By Rev. Barbara Zimmerman
We Christians say we are an Easter people, and that we believe in resurrection.
We say we believe Jesus came out of that dark cave they’d put him in. At Easter, we celebrate that Jesus Christ has over-come the grave We celebrate that good triumphs over evil, that love cannot be killed. That God has seen to that!
And so we say “We are an Easter People!”
We are people who meet on Sunday mornings – each one a little Easter – to celebrate God’s presence, to celebrate that Jesus Christ lived, and lives still, among us, God on earth, and that nothing is impossible with God.
,,, an EASTER people…. But alas, people nonetheless.
We all are people. And people have baggage! We all have problems: things we regret doing or not doing, things that were done to us or a loved one which we cannot forgive; things we fear, based on past experience; things we dislike but cannot seem to change; ingrained prejudices and attitudes.
Furthermore, the news of the world around us is all bad. The very health of the nation is at stake. People are afraid of what might happen, and rightfully so. There’s a lot of negativity and tension all around.
But we are an EASTER people.
We believe in resurrection. We know there is some good stuff happening in spite of – even at the same moment as – the bad stuff.
There’s stuff to which we can point and say, “See – it’s not all bad.”
We know that we have choices which can make a difference to our lives and our world. We know that we don’t have to focus on the dark side of things. Because we are people, we can choose to be happy; to be positive instead of negative. But because we are people, we also have habits; bad habits of being pessimistic and negative in our thoughts and our speech, bad habits of turning a blind eye to other peoples’ pain.
But we are and EASTER PEOPLE!
When are we going to start acting like we believe in resurrection?!
When we acknowledge in our heads that there is a choice, but stay with our old negative habits or ways of thinking, we are choosing to stay in the cave. When we feel we have something to offer, or think we can help, but give in to society’s pressure to look out for “number one”, we are being kept entombed.
Often all it takes is a little creative thinking to roll away the stone; a little thinking outside the box or trying something new to choose resurrection.
A little courageous action on behalf of those who need us can bring life out of death.
A little patience can lead to resurrected relationships. A little compassion can mean a resurrected chance for a broken heart or lost soul. A calm voice in the midst of the shouting will resurrect communication.
There are surely some bad and negative things in our lives and in the world that need to be changed. There are some beautiful and positive things that need to be shared. If we choose to, we can truly be an Easter people.
Choose life! Don’t let your heart and mind stay entombed in the dark cave of negative thought and action. Don’t remain stuck on past hurts or habits. When we roll the stone back and choose living into a new day, the whole world opens up!
Believe in resurrection. Believe in God, with whom everything is possible. We are an Easter people!