Holy Week is over. Another Easter Sunday has come and gone. Good Friday was the most amazing day for me this year. Yet, it is now apart of history. Resurrection Sunday brought an overwhelming and quite unexpected amount of emotions. Alas, it is in the past just like all the other Easter Sundays of my short life.
As I enter another ordinary week, I can't help but to be sad at how ordinary everything feels. So many spent last week observing Holy Week and what it meant, both individually and historically. And while Resurrection Sunday gave us so much to celebrate, it unnerves me at how fast we get back to our ordinary lives. We give little to almost no thought of the significance of the Cross as we pack our kids' lunches, send them off to school, put another load of laundry in the machine, make our grocery list, and wash the dog. It seems like such an odd match. To go from celebrating our Risen Lord to washing dishes. To go from acknowledging that He is, in fact, ALIVE to mopping the sticky kitchen floor. Only once a year do we take time (and not even all of us do this) to thank God for the sacrifice, to mourn Christ's death on the Cross, and to celebrate His glorious resurrection.
What's worse than only spending one day a year acknowledging this historical event? That we spend weeks leading up to Easter shopping for outfits so that each family member will look his/her best. Finding the perfect outfit with the perfect spring color combination is key. And we buy eggs filled with candy for our childrens' class Easter Egg Hunts. We ask the Easter Bunny to come visit our homes. We even stuff ourselves with food made especially for our families at Easter family celebrations. Lord KNOWS, I do all of this "stuff," too! NOTHING is wrong with any of it. It's just that, for most of us, that's where it stops. That's usually where our celebration of this miraculous holiday stops. Through all of the hustle and bustle of the holiday, just like at Christmas, we pour our energy, money and time into the things that have ZERO eternal significance. All the while, we let this time of year pass us by giving no thought to the true, miraculous, earth shattering, and eternity altering event that took place close to 2000 years ago.
And here's what we often forget - had it not taken place, the Cross I mean, the term hopeless would take on another entire dimension. Those who choose to "not believe" in God - they, too, have NO idea of what it feels like to live outside the goodness of God. Even the non-believers are shown God's grace everyday just by being allowed to wake up and breathe another breath of air. Those of us who choose to believe and those of us who choose NOT to believe, we are ALL shown the love and grace of God everyday of our lives. It is simply because everything that happens to us that is good is from above. Everything, all of it. Can you breathe? It's because of God. Do you have a job? It's because of God. Are you healthy? It's because of God. Can you put your two feet on the ground and walk? It's because of God. Do you have clean underwear to put on your freshly showered body? It's because of God.
And everything good that happens to us is not only because of God, but it is because of what God allowed to happen on the Cross some 2000 years ago. Without it, everything we know about our lives and about this world would change. I don't know where you found yourself this Easter. I don't know where you are finding yourself today now that another Resurrection Sunday has come and gone. What I do hope is that you realize that what was done on the Cross was FIRST, for God, and SECOND, for you. What will ultimately matter is what you decide to do with that realization. Don't waste your life not knowing. Ignorance is not bliss, my friend. Ignorance, for some, means only one thing - hell.
If you...
1. Just aren't sure what all this Cross hype is about, watch the following.
2. Know what all this Cross hype is about, but you are struggling with making it have a real impact in your life, watch the following.
3. Are certain and unnerved by what the Cross hype is about - if you are moved and grateful and thankful, watch the following anyway. You'll need the reminder.
Kingdom: A Journey Through Matthew by David Platt
Linds
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