Easter Morning

Have you ever been surprised with a gift so wonderful you couldn’t believe it was true? I believe we all have had good surprises during our lifetime, but I don’t believe any could be as wonderful as having someone you loved appear to you alive after being dead for three days.

Put yourself in the shoes of Mary Magdalene and the other Mary as they went to the tomb (Matthew 28:1). Remember, the day before was the Sabbath and they were at home observing the holiday. Now, the day after, they get up early to go to the tomb to mourn the death of their beloved friend and teacher. An earthquake happens and the stone in front of the tomb rolls away to reveal emptiness.

Typically, the stone would have been a large stone disc. It would have been heavy enough that it would have taken a couple strong men to roll it away from the tomb opening. Not only that, but the stone was normally held in place by a large rock. You see, the stone would have been rolled down a slope to cover the tomb opening and the rock kept the stone from rolling any further downhill. So, when the earthquake rolled the stone away from the opening, the stone would have rolled uphill. Amazing isn’t it?!

As we celebrate this Easter, let us remember that Jesus has indeed risen. Not only has He risen, but He is always with us. We might also marvel at other miraculous things that happened that morning and ponder the pure joy of seeing your Lord and Savior in all His brilliance after having witnessed Him being brutally beaten and crucified. I’m not sure we can fully comprehend how joyous that would have been for the two Mary’s and the apostles.

I pray we celebrate this Easter in joy and wonder. I pray we are amazed at the wonders of God and His miraculous power. I pray we live in Jesus Christ each and every day of our lives. Be in awe. Experience the pure joy. Celebrate Jesus Christ every day. Live for Him and with Him.

Matthew 28:5-10 The angel said to the women, “Do not be afraid, for I know that you are looking for Jesus, who was crucified. He is not here; he has risen, just as he said. Come and see the place where he lay. Then go quickly and tell his disciples: ‘He has risen from the dead and is going ahead of you into Galilee. There you will see him.’ Now I have told you.”

So the women hurried away from the tomb, afraid yet filled with joy, and ran to tell his disciples. Suddenly Jesus met them. “Greetings,” he said. They came to him, clasped his feet and worshiped him. Then Jesus said to them, “Do not be afraid. Go and tell my brothers to go to Galilee; there they will see me.” 

Easter Eve

How well do you handle disappointment? How do you react when it seems your whole world has crashed around you? Who do you run to when you need a shoulder to cry on? Have you ever had to run for your life? What do you think your reaction would be?

We all have down times. Sometimes those down times go deep. We may end up in the deepest valley we could ever imagine. We search for a way out. We set and revel in our sorrows. We don’t want to go out in public. We can’t find the strength to get out of bed. We struggle with the simplest of tasks.

Yet there is always One who is with us. God does not abandon us (Matthew 28:20). He provides us with the strength we need to continue to move forward, according to His plan (1 Peter 4:11). It is when we are in the deepest of valleys that we need to rely on God more than ever.

Thinking about our own deep valleys, can we put ourselves in the shoes of the apostles on the day after Jesus was crucified? They thought He was going to be a king. They had put three years of their lives into following Him, hearing His parables, having Him explain them, and professing that He was the Messiah—the long-awaited Messiah of Israel.

The apostles were hiding on that Saturday. They feared for their lives, thinking the Jewish leadership would be coming for them next. The door to the room where they were staying was bolted shut. I can only imagine the way they felt—having their whole world crumble around them.

Put yourself in their shoes for just a moment. Imagine the man you’ve trusted to bring all things of promise, glory, riches, removal of your enemy from your country has been crucified and buried the day before. You’ve seen him tried, beaten, and brutally killed. How would you feel?

Most of us cannot fully imagine what that would be like. Sure, we’ve experienced some bad times, deep emotional valleys, and lost loved ones. What carried us through those experiences? Was it our sheer force of will or did we lean on God? One of those answers will help us get through them in better shape than the other.

So, as we go through this Saturday, many of us in despair, trust God to carry you through. As we all continue our worrying about the COVID-19 affects and whether we or one of our family members may be infected, lean on God. As we continue to attempt to isolate ourselves, spend time with God.

I pray we all reflect on the despair the apostles experienced. I pray each of us will take inventory of our relationship with God. I pray we trust God to get us through our current situation. Do not despair. Have faith in God. Know that Jesus fulfills His promises.

John 20:19 On the evening of that first day of the week, when the disciples were together, with the doors locked for fear of the Jewish leaders, Jesus came and stood among them and said, “Peace be with you!”

