BRINGING [EASTER] NEW LIFE

Easter used to be my favorite day of the year. There was something magical about waking up before the sun had even started to light up the sky, getting all dressed up, then gathering with friends to watch the sun rise. The mystery breathed in the salutation, “Christ is risen!” “He is risen indeed!” captivated me to no end. There really was no way to describe the joy that I felt in singing with hundreds of people of how my Jesus did the impossible and conquered death.

“Despite the way you reached out to let go of Me and take hold of what is Mine, I reached out to take hold of you in love and make you Mine.”

But somewhere along the lines, the magic of the special day lost its luster. The words of the story became all too familiar, and the excitement of gathering with the church and singing about Jesus became ordinary. The traditions became routine, and no longer did the celebration fill me with joy. The impossibility of the miracle became commonplace, and my awe disappeared.

“I grabbed hold of Easter and made it about me.”

Instead of beholding the mystery of the resurrection in wonder, I fixed my eyes elsewhere, trying to recreate the child-like fascination I once had. No longer was winning the annual Easter Egg hunt enough for me (yes, I am the 15-year reigning champion), I needed to find other ways to satisfy my hunger for extraordinary. But with youthful innocence gone, not even a full morning of performing and music productions could come close to what I had experienced before. But at least the more I threw myself into perfecting my performance for the holiday, the more I distracted myself from that unsatisfied longing to experience the mystery of it once again. As I strived to make the day what I wanted it to be - a special feeling, a special performance, and a special opportunity to display my gifts - I grabbed hold of Easter and made it about me.

I still looked like I was glorifying Jesus, and honestly, my heart wanted it to be about him. But since I couldn’t find that special feeling back, I was stuck, trying to breathe new life into it by making it about me and my performance. And we’re not just talking about Easter here - this is a picture of what my entire life had become.

As this Easter approached, I kept my head down and tried not to think about my desire for it to be different. I detested the idea of meaninglessly going through the motions of tradition again, but felt resigned to it. As a last hope, I told God my desire. I asked him to give me a new perspective on Easter, but didn’t really expect an answer, and definitely not the one he gave me. It was as if Jesus was looking me in the eyes and saying...

“I was killed because you tried to reach for something that was not yours. You reached for Me, not to have relationship with Me, but to take what I could give you – ultimately in an attempt to take control of Me. You tried to reach for life, truth, joy, and wisdom apart from Me, that you might take what I have to give as your own, and leave Me behind. Yet despite the way you reached out to let go of Me and take hold of what is Mine, I reached out to take hold of you in love and make you Mine. Despite the way you exchanged Me for the likes of a bag of coins, I exchanged My life for yours, and bought you back. Despite the fact that you killed Me, I gave you true life. The only way I could get you back was to trade My life for yours. And because I love you with a love you can’t even fathom, I did. The same love that the Father has for Me, I have for you. The same way that the Father and I are connected, I want to be connected to you. So accept my invitation to come and dwell with us! There is no life apart from Me. You are not your own. You were bought at a price! And now that you are mine, I bring you new life!”