Easter: What does it mean?

Hey Family!

Spring is here! Birds are singing. Flowers are blooming. People are spending more time outside. Jim's Dairy Barn is open. And it feels good to be alive. Doesn't it? Doesn't it feel good to be alive? I hope so.

And Easter, more than any other week in the year, reminds us of the beauty and awe of life. This is the week Jesus made his way, willingly, to Jerusalem, knowing what lie ahead. This is the week that Jesus carried His cross, tossed some tables, cursed a fig tree, and let a woman of ill repute anoint Him. This is the week the stone was rolled away. Death defeated. Resurrection promised. Salvation gained. This is the week when the tide of history changed, forever. God became a man and then carried the sins of the entire world on that cross. This is the week of life. Amazing life. Abundant life.

But do we comprehend the power of this life? Do we full grasp the "awe" of Jesus' choice to go to his death, so that we could be saved, all of us? Do we live like new creations, full of joy, peace, hope, and promise? Do we honor Jesus, at all? This week, more than any other week, we must return to our baptisms, return to our vows, and return to the core values of our faith, and when we do, we must examine ourselves and ask, "Do we measure up?"

All too often, i dont. I dont live with devout faith, amazing hope, inspiring joy, quiet peace, or healing love. I live more as the world does, which really isn't living at all. I dishonor the cross, i dishonor Jesus. However, this is also the week of repentance, which means to turn around. I can, we all can, return to the faith and discover our new selves, once again. But we have to leave our old self, the selfish self, the pouty self, the arrogant self, the materialistic self, the hoarding self, the power hungry self, the manipulative self, the lying self, the gossiping self, the afraid self, the dark self, and the sinful self behind and embrace the "NEW" creation Jesus intended. This is the week for renewal and refocusing. We can, and we must.

As we gather for Love Feast, on Maundy Thursday, please do so with reverence and awe. Please, please, PLEASE, do not dishonor the space by just going through the motions or not checking your pride and ego at the door or simply taking the whole worship for granted. Please do not do that. If that is how we approach Love Feast, it would be better for us to not participate. But if we immerse ourselves, humbly, into the worship, and we show reverence and awe for our Savior and our God, and we serve our sisters and brothers out of love, acceptance, mercy, and forgiveness, well then not only will Jesus show up, but that promise of New Creation, yeah it happens too.

Life is hard enough, when we try to drive our own path. Why not let the Author of life take over and find a new hope, a new life, and a new joy, deeper, wider, and more holistic than anything we could have ever imagined. He's here, waiting on us, crying out to us, praying for us, and ready to love on us. Its time for us to surrender and let Him, and then we will know what true life, true hope, true love, and yes true faith truly are. Come and see. Come and experience. Come and be set free. Amen.

Shalom, Salaam, Peace...

In His Name,
Jerry