A food Friday indeed.

We started a tradition about 4 years ago of hiking on Good Friday. It is very symbolic and meaningful as we know our Savior, Jesus Christ, hiked a mountain at the age of 33, came to a place called Golgotha where He would be crucified on a cross and experience one of the most horrific deaths of all mankind. And He did it intentionally, knowing full well what His death would entail. He took the sin of the world upon His shoulders so that all who believe in Him can be forgiven of their sins and have everlasting life in heaven! We are saved by His blood, washed by His grace, and given the best gift of all, forgiveness for our sins and eternity with Him. Amen Lord Jesus! So this morning we took our hike up A mountain. Each year there is a cross placed above the "A". Such a great reminder! Here are a few pictures of our hike. And like last year, I forgot to get a picture of the cross. :(

The kids and I have been reading a book called The Case For Easter by Lee Strobel. At one time Lee Strobel was an atheist and after his wife became a Christian he took his investigative skills he had acquired through being a journalist and decided to investigate the death of Jesus. He was skeptical about the death, burial and resurrection of Christ. The book details his findings as he investigates and interviews many scholars and what he learned during those visits. I have been reading this book out loud to the kids, I've only skipped over a few parts as some of it was way over their heads but for the most part, I have been able to read them most of it. The first part of the book Mr. Strobel interviews a medical doctor who explains what Jesus body endured from the time He was arrested until he breathed His last breath upon the cross, from a medical perspective. I had never thought before about the condition Jesus was in before He was nailed to the cross. The doctor describes it this way: "Because of the terrible effects of this beating (speaking of His flogging the night before he was crucified), there's no question that Jesus was already in serious to critical condition even before the nails were driven through his hands and feet." It goes on to describe how Jesus would have been in a state of hypovolemic shock already before He even got nailed to the cross. The details of Him being nailed to the cross are simply excruciating to even read. I also found this interesting, "The pain was absolutely unbearable. In fact, it was literally beyond words to describe; they had to invent a new word: excruciating. Literally, excruciating means 'out of the cross.' Think of that: they needed to create a new word because there was nothing in the language that could describe the intense anguish caused during the crucifixion." I am once again reminded what Jesus did for me, my children, my family, my friends, you, and the whole world! It's no wonder we worship Him, how could we not!