Easter has now come and gone. Did you return to your old self or find something new during Lent?
“to whom He also presented Himself alive after His suffering by many infallible proofs, being seen by them during forty days and speaking of the things pertaining to the kingdom of God.” Acts 1:3 NKJV
Reflection
Jesus was raised from the dead. Lent is officially over—time to get back to normal. Wait, what? Back to normal? How in the heck is that even possible? How can anything ever be normal again after Jesus was murdered and then raised by our Heavenly Father?
Many Christians do Lent and suffer through whatever they “gave up” to acknowledge some version of suffering. What is supposed to happen during that hell is that you reflect on your Savior when you feel the urge to return to your “normal.” It isn’t supposed to be about you.
For many Christians, the day after Easter is like getting your breath back after you’ve held it for so long. It’s kind of an “Oh my gosh!” or perhaps a “Whew! That was tough!” or maybe “Now I can finally have some dang dessert, that second glass of wine, meat on a Friday, or shop till I drop!”. I know I was once like this for many years. Ring familiar to you?
Just think about that for a moment. Jesus, the reason for Easter, who came to teach us what love looked like, to free us from sin, and to leave us with a Holy Spirit to comfort and guide us, never once returned to “normal.” Instead, each day was another new normal—a building on top of the previous day leading up to the final day- the start of something new!
So now that Lent is behind us, Easter is over, and spring is in full gear, what now? Do you go back to your old routine, or do you enjoy a new normal?
I believe the process of Lent and the celebration of Easter aligned with our spring is a cause to celebrate a newness. Hopefully, as we faithfully enjoyed our reflection time during Lent, it reminded us that time with God is worth spending. That is a frequent reminder of how awesome God is toward us, and giving thanks for it is worthy.
So now that Easter has come and gone, what will you do? Will you jump right back in before Easter, or will you acknowledge that something has changed and changed for the good? Jesus is Risen. He is Alive! Is He alive in you, or are you going to let the earthly things take back over? Will you allow yourself back into where He might have been during Lent? Only you can know.
Prayer
Heavenly Father, please do not let us forget the gift of the resurrection. Never let us ignore the significance, and certainly not take it for granted. Jesus is the way, the truth, and the light. He modeled an approach to many things we should aspire to be more like. Thank you for helping us during Lent but Father, please help us to stay reminded of you and to share each day with you. Let us not turn back to ourselves as we once were but walk going forward, centered and connected to you. Please keep us, our families, and our friends safe. We pray in the name of Jesus, our Risen Lord, our Savior, and our Hope. Amen.
Commentaires