Resurrection Trees

"Then they went to a place called Gethsemane, and He said to His disciples, Sit down here while I pray.

And He took with Him Peter and James and John, and began to be struck with terror and amazement and deeply troubled and depressed.

And He said to them, My soul is exceedingly sad (overwhelmed with grief) so that it almost kills Me! Remain here and keep awake and be watching.

And going a little farther, He fell on the ground and kept praying that if it were possible the [fatal] hour might pass from Him.

And He was saying, Abba, [which means] Father, everything is possible for You. Take away this cup from Me; yet not what I will, but what You [will].

And He came back and found them sleeping..."

Mark 14:32-37, AMP

It's hard to believe that I was standing in Gethsemane, just across the valley from Jerusalem a little more than one month ago. Holy Week...Passion Week...Easter Week; whatever you call it - it will never be the same for me. Gethsemane was an amazing place, I wrote about it here. But I want to share one more amazing thing from that garden. After we had our devotion time, we crossed a small street to enter a courtyard of a large Catholic Church built next to the garden. The oldest olive trees in the garden are protected here. Our guide stood in front of the tree pictured below and told us something interesting about olive trees. 

They don't die.

They live for about 80 years, then die - appearing completely dead and fruitless for about 30 years.

Then they come back to life.

New branches will sprout out of a long dead tree and grow to be healthy and fruitful.

Can you see it?

Can you see the little sparrow nestled in the new branches?

The trees in this part of the garden are ancient; dying and coming back over and over the centuries.  Could this tree have been there on the night Jesus prayed and was arrested? 

Probably not, but maybe so. 

I'm sure He knew about the trees, did He think about how they resurrect as He suffered with His decision to die? Did it comfort Him? Look at the tree and imagine Him. Close your eyes and imagine Him, hold on to the intimate glimpse we get into His ordeal. He suffered. It wasn't easy, this dying for mankind thing; it was horror coming.

From here He was arrested and taken to the house of the high priest, where He would've walked up these steps and faced the first of his trials and Peter's betrayal (Mark 14:53-72). 

The next morning He was taken to Pilate's headquarters just next to the Temple. He was tried.....beaten within a breath of death and finally crucified at the foot of this hill, underneath the skull (Mark 15:1-40).

No, Golgotha isn't the end of the story. But sometimes we rush past it too quickly, not taking time to realize the pain of Gethsemane. Under resurrection trees Jesus struggled and submitted because of His love for us. He battled enemies common to us:

fear

terror

depression

dread

abandonment

grief

Don't trivialize the presence of these pains. Don't think for one second that Jesus doesn't understand your heartache. He faced them, felt them, and yet He didn't run....He stayed and endured. Why?

"...let me quote for you a psalm that the New Testament applies to Jesus (Hebrews 10:9). It refers to his coming into the world to offer himself as a sacrifice for sin: “I delight to do your will, O my God” (Psalm 40:8). The ultimate freedom is joy. He rejoiced to do his redeeming work for us. The physical pain of the cross did not become physical pleasure. But Jesus was sustained through it all by joy. He really, really wanted to save us. To gather for himself a happy, holy, praising people." -from Love to the Uttermost, by John Piper

He delighted to do God's will.
He really really wanted to save us.

Easter isn't just about the victory of Sunday morning, it is about the joyful sorrow of Thursday night.  It's about the Son of Man, kneeling before God and choosing you...choosing me so that we might be a happy, holy, praising people!

Maybe you find yourself here on a Thursday season of life and the dread of Friday is enough to bury you....Sunday seems so far away you can't even imagine resurrection even though you believe. Remember Jesus under Resurrection Trees, enduring. He is your trailblazer. Wrap your fist around the back of his coat even with a gut full of dread. And as He walks away from the garden -- keep moving; you also can endure as you follow Him.

"Keep your eyes on Jesus, who both began and finished this race we’re in. Study how he did it. Because he never lost sight of where he was headed—that exhilarating finish in and with God—he could put up with anything along the way: Cross, shame, whatever. ...When you find yourselves flagging in your faith, go over that story again... 

Hebrews 12:2-3 The Message

The quote from John Piper comes from a free e-book of devotions for Holy Week Called Love to the Uttermost. Check it out!

Alive!

Mary Magdalene has been as scandalized by modern culture as she was in her own time.  I love her and always think of her at Easter, like we are old friends.  She was a true follower of Jesus.  She loved Him with a pure affection; the gratitude of one who knew she was as good as dead and then was saved completely because of the benevolence of another.  Her story is our own, even if we don’t yet recognize it.

Jesus rescued her from the terror of being filled with seven demons (Mark 16:9, Luke 8:2), and she followed Him with complete loyalty:

• As He ministered (Luke 8:1-3)
• As He died (Matthew 27:56)
• As He was buried (Matthew 27:61)
• As He defeated death (Matthew 28:1-4)

John 20:11-18 is one of my favorite Easter passages.  This is the description of Mary’s interaction with Jesus after the resurrection.  She is alone and confused and completely devastated…..watch how hope dawns.

11 Now Mary stood outside the tomb crying. As she wept, she bent over to look into the tomb 12 and saw two angels in white, seated where Jesus’ body had been, one at the head and the other at the foot.

13 They asked her, “Woman, why are you crying?”

“They have taken my Lord away,” she said, “and I don’t know where they have put him.” 14 At this, she turned around and saw Jesus standing there, but she did not realize that it was Jesus.

15 He asked her, “Woman, why are you crying? Who is it you are looking for?”

Thinking he was the gardener, she said, “Sir, if you have carried him away, tell me where you have put him, and I will get him.”

