the best things in life....

are these precious children.

Tired,

 but very happy

 after a beautiful, wonderful Easter Day.

To God be the Glory great things He has done.

Sunday

Why we celebrate Easter....

"Now when the Sabbath was past, 

Mary Magdalene, 

Mary the mother of James,

and Salome bought spices,

 that they might come and anoint the body of Jesus.

Very early in the morning on the first day of the week,

they came to the tomb when the sun had risen.

And they said among themselves,

"Who will roll away the stone from the door of the tomb for us?"

But when they looked up

 they saw that the stone had been rolled away ~ for it was very large.

And entering the tomb, 

they saw a young man clothed in a long white robe 

sitting on the right side;

 and they were alarmed.

But He said to them,

"Do not be afraid.

You seek Jesus of Nazareth who was crucified.

He is risen!

He is not here!

See the place where they laid Him.

But....

go and tell His disciples."

Mark 16: 1-7

Yes....

and we should do the same.

Jesus changed the cross from a symbol of death and shame

to a symbol of hope and life.

Hallelujah..

Sunday has come.

It is finished!

He has conquered sin and death.

We who believe are alive and will live forever in Him.

Praise Him from whom all blessings flow!

saturday

"And when Joseph, 

a rich man from Arimathea,

 had taken the body of Jesus, 

he wrapped it in a clean linen cloth, 

and laid it in his new tomb 

which he had hewn out of the rock; 

and he rolled a stone against the door of the tomb

 and departed.

And Mary Magdalene was there,

and the other Mary,

sitting opposite the tomb.

On the next day (Saturday),

which followed the day of preparation,

the chief priests and the Pharisees 

gathered together to Pilate saying,

"Sir, we remember while Jesus was still alive,

 how that deceiver said,

After three days I will rise."

"Therefore, command that the tomb be made secure until the third day,

lest His disciples come by night and steal Him away,

and say to the people, 

He has risen from the dead. 

So the last deception will be worse than the first."

Pilate said to them; 

"Go your way, 

make the tomb as secure as you know how."

So they went and made the tomb secure,

sealing the stone

and setting the guard."

Matthew 27:62 - 66

All this week

I have tried to give insight into the life of our Lord Jesus

as He made His way to the Cross.

Jesus is dead and in the tomb.

There is complete silence on Saturday but

Sunday is coming!

Hallelujah!!!

friday

"But God demonstrated His own love toward us,

in that while we were still sinners,

Christ died for us."

Romans 5:8

thursday

What was on Jesus mind when He awoke on Thursday morning?

We know He knew what was coming....

Thursday and Friday would be dark days...

He would be betrayed by one of His own disciples  that night,

with a kiss of all things,

for a price of thirty pieces of silver.

He would be arrested and taken before the authorities.

Beaten, spit upon, made a mockery of,

and then crucified on a cross to suffer and die.

But what was on His mind that day?

Borrowing a room 

where He and His disciples could eat a last meal together...

the Passover feast.

"Always do this in remembrance of Me"

That is why we take the Lord's Supper in these times,

to remember 

what Jesus did on our behalf.

Teaching them...

always teaching and admonishing them

from Scripture.

Washing their feet....

on His knees before them,

showing them that He did not come, this time, as king, 

but as a servant,

and that servants are what they would be as well.

That is what all believers will be until

Jesus comes back.

The disciples didn't get it yet....

They didn't get the full impact of  who He was and what He had come to do, 

but they would soon, 

very soon.

While Jesus prayed in the Garden of Gethsemane 

that night before He died,

His disciples could not even stay awake to keep watch for Him.

Then He came to His disciples, and said to them, 

"Are you still sleeping and taking your rest?

Behold, the hour is at hand

and the Son of Man

is being betrayed into the hands of sinners.

Arise,

let us be going;

Behold,

the one who betrays Me is at hand."

Matthew 26:46

Thursday.....

What a day in the life of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ!

He never lost focus of

 His God and Father

and His mission 

to this lost and dying world.

So thankful!

busy and then quiet

Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday,

of Holy Week finds Jesus

very busy and then strangely quiet.

On Monday He returned to Jerusalem where He

cursed the fig tree...

"And seeing a fig tree by the road,

He came to it and found nothing on it but leaves,

and said to it,

"Let no fruit grow on you ever again."

And immediately the fruit tree withered."

Matthew 21:19

He also cleanses the Temple for the second time....

the first cleansing took place on Palm Sunday.

"Then Jesus went into the temple of God

and drove out all those who bought and sold in the temple,

and overturned the tables of the moneychangers

and the seats of those who sold doves."

