Happy Easter!

He is Risen!

We aren't going to church today.  We usually don't on Easter.  I know that sounds pretty lame but it is always a crazy busy day at church and years of having a huge family has taken its toll on me.  I don't like having to keep track of everyone when there are limited seats in the sanctuary and all.

And Kevin's mom and our niece are coming for Easter lunch today at noon.  Our niece has to get back to college up north this afternoon and reasonably doesn't want to drive in the dark. AND it is supposed to snow tonight!  Will spring ever really come?  It has been a long winter.

I took the 3 youngest to our church's Easter egg hunt/bouncy hut spectacular yesterday.  We started out with listening to a wonderful description of the Easter story using Resurrection Eggs. Each egg has a symbol (like a tiny palm leaf, a cross made of nails, coins to represent Christ's betrayal by Judas) and one of the ladies from church did a lovely job telling the story.

Then we went on the egg hunt. Rose and Daniel and Sarah all gathered many eggs. Rose went quietly nuts near the end and I was keeping track of all 3 kids in a busy crowd and each egg hunt was in a different place so it was stressful. Four of the big kids were there helping with the event itself. They were able to help sometimes.

Suffice it to say I was very glad when I got everyone safely home, but it was a lovely time and I'm thankful for our church's willingness to have such a community event which ties into the gospel.

I've been saved since I was a teenager so maybe at some level, the Easter story seems old news sometimes. But this morning I was reading through enduringword.com, which is a wonderful website which includes historical and theological insight into passages.  I was reading about the Last Supper in the Gospel of Luke.  And once again I was struck with amazement that Christ, the Son of the Living God, my Lord and my Savior, humbled himself and died for me, for my sins.

I was reading a movie review a couple of weeks ago on screenit.com.  I really like this site, to the point that I actually pay for the privilege of using it.  The reviews are very detailed about various issues that might be a problem. The reviewer of a new movie on the Apostle Paul commented briefly that he didn't understand how a man like Saul of Tarsus (who became Paul after his conversion) could truly be forgiven for his many sins.  We tend to forget that Saul was basically a terrorist.  He went around dragging innocents to jail for being Christians. He killed.  He murdered.  This reviewer said he just didn't get that aspect of Christianity, that a truly evil man could truly be forgiven.

And I realized that I am Saul of Tarsus. I am.  No, I'm not a mass murderer.  I'm a "pretty nice person." But GOD IS PERFECT.  And I never was, am not, never will be perfect on Earth. I will sin. I will fail. I will be selfish and fearful and self centered.

But Jesus loves me anyway.  He loves me SO MUCH that he was willing to die a truly horrific death to be the sacrifice for my sins.

We are all sinners, and we are saved by grace and grace alone.  Thank you, Lord Jesus.

Happy Easter.  He ROSE!