I finally did it. I signed up for a company to come do my lawn fertilization. I have owned my own yard now for 26 years. And every year, I have bought the bags and tried to remember the time when I should fertilize. Some years, I bought the whole system up front (and then promptly forgot to do one of them and had a whole bag left in November). Some years, I bought them individually. My neighbors long ago hired a company to do it. And for a while I cheated. Whenever the “Caution, fresh fertilizer” flag went up, I ran to Home Depot and bought the next bag. Every year, we would get 10 to 15 different companies sending us ads to do it for us. And for the first few years, I didn’t even open them. I just threw them out. Then my yard got bigger. I opened a few but thought, I’m still okay. Last year, I began to compare costs. It was only a little bit more. My odd sized yard is too big for the small bag, and too small for the big bag. I was always confused in how much to buy. And this year, I finally took the plunge. I asked a company to come do it. They had just the right prices at just the right moment. I caved. And actually, I feel good that I finally did. Each year, as we come to the Easter season, we ask you to invite friends and family that you love, to join us. And many of you have been faithfully asking a sister, or your grown children, or that one co-worker to come. Maybe they have, or maybe they have had excuse every year. Some of their excuses might have been real reasons. And sometimes, like in our lives, the reasons change. Sometimes it just takes time for us to consider an idea. Here's an interesting thought; this year could be the last invitation you need to give them. This may be the year they come and decide to stay. This might be that year. We have three events around Easter that we are encouraging you to invite people. All three events are very different. So, there are different reasons you might invite people to them. Family Easter Celebration. April 13. This event is designed for families with children. We have two start times for the event,10:00am and noon. As a family, they will go to an interactive show about the real Easter story. It will be fun and it will help them learn about Jesus’ resurrection. They will also get to participate in an egg hunt. After the Egg hunt, inside the building, we have craft projects, carnival games, and food available to purchase and eat together. This event is designed for those who may not have any church experience. Our whole hope is that they have fun, become a little more comfortable being in a church building, and hear a simple explanation of the resurrection. It will take about 90 minutes to walk through and experience everything. Good Friday Services. April 19. We have service at 1:00pm and 7:00pm. In this service, we commemorate the death of Jesus and prepare ourselves for the resurrection. We talk about why his death was so important to human history, and to us personally. The tone of the service is more serious. We take communion at Good Friday and the service lasts about 50 minutes. It is not designed with younger children in mind. For those who have an understanding of Jesus and his death, this is a very impactful service. This event is perfect to invite those who are spiritually aware, but maybe not committed anywhere. Easter Services. April 21. We have services at 8:00, 9:30 and 11:00am. These services lasts about 60 minutes. The music is upbeat. The message this year focuses on the theme “Alive”. Jesus is alive, and he is still making people alive today. We share about some of the history of the event, and how that history is still repeating itself in our lives today. The service includes music, communion, teaching, and a special testimony. This event is perfect to invite families of all age ranges. If you like our services and your friends are like you – you can assume they will enjoy being here as well. We offer children’s programming at the 9:30 and 11:00am services. You can direct people to our website, or our Facebook page to see more details. You can share those events or pages. We have printed invitation cards that can be helpful to give out as you invite. Or, you can use none of those things. A personal invitation from a real person in their life is still the best invitation they will ever receive. Easter is a time when people are open to coming to church. They may not know where to go. Your invitation could be the last invitation they need to find God and a church home. Help us get the word o