Linus is having a tough time – he’s trying to multi-task, doing 3 things at once.  He ends up in a pile on the floor.  Lucy quotes II Samuel 1:19:  How the mighty have fallen…   

The rain held off until a little after 3pm, but it was very cold and windy.  Mom helped us make strawberry shortcake and lunch.  We did several loads of laundry and then picked up some material for Kelly at curbside through Joanne Fabrics.  We are going to make a shamrock pillowcase.  Pictures to follow – hopefully!  

Today I listened to Greg Pelc’s Easter message from Vanderbilt Church.  He spoke on how the resurrection changes our view of eternity.  He started by talking about those who doubt, and how much historic and scriptural evidence verifies Jesus’ birth, life, death, and resurrection.  Even though so many of us doubt, both the Jewish leaders and the Roman leaders believed Jesus’ words about rising on the third day and posted a guard at the tomb.  The resurrection did two things:  Proclaimed the power of God.  It could not be disputed.  It also changes our view of death.  We should not fear death, except as an uncertainty.  Compare death to a graduation ceremony, a wedding, a banquet, a celebration shared.  It is not the end of all good things, but the beginning of the rest of our life.  We have been invited to the banquet of God’s church – and it will be a glorious thing.  Death, where is your sting?  Your victory?  He also talked about how yesterday previews tomorrow, how what we have been doing usually points to what will happen in the immediate future.  The resurrection changed that;  Attitudes and actions totally changed!  Just as our current Pandemic has changed a lot of things we are doing now that we would not normally do.  Adjust your actions and your thoughts to reflect what God has done for you.

On this date in 1964 Ford formally introduced the Mustang for $2,368 base price. In 1937 JP Morgan Sr. was born.  Also in 1937 Daffy Duck debuts with Warner Brothers cartoons.  In 1790 Ben Franklin dies at age 84, and in 2018 Barbara Bush dies at age 92.  And our sweet Ashly Staley is celebrating a birthday today.  Happy birthday Ashly!  Love you!   

Reflect on your life for a few minutes.  Is there a reason to change the way you are doing something to reflect the change in your life?  There are so many good things – seek them and rejoice!

Today Snoopy is convinced that there are dogs on the moon.  I certainly hope so – everyone needs access to a Snoopy!  Today started out for us by my representing my mom on a financial errand.  When I came home, I listened to Mike Hazelton’s Easter message from HCC.  After lunch I dusted and swept the whole house.  Not very exciting, but I love a clean house and thrive in keeping it that way!  Old roots run deep!  Goes back to my pre-married days.  We plan to make supper and then watch a movie; maybe Bedknobs and Broomsticks.   

Mike’s message continued the series on Jesus making his way to Jerusalem.  That was always his ultimate goal.  As he went, he taught and healed and preached.  Then …. Sunday came.  The very difficult, sad last few days of Jesus’ life was not only hard on Jesus himself, but on his disciples and friends.  So when the Marys made their way to the tomb and found it empty, they hardly knew what to think.  Until the two angels reminded them of Jesus’ words – he would die and rise again in three days!  Although they knew this, they were still caught by surprise.  So were Peter and the others as they, too, ran to discover the tomb empty.  What just happened?  Why didn’t they trust the words that Jesus himself had spoken to them?  The question is, are we caught by surprise with scripture?  We have been instructed, educated, encouraged, loved, directed, even warned. But still we do not acknowledge the importance of the scriptures, often the actual words of Jesus, teaching us and preparing us.  Do we understand?  Or are we like those early followers that walked with Jesus daily and still were surprised that what he said would come to pass? Let’s open our minds to His words as we read and study.   

On this day in 1789 George Washington headed for the first presidential inauguration.  In 1900 the United States Post Office issued the first book of stamps.  Walter Cronkite began as anchor on the CBS Evening News in 1962, and in 1977 Alex Haley found his Roots in Juffure, Gambia.  Bobby Vinton was born in Pittsburgh in 1935, and today my dear friend Regis Faddish is celebrating his birthday.  Happy Birthday, Sir Rege! 

When you next sit down to read or listen to Holy scriptures, be open to what it says.  Do not be caught by surprise!  God bless….

