Make A Joyful Noise
Betty was going to be baptized at the Citylight church she has been attending, and when she invited us to be part of the joy, Yessa and I requested the weekend off from our jobs, and got ready to go for a drive.
As is typical for me before travel, I did not sleep well, so Yessa took the first shift so I could catch a few snoozes. It was a beautiful, cool morning with long stretches of fog at the beginning, but still a delightful start to our quick weekend adventure.
We knew Buds was out on his long bike ride, so we'd call him every couple hours to check in.
The drive took a little longer than expected, but the timing worked well for us to swing by the house so I could say hello before heading to visit Jenny, and drop Yessa off to go watch Kate play in a volleyball tournament.
Yessa was very kind about taking lots of video and pictures for me since I hated to miss seeing Kate play.
Can't believe she's already a senior. 😍😍
While the rest of the crowd watched Kate play, I settled in for a visit with J, B, and M. It was so good to catch up on all their recent activity, including Brendan starting a new job yesterday!! I pummeled them with my questions, and even succumbed to Brendan's questioning and answered a few of my own. 😆😆
Jenny and I had a nice walk after we dined, then I was off for the rest of the afternoon at my other favorite place in Northern Virginia. And my gratitude is never ending that J & B bought a house close to K & P.
Kate's tournament was over and everyone was home when I got back. As per usual, we had our sushi dinner and settled in for a night of visiting and laughter.
Mikey the Dog, is always good for a laugh.
Kel and I were up early on Sunday and did a workout in the living room which had us sweating and laughing. And after that, the rest of the day was all about Bets. 😍😍
Betty's church, Citylight, was celebrating their 5 year anniversary so the service was held at an amphitheater at a beautiful park.
We got there nice and early and Aunt Donna had saved seats for all of us. Betty had friends and family galore there to celebrate with her.
The service was filled with joyful music, updates from the various ministries the church organizes and supports, and testimony of all sorts from people who have had their lives changed and encouraged through their connections at Citylight.
About 2/3rds of the way through the 3-hour service, Betty and the other 9 folks who were being baptized headed down to the front.
Each person being baptized had a few minutes to share their testimony about how Jesus changed their heart and life. Many of the folks had stories of trials and car accidents and deep distrust within their heart or family. One of the things that I loved about Betty's story was her acknowledgement that she felt a need for Jesus, but it didn't come from a place of trauma or anger. As she said so eloquently, "I wasn't raised Christian, but I was raised to explore." She also talked about how she still has troubles and anxieties because she's still human, but Jesus doesn't care. He wants people with all their difficulties.
The joy and delight on her face was luminous.
From the church's FB page:
Paula, Kel, and Kate went down for a family hug after the baptisms were through.
At the end of the service, we each had been given a streamer "popper" to shoot into the air.
Pastor Nate gave extensive instructions in how to use the poppers, as you can see in the video if you'd like to watch. Paula explained that at a celebration the previous year, they had given out more "explosive" confetti poppers, and not only were they loud, with people setting them off unexpectedly during the service, but someone also took one at close range to their back, and it hurt, so they were playing it safe, although still festive, this year.
As the end of the video shows, it did look like a glorious explosion of color.
Those of us who were available went out to lunch together, and then Yessa and I headed home.
Yessa said this morning that the visit felt like a fever dream because it went so quickly, but we're so glad we were there.
Till next time, Loved Ones.