16 Jesus said to her, “Mary.”

She turned toward him and cried out in Aramaic, “Rabboni!” (which means “Teacher”).

17 Jesus said, “Do not hold on to me, for I have not yet ascended to the Father. Go instead to my brothers and tell them, ‘I am ascending to my Father and your Father, to my God and your God.’”

18 Mary Magdalene went to the disciples with the news:

 “I have seen the Lord!” And she told them that he had said these things to her. 

John 20:11-18 NIV

• She recognized His voice more than His appearance, we can too.
• She abandoned her need for explanation and simply believed Him, we can too.
• She shared with everyone what He had shared with her, we can too.

I love this song sung by Natalie Grant, telling Mary Magdalene’s story.  It's my favorite Easter song:

What kind of love

Tells me I’m the reason He can’t stay

Inside the grave?

ALIVE! ALIVE!

Look what Mercy’s overcome

Death has Lost and Love has won!

I am His because He is ALIVE! 

Happy Easter, Be HIS!

Easter Pretzel Snacks

This is a super easy and fun snack for Easter time; or anytime you can find an M&M in the colors of the season.  I think I originally found this in a Family Fun magazine, but now I can’t find the link.  I first made them when my 14 year old son was a preschooler.  This is a great project with little ones, because it’s fast and not too hot…..which means no burning fingers or impatient attitudes!  This project is also great for big kids.  They can make these all by themselves and bring them to you on a silver platter.

You will need:

·        a bag of Pretzel Snaps (the little square “woven” looking pretzels).

Sometimes at Christmas you can find tree and bell shaped pretzels that work great, they just need to be able to hold the kiss when it softens.

·        some regular Hershey’s Kisses, unwrapped. J

·        a couple of handfuls of M&Ms in seasonal colors.

Preheat the oven to 175 degrees.  Lay the pretzels in a single layer on a cookie sheet covered in foil or parchment paper.  Place an unwrapped Kiss on top of each pretzel and put in the oven for 7 minutes.  Remove and immediately press an M&M into the softened chocolate.  Allow to set so the chocolate can reform and harden (fridge, please), or just eat soft and gooey.

Hershey’s Hugs make the cutest little pretzel snacks, but the white chocolate in them is much softer.  They will take only a couple of minutes to soften.  I would only leave them in the oven for about 3 minutes before testing to see if they are soft enough to be topped with the M&M.

I just found a great website called She Cooks.  LeeAnn Rice has an entire Easter menu that looks fabulous.  I especially wanted to share some links to recipes that look fun with kids.  Check out Bird's Nests and Resurrection Rolls.  We make giant Bird's Nests at our house, using green-colored coconut to line the nests (which I should probably think about leaving out since my kids won't eat it after that addition - but they sure are fun!), sometimes we add Marshmallow Peep Chicks.  Also, in the comments section under Resurrection Rolls is a link to Easter Story cookies. 

Enjoy!

Resurrection Eggs

I have a love - hate relationship with my Easter decorations.  I am always so happy to crawl into the attic and get down my box of bunnies and eggs.  But by the time Easter comes and goes I am ready to stomp on every plastic egg that has somehow been scattered all over my house; and really, bunnies are only cute for so long (for me it's somewhere between 2 and 3 weeks). 

I do have a favorite Easter "decoration" that I want to tell you about.  Yes it is an egg; a dozen to be specific.  But they are very special.  Some of you have the Resurrection Eggs that are usually available at Christian Bookstores right about now.  I always thought they were wonderful, but wouldn't spend the money to buy them.  One year I found instructions to make some on my own in one of my favorite books.  Emilie Barnes writes all about her ideas for celebrating holidays and taking care of home and family.  The book is called "Emilie Barnes' 15 Minute Home and Family Organizer."  This homemade set of Resurrection Eggs is over 10 years old and is something I cherish because I made them with some amazing women who are dear to me. 

In this book Emilie Barnes suggests making eggs that represent the Easter Story.  I got all my Bible Study girlfriends together and we made a set for each of our families.  This worked out great because we each signed up for one of the items - and brought enough for everyone. Then we shared and assembled them all together.  The Easter Eggs are numbered 1-12.  Each numbered egg has an item and a Scripture that tells part of the True Easter Story. 

I found that there are examples similar to the pattern I followed online if you google Homemade Resurrection Eggs.  I'm happy to share mine too.....

Here is number 11, it includes a small stone and the reference John 20:1.  The other eggs contain things like a small cross, a branch with thorns, a perfumed scrap of fabric.

We've used this in different ways in our family.  When our kids were little, we would just open them up and tell them the stories while they examined the contents.  As they've gotten older we have them look up the Scriptures and read the passage that goes with each item in order.  If you have a structured family time you can open one every day as you countdown to Easter.  We tend to just find an evening close to Easter to get them out and dive in, taking time to consider the real meaning of Easter. 

I wish I had pictures to share with you of my kids with open plastic eggs lying around them as they sit in the floor with their daddy looking at a dozen ordinary items like a dime and a piece of a sponge while hearing about the extraordinary love Jesus has for them.  These are precious snapshots in my memory.

Here's an Easter Brunch recipe from Emilie's book:  It's really yummy, and healthier than traditional sausage. Enjoy!

Turkey Sausage
Mix together thoroughly with a fork:
1 pound ground turkey
1 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon nutmeg
1/2 teaspoon sage
1/2 teaspoon thyme
1/8 teaspoon cayenne pepper

Shape into 12 small patties.  Fry in ungreased skillet or bake at 350 for 10-15 minutes in shallow pan until done. Do not overcook or patties will become tough.  Oven baking produces juicier patties and is easier when feeding a crowd.