Jesus knew that His mission was now finished, and to fulfill Scripture He said – “I am thirsty.” A jar of sour wine was sitting there, so they soaked a sponge in it, put it on a hyssop branch, and held it up to His lips. When Jesus had tasted it He said – “It is finished !” Then He bowed His head and released His Spirit. (John 19:28-30 NLT)
“For God loved the world so much that he gave his one and only Son, so that everyone who believes in him will not perish but have eternal life. God sent his Son into the world not to judge the world, but to save the world through him. (John 3:16-17 NLT)
It’s Friday, but Sunday is coming !
All rights reserved (c) 2025 Christopher M. Day, CountUp
Welcome back to #TravelThursday. Last week I wrote about my recent trip to and from the Fort Myers area of Southwest Florida to see MercyMe, Zach Williams, and Sam Wesley LIVE in concert at the Hertz Arena.
I took the same route arriving and departing the area. Of course – I departed the area early on a Sunday morning under much more favorable traffic conditions than the afternoon before.
From Ben Hill Griffin Parkway (the same road in front of the Hertz Arena) – I continued northward as it became Treeline Avenue. I then head east on Daniels Parkway – which is a major thoroughfare in the area. I made a right at Florida State Road 82 – at a weird intersection known as a “continuous flow intersection” (CFI). It’s the first one in Florida. It’s hard to explain, but as a visitor to the area – I definitely wouldn’t want to drive it at night. I’ve actually been studying this innovative intersection on Google Maps and elsewhere in order to figure out its history and reasoning. It looks like it cost over $57 million to construct from 2017 to 2019. It was designed to alleviate heavy turning traffic at the intersection, and it seems to be working. I think it’s the first time I’ve ever seen such an intersection design. Wikipedia explains it nicely, so head there for more information.
At that intersection I entered Lehigh Acres. It’s not a village. It’s not a town. It’s not a city. It’s not incorporated. It’s merely a “census designated place” (CDP). But over 130,000 residents live within its municipal district boundaries. It’s one of the fastest-growing areas of the Fort Myers area, and its population has quadrupled since 2000.
Fun Fact: Last week I wrote about the Christian rock concert that I attended at the Hertz Arena. Back in October 2009 I attended a Christian rock concert in Lehigh Acres at a church. As it turns out I drove within about 1,500 feet of that church on this trip a couple of weekends ago. (I didn’t know it at the time. I just realized it as I was doing research for this post.)
I drove through a substantial portion of Lehigh Acres to and from Estero – Florida State Road 82, Alabama Road, Leeland Heights Boulevard, and Joel Boulevard to Florida State Road 80. Just shy of 80 is the northern boundary of Lehigh Acres – and the southern boundary of Alva – another CDP – a rural area with less than 3,000 residents.
After Alva it was on to Fort Denaud, Labelle, Florida State Road 29, U.S. 27, and then back home again to Highlands County and Sebring. And yet again I drove right through the heart of downtown Labelle without stopping (aside from traffic lights). I really need to stop doing that. I’d like to stop and visit and eat at one of the local restaurants.
I definitely want to visit the newly restored Labelle Heritage Museum at 360 Bridge Street (Florida State Road 29). Google says they are open on Thursdays and Fridays from 10 AM to 1 PM, but a recent feature on the historic house museum on the local news stated that they are open on Saturdays from 10 AM to 2 PM. I should call beforehand. I recommend that you do the same if you plan to visit. It appears that they have no Facebook page or web site.
Next #TravelThursday – What life changing event may be occurring soon down south ? If you’re a regular reader – then you may have an idea of what it is. Let’s keep traveling together.
