Easter

I know I do not write often and most of the time I try to wait until the Lord really places something on my heart and then I write so that is why sometimes I write a lot on my blog and sometimes it is few and far between post. I would like what Easter means to you? But I would also like you to know all about what Easter means to me and what it should mean to you. First and foremost I want to say I am in this post no way knocking how you celebrate Easter but I do not the Easter bunny as part of Easter that is why our kids no longer get Easter baskets and really know nothing of a Easter bunny. What they do hear a lot about is how a Savior was sent from God who was tortured and murdered for OUR SINS. How Friday was a sad day but then on Sunday it was a joyful day, a day our Savior was raised from the dead which means HE IS ALIVE. That is where our hope comes from. When talking to our kids about what Easter really means this past week I ran across this story and thought it was wonderful. It is called The Story of the Little Hill.



The Little Hill by Kathy Vincent

Once there was a little hill

And on the hill there grew green grass

And under the green grass, a flower began to grow

And on the flower grew 3 red petals

The little hill was happy



One day a worker walked upon the little hill

And on the hill he dug 3 deep holes

And in each deep hole went a tall log

And on each tall log a cross was made with another log

The little hill was confused



The next day was Friday and a large crowd gathered around

And on each cross a man was hung

There was a man in the middle…His name was Jesus.

And on each side of Jesus there was another man

The little hill was sad



The man in the middle was very sad too

But other people on the little hill were very mad at Him

And made fun of Him

And they laughed at Him

And then darkness came

The little hill was scared



And then the man in the middle died

The little flower on the hill died too

Even the grass on the little hill died

And then the little hill shook and shook

The little hill cried



The man in the middle was taken down from His cross and buried in a cave

Friday was done

Saturday came and went

But on Sunday morning something wonderful happened!

The little hill was excited!



An angel appears and says that Jesus is ALIVE!

The friends of Jesus are very happy

They go to tell their other friends

Then Jesus appears and shows that He is not dead, but ALIVE!

The little hill is filled with joy!



The little hill thought about Jesus

And soon new green grass began to grow

And soon many flowers with red petals grew

And soon new life was all around

The little hill felt loved

What a wonderful way to teach children all about Easter!!! So all I ask is go ahead and do your egg hunts(we do this at my parents house) and go ahead if you want and add in the Easter bunny but please do not forget to teach your children the true meaning of what this holiday is about. It is about the joy in knowing our Savior is ALIVE! That he was murdered for YOUR SINS, he was tortured beyond our comprehension BUT he arose and we have joy in knowing we have HOPE. IF you do not know Jesus Christ ask him into your heart, start living for Him, and just know that he did all this so you could live eternally in HEAVEN. How wonderful!

Being a Christian is Easy???

So when did we as a society start to believe that being a Christian is always easy. Yes, being a Christian if a joy filled life but sometimes we have sorrow as well. I have really been thinking about this a lot lately especially yesterday due to various things happening to people that are really close to me. If things were always easy would we hit our knees as much? Would we have conversations with our Savior as much? Would we think we could do it all ourselves?? Maybe that is the point and to be honest I mean on those days when I think I cannot do this all I have to do is think of Jesus, precious Jesus, walking up that hill carrying MY CROSS, not his own, not carrying his cross because he ever did anything wrong. NO, Jesus was sinless, pure, without blemish and yet he carried that cross and DIED a painful, horrible death so that I may live one day in paradise. So as a Christian no things will not always be easy and we were NEVER promised it would be. There are verse after verse in the bible about enduring hardships.
-Endure hardship as discipline; God is treating you as sons. For what son is not disciplined by his father? (Hebrews 12:7)
-Blessed is the man who perseveres under trial, because when he has stood the test, he will receive the crown of life that God has promised to those who love him. (James 1:12)
But as Christians we have the joy of knowing that we do not have to face our trials alone. We may not have been promised things would always be easy but we have been promised God is always there!!! What joy we can find in knowing that! What a great gift to know we do not have to face things alone and what joy in knowing when our lives on earth are over that really our life is just beginning.
For I know the plans I have for you, declares the Lord, plans for welfare and not for evil, to give you a future and a hope.
Jeremiah 29:11
****I think this is one of the biggest things I want to teach my children is that following the Lord is not always easy, not always popular, and not always fun BUT following the Lord you will find so much JOY and so many blessings. Our children have saw us go through trials and sometimes I wonder if I handle them right. If they really learned from it what I want them to. Because my faith has been shaken at times , I am not perfect. Nobody on earth is perfect but there was someone that walked the earth that was perfect and He is our hope, our refuge in times of hardships. So I know that even though I am not perfect one day through Jesus Christ I will be. And that makes me know in this I can face tomorrow.
___If you do not know the Lord please know that only in Jesus Christ you can be saved. Ask Him in your heart today and LIVE for him. I was letting life past me by many years due to trying to find something to fill the void in my life that ONLY Jesus can fill. I pray whoever reads this will find encouragement, hope, and joy.