Easter is not about bunnies and eggs. I would go so far as to say it is not about going to an assembly of fellow believers dressed in your Sunday best. It is about believing in resurrection – life, death, and life again.
If we save resurrection for one day a year, we miss the point entirely. If we think that it is just about our key to heaven, we’ve only cheated ourselves and excluded the world. The Easter message tells us that when we experience death in any form, there is life on the other side. Out of the darkness comes life every time. You might say, “Oh no, not every time!” I would argue that if we can roll the stone away from our tomb or, in other words, take away the block in our belief system, that life is waiting.
Nature teaches us about resurrection. The burned forest regrows with luscious, healthy flora. The caterpillar lives its first life munching through tasty green leaves. Then suddenly, that life gets very, very dark. In the chrysalis, the caterpillar turns into mush, and the caterpillar’s life is over. At the right time, the resurrection begins and what is revealed is so much more beautiful – the gorgeous butterfly. Resurrection is a lifelong experience.
Whatever death we experience, resurrection is available to us. Is it a health diagnosis, a marriage breakup, a rebellious teenager, a fractured relationship, a lost job that feels like death? What if we rolled the stone away and trusted that there was life on the other side. Our personal stone might be despair, fear, anxiety, unforgiveness, doubt, but we have a choice to roll it away. You may call it faith, a positive attitude, or the glass half full, but it is a reality to embrace.
Resurrection is not exclusive to Christians, but it has meaning for all people. On Easter, we can celebrate that life always comes from darkness.
Connie Mason Michaelis is an MEA alum, seeker, and author at www.justnowoldenough.com.