All rights reserved (c) 2025 Christopher M. Day, CountUp
Every Monday I post my all-new Top 10 Christian hit music chart based on personal preference and influenced by radio airplay from the previous week. It’s the continuation of a weekly hobby that goes back almost 50 years. Here’s this week’s chart – for the week ending Sunday April 13TH 2025 – the 426TH week of this current era that began on Presidents’ Day Weekend of 2017:
MERCYME – 3 songs above were performed LIVE at the MercyMe, Zach Williams, and Sam Wesley concert over in Estero Florida. Zach Williams performed “Jesus Loves” (# 10), and MercyMe performed “Oh Death” (# 5) and “Almost Home” (# 1 exactly 5 years ago). I forget just how huge “Almost Home” was. It was the soundtrack at home during the COVID pandemic – hitting # 1 on the last Sunday of February 2020 and staying there through March, April, and well into May. When I hear the song today it reminds me of that eerie and uncertain period of time like no other when we were all locked down and socially dormant. It spent 12 weeks in a row as my # 1 smash, and it was my # 1 song overall for the entire year. It’s also my # 5 hit overall of this current era (since 2017).
SPOTIFY – You can hear “My Top 10 Hits” anytime by accessing my CountUp playlist on Spotify. All 10 hits are there from top to bottom. You can hear them in order from # 1 to # 10, or you can shuffle them. My playlist will be updated every weekend (usually before the actual chart is presented here on Mondays). You can link to it here.
Your likes, follows, and comments are always appreciated. Thank You for being part of my online ministry to share God’s Good News and win souls for Christ through His music. God used loud music on the radio in South Florida to reach me in August of 2006. I’ve been testifying about Him ever since.
Be blessed my friends ! May our God of hope fill you with all joy and peace as you trust in Him, so that you may overflow with hope by the power of the Holy Spirit.
All rights reserved (c) 2025 Christopher M. Day, CountUp
Greetings my friends. It is Sunday April 13TH 2025, and this is the day that our LORD has made. Let us rejoice. Let us be glad in it. Let us celebrate this great new day of believing, following, trusting, loving, and being more like our Lord + Savior Jesus Christ. Let us love our neighbor as ourself.
Today I’ll be in Homestead and Florida City down in Miami-Dade County Florida. I’ll be attending church service at my longtime home church as an attendee – rather than as the Guest Preacher. It’s been a while – 4 months – since I last saw my longtime Pastor (Bob) preach. (I do watch him on Facebook every week.)
Another exciting life-changing event (hopefully) occurs tomorrow (Monday) morning. I’ll keep that to myself for now.
The next day – the news that Jesus was on the way to Jerusalem swept through the city. A large crowd of Passover visitors took palm branches and went down the road to meet Him. They shouted, “Praise God ! Blessings on the One who comes in the name of the Lord ! Hail to the King of Israel !” Jesus found a young donkey and rode on it – fulfilling the prophecy that said: “Don’t be afraid – people of Jerusalem. Look – your King is coming – riding on a donkey’s colt.” His disciples didn’t understand at the time that this was a fulfillment of prophecy. But after Jesus entered into His glory – they remembered what had happened and realized that these things had been written about Him. Many in the crowd had seen Jesus call Lazarus from the tomb – raising him from the dead, and they were telling others about it. That was the reason so many went out to meet Him – because they had heard about this miraculous sign. Then the Pharisees said to each other, “There’s nothing we can do. Look – everyone has gone after Him !”
The triumphal entry of Jesus into Jerusalem appears in all 4 Gospels – Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John. The Scripture above is from John 12:12-19, and that’s the New Living Translation (NLT).
I greet you each Sunday with the words of Psalm 118:24 – This is the day that our LORD has made. Let us rejoice. Let us be glad in it.
The next 2 verses right after that are quoted in John’s Gospel:
Please – LORD – please save us. Please – LORD – please give us success. Bless the One who comes in the name of the LORD. We bless You from the house of the LORD.
My testimony is featured each week here on #SundayScripture – whether it’s part of a sermon, a testimony, or just me writing about the events of the past week. Hopefully it encourages you and inspires you to seek the Lord – and get closer to Him with each new day.
If you wish to learn more about the God I know – then stay tuned to #SundayScripture. The best is yet to come !
Thank you for reading my blog for this day, and may:
The LORD bless you, and keep you. The LORD make His face shine upon you, and be gracious to you. The LORD lift up His countenance upon you, and give you peace.
In the name of the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit. AMEN.
All rights reserved (c) 2025 Christopher M. Day, CountUp
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