As I have grown older and my walk with the Lord has grown
deeper, I have found this Easter holiday to be much more impacting and meaningful
to me. What Easter should mean to us is much more than picking out a dress and
doing an Easter egg hunt.. Easter is the reason that I can still find joy in
this world that is full of cancer, orphans, lost dreams, and death.
I have had the privilege of doing a fifteen-day devotional
for Easter. I am on day 13 and can’t help but share my notes…
Jesus was a man of striking contrasts, reflecting both his authentic
humanity and his full divinity. He chose a lowly donkey instead of a noble
steed. Jesus came as a savior to die before he could reign as a King. The lowly
carpenter of Nazareth
was the mighty architect of the universe. He went from being the leader to many
to being abandoned by all. Jesus went through suffering but then God elevated
Him to the highest place.
This is such a sweet reminder. As I look at Jesus’s life.
His life of humility, servant hood, and suffering. And then I look at my life..
which is not that. When God puts us in a position that we have to suffer, we
immediately pray to Him, asking for the suffering to end. BUT Jesus WILLINGLY suffered.
Why can’t we do that? And what was the end result for Him? He was elevated to
the highest place; he was seated at the right hand of God.
I love to think about God creating this world. I think of
him sculpting the rolling hills, growing the green grass, and placing each tree
in its place. I can only imagine how he gazed upon his masterpiece and then
spotted the places his son would walk. He saw the place Jesus would be born and
the place that he would be crucified. The mighty God has a chance to destroy
the earth so that His only son would not have to suffer. But he didn’t, because
he so loves us. God’s love for us is so deep that we have a hard time
comprehending it. Sometimes we get ourselves in to the deepest darkest holes.
No one can get us out, none of our friends or family’s hands can reach us, and
we are too deep to crawl out ourselves. I have come to realize that there is no
medicine, therapy, or friend that gets us out of those holes. Just one simple
thing: the cross. The cross is the only ladder we have to find hope again.
It is funny to walk around the store and to see the Easter
decorations. Usually they consist of bunnies, eggs, pastel colors, and an occasional
cross. However, I have noticed that there is never a tomb. I realize that a
tomb doesn’t make the most beautiful decoration, but that is where this whole
celebration started, isn’t it?
When the women came to the tomb, they were mourning. They
had come to anoint a corpse with spices for the burial. Their sorrow was so
great as their beloved Jesus had died. But to their surprise, the rock was removed,
the tomb was empty! Such hope and joy came as they were told that Jesus had
risen! Their sorrow was relieved.
Our sorrows and dreams can seem so final. Christ’s empty
tomb grantees our victory over death. Jesus’s resurrection proved that He is
greater than the greatest obstacles. This is what the meaning of Easter is.
There is hope. There is joy. There is reason to celebrate!
Why?
HE HAS RISEN!
HE HAS RISEN INDEED!
‘The bread of life began his life hungering. He who is
the Water of Life ended his ministry by thirsting. Jesus hungered as a man yet
fed the hungry as God. He was weary, yet he is our rest. He paid tribute, yet
he is the King. He was called the devil, but he cast out demons. He prayed, yet
he hears our prayers. He wept, yet he dries out tears. He was sold for 30
pieces of silver, yet he redeems sinners. He was lead as a lamb to slaughter,
yet he is the good shepherd. He gave his life, and by dying he destroyed death.’