Matthew 21:12

On Monday night he returned to Bethany,

to his friends,

to rest and take nourishment.

He was fully human you know and He needed

these things just as we do.

On Tuesday

Jesus returned to Jerusalem 

where He revisited the withered fig tree 

and taught a lesson of faith to the disciples.

"Now when the disciples saw it,

they marveled, saying,

 'How did the fig tree wither away so soon?'

So Jesus answered and said to them, 

'Assuredly I say to you, if you have faith and do not doubt, 

you will not only do what was done to this fig tree,

 but also if you say to this mountain,

 'Be removed and cast  into the sea,'

 it will be done."

Matthew 21:21

Jesus taught extensively in the Temple on Tuesday,

and on the way back to Bethany,

He gave the Olivet Discourse.

(Matthew 24)

An amazing day for Him who would die in just a few hours.

Nothing is recorded in the Gospels 

about Jesus' activity on Wednesday of Holy week.

More than likely,

 he spent the day in Bethany with His disciples

 preparing and praying for what God had willed Him to do...

pay the ultimate sin debt for mankind.

Also,

 Wednesday 

was the day when the plot for the betrayal of Jesus began to take shape.

(much of this information is from a sheet 

that David passed out to us last year in church.  

There is no indication of its source.)

Picture by Lamar Gale.

Tybee Pier ~ Tybee  Island

yesterday....

....was Palm Sunday for believers,

the beginning of Holy Week,

when we celebrate Jesus' last steps to the cross.

Jesus knew what He was going to do...

but no one else did.

Jesus knew that he was going to die

a horrible death on a cross.

He would ask God to remove this "bitter cup" from Him 

on the night before He died,

but He qualified His statement by saying,

"Not My will but Your will be done."

He came riding into Jerusalem on a donkey

to the cries of

"Hosanna to the Son of David!  

Blessed is He who comes in the name of the Lord!

Hosanna in the highest."

He made a "Triumphal Entry" into Jerusalem.

"A very great multitude 

spread their garments on the ground;

others cut down branches from the trees 

and spread them on the road."

Matthew 21: 1-11

These same Hosanna shouters

 would be screaming for His death before the end of the week.

Little did they know their part in 

the most amazing of all of 

God's plans and purposes for mankind.

Jesus was born to die.

That was God's intent from the very beginning.

He would take all of our sins upon Himself so that we

could be reconciled to God.

There was nor will there ever be any other way.

Believers are those 

who have put their complete faith and trust

 in the finished work of Jesus Christ on the cross.

Palm Sunday ~ March 29, 33 AD

PS... Jesus spent the night in Bethany this night.

How fitting that we see His need for the

comfort of His closest friends.

reality peeps

I'm obsessed with peeps...

have a stash in the pantry.

(Don't tell anyone)

shhhh!

WHAT DO WE DO WITH IT?

I've been thinking about this blog all week.

It kinda got pushed to the back of my mind,

but it has now resurfaced again.

Last week was filled with sad stories.

Friends died and were buried.

Loved ones left behind are struggling.

Many are grappling with hard times...

financially,

spiritually,

emotionally.

I read the Bible consistently,

hear sermons preached week after week,

read good, solid books on theology.

So...

what do I do with this knowledge?

It does no good to just read and study..

soaking it all in 

here in the comfort of my favorite chair.

First of all, 

and I got this from David's sermon last Sunday,

we should be bringing what we

learn during the week back to church with us,

back to all the times we gather with other believers.

We should be sharing what God teaches us...

encouraging and admonishing 

each other in the truth of God's word.

Lifting up the hurting friend,

giving hope to those who are struggling,

revealing a nugget of truth to a lost and dying soul.

Always pointing to our Savior,

Jesus Christ,

who alone is able to provide a reason to keep on living,

keep on waiting for Him to come back.

If you know anything at all about the joy of the Lord in His word,

take it out to those who need it.

"Let the word of Christ 

dwell in you richly in all wisdom, 

teaching and admonishing one another...."

Colossians 3:16

this is for lucy.......

....who was sad the other day 

that she never really knew her

 great-grandmother Gi.

Lucy, Gi was my mother,

I know you know that.

I wish you and her could have known each other.

Most of all,

she had a great sense of humor.

She kept all of her friends laughing when she was a young girl,

or so I have been told.

One friend dropped all of her schoolbooks

while she and mom were walking home from school

because she was laughing so hard with her.

Her name was

Shirley Ann Hodges O'Quinn.

