Pictures from the walk at Shields' Date Farm in La Quinta, California.
It is to easy to let Good Friday slip by unnoticed. I miss attending the Lutheran service. Years ago I lived in a house with two Lutherans and would accompany them to the evening Good Friday service. The service is full of symbolism. During the service the Paschal candle is extinguished and will not be relit until Easter; it will burn for the rest of the year until the following Good Friday. The service is given; prayers are said and the crucifixion of Christ is remembered. At the end of the service the doors are slammed shut and the worshippers instructed to leave in silence.
This is a time of reflection. What a privilege to celebrate this cornerstone of Christianity (“And if Christ has not been raised, your faith is useless; you are still in your sins. Furthermore, those who have fallen asleep in Christ have also perished. For if only in this life we have hope in Christ, we should be pitied more than anyone.—1 Cor. 15). The disciples did not know that Easter was coming. We do---so we wait expectantly looking toward that final day when the groanings of this life and the sting of death are realities no longer.
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