Tag: Easter

Posted in Resurrection reflections

Make sure you listen to what he says

Posted on by William Douthwaite

“He is not here, but has risen. Remember how he told you while he was still in Galilee, that the Son of Man must be delivered into the hands of sinful men and be crucified and on the third day rise.‘

And they remembered his words (Luke 24:6-8).

Jesus did explain these events to the twelve. “But they understood none of these things” (Luke 18:34). In Mark’s gospel, he explains it three times. But they were afraid to ask him what he was talking about. The resurrection is something to be experienced rather than simply explained.

Many years ago I sat with my daughter waiting to see an orthopedic doctor about her foot. The waiting room was packed. More patients entered, but none were called back to see the doctor. After an hour I overheard a conversation at the front desk. “No, he isn’t here. He got called away for an emergency.”

“Let’s go. We’ll call for an appointment on another day.”

The open, empty tomb of Jesus had to be seen, but it was the wrong place and the wrong time to see Jesus. He wasn’t there. Rather than dead, he was alive.

It’s embarrassing to show up for an appointment on the wrong day or the wrong time. Especially since you’ll receive texts, emails, and phone calls to remind you. But it happens. More than once families showed up late for a baptism or wedding, missing all the action. I shouldn’t have found it entertaining. But I did.

So pay attention to what Jesus says. If you’re not sure what he means, ask. He doesn’t mind questions. But he does what he says. He is faithful and true.

Posted in Resurrection reflections

Now it’s about life

Posted on by William Douthwaite

“When they went in [the tomb] [the women] did not find the body of the Lord Jesus. While they were perplexed about this, behold, two men stood by them in dazzling apparel. And as they were frightened and bowed their faces to the ground, the men said to them, “Why do you seek the living among the dead?” (Luke 24:3-6).

All four gospel accounts include angels. Their brilliant white appearance and shocking words stop the women in their tracks. Death is off the table. Now we’re talking about life.

A frequently asked question is, “But did you die?” A killer workout. A long shift at work. A painful procedure. A bank-account draining expense. A bad hair day. Burnt food. Hateful words that cut deep.

It’s like a flow chart. Did you die? No. There will be another day. Life goes on.

While it’s good to keep mortality in mind, we need frequent reminders that we’re alive. I woke up, I’m breathing, my heart is beating. I’m alive.

Now what am I going to do with this day?

Posted in Resurrection reflections

They found the stone rolled away

Posted on by William Douthwaite

“But on the first day of the week, at early dawn, they went to the tomb, taking the spices they had prepared. And they found the stone rolled away from the tomb” (Luke 24:1-2).

Imagine that you are one of those who visits the grave of a loved one in a cemetery. But one day you find a hole in front of the tombstone. Right next to it you see an excavator and a pile of dirt. The vault is open, the coffin is overturned, and the lid is open. The corpse is gone.

How would you react? Shock. Anger. Confusion. What in the world is going on here? How could this happen? Who would do this?

That’s the situation at dawn on Sunday morning. The stone has been rolled from the tomb. Scholars believe it was at least four feet in diameter, weighing between one and two tons.

The women didn’t think it through. In Mark’s gospel, they ask, “Who’s going to roll the stone away?” But it wasn’t a problem. In Matthew’s gospel, the stone is moved by an earthquake and an angel. Here in Luke’s gospel, it’s not supposed to be open. What happened? Who would do this? Who could do this?

When Jesus died, the curtain in the temple was torn in two, and that restricted space was suddenly open. On the third day, the tomb is open. Now it’s time to open hearts and minds to the new reality of resurrection.

Posted in Easter

A park filled with Easter gatherings

Posted on by William Douthwaite
Just a few of many families gathered to celebrate Easter

A busy Easter morning at my son’s church was followed by a nap and a walk along a part of Lake Ray Hubbard just blocks from our Airbnb in Rowlett, TX. Every time we drove by Lakeside Park, lots of folks were sitting on the bank fishing. But the crowds really turned out for Easter Sunday afternoon.