Daddy called her Shirl,

I called her momma.

She made the best fudge in the world.

I have her recipe.

We will have to try to make it together one day.

The first picture is when she was about fourteen years old.

I think she was very pretty.

Her birthday was August 30th, 1925.

The second picture was taken while she was out in

Colorado

just before Papa went off to Italy to fight in

World War II.

I bet she was scared to be so high up on that horse.

I miss her alot.

She taught me so many things

like how to cook and keep house and do for others.

She would have loved you Lucy.

This is for Jake and Eli and Harry and Gus too......

one day.

Just wish she could see and know all of you.

spring is finally here

How do I know?

Certainly not by the warm weather,

or the brilliant blue sky,

or the bright shining sun.

It is still cold, cloudy, and kinda dreary here in

Savannah.

So, how do I know that today is the first day of Spring?

Bubba was able to stand this egg on end.

That's how I know beyond a shadow of a doubt that

Spring has arrived.

So happy and joyful that winter is over,

that we have more light,

and that a new season has come.

Praise God that things are not the same all the time.

Every few months God shakes things up for us.

I love it!!!

very special friends

"You have much to rejoice about Christian.

Sure things go wrong here ~ very much so.

But in His time all will be set straight.

And, at that time......

you will enter into all of the

 joy, privileges and love

that will be realized when you see him as He is.

There is much to look forward too.

Remember that fact when things get tough here."

jay adams

goodbyes

It was raining this morning.

By the time the funeral service was over this afternoon, 

the skies were blue

and the sun was shining bright.

Friends and family of Robert Rushing

wound their way through the streets of Savannah

 to lay his body to rest

 by the salt marshes and the pine trees of Forest Lawn Cemetary.

A gentle breeze was blowing cool

as we gathered round him one last time.

The beauty of a Christian burial service is that 

we are not without hope.

In Christ we are absent from our bodies,

but present with Jesus.

What remains behind here on this earth is no longer needed.

What is important,

the soul,

will live forever in eternity.

We look forward with great hope to seeing Robert again.

Do you have this hope?

.

remembering Robert

Here we are in 1968.....

best friends ~ dating friends.

College Days....

fun and carefree days,

the best of times.

We all went to the same church.

That made it nice.

Robert Ellis Rushing

went to be with Jesus in the early hours of this morning.....

released finally from the grips of Alzheimer's,

into the arms of his Savior.

Finally free,

in mind and body.

We rejoice for him tonight, but there is sadness as well.

He will be missed by all who knew him.

To Sandy

Brant & Kellie & Rick

Blake & Bryson & Brett.....

You all loved him so well.

Your devotion to him and his care when he could not return

anything back to you was such a testimony.

Your unwavering concern for his best interest

 is a shining example to all of us

of how to love unselfishly expecting nothing in return. 

Bubba and I love all of you!

a parody on being sick

I have been sick since Sunday afternoon.

After getting past the "denial" stage,

you know...

"this sore throat is really just all in my imagination,"

Of accepting the fact that I NEED a doctor,

that I will have to take another antibiotic

which causes other sad woes,

after all of this I can say it,

"I Am SICK Again."

In sickness,

my life becomes encapsulated into itself.

My day revolves around my medicine.

There are seven of them.

What can I take when that will cause me the least discomfort?

Poor Bubba has been back to the pharmacy twice to get it all straight.

I can't be far from the Kleenex box.

I am constantly thinking about what I can eat...

nothing tastes good.

Being cut off from the world,

quarantined so they say,

the computer becomes my lifeline...

I check every few minutes 

to see what new and exciting 

status 

has been revealed on 

facebook.  

Naps become essential.

Then comes the guilt.

I told Bubba this morning that I thought my life was passing me by.

He assured me that I was alright, that things would get better.

He is so dear to bear with me.

All that to say...

I bought that sign in the picture above on one of our trips recently.

"Happy Easter," 

all cute and glittery.

I mustered the strength to hang it yesterday.

I was so proud to have gotten that done.

I looked at it and thought....

"Just perfect."

Last night Bubba said to me,

"Cathy, did you notice that there are three "P's" in Happy?"

I hadn't noticed.

Being sick also renders me brain dead.

you've got plenty of time to do this.....

One of the best things I have ever done for myself

 is start reading my Bible every day.

I began by asking God to allow me to know Him better.....

to give me wisdom and understanding.

He led me to start reading the Psalms every day.

I'll tell you this...

there is no better way to get to know God,

than by reading the Psalms.

There are 150 Psalms.

Many were written by King David.

