It was only two months ago that there was snow on the ground here in Zuid Holland. There was not loads of it but enough to crunch under foot and have a snowball fight or make a snowman. How many of us have already forgotten though that the snow was around?
Easter weekend is here. Matthew in his Gospel records an angel declaring, “He is not here; he has risen, just as he said” (28:6) Christ was not defeated by death, he was not held in the grave. He was alive – he is alive! Still changing lives in 2017.
If it is easy to forget the snow from two months ago, perhaps it feels a big ask to really get hold of those days back in the 1st century when Christ gave his life on the cross. In any reckoning for us, it seems a long time ago. Yet Easter weekend is a call and an invitation to…
- remember
- reflect
- confess
- receive
- pray
- celebrate.
There is much beauty in this world but also much pain. The attack on Coptic Church communities in Egypt on Palm Sunday shows again that followers of Christ are not immune from troubles on the planet. (Please pray for those communities). In the context of the realities of our own life challenges and what we read in the news, let’s
remember all that Christ did on the cross to deal with the weight of sin (for instance the hatred that drives people to bomb others),
reflect on what it means for us in relation to Christ’s sacrifice and how we live,
confess anything that we sense we need to put right with God,
receive afresh his forgiveness where we need it and his empowering to follow him,
pray for others to know Christ’s love, including those who grieve or are caught up in tough situations here at home or elsewhere in the world. Pray too that the Lord shows us how we can express that love to others.
Yet also let’s not to forget to…
celebrate – that Christ is alive!
“I am the resurrection and the life” (John 11:25). He was then and he still is.
Happy Easter!
Andy