1 Peter 1:3-9  ³ Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ! By his great mercy he has given us a new birth into a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead,  ⁴ and into an inheritance that is imperishable, undefiled, and unfading, kept in heaven for you,  ⁵ who are being protected by the power of God through faith for a salvation ready to be revealed in the last time.  ⁶ In this you rejoice, even if now for a little while you have had to suffer various trials,  ⁷ so that the genuineness of your faith-- being more precious than gold that, though perishable, is tested by fire-- may be found to result in praise and glory and honor when Jesus Christ is revealed.  ⁸ Although you have not seen him, you love him; and even though you do not see him now, you believe in him and rejoice with an indescribable and glorious joy,  ⁹ for you are receiving the outcome of your faith, the salvation of your souls.

I hope all of you had a wonderful Easter day yesterday.  Church was great, we had 76 present, with lots of those being visitors (12 kids for the children’s sermon!!).  A big thank you goes to the women who made eggs for the egg hunt, the altar guild for their insane amount of time spent preparing, polishing, etc., the people that put up the GIANT cross on the deck, and to everyone who worked hard all week long during Holy Week to make sure yesterday was ready.  The entire congregation thanks you! 

I hope you are able to take some time this week and take a little breather, as we have now moved past the busiest time of the church year.  However, that doesn’t mean we take a break from church.  We now look forward to Pentecost Sunday, and the coming of the Holy Spirit.  Enjoy your week, rejoicing that our Savior has risen and that he is alive in each one of us.

In our prayers this week:  Wendi, Ann, and Catherine

God’s Peace,