bittersweet moment for Prince William as he is painfully aware that his mother is not there with him, but is with him in spirit. She would be SO PROUD of both of her sons, and I'm beyond sure that she would welcome Catherine with open arms. So much of Princess Diana is evident in Prince William. I'm sure that's probably one of many reasons Catherine finds him attractive. :) To have his brother, Prince Harry, by his side adds to the magnificence this wedding brings to the royal family.

Catherine's mother, Carol Middleton, is an elegant lady in her own right. It's easy to see where Catherine gets her beauty. Her father is notably handsome, too, as is her brother. Her sister was drop-dead gorgeous as the bride's maid, almost overshadowing the bride, though it became evident that Catherine can hold her own. Many thought that Catherine would show up wearing a dress more like Pippa wore. I'm glad to see her look more elegant and stately in the dress she chose instead. Her fashion sense will undoubtedly transform the nation as Princess Diana did before her.

Let's talk about that dress for a moment. STUNNING. So simple, so elegant, so regal, so Catherine. Nothing super extravagant. Very modern with a touch of tradition. A dress representative of HER own wedding. A dress that just may convey genuine love for her prince. Prince William? Oh my goodness. So handsome in his red Irish Guard uniform, he clearly stood out as the groom.

The cry for the balcony kiss was answered with a nice quick peck on the lips between husband and wife...prince and princess. If you had blinked, you missed it. Some seemed disappointed that there was not more public consummation than that. Considering that royals before Prince Charles and Lady Diana never publicly kissed each other, I think they should be content with what they got! Some traditions are difficult to make new. However, I do believe that Prince William and his wife, Catherine, now Princess Catherine, are off to a most wonderful start in their new life ahead of them.

I wish Prince William, Duke of Cambridge, and Princess Catherine, Duchess of Cambridge, the most blessed future in Christ's timeless love.

Most Devastating Tornado Season

My heart goes out to everyone who has been affected by this unusual rash of tornado activity this spring...this APRIL...we've got until October, if I remember correctly! There have been soooooo many tornados just in these last few weeks, and this particular tornado season has been by far the most destructive in years.

I am deeply concerned about my family and friends who live in the south and southeast. Some of these tornados have appeared without warning. Buildings have been destroyed, people have died. As one person has reported, there are towns in Alabama that have virtually been obliterated. None of us are truly safe. We've had our share of tornado warnings, too, but thankfully they've not been too destructive, just scary.

Oh, to be like Jesus, who could sleep on a boat in the middle of the stormy sea. Jonah did the same thing...he had to be awakened to calm the fears of his companions. Praying for safety for my self, my home, my family and their homes, my friends and their homes during this turbulent season. He is indeed our shelter in the time of the storm.

The Birth Certificate, Revealed

FIN-AL-LY!!!!! The most coveted birth certificate of the nation is finally revealed today. All I've got to say is that it's about time.

I'm glad President Obama finally got around to revealing his birth certificate to the nation. It's an issue that should've been settled at the beginning of his campaign, not well into two-and-a-half years of his presidency. He KNEW his birth certificate has been an issue since the beginning. He produced something that was for some reason questionable in the eyes of a good portion of America (not necessarily majority, but a lot of people were not satisfied). Not that it's up to idle Americans to determine whether a birth certificate is authentic or not, but when there were more questions as to its authenticity, especially when other documents indicate that he was born outside of America, why did he not address them THEN and get this issue RESOLVED?? One of the fundamental principles in our Constitution is that a president must have been born in the United States of America. If he truly had issues in presenting his birth certificate, as supposedly he was not permitted to handle the original, why could he not just say so and have Hawaii confirm the issue??

Why were there rumors that President Obama spent over $2 billion dollars to HIDE his birth certificate?? Why were there Internet rumors floating around, seemingly unchecked, that he truly has a birth certificate from Kenya, making him utterly disqualified to be our president?? And again, why did it take President Obama so long to answer the public??
I'm sorry, but I can't help but think that he brought this soap opera upon himself by seemingly ignoring the people who believe this is an important issue. He calls this silliness, a distraction, carnival side show, but yet he basically brought this upon himself by not standing up and putting this issue to rest much sooner.

