easter eggs and chocolate bunnies?....nope.

4 april 2010

inspiration: the love and grace of Christ
location: my heart
thing i love: that i can't earn it.

a few of my favorite things about easter:
1. it actually feels like things are in bloom on the day
2. one of the most celebratory church days ever
3. i always feel humbled...it's delightful to feel that way sometimes.
4. rejoicing for He is risen!

so not everyone looks forward to easter. i mean, it's no christmas. for kids, they've done all they can to foster a sense of silliness and fun, with easter egg hunts, chocolate bunnies, easter grass, and all sorts of colorful jellybeans and other candy, but it's just not the same as the surprise of christmas.

for me, it's different than that (i guess it should be since i'm not a child...). for me, christmas and easter alike are celebratory days, in which i take a look at the word, and relish in the gift that is the grace and love of Christ. what a beautiful thing. the birth of Christ is something we look at with such great expectancy. we can't wait until the story of the life of Christ unfurls and we get to meet this precious baby, who will give us new life...i mean, let's be honest, who doesn't LOVE meeting a new baby?!?!!! but the beauty of the revelation of a new life on earth that has been created by God for the sole purpose of saving us from hell...His coming, that we might have life...it just blows me away and makes me feel humble. undeserving. small.

but easter. easter is the day we all embrace that love. we say to the Lord, thank you for this gift. thank you for the love you unconditionally give. thank you for your Son. and we tell Him how much He means. to us. we celebrate.

this is one thing that i love about easter. another thing that i love about easter is my church. for those that don't know, i go to ecclesia, a small-ish community church here in houston. i love being a part of this heavenly family. these people are almost as much a part of my family as my family is. they love me in the best and the worst circumstances. they accept me just as i am. and they want what is best for my life, while encouraging me in the word. i love that. it makes going to church the most positive experience--to see the love of Christ in the faces of my church family....it's beautiful.

well, all that to say, the easter season is my favorite at ecclesia, as we spend days both mourning and celebrating the life of Christ. there is a stations of the cross art show installed for the duration of lent, there are services on ash wednesday, maunday thursday, good friday, and of course, easter sunday. and there is always beautiful music, beautiful words, and beautiful contemplation. this year, i went to the sunrise service, since i had made plans to help my mom work in the garage at her house in the afternoon, so i headed to church as the sun was coming up, and had the most wonderful time once i got there.

i wasn't feeling very well on my way to church, but as i received my candle and headed into the service, a calm and a joy washed over me and allowed me to sit and be comforted and humbled at the feet of the one who saved me. what a beautiful sunday. i didn't sit with anyone i knew, and i didn't see my friends when we greeted the others seated around us. it was all about newness for me on sunday. the newness of my heart, the newness of my fellow ecclesians, and the newness of the day.

like i said a wonderful easter.