Seek the Truth

Do you recognize the truth when you hear it? Have you tuned your heart and mind to recognize it? When you hear the truth, are you willing to accept it? Will you follow the truth, even if it is hard? Do you accept the crucifixion of Jesus Christ as the truth?

We hear people talking all day long. Much of what we hear is simply people rambling on about something of little importance. We hear all kinds of rumors, even more so in regard to the current pandemic. “Who tested positive?” “Where did they come in contact with it?” “Why weren’t they listening to the experts and taking it serious?”

Of course, most of us aren’t contributing truth to the matter ourselves. We condemn the person we’re talking about with only part of the information. We heard one piece of it, and we’re not even sure if that is true, then we start talking about how stupid the person was. We fail to realize we don’t know the whole situation. We are not investigators who are interviewing everyone involved and collecting evidence. Yet we are quick to condemn.

It was much the same with Jesus. He was condemned without the Jewish leadership knowing fully who He was. They didn’t really investigate His deeds nor the prophecy about Him. They simply knew that He was pulling people away from their teaching and costing them money. The Roman Governor, Pilate, only condemned Him to appease the Jewish leadership and an angry mob. Have we considered we are just like them?

We are called to follow the truth. We are instructed to seek the truth. The truth we are to seek is Jesus. He told us explicitly that He is the truth (John 14:6). This seeking is not simply meant to be a scavenger hunt. It is to be an investigation, an earnest search, followed by our acceptance of His truth and following Him.

When we honestly seek to know Jesus, to know God, we will begin to obtain a heart and mind like His. The more we become like Him, the easier it will be for us to identify the truth when we hear it. We will be able to ignore the false rumors and point out the half-truths and lies we hear every day. We will give credit to those who witness, absorbing their message as truth.

I pray we all seek the truth and give up listening to the rabble all around us. I pray each one of us will accept the truth of Jesus Christ. I pray we follow His teaching as related by eyewitnesses and appointed apostles. Seek the truth. Seek Jesus. Discard lies. Follow Jesus.

John 19:32-35 The soldiers therefore came and broke the legs of the first man who had been crucified with Jesus, and then those of the other. But when they came to Jesus and found that he was already dead, they did not break his legs. Instead, one of the soldiers pierced Jesus’ side with a spear, bringing a sudden flow of blood and water. The man who saw it has given testimony, and his testimony is true. He knows that he tells the truth, and he testifies so that you also may believe.

The Image of Christ

What image comes to mind when you think of Jesus? Do you picture Him as being white, brown hair, blue eyes, a beard, and dressed in a robe that looks like a servant’s gown? Or, do you have a more majestic view of Him? Do you see Him as a King?

Most of us have grown up seeing portraits of Jesus as painted by European artists. If we haven’t grown up with those portraits, we’ve seen them at some time in our lives. He has been portrayed as a European rather than a Jew. When He walked this earth, He was of Jewish human heritage.

Of course, the human image He donned while walking this earth is not really who He is. He is far more than any human being could be. His heavenly being is beyond a human body. So, what does He really look like? Well, we are given an image of Him in Scripture.

Jesus is described as He is seen by John in the book of Revelation. This is His heavenly body, one that has been glorified by the Father. His glory comes from His obedience to the Father and on our behalf. He has existed from before time and exists outside of time. He was, is, and will be forever.

This is hard to wrap our minds around. We are used to seeing people in their human form and find it otherworldly to think of Him as He is described. Yet, He is otherworldly. He is not of this world. He came into the world from heaven and went back to heaven. Doesn’t it make sense that He would have a heavenly body? We are told there are heavenly and earthly bodies (1 Corinthians 15:40); and that our bodies will be transformed into heavenly bodies as well (Philippians 3:21).

As we look at the description of Jesus in His heavenly body, we should not look at Him in horror, but in awe of how amazing He is. We should see His majesty and His power. We should see the brightness of His being. We should see His wisdom and His justness. After all, He is the King of kings, Lord of lords, and Judge of all people. He is also our Lord and Savior. Should He not be someone we are in awe of?

I pray we all see Jesus for who He is. I pray we see Him as our Lord and Savior as well as the King of kings and Judge of all. I pray we see His compassion for each one of us and His tolerance of our faults. See Jesus for who really is. Submit to Jesus as the ultimate King. See Jesus as your Lord and Savior. Bow to worship Him. Obey His commands.