In 1955 April 15th was designated as the final day to file your taxes.  Of course, this year it will be July.  But this year is totally crazy, no matter where you turn.  Few things are as they were.  Maybe, just maybe, we needed a bit of this to make us quit taking things for granted, or for looking at what is really important.  In 1817, the first American School for the deaf opens in Hartford CT (Kath!!!). In 1877 the first telephone was installed in Boston, and in 1878 Proctor introduced Ivory soap.  The Boston Marathon bombing was in 2013 (they were probably fighting over the telephone).  In 2019 Notre Dame caught fire, toppling the spire and destroying the roof.  But if we look at today, Snoopy says that FRIENDS make the good stuff even better.  And I know I have a super-lot of good things in my life! Including, or ESPECIALLY, my friends.

I picked up mom at 10am to bring her over here, but we had to make a drive-through to my bank on the way home.  We went through town and saw Larry the Cucumber in quarantine!  How fun!  We baked cookies, changed the lights on my deck from purple to purple (don’t ask), took a short walk, had the BEST ham for supper (Thanks Nate and Jen!!), watched MONKEY BUSINESS, and cleaned half the house.  I am ready to call it a night.

I listened to Micah McMillen at Old Mahoning Baptist Church.  This message was the EMPTY TOMB.  Jesus paid the price on the cross, offered pardon, and gave us peace.  Death is defeated, and it’s personal.  This was for ME, and for YOU.  He gave healing and forgiveness.  We all sin, either because it’s just our nature as humans, or by choice.  But we can all be restored because of the Empty Tomb.  We have Faith and Hope – which translates to Forsaking All I Trust Him and Having Our Past Erased.  Our future home is guaranteed with God, because of Jesus’ death.  So, as Mary did when she went to the empty tomb, rejoice, don’t weep.  It is finished; He paid the price.  We are redeemed.   

In 1892 Corrie ten Boom was born, in 1933 Elizabeth Montgomery (Bewitched!) and Roy Clark were born. 

I am happy to be home, to have a job to go back to, to have plenty of food (although skimping on Lysol spray!), happy to have family and friends and more love in my life than I could imagine.  And happy to rejoice over the empty tomb.  God Bless.  

Today’s Peanuts cartoon finds Charlie Brown telling Sally and Linus the story about the apostle Paul being lowered over the wall in a basket.  Sally asked why he had to do that, and Snoopy replies:  He probably got tired of signing autographs.  Only Snoopy….. 

This morning Kathy and I did our usual Walmart run.  The store was not crowded and really, all the shelves were well stocked and all product was available – except Lysol and Clorox wipes.  Just keep waiting.  It’ll get there.  I didn’t sleep well last night and when the alarm went off at 5:20am I felt like I had been drugged.  It’s only 10:44am and I can’t keep my eyes open.  I hope to do some yard work after lunch, and possibly change the deck lights from Easter purple to Spring purple.  Don’t ask.  🙂   

After my shower and breakfast I listened to Pastor Paul Eisaman from River Hill Church of Christ.  His message was HE IS RISEN.  He emphasized that Easter is more than a season, it’s the beginning of our hope.  Any time angels are spoken of they were referred to as messengers of hope, and they played a major role in Jesus’ earthly life.  Angels announced His birth, first to Mary, then Joseph, then the Shepherds.  He appeared at the resurrection. proclaiming HE IS RISEN!  That announcement confirmed our HOPE in the Lord, and His victory over death.  We, too, will overcome death.  The third instance of angels in Jesus’ life was at his ascension.  After Jesus had disappeared into the clouds, returning to His Father in Heaven, the angel assured the disciples and all of us as well that Jesus would come back, and he would take us with him.  We have that HOPE in Him!  It’s awesome to remember that Jesus doesn’t condemn; he encourages us, even through our failure (read the story of Peter’s denial, and how Peter is specifically mentioned by the angel!)  Everything that happened was for our salvation.  Free with the claiming!  Have you claimed it for yourself??? 

 Today on this date in 43BC Julius Caesar was assassinated.  In 1828 Noah Webster registered his copyright for the first American Dictionary. In 1861, the Union surrendered Ft. Sumter.  In 1865, Abraham Lincoln was shot by John Wilkes Booth at Ford’s theater in Washington DC.  J.C. Penny opened his first store in Wyoming in 1902, and on this date in 1912 the Titanic sinks.  Anne Sullivan was born in 1866, and in 1932 Loretta Lynn was born. 

Even though Easter day is past for 2020, keep the HOPE that it brings in your heart and life every day.  God Bless….

The Peanuts pictures are not clear so I’ll only post the ones that are readable.  Today Charlie Brown got a new mailbox, but Snoopy ends up sleeping on it.  Of course!  Mom came over today, and we all baked chocolate chip cookies.  We had leftovers for lunch, then I started taking the Easter decorations down.  Took mom back to Kathy’s at about 3pm, and helped them over there for a bit.  Kelly ordered Pizza from Abie & Bimbo’s for supper (Sorry, Matt!  – it’s his favorite….).  We watched KISS ME GOODBYE, a classic comedy and a favorite of mine.   