I agree that there are far more serious national issues that demand attention than seeing our president's birth certificate, especially this late in the game. However, when a president seems to balk at the request, cause growing unnecessary and mysterious controversy, and instead dismisses and criticizes the very people who deserve straight-forward answers...oh yeah, I believe the word is "transparency"...America is going to take notice and even demand answers. Americans can be like children who keep asking why 'til the parent throws up their hand and says, "BECAUSE I SAID SO!!!" Okay, now supposedly he has released his birth certificate. Are we happy now? That remains to be seen, but I'm happy to see SOME kind of closure to this issue, even I was getting quite annoyed with this issue, but not because of the birth certificate itself but the seemingly reluctance to produce it, even again. Sure, there may be more charges of controversy, but answer them and move on to the more important national issues that demand greater attention. In case he hasn't figured that out yet, ignoring the people he serves does not give him brownie points and it will tie him down to move forward to more pressing issues.

I hope this becomes completely resolved. He DOES have greater issues that need his attention.

Favorite Hymns That Remind Me of Resurrection Day

As I completed my last blog entry, many hymns and songs came to mind as we worship on Resurrection Day. I'm sure many of you know and love these, too!

He LIVES! He LIVES! Christ Jesus Lives today! He walks with me, and talks with me, along life's narrow way! He LIVES! He LIVES! Salvation to impart, you ask me how I know He lives...he LIVES within my heart!

There's within my heart a melody, Jesus whispers sweet and low. Fear not, I'm with thee, peace be still, in all of life's ebb and flow. Jesus, Jesus, Jesus, sweetest name I know!
Fills my every longing, keeps me singing as I go.

What can wash my sins away? Nothing but the blood of Jesus!
What can make me whole again? Nothing but the blood of Jesus!
O, precious is the flow that makes me white as snow,
No other fount I know! Nothing but the blood of Jesus!

Jesus paid it all! All to Him I owe; Sin had left a crimson stain, He washed it white as snow!

Since I have been redeemed, since I have been redeemed, I will glory in His Name; since I have been redeemed, I will glory in my Saviour's Name!

Oh, what a Saviour, that He died for me! From condemnation He hath made me free; "He that believeth on the Son," saith He, "Hath everlasting life!"
"Verily, verily, I say unto you." "Verily, verily," message ever new;
"He that believeth on the Son," 'tis true, "Hath everlasting life!"

Alas! and did my Saviour bleed? And did my Sov'reign die? Would He devote that sacred head for such a worm as I?
Was it for crimes that I have done, He groaned upon the tree? Amazing pity! Grace unknown! And love beyond degree!
But drops of grief can ne'er repay the debt of Love I owe; Here, Lord, I give myself away, 'Tis all that I can do.
He loves me, He loves me, He loves me, this I know; He gave himself to die for em, because he loved me so.

Obviously, these are just a few and hardly scratches the surface of songs to sing! But on such a wonderful day as this, how can I stop singing??
Have a most blessed Resurrection Day!

Resurrection Day, the Most Blessed Day for Christians

We are heading into one of the most sacred season of a Christian's life, the remembrance of the Resurrection of our Lord Jesus Christ~~commonly called Easter or Easter Sunday. So many old hymns flood my mind as I think of this time. : )

This season always brings to my mind Ecclesiastes 7:1 which says "...the day of death (is better) than the day of one's birth." This sounds very odd to our natural ears as we live in this world, but Solomon has something here. While Jesus' birth brought the Promise into this world, it was His death, His burial and, most importantly, His resurrection that fulfilled that Promise of reconciliation between God and man.

Living He loved me,
Dying He saved me,
Buried He carried my sins far away,
RISING He justified freely forever!
One day He's coming, O GLORIOUS DAY!

The prophesy of Salvation is threaded throughout the Bible from Old Testament through the New Testament. Mankind has been looking forward to this Salvation since the fall of (Eve and) Adam. The promise of Redemption has been on the mind of God since He pronounced sentences to Eve, Adam and the serpent. God has always given man a spirit that longs and seeks Him, though not all do.

Many Christians call this time Easter, although our traditions and customs greatly differ from those of the original Pagan celebrants of the holiday Easter. Easter eggs and bunnies and baskets with all the trimmin's have nothing to do with the joyously solemn occasion of celebrating the resurrection of Jesus, the Christ. There seems to be a growing movement of Christians calling this Resurrection Day instead, leaving the more frolicsome customs back to our secular participants.

There is nothing wrong with this, nothing at all. What a way to experience the fullness of the Resurrection in our lives! We are reconciled to God and living in the age of grace! All we need to do is accept His gift! He is the ultimate and perfect sacrifice, and He did this willingly, with us on His mind. We are living in the New Testament because He IS the New Testament. We have new life (eternal and earthly) because of His willing sacrifice.