Revelation 1:12-16 I turned around to see the voice that was speaking to me. And when I turned I saw seven golden lampstands, and among the lampstands was someone like a son of man, dressed in a robe reaching down to his feet and with a golden sash around his chest. The hair on his head was white like wool, as white as snow, and his eyes were like blazing fire. His feet were like bronze glowing in a furnace, and his voice was like the sound of rushing waters. In his right hand he held seven stars, and coming out of his mouth was a sharp, double-edged sword. His face was like the sun shining in all its brilliance.

Life Without Worry

Are your worried about this life? Do you wonder about what is going to happen? Are you concerned for tomorrow? Do you know where you will spend eternity? Will you follow Jesus and live in confidence? Are you looking forward to spending eternity with God?

There is more than enough to cause us to worry in the world today. We see the numbers of infections and deaths from COVID-19 rise daily. We have a national election coming up. We hear of terrorist attacks, though those seem to have taken a backseat in the news recently. In fact, we hear less about crime today than we are used to hearing, yet crime is still happening.

We can be overwhelmed with all the bad news we hear. We look forward to those few tidbits of good news that are reported. Hasn’t it been this way for decades? We’ve seen some news services make an attempt to specifically insert a good news story every day, just to appease our desire to hear something good. Yet there is one piece of good news we can carry with us each day.

As we are reminded during this Easter season of our vulnerability, we are also reminded of God’s eternal promise. With the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ, we are promised an eternal life with God, if we will simply believe in Jesus and accept Him as our Lord and Savior. Make no mistake, this is no flippant decision, but a commitment.

When we commit to Jesus, we will begin to see our lives change for the better. The Holy Spirit moves into our lives and begins rearranging priorities. He will take away the worries of this world, one worry at a time as we release more control and give it over to Him.

At first, we don’t notice much change. It’s sort of like someone moved a trinket from one table to another. Or, we may notice that something we once liked to do is no longer of interest. Over time, as we look back, we see there are more worries taken away. It all happens one step at a time. 

Could you imagine if it was a complete makeover all at once? We would go into shock. God knows what He’s doing and brings us along as we are able to handle it. Our responsibility is to continue to turn over our concerns to Him, release them to Him and He will take them from us.

I pray we all commit to Jesus today. I pray each of us who have committed will recommit each day. I pray that we all release our concerns to God and allow Him to take them. I pray each person will release control, knowing that God is truly in control. Commit to Jesus today and every day. Give your worries to God. Release control. Know God is in control. Trust God.

1 Thessalonians 4:16-17 For the Lord himself will come down from heaven, with a loud command, with the voice of the archangel and with the trumpet call of God, and the dead in Christ will rise first. After that, we who are still alive and are left will be caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air. And so we will be with the Lord forever.

Denying the Truth

What are you denying? Do you willingly, consciously deny truth? Do you know something is true, not like it, and make every attempt to deny it? How does that work out for you? Do you find later that you would have been better off to simply accept the truth and make the right decision?

We all have had hard truths spoken to us. We have had to make a decision to believe the truth and take corrective action or ignore it and continue to face the consequences for it. It may be that we can’t wrap our brains around it and simply don’t understand.

Nearly all of us have heard the truth of God, of Jesus Christ. We have heard that God loves us. We have heard that Jesus faced the cross willingly to save us. We have heard that He arose three days later. We may have heard that He walked the earth for 40 days after He rose from the dead.

Yet there are many things we haven’t heard about Jesus. Some of those are written in non-Biblical histories by a variety of people, including the famous Jewish historian Josephus. Others are written in the Bible and we either haven’t read them or we didn’t fully understand them or we may have simply missed it when we read it.

A recent question posed to me in a class caused me to do some additional research. There is a Jewish belief that the Messiah will enter through the East Gate when He comes. The Jews do not believe the Messiah has come, meaning they don’t believe Jesus is the Messiah. Neither do the Muslims.

We are told that Jesus made His triumphal entry, riding on a donkey to fulfill prophecy, coming from Bethany where He had dinner with Lazarus. The direct route from Bethany would mean that Jesus came through the East Gate. This is also the main gate into the Temple area. A truth the Jews refuse to acknowledge, and the cost could be extremely high for them.

When we refuse to accept a truth, especially a hard truth that requires extreme change for us, we may be costing ourselves dearly. Refusal may cost us our lives, if not literally, at least metaphorically. Our spiritual lives and where we will spend eternity are dependent upon us accepting the truth. Will you accept this truth today?

I pray we all accept the truth of Jesus. I pray each of us will choose to follow Him with our entire being. I pray that we allow God to change our lives for the best. God is patiently waiting for each of us to choose Him. Accept Jesus as your Lord and Savior. Allow God to make the change in your heart. Choose to follow Jesus and all His teachings. Be the person God wants you to be.

