Happy Easter!
Today is a day of great celebration. Easter Sunday is a day when we celebrate the resurrection of Jesus Christ. Today is a day of hope and joy in the world of Christendom. However, I often wonder what we are really celebration. There can be no doubt that Easter conjures feelings of spirituality. That is evident in the number of people that we see in our churches on Easter Sunday. These are the people that you probably see twice a year...Christmas Eve and Easter morning.
There is nothing wrong with that, well yes there is but we can deal with that topic in another blog entry! The point, or rather the question, that I have is...Why do those people feel drawn to the church on Easter morning? Could it be that simple tradition draws them in? Is it the fact that society mandates us to be Easter worshippers? Or could it be that, for one day in the year, God's creation seeks the Creator?
As a pastor I have often wondered what it is that draws men and women to church each Sunday. I like to think that it is the uncontrollable urge to hear my sermons! However, logic dictates that I scrap that idea. I don't have any real answers to the questions that I pose this morning. Yet, I truly do believe that Easter is a day when people begin to think spiritually. It may last only as long as the worship service but I believe it is there. I believe that people do have a hole inside of them that was created by God so that His creation would yearn to fill that hole with the love and grace of Jesus Christ.
I think God uses Easter Sunday to deliver His message. Obviously, He uses other days and other people for the other 364 days of the year. Easter, however, is a special day for Him. This is the day that His creation begins to take a brief glimpse of the passion story. Easter Sunday is that rare day when God's people begin to open their minds and begin to embrace the saving knowledge of Jesus Christ.
Does it happen to everyone? Sadly, the answer is no. Yet, it does happen to some people and some is better than none. Easter is one of those rare moments when the gospel story is welcomed. Today is a day when it is okay to share your faith with others. It is almost expected! Easter Sunday is our free pass to evangelism and we must take it and make the most of it.
I want to encourage you this day to challenge yourself to sharing or showing the power of the resurrected Lord in your life. Seek out those who are hurting and in need of a savior. Recall friends and family whom you believe to be crying out for help in their lives. Use Easter Sunday for the very purpose God willed it to be. Share the story of a savior who died for our sins and then was resurrected so those sins would not have power over our lives. Jesus Christ is risen and because he is we have hope, we have life, we have victory over death, and we have a savior!
May this Easter be a time of renewal and hope for you!
Amen,
Derek
As I sit outside on my back patio doing my devotionals & drinking coffee on Easter morning... I look at the crystal clear Colorado sky & I know...God made that color blue. He also made the beautiful mournful song of the dove I hear....the tiny buds on the spring trees....& yes, the voice of my wonderful Husband saying, "Hey, honey where are you?" I try not to take for granted, the colors, the sounds, the smells, the sights all around me. God does wonderous things, he has made wonderous things.....well, science may try & say otherwise, but I know. Because that tomb was empty, I have my Faith. I am Saved...because that Tomb was empty. A promise fulfilled for us. The horrific torture that Jesus Christ endured to pay for my sins is overwhelming to me. I cannot comprehend that anguish, that pain. It's the greatest gift I have or ever will recieve. So, I work hard @ being a shepherd for him, diligent, faithful. "Thank you" seems ridiculously inadequate to say to our Creator, but say it, I do...alot! I humble myself before him because that is my place....God is in control, not me! So, Happy Easter....treat everyday like He Is Risen! Love ya Deke! Sis :)
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