Now That It's Monday ...

Ethan, Emily & Trevor

We've eaten platesful of ham, chicken, or barbecue with sides of beans, potato salad, rolls and all kinds of decadent desserts.  We've taken pictures of the kids dressed up in their new clothes, scraped the last red jelly bean out of the carpet and, hopefully, found the last hidden hard-boiled Easter egg (winking at Linda).  Those who only attend church on Easter and Christmas have nearly nine months before they have to dress up and go again.  The songs have been sung, crucifixion sermons have been preached, and there's not a chocolate Easter Bunny in all the land with it's ears still intact.  The Easter celebration is over for another year.

Now what?

I love Easter .. Resurrection Sunday.  The food, colored eggs, new clothes ... I love it all.  But for me it's a reminder that life is still good.  No matter what is happening in the world or in my own life, the message of the resurrection of Christ brings a renewed hope and expectation of things to come.  Spring is in the air ... new life all around us.

Cody & baby Carson

The trees are putting on leaves ... gardens are flourishing ... the smell of freshly mown grass is in the air.

Resurrection is everywhere!

Is there something in your life that needs to be resurrected?  An unfulfilled dream?  A relationship that has lost its passion?  The hope that things will ever get better?  I know there are areas in my own life that need to be resurrected.  As a Christian, I know that there is a divine plan for my life but, if I lose sight of my goals,  I'll find myself struggling to just get through another day.  I've learned that changing my focus from my probems (and we all have them) to the blessings in my life (we all have those too!) gives me renewed energy and motivation to get back up and start again. 

We all have strengths ... talents ...  purpose. 

Jacee, Jaden, Jacob & Garrett

Life goes on.  We each have the choice to move forward regardless of the obstacles in our way:

 disappointment

 health issues

       missed opportunities 

...or we can stay where we are - paralyzed in regret and resentment.  Where are you today?  The resurrection of Jesus from the dead is our source of hope and expectation that there is nothing that cannot be resurrected and renewed.  

Reagan

Having turned 60 last summer, my biggest hurdle is the feeling that I'm "too old" to be of much use at this point in time.  That's not the truth ... but it can cast a pretty big shadow sometimes.  Whatever your hurdle is ... let's catch a new vision ... dream a new dream ... and allow God to breathe a breath of life into our renewed purpose.  I'm ready to go forth in JOY!