It's all over!

It's all over -- that egg-citing Easter weekend is over!

Unfortunately, the celebration of Easter and God's gift of Salvation through the suffering and death of God's son Jesus is all over with for some people, once they return to their daily routines of making a living, looking after their home and the children etc. -- I'm not blaming anyone. I just think it's unfortunate that that precious gift from God receives so little attention once the chocolate bunnies have been consumed and the last of the hidden candy eggs has been found and have been eaten.  And it's 'back to work' ...

About 2000 years ago Jesus' disciples were profoundly affected by meeting Jesus! They trusted him with their lives for 3 years. He taught them to be apostles; messengers who invited people to join God's Kingdom and to leave their old, unfulfilled lives behind -- I say unfulfilled, because people had begun living without the fulness of God's love that Jesus offers us. Their 'rich' religion, dating back to Abraham's first encounters with God, had become 'impoverished' over time and the religious leaders couldn't seem to reclaim and 're-present' the holiness of God that had chosen to live among them both in the Temple and in their nation!

Then, Jesus showed them the way to this true, new life! The 11 remaining disciples took over this ministry of Jesus after his death --  but first, right after Jesus' death they also went back to their fishing and other familiar jobs in a state of confusion and disappointment, because they had believed Jesus when he told them about his heavenly Father, and when he told them he would return and take them to himself, so that where he was, they would be too!  You see -- they were a lot like us! Their time with Jesus just seemed like a short dream; a bad short dream, because their teacher and master had been killed! They could tell us what it feels like to be totally 'empty' inside!

It was around this time after Passover years ago, that Jesus not only appeared alive to the women who had so faithfully followed him and ministered to him while he walked this earth a man, but he appeared to his 11 disciples, fulfilling his promise that he'd return!  It took a while, but when they were certain that it was the same Jesus, the same teacher and master they had followed -- they were again bold and 'ready for action' -- just as Jesus had taught them! They were to be his witnesses!    

In the weeks before and since Easter, I've had to respond to an unusual number of crisis calls to our church. Why? I really don't know. Because we believe the Lord Jesus is alive and with His people still -- helping and healing us as ever before and now also pleading for us before the throne of God -- I respond to these calls with a joy that is not understood by people who haven't met Jesus! Jesus saved us. In His name, we now serve oneanother. In a sense, we 'save each other' with God's help and with God's Word alive in us!

Easter Sunday is past. We are still in the Easter season. Life as a Christian is still exciting! (egg-citing!) God is good! Halleluiah.   Amen