He Has Risen!
Christ is Risen!
I had a very meaningful Holy Week this year. Because of my work with the children's ministry at St. Margaret's, all the services I attended had some sort of children's focus. The Good Friday Walk through the Passion gave children an opportunity to wave palms, eat together, have their feet washed and journey with Jesus to the cross and finally ended in the tomb. The Easter Vigil on Saturday had readings from Scripture illuminated for children to experience and understand. They also had a front row seat to watch the baptisms of two babies. The Easter Sunday service started with a procession of children holding helium balloons. Here are the balloons before we handed them out.
Once the children reached the front of the church, the balloons were then gathered into bunches and secured (or....spoiler alert.... they were suppose to be secured) to a railing on the chancel as the children went to sit with their parents.
BUT... 2018 will be remembered as the year of the balloons. I am not sure of the reason - maybe it was the tape or maybe it was the technique - but 68 of the 120 balloons ended up floating to the ceiling at various points in the service (mostly in larger bunches.) I didn't count them.... I was too busy processing my shame and concern to spend the time looking up to count them but a woman who has been attending the church for 45 years promptly came to me after the service and gave me that number. "This was the most balloons on the ceiling ever!" she said. "And I think it is wonderful!" she continued.
Wonderful? How? It wasn't the plan. It was a bit distracting. But I thought I needed to take a different perspective on it than the one I had (embarrassment was where I was hanging out as I was one of the key leaders involved in this). So, I decided to trust God with the situation and let it speak to me. What message am I taking away from it?
"He is not here; He has risen" the angel told the frightened and confused women (Matthew 28:6a).
What those balloons symbolized to me yesterday was the truth of Easter Sunday:
Death could not keep Jesus down! Jesus has defeated death.
Easter is ALL ABOUT the resurrection from the dead. It is about the victory over sin and death that Jesus has accomplished. It is about Jesus being raised to life. The flow of movement is upward from death to life.
Earlier last week, I was thinking about the drastic transition that this past weekend takes us through. On Friday, we join the disciples of Jesus in sorrow upon sorrow. Hope is dissipated. Uncertainty abounds. All we can do is wait. But then the first day of the week comes and everything is transformed. In place of black mourning clothes are the bright colours of spring (and at St. Margaret's all those bright balloons). In place of fear and hopelessness is confidence and faith. Yes, death is real. It is inevitable. But it isn't the end. The resurrection of Jesus is real too and this has changed everything.
Many Pauline passages are going through my mind right now but I will close with this one:
1 Timothy 1:9-10
"[God] has saved us and called us to a holy life - not because of anything we have done but because of his own purpose and grace. This grace was given us in Christ Jesus before the beginning of time, but it has now been revealed through the appearing of our Saviour, Christ Jesus, who has destroyed death and has brought life and immortality to light through the gospel."
Praying that you all may experience the power of our Risen Saviour, Jesus Christ!
in Him,
Tracy
I had a very meaningful Holy Week this year. Because of my work with the children's ministry at St. Margaret's, all the services I attended had some sort of children's focus. The Good Friday Walk through the Passion gave children an opportunity to wave palms, eat together, have their feet washed and journey with Jesus to the cross and finally ended in the tomb. The Easter Vigil on Saturday had readings from Scripture illuminated for children to experience and understand. They also had a front row seat to watch the baptisms of two babies. The Easter Sunday service started with a procession of children holding helium balloons. Here are the balloons before we handed them out.
Once the children reached the front of the church, the balloons were then gathered into bunches and secured (or....spoiler alert.... they were suppose to be secured) to a railing on the chancel as the children went to sit with their parents.
BUT... 2018 will be remembered as the year of the balloons. I am not sure of the reason - maybe it was the tape or maybe it was the technique - but 68 of the 120 balloons ended up floating to the ceiling at various points in the service (mostly in larger bunches.) I didn't count them.... I was too busy processing my shame and concern to spend the time looking up to count them but a woman who has been attending the church for 45 years promptly came to me after the service and gave me that number. "This was the most balloons on the ceiling ever!" she said. "And I think it is wonderful!" she continued.
Wonderful? How? It wasn't the plan. It was a bit distracting. But I thought I needed to take a different perspective on it than the one I had (embarrassment was where I was hanging out as I was one of the key leaders involved in this). So, I decided to trust God with the situation and let it speak to me. What message am I taking away from it?
"He is not here; He has risen" the angel told the frightened and confused women (Matthew 28:6a).
What those balloons symbolized to me yesterday was the truth of Easter Sunday:
Death could not keep Jesus down! Jesus has defeated death.
Easter is ALL ABOUT the resurrection from the dead. It is about the victory over sin and death that Jesus has accomplished. It is about Jesus being raised to life. The flow of movement is upward from death to life.
Earlier last week, I was thinking about the drastic transition that this past weekend takes us through. On Friday, we join the disciples of Jesus in sorrow upon sorrow. Hope is dissipated. Uncertainty abounds. All we can do is wait. But then the first day of the week comes and everything is transformed. In place of black mourning clothes are the bright colours of spring (and at St. Margaret's all those bright balloons). In place of fear and hopelessness is confidence and faith. Yes, death is real. It is inevitable. But it isn't the end. The resurrection of Jesus is real too and this has changed everything.
Many Pauline passages are going through my mind right now but I will close with this one:
1 Timothy 1:9-10
"[God] has saved us and called us to a holy life - not because of anything we have done but because of his own purpose and grace. This grace was given us in Christ Jesus before the beginning of time, but it has now been revealed through the appearing of our Saviour, Christ Jesus, who has destroyed death and has brought life and immortality to light through the gospel."
Praying that you all may experience the power of our Risen Saviour, Jesus Christ!
in Him,
Tracy
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