The Resurrection’s Coming

I was so focused on preparing for my conference that I forgot that Easter was coming.  In fact, on Tuesday at the Mt. Hermon post office in California, when I spied an Easter-themed metal mailbox decoration, I thought it odd that this out-of-season item sat in the post office.  I noticed like you might notice a Halloween jack-o-lantern in July. 

And then, with a jolt, I realized Easter was coming.  Ready or not.  I’d forgotten that Easter was coming, even though I rose early on Palm Sunday and climbed to the top of Mt. Hermon, even though I had worshiped in church on that Sunday morning, a lump in my throat growing in response to the majesty of the music and the painful beauty of the words to the hymns.  

Not until I returned home, though, did I realize how utterly unprepared I was for the holiday, the holy day.  It’s not as if we join the commercial fray and purchase big gift baskets for our kids and insist the teenagers wear suits and shiny shoes to church.  Our celebration is simple and practically gift-free.  I bought my daughter an Easter dress last year at Marshall’s on clearance ($13) and I bought the boys new knit shirts with collars.   

But Easter is not Easter without a ham and chocolate Easter bunnies, so over the past two days, I’ve purchased provisions.  I boiled eggs, figuring we can dye them tomorrow afternoon, better late than never.  I invited my mother and my sister and her family over.  I tried on outfits and settled on a black dress with flowers.  I hunted for a pair of acceptable tights to match my daughter’s dress.  I baked lemon bars.

Tonight, as I drove home, the skies opened up and hard rain fell.  Darkness spread over the landscape and I thought it might have been a night like tonight, that desperate night so long ago when Jesus’ friends and followers feared the worst and hoped against hope that the dark night wouldn’t last forever. 

And after that black night, a night without stars and without joy, the women rose early–having slept badly, if at all–and hurried to the tomb, hurried to serve one last time and found that He was gone.

He was risen.  Christ is risen indeed.

And the sun rose again.  The Son rose.