Reclaiming Easter

A Bunny? Now That’s Funny!

Here’s a riddle: What day consists of a fat man in a red suit, songs about snow, and endless lines at the mall? Why the birth of the Savior of the world of course!! (insert sarcasm here).

It’s no surprise that Christmas is very rarely celebrated for what it is supposed to be. In fact, even Christians struggle to keep Jesus as the focus of the day dedicated to his birth. I’ll admit that even I have lost zest for what used to be my favorite holiday due to the stress of shopping for everyone within budget, the mess of decorating, and the attempt to spend time with alternating families when ticket prices are purposely high and patience at the airport is understandably low.

Then, there’s Easter. Aaaaaah…a breath of fresh air. But wait! It’s not that easy! Tales of bunnies and eggs and baskets are creeping their way in to replace the most significant moment in the history of man and we can’t let it!

Reclaiming Easter in our hearts

It brings tears to my eyes when I reflect on the incredible event that we are celebrating on that blessed Sunday. I’ll never forget the Sunday when my family came up to see my husband and I for Easter a couple years ago. I was so excited because we were a part of a very large church so I knew the service would be well orchestrated. We sat down and my brother made a sassy comment about the fact that there were tissue boxes on the ground in case anyone would need them. I laughed it off…then the music began.

There’s one song that made a huge impact on me. The words that were continuously repeated were “He’s alive…He’s alive…He’s alive and I’m forgiven, heaven’s gates are open wide…” There was a chorus singing as well as about a dozen teenagers who were also motioning the words with sign language. Simultaneously, a huge (I mean a couple stories tall) white banner with a cross on it was being risen from the bottom up. I tried to stop it, but I couldn’t. Within seconds I was a crying mess. I felt so excited at the fact that He is indeed alive, and because of it heaven’s gates are open wide that I wanted to jump out of my chair and shout!

As Christians we take it for granted every day. We start off our day asking for protection and strength, but do we daily thank God for saving our souls? Do we think about the power involved when Christ was hung? About the ground literally shaking and the sky turning black? Do we think about the veil in the temple being torn in two showing that for once, sinful man could approach a Holy God? And do not make the mistake of belittling the word “holy.” The Bible gives accounts of people having contact with this Holy God and coming to the conclusion that if they were to see or even hear God’s voice any longer, they would literally die right there on the spot (Deuteronomy 18:6, Isaiah 6:5). The fact that Jesus made a way for us to know a Holy God is absolutely beyond words amazing. Easter is a day for us to celebrate that officially, although it should be a daily (if not hourly) celebration in our hearts.

Reclaiming Easter in our World

I love getting gifts, and sometimes the fun part of a holiday is the gift that comes with it. “What did you get for Valentines Day? Your birthday? Easter?” I am not saying that it’s wrong to eat a chocolate bunny or one of those delicious chocolate creamy eggs (you know what I’m talking about). However, when it comes to the day when our Savior rose from the dead, we have to be careful that the world does not take away any of His glory.

Vendors have been successful for decades now at taking out the real meaning of holidays in order to boost their sales. We’ve already mentioned Christmas, and while we should always keep fighting for Christmas, it has to stop at Easter. We have to take a stand and boldly proclaim that what we look forward to on that day is not a basket full of goodies, but the gathering of our family in Christ to celebrate this amazing event! We should be able to go to the store and when we see those aisles full of basket grass and foil covered chocolate, we should just laugh at the world’s pathetic attempt to take away the glory from the one feat that made our salvation possible.

We must reclaim Easter. In our hearts, in our world. This is our holiday, not the grocery stores’. This Sunday commemorates our Lord, not a fictional bunny who hides eggs (which by the way, doesn’t even make sense!). Easter is an opportunity to remember how complete God’s love is for us to give us His son, as well as a chance to share with the world the fact that He did not do it only for us.

Make this Easter a special one. Remember the one who made it what it is. Show him that you are thankful for giving us something to really celebrate!

Originally Posted: 2.28.2005