Easter

Easter came again this year, as it always does!  Another holiday to celebrate, another day to dress up pretty, go to church, be with family, eat a delicious meal...  All of this is wonderful and adds to life in fun and good ways but this year I was struck again with the enormity of what Easter is about for me, for us all.  Do you know the story of Easter?  It is amazing!
Jesus came to earth, lived his life with sinners, people like you and me.  He loved them, he prayed for them, laughed with them, cried with them, healed them.  He blessed them, he told them stories, true stories about the Father's love.  He came as a king, a Savior, but he also came as a man.  People loved him and hated him. They praised him and ridiculed him.  And eventually they killed him.  But, he was not surprised by this, he knew it was part of God's plan.  He loved us all so much, even the worst of the worst, he loves and came to save.  He cares for each one of us so personally and amazingly - beyond what we can imagine - and he died for us, to save us from sin.   We spent the week before Easter Sunday learning more about the importance of this week leading up to his death. We talked about the whip that hurt him, the crown of thorns that was placed on his head, we talked about the nails that went into his hands. We talked about the things that happened that were foretold in the Old Testament, Jesus was beaten, scorned, mocked, and hung on a cross to die.  I love, love that the story does not end there...The story ends in victory because Jesus is Life, He is the Way, He is ALIVE!  Jesus did not stay in that tomb, he rose from the dead.  He Rose From the DEAD!  That statement means so much to us all.  Jesus died for us to save us but he didn't stay dead.  He is alive and living today.  He lives in me, he lives in each one of us that ask him to come into our hearts.  He loves us so dearly and is waiting to be the biggest part of your life.  I love this story, and I love that it isn't just a story, but truth that I live by.
This is my paraphrase, these are my thoughts.  I am not a scholar.  I just love Jesus and want to share him with you!
We still did dress up pretty, went to church, had a delicious meal with family, even had an Easter egg hunt, because those things are fun and enjoyable, they are traditions that I love.  At the end of the day I just praise Jesus that my kids know him, they have each asked him to be their Savior and they are on a journey of understanding his immense love for each one of them, as am I.

Joshua was pitifully sick this year, poor guy!

Praise Jesus, He is Alive!