Today I am just going to finish sharing about the Easter Blessings from yesterday.  About 3pm I came inside and tuned into a quarantine Easter sing-a-long hosted by Tracy Shaner featuring her mom, Patty Buschek, on piano and her nephew, Jonathan Slatt on guitar.  Patty was truly my mentor growing up, and she was a key influence in my life, especially the critical teen years.  She taught me to play the organ, taught me how to stretch and strengthen my faith, and how to serve faithfully and fully.  There will always be a corner of my heart that she is tucked away in.  Patty played and sang for an hour, old favorites like ‘His Name is Wonderful’ and newer ones like ‘Raise a Hallelujah’. According to the chat box comments there were people listening from France, California, SC, Florida, and more.  What a blessing, and a beautiful gift to all of us.  Patty is extremely talented and a wonderful saint! 

After supper Kelly and I watched the presentation of Sight and Sound’s JESUS, which was broadcast all weekend on TBN.  I had seen it live last year, and seeing it again brought back all the amazing sights and sounds from the live performance.  The presentation honestly made Jesus so approachable, and personal, and you just couldn’t help but be drawn into his life, his love, his sacrifice.  It was the perfect ending to the day of blessings. 

I will get back to listening to my local preaching friends tomorrow. 

On this date in 1806, the first Pony Express reached Sacramento.  In 1970, we first heard Apollo 13’s famous quote:  “Okay, Houston, we’ve had a problem here.”  Thomas Jefferson was born on this date in 1743, and in 1866 Butch Cassidy was born.   

I hope your day was filled with happy memories and continued blessings that you can carry with you every day.  God Bless …

Easter!  A beautiful day despite a mix of clouds.  Although the day was very low key and a no pressure-performance day, it was full of things to do.  Charlie Brown started off the day talking about his beautiful friendship with Snoopy – but Snoopy is more interested in his supper dish.  And as it typical for holidays, the meal is a major part.  We decided to have a non-traditional meal and wait to celebrate when we can all be together.  We put a beef roast in early morning and ate about 6pm – noodles, mashed potatoes and gravy, corn…Yum.  I got up early and baked fresh chocolate chip scones for our breakfast. 

We watched Rod from Martin’s Ferry Christian Church and his message was VICTORY.  God is with us, through our struggles, through death of friends/family.  He is with us because he loves us.  And he CAN be with us because He is alive!  Rod pointed out that what we are going through doesn’t always feel like victory.  It’s hard, sad, scary, uncertain, distressing – but what happens NEXT is the victory!  When the women went to the tomb, and Jesus wasn’t there, they didn’t think victory.  When Peter realized that he had denied Jesus, that wasn’t victory.  But victory did happen.  Sometimes we don’t know where to look.  The angel asked, “Why are you looking for the living among the dead?”  We need to look for God.  He gives us life, and scriptures tell us to keep singing.  Whatever happens, keep singing, and victory will be ours.  As a writer, I know that any story worth writing must have conflict, struggle, sorrow that we must overcome.  And that leads to victory.  He goes before us to insure our victory.  It’s the one thing in life that you don’t have to earn;  You just have to accept it!  Keep singing!   

Early afternoon I pulled on my garden clothes and pulled weeds for about 90 minutes.  I came in to watch an Easter sing-a-long with a very long-time friend – which I will share tomorrow.  I went back out for over an hour to pull more weeds.  It’s my therapy, my peace and quiet, my sense of accomplishment!  At 6pm we finished cooking dinner.  I asked Kelly why it was that it took so long to make the meal, and so long to clean up the kitchen afterwards, but only a few minutes to eat it?  I guess that is why I seldom cook.  The ratio is not equatable.   But it sure was good, with leftovers for tomorrow. 

On this date in 1861, Ft. Sumter in South Carolina was attacked by the confederacy, which began the Civil War.  In 1945, FDR dies in office, and Harry Truman becomes our 33rd president.  Jonus Salk’s polio vaccine was approved by the Food and Drug Administration.  David Letterman was born on this date in 1947, and Vince Gill in 1957. 

It’s late and I’m ready for bed, so I’ll fill you in on the sing-a-long and the JESUS presentation from Sight and Sound tomorrow. 

Hope your Easter was blessed and happy and filled with the presence of God’s love and the perfect sacrifice of His Son.  God Bless…..

