Happy Easter!

Its Easter again! I love Easter. Its my favorite holiday. Christmas is nice.....but to me----Easter is what it's all about. Our Savior came, he fulfilled every single prophecy that had been spoken of Him,  he suffered and died for us, and on that THIRD DAY......up from the grave he arose, as the old hymn goes. I just love that old hymn.

How will ya'll be celebrating today? Many are attending the beautiful SUNRISE SERVICES, in our area here, we do have amazing sunrise services on the beaches. The sunrises are always magnificent coming up over the shimmering Atlantic ocean, but even more so when there is a specific service honoring the true meaning of Easter, and believers have gathered on the sand to reflect on that, and to celebrate Christ's victory over death and sin.
We have opted to attend our church's traditional Easter Sunday service this time, inside our church and a little later in the morning. I am a "night owl"...always have been. But when Easter rolls around I have often said this------ "JESUS didn't 'sleep in' on Easter Sunday......and neither should I". 
Thank you, Jesus, for not sleeping in on that amazing first Easter. Thank you for arising up when your Father called your name and sent You on about His business. 
We are so very fortunate and blessed here in our country that we have the privilege to be able to wake up on Easter Sunday, or any Sunday during the year, and be able to go to ANY CHURCH WE CHOOSE to worship. Whether we attend where our families did and where we were raised up....or we are new to a city and and duck into the back pew of an unfamiliar place.....whether we appreciate a friend or neighbor's invite and say "well you know what? Why, YES!---I WOULD like to go with you on Sunday"......or we just see a church that looks nice and we call to find our service times and then go to try it out.....the important thing is that we go, and that we are, here in our country, FREE TO GO. Just think how it would feel to be in a foreign country where Christianity is banned. 
So I pray on this Easter Sunday that we never ever take that privilege lightly. May we always honor it and respect it and be so thankful that we can go to places called "church".....whether they are tiny chapels in the mountains or huge cathedrals in big cities....from sweet little country churches to the big sophisticated auditorium-style.....there is truly something for everybody these days. 
I prefer smaller churches myself. I like to see familiar faces. I know that there will be beautiful Easter lilies in our church and that our choir will sing a few lovely songs. I know that we will sing old favorites like "Up from the Grave He Arose" and "Victory in Jesus". I know that we'll hear an inspiring message from our pastor. And I know that when church is over, and we all head out our separate ways, we will once again BE GLAD that we have churches, and that anybody can go. We'll be glad that we did get up and that we made the effort, because of course----anything WORTH HAVING or doing takes some effort from us. (and maybe a little EXTRA effort from us sleepy night-owls, LOL)
So I will choose and lay out my "Easter Sunday" ensemble........prepare the coffee pot........set my alarm......and do my best in the morning. I will wash my face and patch up my hair and put on my lipstick and the precious pearls that belonged to my Mommy and my Ma-Maw.  That is all I can do....and time and time again, I have seen, God honors that and He helps us.
 I would be incredibly SAD to miss church on Easter Sunday. 
How do y'all celebrate?
I am charging my camera batteries because after church we will be enjoying watching our little granddaughter go through the small grass filled Easter bunny basket I have prepared for her. We will go on a long walk through the historic city streets and her Pa-Paw will hide colorful and sparkly plastic eggs along the way---for her to discover. We will sit outside in the spring sunshine in the old rocking chairs and we will eat juicy ham, tangy deviled eggs, and the "tater" salad that I spent this afternoon preparing. We will watch our granddaughter squeal as she goes down the park slide and we will push her in the swings and take her to look for the alligators.
Later we will partake of the three layer coconut cake with the fluffy white icing....one of my favorite Easter traditions!
What are yours? what are you doing to make memories with your loved ones on this special day?