DISCOVERING EASTER

DISCOVERING EASTER
When I was young, my mother would awaken me and my other siblings on Easter mornings at the crack of dawn. We would walk together to the local park where we would mount a hill so we could get an unobstructed view of the sunrise. This yearly activity had no particular spiritual significance for me. I knew it was something special that we did on Easter, but I was never told that it related in any way to Jesus and His resurrection.

Much later in life I had a personal encounter with Jesus. Alone in my bedroom, I gave my life to Him and experienced, firsthand, His resurrection power. Then I started to pray for the salvation of my family members. One by one, my seven brothers and sisters and my mother came to know Jesus as their Lord and Saviour.

This week I found myself thinking about those early morning trips to the park on Easter Sundays. I didn’t know then that by greeting the sun on Easter my family was mimicking the earliest disciples of Jesus who, at sunrise, discovered the Good News that Jesus had risen from the dead.

Now, in retrospect, I can find real meaning in those walks to the park. All of the family members who shared those walks, now share a love for the Saviour. We have discovered the real reason for Easter: the Son rose! In my mind’s eye, I see the sun cresting over the horizon, and I praise God for the life-giving power He continues to display in the world today.

That is what we are celebrating today—not an empty tradition but a risen Saviour. He is what makes Easter a day worth celebrating! May you experience His presence and love this weekend, and may you be filled with hope. One day all who trust in Him will share in the final resurrection and will live with Him forever!

​-Pastor Tom

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