As we came down the hill at the far end of the park, we saw dozens of shade canopies lined up along the river. Each was surrounded by tables and folding chairs, propane and charcoal grills, drink coolers, and serving trays filled with food. Latin music from portable speakers blended with the laughter of children and barking of dogs as families gathered to eat and celebrate Easter afternoon.

Many kept an eye on fishing lines in the water. Young teen couples walked hand-in-hand down the path. Children’s heads were littered with brightly-colored confetti from cascarones. I passed small soccer games, corn hole competitions, families posing for group photos, snoozing babies, Easter egg hunts, and kids on scooters and bicycles.

After our walk back and forth along the length of the park, we headed back to our place and met my son for supper at one of our favorite Mexican restaurants. When we returned after dark, most of the families were still there celebrating. I really enjoyed watching this Easter tradition in a Dallas community where many had originally come from Mexico.

Posted in Easter

Easter on the road

Posted on by William Douthwaite

For the first time in forever (forty years) we didn’t spend Easter at home. Retirement gave us the freedom to travel to Dallas, Texas, to spend Holy Week and Easter Sunday with my son and his family.

Flights were expensive so we did the two day drive. After a longish first day and an easy second day, our four Texas grandchildren were waiting for us at the curb on Wednesday afternoon. It’s only been three months since we last saw them after Christmas, but they’ve grown so much!

Our Airbnb this time was a nice little townhome just five minutes away. We only need a comfortable place to sleep since we spend most of our time with family – and this week, at worship.

What a treat to worship at the church where my son has been pastor for over ten years. The sermons, special music, family, and people we’ve gotten to know there made Maundy Thursday, Good Friday, Easter sunrise and Easter morning worship a joy. My son preached for the service of darkness on Friday and at sunrise on Sunday morning.

Flanked by singing, drawing, coloring, snacking, praying, and wiggling grandchildren, each worship occasion was especially meaningful. How I loved sharing the somberness of Good Friday and the joy of Easter morning with them!

In between worship, we made small resurrection gardens, visited the Fort Worth zoo, played lots of Lego, and ended the weekend with supper at our favorite Mexican place.

Easter on the road with family was especially good for our souls this year.

Posted in family, Life

Hiding Easter eggs: Leveling up

Posted on by William Douthwaite

We had five of our grandchildren at our house for Easter Sunday supper and of course, an Easter egg hunt. I can just throw a bunch out on the lawn to keep the younger ones (two and fours) busy. The oldest is almost eight, and I had to level up my egg-hiding to challenge him.

This one loves to climb, so I used some tape to put one of his up high on the play fort. I’m not sure his mom was real happy about the altitude, but once he spotted it, he got up there with no problem.

A little more tape held some eggs underneath the deck of the play fort, just out of plain sight.

He quickly saw the one hanging from a tree with a pine needle pinched between egg halves hanging from an old bird-feeder hook.

The ones that stumped him? One was under an upside-down flower pot. Not hugely creative, but worked. The other was on the ground, under a pile of pine cones, with just the slightest hint of blue showing. I had to give him a couple of clues for these last two. Grandpa is still just a little cleverer than he is!

Posted in Easter

Cool take-home craft: A resurrection garden

Posted on by William Douthwaite

He is risen! He is risen, indeed!

As part of my resurrection celebration, I got to help out at an Easter Egg hunt at the church we’ve been attending. The children who attended got to hear the Easter story, eat lots of treats, run around and find Easter eggs, and slide down the bounce house slide a couple of hundred times.

And they got to make this cool craft to take home: a resurrection garden.

First, fill a large flower pot base with potting soil. Place a small flower pot on its side and cover it with soil to make a nice hill with a cave.

Next, make a nice path to the cave with small white rocks. Add some moss on top of the hill and spritz it with water to hold it in place.

Third step: sprinkle some grass seed on the rest of the dirt and spritz it with water. Hopefully, it will grow up nice and green.

Finally, add three small wooden crosses to the hill and add a large stone rolled away from the tomb.

And there you go, a resurrection garden for Easter. I was so impressed, I made one of my own to bring home. My grass hasn’t grown yet, but it made it to our home decorations for our family gathering this afternoon.