John 12:1-2 Six days before the Passover, Jesus came to Bethany, where Lazarus lived, whom Jesus had raised from the dead. Here a dinner was given in Jesus’ honor. Martha served, while Lazarus was among those reclining at the table with him.

The Pull

Do you feel like you are being pulled in several directions all at once? Do you find that you are often having an internal argument with yourself, trying to decide what is best? Do you fight your inner desire to do evil versus doing good? Are you feeling the tug of war going on between your physical desires and your spiritual desires?

We are pulled in many different directions by multiple priorities and people. Some of those are good and some are temptations to do what we know we shouldn’t. The inner battle can be very challenging and sometimes debilitating.

We don’t typically look at these tugs of war as good versus evil. We so often want to deny the evil that is all around us. We don’t want to face the fact that evil is pulling us away from God. We want to believe we are in control and we are doing what is right.

We are told very plainly in Scripture that evil exists in this world and is constantly pulling at us, tempting us to do what we shouldn’t. It is this same evil that puts the selfish behavior in our minds, which leads us to behaving negatively toward others. It is what causes us to be angry, stingy, use what is meant for good to do bad.

It is very easy for us to turn our innate instinct to protect ourselves into complete selfishness, turning us against all others without even realizing it. We see it all around us and often complain about a person behaving in such manner. Yet we don’t see that we are also behaving in the same way.

It takes a conscious effort to realize we are allowing evil to tempt us and succeed in pulling us away from God. It takes looking at ourselves honestly to see where we are being pulled away from what we know is right. It takes commitment to submit to God, asking Him to take the temptation away and make the change in us.

We must open our eyes and see evil for the evil it is. We are called to live a righteous life. God’s love is bigger than we can imagine, and He is patiently waiting for us to make a commitment to Him. Yet He is also just. He will deal out punishment, if we are unwilling to make the change.

I pray each one of us will open our eyes and see evil for what it is. I pray we all submit to God’s calling, asking Him to make the change in us we need. I pray we all feel the pull of evil and resist it with the power of God. Resist temptation. Submit to God. Ask God to transform you. Flee from evil. Do what is right.

James 1:13-15 When tempted, no one should say, “God is tempting me.” For God cannot be tempted by evil, nor does he tempt anyone; but each person is tempted when they are dragged away by their own evil desire and enticed. Then, after desire has conceived, it gives birth to sin; and sin, when it is full-grown, gives birth to death.

Peace of Mind

Are you at peace? Or, are you all tied up in anxiety? Have you found the calm in the storm? Or, are you continuing to be rocked by the waves of fear? Will you seek the peace of Jesus? Or, will you continue to wallow in the worries of this world?

We all find ourselves in situations of uncertainty at times during our lives. Some of those situations seem overwhelming to us. We look at them as daunting obstacles to our health, our security, our future. Often, we find when we’ve gotten through them that they weren’t quite as big as we originally imagined. How can we fix our misperception?

Our biggest hurdle to calm and peace is ourselves. We allow our imaginations to run wild as though we were a 2-year old on a sugar high. Why does this happen? We have not renewed our mind (Romans 12:2) as Paul instructed the believers in Rome. We have not fed our hearts and minds with the truth of Jesus Christ.

The key to getting through any tough situation is to remain calm and think through it. Our military teaches its troops this concept. Special forces take it a step further, not only teaching it, but forcing the candidates to exercise it throughout their schooling. This is why our troops can get through some very tough situations in combat.

Why do I pull in a combat comparison? We are in an all-out war every day. We fight a continual spiritual battle every day, whether we realize it or not. We can remain oblivious to it and be tossed about in the fray or we can be an active participant on the side of Christ. It’s our decision. Yet if we decide not to be active in Christ, we have doomed ourselves to continual worry, fear, and anxiety.

Jesus tells us that He has given us His peace. It’s there for us to take it up, ingest it into our hearts and minds. All we have to do is choose Him and spend time with Him, asking Him to give us the peace He promised. We need to do this honestly. It can’t be faked. You see, Jesus knows us inside and out, better than we know ourselves. So, don’t think you can fake it with Him.

I pray we all seek the peace of Jesus Christ. I pray each of us will honestly ask Him to provide it to us. I pray we accept His peace, finding a tranquility that can’t be found anywhere else. Seek Jesus’ peace. Seek Him wholeheartedly. Accept His wonderful gift. Trust Jesus’ promises.

John 14:25-27 “All this I have spoken while still with you. But the Advocate, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in my name, will teach you all things and will remind you of everything I have said to you. Peace I leave with you; my peace I give you. I do not give to you as the world gives. Do not let your hearts be troubled and do not be afraid.”

