Easter Play Pics

Our minister took some great shots of the Easter play we participated in. Just wanted to share a few with you. We can share more when we come home if you want to see them.

All photos by Bungie

Botanic Gardens and River Leith

A couple of weeks ago I mentioned that Josh took a holiday and we went to Edinburgh Castle one day and Botanic Gardens another day. Here are some pictures I promised from the Gardens and with River Leith Walk. More on flikr. Take a look...

Play pictures

Here is the site for the photographer's pictures of the Easter play. Josh is in a few (see if you can spot him) and I am in one, walking behind Jesus as he is carrying the wood beam.

http://www.archphotography.info/a_frame.php?nav=3&snID=10160

Money for Janelle

I mentioned early about raising money to help send a girl in the Philippines to school. Well, we are nearing the time for her enrollment and I will need to wire the money shortly (hopefully before we go to the States). Please let me know if you can help in any way, even if you can only give money later. I need about $300 more.

Happy Easter

Happy Easter, everyone.

Thank you for your prayers for the play. We could not have had more perfect weather, and we have gotten so many wonderful responses from people at the play. They said that it was very powerful.

Josh and I are still pretty wiped out (I just got up from a wee nap and Josh is still napping). We are also a little sunburned from being outside most of yesterday and half of Friday.

Saturday morning was perfectly sunny and the temperature was very pleasant. By the time we were beginning the play it got overcast, but this was not so bad as we didn't have to squint at the sun. Everything went pretty smoothly except for a few mic problems. Speaking of mics, it was pretty tricky switching them out there in from of 4,000 people! The crucifixion was powerful and I almost teared up. I did hear a few sniffles out in the audience. After the play it started to sprinkle just as we went inside to change. Perfect timing!

I was just listening to this song and thought it was good to reflect on today:

Come to the table and savor the sight

The wine and the bread that was broken

And all have been welcomed to come if they might

Accept as their own these two tokens

The bread is His body, the wine is the blood

And the One who provides them is true

He freely offers, we freely receive

To accept and believe Him is all we must do

Chorus

Come to the table and taste of the Glory

And savor the sorrow, He's dying tomorrow

The hand that is breaking the bread

Soon will be broken

And here at the table sit those who have loved You

One is a traitor and one will deny

And He's lived His life for them all

And for all be crucified

Come to the table He's prepared for you

The bread of forgiveness, the wine of release

Come to the table and sit down beside Him

The Savior wants you to join in the feast

Come to the table and see in His eyes

The love that the Father has spoken

And know you are welcome, whatever your crime

For every commandment you've broken

For He's come to love you and not to condemn

And He offers a pardon of peace

If you'll come to the table, you'll feel in your heart

The greatest forgiveness, the greatest release

Chorus

Come to the table He's prepared for you

The bread of forgiveness, the wine of release

Come to the table and sit down beside Him

The Savior wants you to join in the feast

Michael Card

Keep praying!!

Ok, we really need those prayers to come this next 2 days.

We have a tech rehearsal today with mics. It will go as long as it takes. Josh and I have to be there early to get into costume for a photo shoot and he has to practise raising the cross. We get there at noon (6am for most of you, so pray as soon as you read this!), we start rehearsal at 2 and go til we can get through it.

Tomorrow we have to be there at 8:30 and rehears until 12ish. We have lunch together at a nearby church. We then have a photo call at 2 and the performance is at 2:30! Two and a half hours later we will be done! We then have a cast party at a local pub.

It is going to be a very tiring 2 days and we will be wiped out for Easter Sunday. Our church is having an early service, then meeting at a local cafe for brunch. We will do a very small dinner at home with a gammon and some veg (whatever I can scrounge up, as I did not plan ahead enough to go grocery shopping).

Please also pray that we will be able to contemplate through all of this. We have really enjoyed going to holy week services in the past, but could not do it this year as we are busy with rehearsals. I guess it is just one of those years that we are helping to provide something others can be blessed by rather than recieving the blessing, though I know we will be blessed, too.

Thank you for your faithfulness.

Edinburgh Castle

Josh took a holiday from his studies last week. We finally got to visit Edinburgh Castle together. I was there a few months ago, but just did a quick run-though.

The picture below is the ceiling in the sitting room in Mary, Queen of Scots' apartment. It is said that this is where she gave birth to her son, James VI.

The '1566' painted on the right side is the year of his birth.

As always, there are loads more pictures on flickr. More coming, too, from our walk along the River Leith...

Pray for good weather

My little chat box got pushed down because of the ticker, so I am putting this prayer request in here. Please pray for good weather next Saturday. We had a very bone chilling rehearsal today, complete with hail and rain. We will all be out there with sandles and of course no gloves or hats. The soldiers will be bare legged and Jesus will be half naked on the cross. Last year was cold as well during the play. You can even see in pictures that Jesus' legs were purple! Please pray that there will at least be sun, which will warm us up significantly.

As for the earlier mentions hail and rain, it was very appropriately sunny during the beginning of the play, then during the trail and crucifixion it proceeded to hail for about 10 minutes, then it turned to rain for about 10 minutes, then it got bright and sunny again at the resurrection. :)

Going home

It has been a whirlwind of a week. Just this week we got the crazy idea into our heads that we might make our visit home sooner, rather than wait until September. The time just seemed right and we were able to find a pretty good deal on tickets (if we left just 5 days later than the date we chose, high season starts and ticket would have cost us $400 more altogether). So, I was able to secure the holiday from work and we purchased tickets yesterday. Just 19 days to do, and you can follow along with my ticker...

Good-Bye, Emma!

Andy, Josh, William, Bungie (our minister)
Biffy, Emma, De, Sandra

Sandra was kind enough to host our first get-together after the departure of Russell, the king of get-togethers. This one was in honor of Emma, our Aussie friend who has been here as a working holidaymaker. She has worked her 6 months out of the year that is permited for her and will be moving on to some travels around Europe. Though we will be seeing her around a bit before she will be off permanently (including being my partner in crime doing photography at Sam and Peter's wedding), this was the weekend to say good-bye.

Tozer girls

Sam and Emma and I have been getting together to read The Knowledge of the Holy by A.W. Tozer. For our last meeting with Emma I wanted to treat them with Chicago-style deep dish pizza. MMM! As you can see in the above picture, Emma is the comedian. We will miss her humor and quick whit.