Christ is risen!

Christ is risen! Christ is risen indeed!

These words greet us every Easter morning. They are words of surprise and awe and wonder and, most importantly, hope. Hope that even in the darkest of times God is at work bringing renewal and life. Hope, not as a wish, but as confidence in the face of uncertainty, fear, and pain. You know that place. I know it, too.

The resurrection of Christ promises new life. Certainly, it gives us the assurance that death has been defeated once and for all. Because God in Jesus has taken on the worst that humanity can do, has taken sin head on, we no longer need to fear. We have hope of eternal life, life forever in the presence of God.  In I Peter 1:3 we read, “You have been born anew into a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead.” 
               
And because the final enemy has been defeated, the enemies that we face on a daily basis have no power over us. In the face of uncertainty, there is hope. In the face of fear, there is hope. In the face of pain, there is hope. In the face of loss, there is hope. There is hope because we know, in the words of Frederick Buechner, that “the worst thing is never the last thing.”
               
This does not mean that we will not experience sadness or grief. These are a very real part of what it means to be human. We don’t simply put on a happy face and deny the realities in which we live. We struggle with hurt and disappointment. We fight against the injustice of the world. We go until we feel that we can’t take one more step.

And yet. These remain my favorite two words in all of scripture. And yet means that there is more. And yet means that there is hope. Hope allows us to move forward, even if we take only one step. Hope gives us confidence that we will be able to take another step. And then another. Emily Dickinson wrote, “Hope is a thing with feathers That perches in the soul  And sings the tune without words  And never stops at all”.
               
This Easter may hope perch in your soul. May its song bring you strength and joy, and never stop at all. Christ is risen indeed!
               
Thanks be to God who gives us the victory through our Savior Jesus Christ. Thanks be to God.
               
Blessings for the journey+
Pastor Mary Teasley