According to a Webster dictionary, Easter is the Christian festival observed on a Sunday in March or April in commemoration of the Resurrection of Christ. Resurrection, also found in Webster, states the rising of Christ from the dead as one of the meanings. Is Easter just another holiday, and how does it affect you ongoing?
Normally after a holiday, we go back to our mundane daily routine. The big question is, “Did Easter make us look toward Jesus more, or was it just another vacation day?”
What does the Resurrection of Christ mean to us? We all want to be good at raising our children. How far would you go? Our teens notice everything we do, and what we don’t do.
Let’s look at Jesus as our role model. How did his death and life affect you? Did He make a difference in your life? Are you living for Him every day, every hour, everyone minute? Our teens notice the results either way. Please remember, all of us only see what is right before us, and each person has their own perspective.
Believing and following Jesus are two different things. For teens, we have to stress that life has to be more than just going to church to see their friends, and it has to be more than a social adventure. Hanging out with the right people, and being involved in all the programs offered, does not ensure a successful relationship with Christ. There are so many changes happening in their lives at the same time. Making decisions to live for Christ, well that does not always sound plausible. Being a chameleon in a world of so many choices of “color”, only diffuses the need of living a life fully for Christ. Proper forethought and preplanning are effective ways to restore the chaos. Our knee jerk response is to say “You should have a relationship with Jesus”, but are we as parents living it out so they can see it in our lives?
It has to start first with us. As parents, we are supposed to guide our children into their next phase of life. How well are they educated on God’s truth and love. If we are all made in God’s image, what about sin? That is where Easter becomes more than a holiday!
“And as Moses lifted up the bronze snake on a pole in the wilderness, so the Son of Man must be lifted up, so that everyone who believes in him will have eternal life. For this is how God loved the world: He gave his one and only Son, so that everyone who believes in him will no perish buy have eternal life. God sent his Son into the world not to judge the world, but to save the world through him…. But those who do what is right come to the light so others can see that they are doing what God wants.” John 3:14-17, 21
What was Jesus was saying:
- Verse 14: Reference to the Crucifixion
- Verse 15: A believer in Jesus will have eternal life
- Verse 16: God loved us so much that he allowed His son to die as punishment for our sins
- Verse 17: Jesus was sent to save the world, not to judge it
- Verse 21: We should do what is right so others can see
Verse 21 can be hard to do all of the time. It requires giving all of our selves to God. No partial commitment will do! But when we do others, including our children, will see and drawn to Christ.
Easter is more than chocolate bunnies to me! It is a daily walk with Christ, knowing the price He paid to take the punishment of my sins, so that I could be saved. Remembering that daily, helps me to live for Him daily. What about you?