They are a treasure trove of truth about our Maker.

I write each Psalm in a looseleaf notebook.

Then I get out a second notebook

and write all of the things that I learned about God.

After that I pray these things back to Him

and thank Him for revealing truth to me.

When I get to Psalm # 150,

I start all over again with # 1.

I have been doing this for years.

I have notebooks filled up with my written Psalms.

I always see something new,

I never get tired,

and I am constantly amazed at God....

knowable,

 but yet so far above us.

I read the rest of my Bible too,

every day....

I am reading it through again.

I read some in the Old Testament and some in the New.

There is no boasting here.

It is my joy and I encourage all of you believers out there

to do the same.

You can't spend too much time reading your Bible!!!!

"Draw near to God and He will draw near to you"

James 4:8

the trip home

One of the things that Bubba and I like to do on our trips

 is to go to antique stores.

There is a real impressive one in Williamsburg.

I head straight to the books...

Bubba to the badges and coins and pins.

This time I bought a few new books for the kids,

and also a kids book about the Titanic for me to devour

on the trip home.

I tucked the bag away in the front,

savoring the contents.

As we started the long journey home

on Saturday morning,

we made a pit stop at McDonalds....

(best coffee anywhere to me,

and it only cost 50 cents a cup)

Bubba ran in to get our treats 

and I reached for the bag containing the Titanic book.

"My goodness, this bag is so heavy....

what could be in here?"

Unbeknownst to me,

He had gone to another store,

found this huge, marvelous book,

bought it,

and placed it in the bag with my other books

to surprise me.

Oh the joy...

I read it all the way home,

mesmerized to say the least.

I apologized for having my head stuck in the book for 8 hours,

but I couldn't stop.

Every picture, every word 

was fascinating.

We stopped for lunch,

I got a Dairy Queen,

we exchanged pleasantries,

and then right back to reading.

We were home in no time at all.

Bubba knows me well.

He knows what I like.

He surprises me with good things often.

I am blessed...

I know, I know.

at the hollingsworth home

Our trip was great....here are some

episodes that I caught with my camera...

1.  Jake set up this animal blockade

to keep people from getting into the bathroom.

2.  I helped Amanda get all of her

fine china

into her new hutch.

Beautiful!

3.  My grandmother's antique sideboard

is now in the 

Hollingsworth's dining room.

I love the rabbit masterpiece resting on top. 

Amanda and I found that picture in a used furniture shop

here in Savannah. 

I covet the picture and have asked her to will it to me.

4.  Amanda and Mark

relaxing on their red sofa.

5.  The box of Peeps 

 Mark surprised me with 

one day when he returned home from work.

6.  Jake hard at work

writing on their much loved easel.

7.  Charlie Bear

their beautiful black cat.

He loves me!

8.  Eli blowing out the candles on his cake.

9.  Jake and granddaddy....

who Jake says makes the best spaghetti in the world.

We had a great visit....

packed so much in a few short days.

Laughed a lot and

ate a lot too.

Being with your family is the best!!!!

Eli and his grammy

 

We are way up here in Virginia

to celebrate Eli's birthday.

He is turning six today

and we are all really excited to

share this time.

 

The theme for this year's party is

"Larry Boy."

Larry Boy is a Character out of the much loved

"Veggie Tales" series.

 

Way back at Christmas

Eli told me what he wanted for his

birthday...

A Larry Mobile,

and, don't tell him but,

that is exactly what he is getting.

Right now it is wrapped up in a big blue box

just waiting to be opened.

He is beside himself wth having to wait.

 

Eli is amazing.

He told me this morning that he knows alot of things.

He has a head full of thick blond hair

and eyes as big and blue as the midday sky.

He is a storyteller,

a dreamer,

and the best colorer I have ever seen

 

Thank you God for this boy,

for his love for all of his people,

for his sweetness,

for his charming ways.

 

I love you E...

always will!

 

grammy

 

 

 

"dreaming...

...I must be dreaming."

Will it ever warm up?

Can't wait for beach weather to come back...

"Why is it that some have believed?

It is because the Spirit has sanctified them,

has set them apart,

 has called them out.

It is the call of the Spirit,

it is the work of the Spirit in conviction

and calling out

and giving power to believe."

Martyn Llyod Jones

Romans (the Sons of God)

A person has no capacity to believe in

God or His Son Jesus Christ

apart from the work of the Holy Spirit in the heart.

A person doesn't decide to follow Jesus...

The Spirit compels him to.

Praise God for that.

It is none of me and all of Him!!!!

thanks to joy s for the photo