Nope! We are in Eastern
Europe and thus are celebrated Easter this Sunday,
April 15.
Today
we started our devotional with worship that included some of our favorite
Easter songs. My favorites tend to be hymns. One of the girls
mentioned, “The Old Rugged Cross.” When finding the song on YouTube
to play for the group, multiple versions came up. Since I had the
computer, I picked the one most unlike the contemporary worship sound – Johnny
Cash! As it played I was instantly transported to being in my
grandmother’s car, riding to church. We listen to Johnny’s deep voice or
the Gather Brothers or something of the sort as we ride to and from Dawson
Memorial Baptist in Homewood, AL. I admit to missing her Senior’s Sunday School class this day.
This year Easter is a bit different. It came one week later than in the United States. We woke up in Moldova, and went to the church to get our packs. No one had a skirt in their day pack! After getting my pack, digging out the right packing cube, and finding a skirt, I got dressed for Easter Sunday. Long navy Old Navy skirt, white underarmor shirt, teal fleece…all with my champion tennis shoes! I’m for real. As I stepped out of the house to round the corner to the attached church, I said, “I would never be allowed to go out like this at home.” 🙂
Not
only did I get to remember the joy of going to church with my Nan, I led the group with
a devotional from Dawson Memorial’s website 🙂 Service time was the same as home, at 11 am. Yet our service was 11-2pm! One of our group, Ty, preached a great message. Then his wife, Molly, gave her testimony…truly powerful and practical for the audience. Molly and Ty came on the race with the intent of going all 11 months, but God stopped them short with a baby! Many of the ladies have small kids and could relate to the challenge of accepting God’s plan, especially when it is counter to their own.
After church we set up a table-in the church-for our Easter Meal. We enjoyed traditional foods of sarmale, mamaliga, potato/carrot/salami/pickle salad, goat cheese, bread, butter and juice. It was quite a spread. Gaze at our feast below:
This year, as I travel the
world and experience holidays in different countries some things stand out. Regardless of the company, we can come together as a family in Christ. Traditions are special and take particular consideration and preparation. No matter the economic standing of the village, town or city, people dress their best to attend church and worship the Lord. And no matter where we are in the world, the message remains the same, The Lord Jesus Christ died on the Cross for our sins and was resurrected-fulfilling scripture and giving eternal life to all who believe! Yet, here there is no Easter Bunny. There aren’t Easter Baskets or egg hunts. Eggs are dyed, but they are a collection of chicken, duck and goose eggs. Baskets don’t exist but huge loaves of “Easter Bread” would be enough to fill any basket!