Moving Forward

Are you moving forward? Or, are you going backward? Are you improving your understanding and relationship with God? Or, are you regressing into worry, fear, and anxiety? Will you decide to move forward, trusting God with everything?

Despite what we often feel or may even hear from those around us, it is a conscious decision on our part to trust God. We are to wake each morning and decide to trust Him. We must make that decision each and every day. If we do not, we regress into our old ways.

When we don’t make a conscious decision to trust God each day, we leave ourselves open to be manipulated by outside influences that come our way. As Paul writes to the Ephesians, we are tossed about on the waves like a boat with no anchor nor motor (Ephesians 4:14). We allow others to cause uncertainty, which leads us down the dark path to fear and anxiety.

We are to have solid roots that are deep in the soil of Jesus Christ (Colossians 2:6-7). When we are rooted deeply in Him, we can withstand the storms, grow and flourish, and bare fruit to feed others. As we trust in God, we become the calm in the storm and shed His light for others to see and follow.

There is a lot of worry, fear, and anxiety in this world right now. People are concerned about the COVID-19 pandemic, the effect on their jobs, the amount of supplies available, and whether a family member will become sick. There is chaos throughout the world, whether it be physical chaos in the streets or mental chaos in people’s minds.

Our faith in God will provide us with the peace we need (John 14:27). As we experience His peace in us, we can remain calm and continue to move forward. If we are unsure, experiencing the fear and anxiety we see in others, we should pray. Our prayer cannot be a one-time prayer that only lasts a few seconds. We should pray multiple times per day and every day for several minutes. We should lay our worries, fears, and anxiety bare before God and trust Him to remove them from us. As we pray, we also need to remain patient. All things happen in God’s time.

I pray we all make time to pray throughout each day. I pray each of us will lay bare our concerns to God, laying them at the foot of the cross. I pray that each one of us will receive the peace of God that goes beyond understanding. I pray we all remain safe as we go through this pandemic. Pray often. Lay your concerns at God’s feet. Receive His peace. Trust God. Increase your faith.

2 Peter 3:8-9 But do not forget this one thing, dear friends: With the Lord a day is like a thousand years, and a thousand years are like a day. The Lord is not slow in keeping his promise, as some understand slowness. Instead he is patient with you, not wanting anyone to perish, but everyone to come to repentance.

New Life

How is your life going today? Are you looking forward to a change? Do you anticipate things getting better? How does your life today compare to your life 10 years ago? What do you think your life will be like 10 years from now? What will your eternal life be like?

I believe we all look for a better life. Unfortunately, we too often look for it in this world and especially in material possessions. Sure, we often can make a better life here on this earth. That is especially true if we put God first in our lives and depend on Him. Yet, we often want to take the reins ourselves and put more trust in our plans than we do God’s.

Personally, I understand Paul’s message to the Philippians when he basically says he is ready to go to heaven. I also understand his conundrum and why he decides it’s better for him to stay for a while.

Let me explain. On a personal level, looking only at me, I’m ready to live eternity with God. I’m ready to leave all the pain and suffering behind. Why not? Can you imagine what heaven will be like? I would love to find out and stay there forever.

On the other hand, I also believe without a doubt that God has a plan for me to continue His work here on this earth. So, I’m willing to stay here and continue working on the tasks He has laid out for me. I also would hate to leave my family and friends behind.

That makes for quite the conundrum, doesn’t it? On the one hand, being ready to spend eternity in heaven. On the other hand, not wanting to leave things undone and wanting to take care of your family. Ultimately, each of us need to trust God. He knows when the time is right for us to come join Him and He knows what He has planned for us to do yet.

It is nice to be comfortable in knowing God is in control. It is comforting to not worry about where we will spend eternity. It gives us freedom to continue working the tasks God has laid out for us without fear. It provides us with a confidence and peace that is beyond understanding and cannot be fully explained.

I pray each of us come to the conundrum of wanting to go to heaven and yet wanting to stay on this earth. I pray we all find the peace beyond understanding. I pray we all trust that God has a plan for us and are willing to take on the tasks He assigns us. Trust God is in control. Accept His peace into your life. Be confident in completing His assigned tasks. God will not let you down.

Philippians 1:21-24 For to me, to live is Christ and to die is gain. If I am to go on living in the body, this will mean fruitful labor for me. Yet what shall I choose? I do not know! I am torn between the two: I desire to depart and be with Christ, which is better by far; but it is more necessary for you that I remain in the body.