Words of humor from Sally and Charlie Brown.  We are the church – we are the people of the church!  That is what this morning’s devotional was, as well.  More later….    Kelly and I decided to sleep till noon.  Of course we didn’t!  Logan did, though.  Chase split the difference.  I made a few more masks this morning and should be basically done now.  Hoping these will get us through the required distancing orders.  I had Logan showing me some of the options that the Amazon Fire Stick offers.  I have to say I may be jumping into the 21st century!  Especially when I saw that it had the Colonial Williamsburg’s live stream app!  Free!  Hmmmm.  Still debating.  Have to see if these illusive stimulus checks actually happen. Just heard all the fire trucks go by; looked out to see the Easter Bunny waving from one!  Happy Easter, little guy!  Thanks for brightening the neighborhood for kids of ALL ages. 

Kelly needed to take her car for a drive to keep the battery active, so we went down to Dollar General for milk.  They didn’t have Skim.  So be it.  I think I’m going to go out and play in the dirt for a bit.  Wanted to Weed Whack but it’s pretty windy for that.  Quiet day here.  I think I miss today’s activities of preparing and planning for the family Easter event as much as I do the thought of a quiet Easter.  SO much fun seeing all that work coming together for those we love.  Sort of nostalgic, I guess. 

Today’s ‘message’ is a devotional sent by my friend Gwen Wolfgang (far right).  I have so appreciated getting to read her daily thoughts these past few weeks.  Just to share a few:  The first Easter brought a change to the world that wasn’t expected.  Our world today is experiencing change WE didn’t expect.  To quote Gwen:  

Snoopy brings to us today a scripture from Philemon – I can say this about so many people!  One thing about being sequestered, there is a lot of time to think, and to reflect on the wonderful people we have to enrich our lives, and how grateful we are for them!  I could make a list as long as from here through next week, and I’m sure you feel the same. 

Today we brought mom over, and we mixed up more cookies for the boys.  Logan and Chase wanted pancakes for lunch, which sounded good, so that’s what we had.  We had a little mini-spa thing going on after the kitchen was cleaned up, and were trimming our nails and applying fresh polish.  I put a clear coat on Mom’s fingernails after I clipped them.  I am SO not good at that and was relieved not to have clipped them back to her second knuckle!  We did a load of laundry and then I made a mask for Nate.  He txt me that he wore it to Lowe’s and was excited to have it.  Little things become SO BIG, SO QUICKLY.  The boys were ready by then to ice the cookies, and chose purple icing.  That made ME Excited!  Kelly had an online meeting, and the boys were upstairs playing Mindcraft, while I spent the last hour trying to dig my way through a stack of papers for a veteran’s benefit’s application for Mom (through Dad).  My head is still spinning! 

Today we listened to the Maundy Thursday service, presented by associate pastor Justin Hill (Martin’s Ferry CC).  He spoke on ‘Temporal’ verses’eternal’ and that we always have a choice. The first example was to contrast Judas with Mary.  Mary anointed Jesus’ feet with expensive oils; Judas wanted to sell it and give the money to the poor.  Jesus said we’d always have the poor, but he would not always be with us.  The second was Peter, who denied Jesus 3 times, as was prophesied.  Peter was overcome with fear, and chose to follow Jesus at a distance, and to follow the crowd.  He was devastated when he realized what he had done. Then he spoke about how Jesus chose to obey His Father.  He could have called legions of angels to lift him from the cross.  But He chose to die for us, so we could live.  Jesus cried out IT IS FINISHED – WHAT was finished?  The debt was paid, our gift from God, the death of His Son, to pay the price for our sins and disobedience.  Because he loved us, loves us still.  It was the finishing touch – it was finished.  But again – this was NOT the end of the story!  And we rejoice!   

On this date in 1607, British colonial expedition that would found Jamestown departs for mainland America.  In 1849 the safety pin was patented.  The first arbor day was celebrated in 1872, but later moved to the 22nd.  And on that fateful day in 1912, the Titanic set sail on it’s first and final voyage.  in 1970 Paul McCartney announced the split of the Beetles, and in 1971, Penny Marshall weds Rob Reiner. 

Today and tomorrow are days for reflection, to think about the sacrifice God made in turning His face from His Beloved Son; and what Jesus did to save us. 

God Bless….

