He Is Risen!

{This post is late, but I didn't get a chance to schedule it before we left last weekend so here it is!}

Recently, L and I have had conversations about the Easter story, which L is learning about both at Sunday School and at home {we've been memorizing the first part of Matthew 28:6}. Some of her comments include:

"Mom, I'm sad that Jesus had to die!" and "Today I learned that He is risen!!"

Now I know that she is still young and this story is, obviously, much harder for her to grasp than say, Christmas {which is easy, since she knows a lot about birthdays}. But we are doing what we can to teach her about the real reason we celebrate Easter.

We painted crosses {this was supposed to be a watercolor resist} but when L saw them she said, "are we learning about the letter t today?"

and made 'Resurrection Rolls'

and talked about how much like these now empty rolls, the tomb was empty too because Christ has risen!

After all of that, I still don't think she really understands the true meaning of Easter but we'll keep teaching her because someday, we pray that it will come to mean as much to her as it does to us. You see, without Easter, Christmas just doesn't mean that much. Yes, God sent his only begotten Son to the earth but He didn't just send Him to live here. He sent Him to die for my sins {and yours!} and He rose again to conquer the grave and death and sin! He sent a sacrifice {Christ} to pay for our sins and gave us a way to get to Heaven. He gave us a free gift of salvation. As a 9 year old girl, I accepted this gift {it is NOT automatic, it must be accepted!} by putting all my faith in what Christ had done on that cross for me. I admitted I was a sinner and repented of those sins. I turned from them and asked for forgiveness, putting my trust in Him and Him alone to save me from those sins. I understood that there wasn't anything that I could do to get myself to Heaven {Ephesians 2:8} and since accepting that free gift, I now know that I will go to Heaven someday {1 John 5:13, John 10:28}.

For D, it wasn't until he was 27 years old that he truly realized his sinful condition {he had previously believed that he was somehow 'good enough' to get to Heaven}. On November 1, 2005, he repented of his sins and put his complete trust in Christ to save him from those sins. He now shares this knowledge of knowing that one day he will go to Heaven. For us, Easter means everything and we intend to do all we can to help L {and someday Baby I} come to understand the true meaning of Easter.

What about you? Is Christ's death and resurrection what you're trusting in to get you to Heaven? Or do you think you are 'good enough' to get there on your own? Take this simple test to find out!

**Note: If you want more information about any of this, please let me know. We would love to help Easter mean as much to you as it does to us!