Hebrews 9:8-28
The Holy Ghost this signifying that the way into the holiest of all
was not yet made manifest, while as the first tabernacle was yet
standing:
Which was a figure for the time then present, in which there were
offered both gifts and sacrifices, that could not make him that did the
service perfect, as pertaining to the conscience;
Which stood only in the meats and drinks, and divers washings, and carnal
ordinances, imposed on them until the time of reformation.
But Christ being come an high priest of good things to come, by a greater
and more perfect tabernacle, not made with hands, that is to say, not of
this building:
Neither by the blood of goats and calves, but by his own blood he entered
in once into the holy place, having obtained eternal redemption for
us.
For if the blood of bulls and of goats, and the ashes of an heifer
sprinkling the unclean, sanctifieth to the purifying of the flesh:
How much more shall the blood of Christ, who through the eternal Spirit
offered Himself without spot to God, purge your conscience from dead
works to serve the living God?
And for this cause he is the mediator of the NEW TESTAMENT, that by
means of death, for the redemption of the transgressions that were
under the first testament, they which are called might receive the promise of eternal inheritance.
For where a testament is, there must also of necessity be the death of the
TESTATOR.
For a testament is of force after men are dead: otherwise it is of no
strength at all while the testator liveth.
Whereupon neither the first testament was dedicated without
blood.
For when Moses had spoken every precept to all the people according to
the law, he took the blood of calves and of goats, with water, and scarlet wool,
and hyssop, and sprinkled both the book, and all the people.
Saying, This is the blood of the testament which God hath enjoined unto
you.
Moreover he sprinkled with blood both the tabernacle, and all the
vessels of the ministry.
And almost all things are by the law purged with blood; and without
shedding of blood is no remission.
It was therefore necessary that the patterns of things in the heavens
should be purified with these, but the heavenly things themselves with better
sacrifices than these.
For Christ is not entered into the holy places made with hands, which are
the figures of the true; but unto heaven itself, now to appear in the presence
of God for us:
Nor yet that he should offer himself often, as the high priest entereth
into the holy place every year with blood of others;
For then must he often have suffered since the foundation of the world: but
now once in the end of the world hath he appeared to put away sin by the
sacrifice of himself.
And as it is appointed unto men once to die, but after this the
judgment:
So Christ was once offered to bear the sins of many; and unto them that
look for him shall he appear the second time without sin unto salvation.

Jesus' message of hope and salvation for us all would not exist if it were not for His Resurrection. Look at 1 Corinthians 15 to see what I mean. This hope is the Christian's Easter Story. He is our solid rock from old. He, who knew no sin, became sin for us so that we can have life everlasting, removing sin, reconciling God and man again. God so loved the world that he gave his only Begotten Son, that whoseover believeth in Him should not perish, but have everlasting life.

What can wash away my sin, nothing but the blood of Jesus.

Jesus paid it all; all to Him I owe
Sin had left a crimson stain,
He washed it white as snow.

These are just a couple of hymns that pop into my mind. There are many, many more. I daresay that we could not finish singing by the end of today. The Lord wants us to worship Him, that's an easy "assignment" for me. My heart is filled with such praise and thanksgiving that it can't be contained. Enjoy this special time with the Lord, your family and friends; and if that includes an Easter egg hunt and a spiral cut ham for dinner after a sunrise worship, remember to do all of these things for the Glory of God. Last night my sons began our remembrance with Resurrection Day Story Cookies. Enjoy!

Happy Easter! Have a most blessed Resurrection Day!

It's EARTH DAY Today

I have some thoughts about Earth Day.

Do not judge those who esteem one day above another and, likewise, don't judge those who esteem all days the same. Today seems to be a day we need for remembering everything in balance, moderation and perspective. I see a lot of extremism in regard to honoring Earth Day. This is not a nonChristian or Christian issue at all, but mankind's issue. However, from my observation, attitudes have been based on visible and sometimes stark response to this general task. This finger-pointing ought not to be.

Do Christians participate in Earth Day because it's become a socially mandatory observation? Do nonChristians believe Christians are morons who don't make the same fuss about Earth Day that nonChristians seem to make? Do we celebrate together opportunities that make our planet a better place to live? Do we acknowledge and appreciate each other's efforts, however great or small, to maintain this wonderful world we call Earth?