Charlie Brown expounding advise….  If only falling in love were that easy!  We never see these ‘kids’ grow up, but I like to think they all remembered the words of wisdom shared through the decades.  Today was a strange day – cloudy, windy, rain, then sunshine!  I opted to finish cleaning my house today.  There is that 5 second window when everything is fresh and tidy!  Ahhhh.  Kelly and I made Chicken Acini de Pepe soup, which was her dad’s very favorite meal.  Yum.  The boys had their school work done early, and when the UPS driver delivered our pre-ordered movie LITTLE WOMEN we made that our evening’s priority.  If you haven’t seen the new version, I recommend it.  Story is the same, but the presentation is very fresh and different. 

Tonight I listened to Paul Eisaman’s message from River Hill Church of Christ.  They had a candlelight communion service broadcast.  No matter how many times I read/hear/see the scriptures of the Last Supper, there is always something moving in the message.  Like I am hearing it again for the first time.  Paul talked about Jesus being disowned, deserted, and betrayed especially during this final week.  John 13 talks about Jesus being our example, the model servant. He greeted and washed the feet of his guests, his disciples.  It’s our obligation and honor to serve as Jesus served, and to not put ourselves above others.  Yes, Jesus washed the feet of those who disowned, deserted, and betrayed Him– because he loved them, and because he loves us.  We should worship and serve him in the same way if we are to be part of JESUS.  And we must share salvation as we serve.  Think on these things.  The night will be long and intense for our Lord – He has nothing but pain and agony to look forward to.  But even in our despair, we can rejoice — we know the end of the story!   

On this date in 1865 General Robert E Lee surrendered to General Ulysses S Grant at Appomattox Court House (for you fellow Civil War buffs!).  In 1950 (the year I was born!!) Bob Hope made his first television appearance.  And Hugh Hefner was born on this date in 1926. 

Have a blessed, thoughtful Thursday.

I love Linus and his focus on life based on scripture.  He lives his faith!!!  We should, too.  Today I was able to sleep in a little, compared to the 5:30am rise yesterday!  We had nasty storms here, with wind and thunder and lightening, through the night.  No damage to the neighborhood but I know areas suffered near us, including a tornado in New Kensington.  Thankfully no one was hurt.  We brought mom over, and she helped me clean out and organize both freezers.  We found a few things (like cheese sticks!) that I forgot I had.  After lunch we took two walks, sat on the decks, and I pulled a few weeds.  Took mom over and then cut the grass. The boys were doing school work – math – which astounds me.  I don’t remember learning what they are learning. Later, Kelly and I took a longer walk, and now she and Chase are watching Disney’s Onward.  I will join them when I’m done with this.  Also had a long conversation with a great friend.  We don’t always agree, but it doesn’t change how we connect and care.  Love you, buddy! 

This morning I listened to Greg Pelc’s message (Vanderbilt Christian Church).  As in all the other messages from Sunday, the lesson was about Palm Sunday and the triumphal entry.  It’s good to note that the disciples were in front of Jesus, praising and cheering with the crowds.  But the focus was on Jesus, and the praise went to God.  Jesus said, “My father will honor those who follow me.”  Jesus was able to look at the entry realistically;  there was praise and adoration in the beginning, but hatred and death at the end.  He knew what would happen and didn’t let the praise of the crowds sway his focus.  Jesus was not concerned with appearances or the acceptance of men.  He obeyed His Father, and His every action glorified and pleased God.  He knew what was important. 

The parallel lesson he used was the story of Michael Plant, an overconfident, highly capable yachtsman.  He sat out from New York – by himself – in a state of the art sailing vessel.  He knew what to do and how to do it.  His friends were confident that he would reach his destination – France.  Part way into the journey his signal was lost.  After several days a search began, but as no distress signal had been received it was thought he was fine.  The only distress signals received were 3 short beeps, and Plant’s signal was to be four beeps.  The vessel was found, turtled (upside down), ironically with no ballast.  The Ballast, the weight BELOW the waterline, keeps the boat from capsizing.  It was discovered that not only did he NOT register his ‘radio’ signal, but he had not secured his ballast.  He was more concerned about what was visible to the world – that above the water line.  Jesus tells us that we need to be concerned about our relationship with God, and not about our possessions and appearances.  We are a child of God, and Jesus is our ballast, what is below the water line.  If you want to see how this relates to our current world situation, check out his message at the church’s website.  We need to connect to a source that will ultimately save us.  That would be Jesus.  It’s an amazing message – take time to listen! 

On this date in 1974, Hank Aaron broke Babe Ruth’s home run record.  In 1983, David Copperfield made the Statue of Liberty disappear in front of 20 tourists.  And in 1756, the first fire escape was patented. 

We are mid-way through Holy Week.  Have you taken time to reflect on what this means to you?  God Bless…