Event date: 4/1/2020 Export event Pastor Alex Hoops / Wednesday, April 1, 2020 / Categories: Publications, Daily Devotions Daily Devotion This week I have been asking myself what Holy Week and Easter might look in the midst of this time apart. I wondered how, without the normal music, flowers, and gathering spaces, we could adequately express the hope of the resurrection. I was struggling with it. I was blessed to read a post from a Pastor friend of mine… You want to proclaim death and life? Don't go to church this Easter. Don't sit in a building and pretend this is why God-comes-close made an appearance. You want Easter? Go serve a neighbor. Go share a meal. Call a friend. Seek someone out who may be alone. Get out of yourself and ask someone for forgiveness. Go forgive someone. You don't have to be their friend, but you can forgive. Easter is not church. Easter is living as though death really isn't the end but love and life will win. Easter is living the God-sized-dream that church is not why life wins, you are. Jesus wasn't raised so you could stand slack-jawed in awe of timpanies and horns. Jesus didn't die for Easter worship but to provoke you to love like you have never loved before; without judgment (like love is supposed to be), without an agenda (like love is supposed to be), without needing to love back (like love is supposed to be). You want empire, then sit in church. You want Easter? Don't watch someone be raised, go be raised. – Pastor Jay Gamelin Easter isn’t about our building. It’s not about the brass. It's not about the crowds or the meals, though our memories of Easters past may be closely associated with these. This upcoming Holy Week, remember what this is all about. This is about being a resurrected people. It always has been! This year we have a unique opportunity to love like we have never loved before. This year we are challenged with worshiping and honoring this day in ways we have never been asked to before. But the challenge from Jesus is still the same. Be raised. Peace, Pastor Alex Previous Article Daily Devotion Next Article Daily Devotion Print 8636 Rate this article: 4.0 2 comments on article "Daily Devotion" Marsha mcnamara So meaningful 4/1/2020 2:36 PM Reply to Blumenversand Österreich Thank you 8/24/2022 4:10 PM Reply to Leave a comment Name: Please enter a name. Email: Please enter an email address. Please enter a valid email address. Comment: Please enter comment. I agree This form collects your name, email, IP address and content so that we can keep track of the comments placed on the website. For more info check our Privacy Policy and Terms Of Use where you will get more info on where, how and why we store your data. You must read and accept this rules. Add comment