the main event

I still have Easter heavy on my heart. I thought the chance to blog about it had passed, but shouldn't we live Easter Sunday daily really? I am not talking about the Easter bunny here. I am talking about the real reason for the most important holiday in a Believer's year -- Christ died with my sin on His perfect shoulders and 3 days later rose from the grave and conquered sin and death forever. Now that is something to celebrate!

Do you ever feel like the holiday comes and goes without much thought even though it is the most significant? I think it's really easy to go to church and get caught up in the picnics, the egg hunts, the services, the activities, and never really take in the weight of what we are actually celebrating.

A man came from Heaven to earth to live, love, and die! He was seated on a Throne and He got up and walked away from it with the intention to usher me into that very same Throne room one day. He lived a lowly life. One that many would scoff at then and still do now. He was simple. He was not a man people would flock to for His charm and good looks, yet thousands would crowd cities and hillsides to spend hours and days basking in His Words and in His Presence. He came on a mission, to preach the Good News, to heal, and to set people free.

Free.

Yet many were out to kill Him from the moment they heard Him speak. People outraged at this Man who would heal and love on the Sabbath broke laws themselves to see to it that He die quickly. Law keepers and abiders chained by their own hatred and sin would break their own laws to see an innocent Man, who came to set them free, die a gruesome death.

All the while He quietly, calmly, gently drank from the cup that the Father gave Him. He stood silently before His accusers and took the insults of the mob. He was beaten, spat on, lashed, and humiliated without a complaint. Did He think of me when He thought He couldn't bear one more single blow? Was it my face and my heart that kept Him on the path leading to Calvary as He carried the very Cross on which He would die?

He endured more physical pain than I can imagine or will ever know. So that I wouldn't have to.

But what is worse, He endured a separation from the Father because the weight of all mankind's sins sat on His tender shoulders. The Father turned His face away from the Son He loved because He could not stand to look at Him any longer.

I did that. I do that. Everyday the Serpent brings me a shiny new apple and I bite into it.

But Jesus did that for me. He took my place so that I would never know a single moment in which the Father would refuse to look at me. And so now while I still have the juice from the apple dribbling down my chin, all I need do is come into the Presence of the Father and say "I repent" and He accepts me.

Jesus died on an ugly cross, he was laid in a dank, dark tomb, and 3 days later He came forth. He rose from the dead. He rose from the dead and He gave me life.

Life.

He came so that I might have life and have it abundantly. Not just life in the day to day, but life in the moment to moment. Joy in places that seem dark. Peace in places that seem turbulent. Grace in places that seem insurmountable. Love in the places that seem unlovely.

I love Him. I've never loved anyone more and I never will. He is good to me. And I can't wait for the day when I will tell Him to His face what Easter meant to me.

my worth

This year I have been doing an in depth study of the book of Isaiah. It's been challenging! I have learned so much and there are weeks when I can hardly process all that's coming at me through God's Word because it's so deep and so rich.

Last week's lesson has just really stuck with me this week.

I grew up going to Sunday school. As a little girl I hung on every word the church ladies spoke on Jesus. I had a serious fascination with Him and I knew that He had done something huge to prove He loved me. I remember going up to the front of the church when I was 8 years old to declare my association with Him. I couldn't get there fast enough; I was so excited.

But with time came new priorities and a busy schedule. Despite His love for me, my love for Him dimmed and became less apparent. Less exciting. 

This week I can't stop thinking about and reading through Isaiah 52:13-53:12.

Jesus is Amazing.

At BSF, the lecturer put it this way..."He accomplished redemption and He is satisfied in His success. He is satisfied because we are justified before the Father. Jesus, satisfied Servant and exalted King, considered justifying sinners worth the suffering He endured on the cross."

The word "worth" has been emblazoned at the forefront of my thoughts all week. Worth.

The horrors He went through were worth it because it meant He could save me. He could keep me.

How often do I thank Him for enduring so much because He valued me more?

Try this out: Read Isaiah 53:4-6 and insert your name in the blanks like this...

Surely He took up Shannon's pain

and bore her suffering,

yet she considered Him punished by God,

stricken by Him, and afflicted.

 But He was pierced for Shannon's transgressions,

He was crushed for Shannon's iniquities;

the punishment that brought her peace was on Him,

and by His wounds Shannon is healed.

 Shannon, like a lamb, has gone astray,

she has turned to her own way;

and the LORD has laid on Him

the iniquity of Shannon.

This is an important passage. There is more in that paragraph than there is in any book on this green earth. And unpacking it, applying it, and appreciating it will take a lifetime. A lifetime well spent.