Does the Bible say anything about how we should care for this Earth? Indeed it does! And, you don't need to read much further than Genesis! God Himself led the example for recycling human bodies after our spirits are done with them by returning ashes to ashes and dust to dust. The cycle of life is evident every day in every plain on earth. We can learn a great deal just by watching a rotting tree in a forest or watching insects devour carcasses. Animals instinctively know what to do with what they are given. Those who are destined to "waste" are usually surrounded by scavengers to clean up what's left. Ever watch a snail clean a fish tank? Nothing is left to chance in the animal world. Our world, however, seems to be seen a bit differently.

God gives us a creation to enjoy, from the dirt to the waters to the plants to the animals to fellow mankind. God gave us this Earth to use as we needed it, whether it's through study or admiration or even mundane living (??, lol)

Leviticus is chock full of advice as to how to care for our world around us. Granted, it's mainly for every day living back in those days, but prudent followers of God's Word reaped benefits by following sound advice. We are taught how to rotate our soil so we can get the best increase. We are taught when is the best time to buy and sell property based on the qualifications of the particular year. Many cycles of various kinds are observed so that we can look forward to our routines, giving different aspects a certain share of glory.
We are called to care for our animals, both our own and those of our neighbors. Abuse was not tolerated. A righteous man regardeth well the life of his beast. At times we become aware what happens when disease is not contained and instead contaminates the food we eat and the waters we drink and bathe in.
Miracles were performed using vessels already present in the neighborhood. Remember the widow who had a neighborhood container drive so that a prophet could help her have enough oil to sell, saving her sons from slave creditors? Remember Jesus' miracle of the wine? He needed vessels filled with water and he turned it into wine. Today we use re-usable plastic bottles and home water filters to (sorta) accomplish the same feat. ; )
Remember the gold jewelry that was melted down and made into other items? From calf idol to plating the tabernacle furniture, recycling had its moments in Bible history! Indeed, recycling has its moments in virtually every culture that has ever lived.

So what about today? I think it's good that we, as a general society, have become aware of some of the idle waste that has been happening for some time. I'm thankful that we have many opportunities to make a difference in making this world better than we have found it over the years. What sometimes irritates me is when Earth Day is treated more like a man-made religion than a productive way of life. I think we should encourage each other to do what we can to reduce, reuse and recycle. I believe that we need to be attentive to our surroundings where plants and animals are concerned and do what we can to preserve that environment; however, I don't believe that we need to save the animals at the expense of humanity (I know, gets me in a heap o' trouble, I get it, lol). God has a natural and cyclical process in dealing with human and animal population; sometimes lands seem to get destroyed beyond our control, or even despite our control. And yet, the rebirth of that land and populations becomes more amazing than ever known before. I believe that we need to intelligently use resources as we discover them. I think changing our lifestyles to fit a more Earth-friendly environment is admirable, but sometimes we do what we need to do to live in this world we are living in now.

I must say that I am quite disappointed in (particularly speaking here) Christians who are simply "waiting upon the Lord's return" and nothing else~~they feel there is no need to participate in keeping things running smoothly because they feel the Lord will be here "any minute." I believe this attitude is misguided and foolish and plain unhelpful to fellow man. Also, this attitude actually can contribute to the stresses our world experiences from time to time. Yes, the world may not be a beautiful place at the moment, and heaven sounds, well...heavenly...but we have a God-given responsibility to have dominion, to replenish and to subdue this planet we call Earth. Jesus was about His Father's business until it was time for Him to be crucified. We need to be about Jesus' business, too, until He is ready to call us home, WHENEVER that may be...it could be before I even finish this post, or it can be another coupla thousand years from now. No man knoweth the hour, not even Jesus then. Can we really afford to just let things go because we're waiting for the Lord's return? Hollywood's got a pretty good imagination of what our world would look like if we neglect it. We are part of the process in preserving life as best as we can. We are to be at our work when the Lord returns, anyway...why not work at making this world a better place while we pay our rent here? We need to do our best so God can do the rest.

I got tickled at an article I read earlier this week. It's about an elderly lady who wasn't quite up on the news about plastic bags not being good for the environment. She apologized and explained, "We didn't have the green thing back in my day." It's a very good article, citing examples of just how green our former generations really lived long before our recent disposable generation was born.

Here's to a celebration that has been going on for many years longer than officiated.
Happy Earth Day!