Posted in joy, Life

Make sure you find the Easter joy you’re looking for

Posted on by William Douthwaite

The yellows, greens, and pinks reached out to me, saying, “This way!” I had little choice but to follow my autonomous shopping cart into the maze of cellophane-wrapped Easter baskets. Fuzzy chicks and bunnies watched from the shelves, hoping to be chosen for a forever home. Yellow boxes filled with peanut butter eggs whispered to my subconscious, “These the the ones you’re looking for.” Rather than the stars in the sky or the grains of sand on the shore, God could have directed Abraham’s eyes to the myriad of jellybeans, promising, “Your family will number more than these!”

A couple of days from now, we’ll be filled with the joy of resurrection. Easter Sunday will celebrate the truth that Christ, not death, has the final word. Yes, we’ve adorned Easter with all these trappings and plenty of food. But none of that can drown out our voices proclaiming, “He is risen! He is risen, indeed!”

And yet, most of the people I saw in the Easter aisles at the various stores looked miserable. I did not see any smiles at all. Shoppers looked annoyed, frustrated, and tired as they scanned the shelves, shrugged their shoulders, and tossed a bag of whatever into their cart. If they had brought kids along it was worse. Angry voices scolded, “Put that back. Stop asking. One more time and you get nothing.”

Oh, come on! All of these things bring a smile to my face. In the retail world, every popular cartoon character has part in Easter, from Super Mario to the Avengers! I’m impressed by the creativity that goes into each year’s products. I don’t know about you, but the thought of Starburst jellybeans, Reese’s peanut butter eggs, marshmallow chocolate bunnies, and malted milk robin eggs makes me smile every year! I can’t wait for the fun we’ll have hiding and finding plastic eggs.

So here’s what I think. First, if it makes you miserable, you should just skip the holiday. It’s OK. The candy companies won’t go broke without you. Second, find someone (like me) who enjoys the holiday and find out why. Anyone with Easter joy is more than ready to give a reason for the hope they have. Finally, go back to the source of joy. It’s not stuff. It’s not candy. It’s not a bunny. Or eggs. It’s an empty tomb. Death has been defeated, sin has been forgiven, and God’s love endures forever.

Posted in faith, family, Life

The excitement is building: It’s almost Easter!

Posted on by William Douthwaite

Growing up, Easter was as exciting as Christmas. I had a hard time getting to sleep the night before. My brother, sister, and I all woke up way too early on Easter Sunday morning. Why? We couldn’t wait to get our Easter baskets! The church was always a part of our family life, but we never missed out on all the other good stuff, too.

I have no idea where the tradition came from, but every Easter our baskets would have a string tied to them. It was a treasure hunt. The string would wind around furniture, through different rooms, and finally lead us to a small present. The only specific present I remember receiving was a Matchbox bulldozer. I know, that has nothing to do with Easter, but I thought it was really cool.

In addition to the hard-boiled eggs we had dyed the day before, our baskets were filled with jellybeans, malted milk balls coated to look like candy eggs, a few marshmallow bunnies, and sometimes a solid chocolate bunny.

This one comes in sizes up to 64 oz!

My mom always ordered a special dark-chocolate covered coconut cream egg from a local candy store. A little larger than the size of a softball, I remember it weighing several pounds and was unbelievably sweet. Apparently, these eggs were a Philadelphia tradition. My mom always ate most of it, slicing off pieces like she was carving a roast.

When I walked through Walmart a few days ago, I saw four aisles devoted to Easter baskets, candy, decorations, and toys. It’s still very exciting. It’s very exciting for retailers, who predict we’ll spend $23 billion dollars on Easter this year. That’s every kind of chocolate candy you can imagine is wrapped for Easter. That’s why jellybeans come in so many flavors.

But I saw no solid bunnies. Just the hollow chocolate ones. The big coconut cream eggs? I would probably have to order one online. Other Easter candy? We’ve got plenty of that. Don’t worry, I’ll let the grandkids have some, too.