Not One by Robin Densmore Fuson

 

Every aisle is brimming with festive colorful items to make and decorate but the bins are missing something important. I kept searching. Surely, I missed them. Up and down the polished cement I walked.

Aisle after Aisle. Shelf upon shelf. Bin after bin. None.

My frown deepened. Why? Would it hurt to have a few articles that captured the essence, the importance, the real meaning?

Cuteness surrounded me. Fluffy and frilly. Pink, purple, and white, in muted and pastel colors of bunnies, ducks, chicks, and other soft cuddly critters, which almost winked and waved as I passed. Thousands of bags of candy and rows of cellophane-wrapped plastic eggs. Baskets and fake greenery. Flowers and small toys. So many to choose from and the supply seemed unlimited.

Upon my deep inspection, nary a cross or empty tomb, not even a white Easter lily hid among the spectacle.

Tears clouded my eyes. My Lord and Savior was not invited to shine at this store. Good Friday and Resurrection Day didn’t make the cut of this mercantile store. The corporation had willfully neglected the Creator of the universe and therefore His followers.

To them, Easter is all about egg hunts and bunnies and chicks.

To Christians, Good Friday represents the remarkable love and sacrifice of the only pure person who ever lived. Jesus, the Son of God, 100% man and 100% God, obeyed His Father and took the penalty for mankind. For you. For me. He died, so we might live.

Three days later, one glorious day, we celebrate as Easter, when Jesus conquered death and rose alive. He led the way for us to also live again in heaven someday. Glorious! Amazing! Beautiful! Loving!

Why have we smothered the real reason to celebrate with plush animals?

There is nothing wrong with enjoying spring with toys, bunnies, chicks, and such as long as we make Him a priority.

After boiling an egg, look at it. Crack it open. The shell can represent the opening of the tomb. The white part might represent the shroud and the yolk perhaps represents the Lord Jesus, who represents life.

We can take these “symbols” of Easter and teach Truth. But we need to know Truth to begin with. Not having any evidence of the real reason to celebrate makes me sad and hurts my heart.

I hope we can look ahead to Easter and see the evidence of Truth in the cross and the tomb—both empty. Empty, because Jesus Christ rose again! He is risen! He is risen indeed!

He did that all for us. Have you accepted Him as your Lord and Savior?

I didn't see evidence of the Lord on the shelves at the store. I pray that if a stranger comes into my home, they will see evidence of my Savior. Can He be found on your shelves? In your home? In your life?

I passed on to you what was most important and what had also been passed on to me. Christ died for our sins, just as the scripture said. He was buried, and he was raised from the dead on the third day, just as the scripture said (1 Corinthians 15:3-4 nlt).