Easter

As we start thinking of life with a little one, we've been talking about the meaning of holidays and how we want to celebrate them as a family. Sadly, so much of the true meaning gets neglected in favor of commercialism and tradition. Take Easter for starters. Sure it's fun to usher in the Spring season with pretty flowers and egg hunts and Easter baskets and the Easter Bunny and even family dinners... but does any of that lead us to the true celebration?

Without Easter, my life would be hopeless. Yep, hopeless. Not only did Jesus take all of the guilt of MY sin upon Himself, dying MY death on the cross, but He rose from the dead! Death couldn't keep Him down. He overcame it! That means that I don't have to try to be good enough to win His love. I don't have to wallow in the guilt of my sin, but I am forgiven. I have hope! There is meaning to my life and even to the challenges and sufferings I face. No matter what I do, I am always accepted in Him because He made an exchange with me that only He could. He took my sin, and I get His righteousness. A righteousness I could spend my entire life trying to attain, but I'd never reach. And yet, He gives it freely. Well, free for me... it was purchased with the blood of Christ.

So for us, we want that to be our focus... and certainly what we teach our children. It's not that we won't enjoy the fun of family get-togethers, or give our little boy a basket of treats... but we don't want that to be how he describes what Easter is about. It's not just a nice story they share at church... it is absolutely central to who we are. We want him to know how much Jesus loves him and what He has done for him. That joy lasts far beyond the Spring. It is truly what Life is about.