Reason #443
It's easy to become immune to a story. The first time you hear it, you pay attention to the details. You listen with anticipation, and it's exciting because you're not sure where the story is going. But once you've heard it, you remember it. You know how it ends, you know the plot, who the characters are, and what the twists are. And so, sometimes, it can be difficult to maintain that same level of excitement when you've heard the story so much that you, yourself, could tell it forwards and backwards.
I remember the first time I told my testimony. It was so overwhelming, and for a long while, I couldn't tell it without fighting the urge to breakdown and cry. But I told my story again and again, and now it's not difficult for me to share. I've shared it enough that I've become desensitized to certain parts, not allowing them to affect me as greatly as they did at first. But it's still, in my opinion, a powerful story to someone who has yet to hear it. However, sometimes I can forget that because there are days that it seems just that, a story.
I didn't want to feel that way about Easter this year. The truth is, I've celebrated Easter every single year of my life. I can't remember a time in my life when I didn't know the reason behind Easter. And so, the story of Jesus is one I can tell well. It's one that I've heard so much, yet the story is still so powerful, even if we've heard it time and time again.
The past 2 Easter's have been different for me. Because, for the last 2 Easter's, I've understood it. I've understood hopelessness, disappointment, second chances, redemption. I've understood difficulties and trials. Shame, humilation, forgiveness, grace. But today, I realized that one of the most significant things about Easter is not just that Jesus laid down His life for us, but that He came back for us. He could have very well just risen from the dead and ascended to Heaven, but He chose to stay on the earth for a bit. Dwell among the broken, the abused, the sinners, the addicts, the helpless, the very ones who killed Him. He chose to come along side them and encourage them. To give them a new purpose in life. He came back to give them hope to hold on to. A hope that He would be back once again, and that in the mean time, He'd still be there.
And so, this was a powerful revelation for me this year. Because there are times in life that are dark and depressing. There are times we are confused and hurt. Times when we feel like we're totally on our own. Abandoned, rejected, unwanted, overlooked. There are seasons that seem hopless. Situations that are unbelievable. A there are times when our worst nightmares come to life. But we can find hope in comfort in knowing that He comes back for us. He comes to rescue, to restore, to free, to comfort. He comes back to remind us that He is walking every step of the way with us, and that we are never truly alone in any circumstance. And I'm so grateful for that. Grateful that He chose to walk out of that tomb and find us. To come back for us and to us. What joy in knowing that the next time He comes back will be even better than the first. And so, no matter what we're going through, we can live in the hope that He comes back for us and that He never leaves us.
#443 - Because He comes back for us!
"...And be sure of this: I am with you always, even to the end of the age.” - Matthew 28:20
I remember the first time I told my testimony. It was so overwhelming, and for a long while, I couldn't tell it without fighting the urge to breakdown and cry. But I told my story again and again, and now it's not difficult for me to share. I've shared it enough that I've become desensitized to certain parts, not allowing them to affect me as greatly as they did at first. But it's still, in my opinion, a powerful story to someone who has yet to hear it. However, sometimes I can forget that because there are days that it seems just that, a story.
I didn't want to feel that way about Easter this year. The truth is, I've celebrated Easter every single year of my life. I can't remember a time in my life when I didn't know the reason behind Easter. And so, the story of Jesus is one I can tell well. It's one that I've heard so much, yet the story is still so powerful, even if we've heard it time and time again.
The past 2 Easter's have been different for me. Because, for the last 2 Easter's, I've understood it. I've understood hopelessness, disappointment, second chances, redemption. I've understood difficulties and trials. Shame, humilation, forgiveness, grace. But today, I realized that one of the most significant things about Easter is not just that Jesus laid down His life for us, but that He came back for us. He could have very well just risen from the dead and ascended to Heaven, but He chose to stay on the earth for a bit. Dwell among the broken, the abused, the sinners, the addicts, the helpless, the very ones who killed Him. He chose to come along side them and encourage them. To give them a new purpose in life. He came back to give them hope to hold on to. A hope that He would be back once again, and that in the mean time, He'd still be there.
And so, this was a powerful revelation for me this year. Because there are times in life that are dark and depressing. There are times we are confused and hurt. Times when we feel like we're totally on our own. Abandoned, rejected, unwanted, overlooked. There are seasons that seem hopless. Situations that are unbelievable. A there are times when our worst nightmares come to life. But we can find hope in comfort in knowing that He comes back for us. He comes to rescue, to restore, to free, to comfort. He comes back to remind us that He is walking every step of the way with us, and that we are never truly alone in any circumstance. And I'm so grateful for that. Grateful that He chose to walk out of that tomb and find us. To come back for us and to us. What joy in knowing that the next time He comes back will be even better than the first. And so, no matter what we're going through, we can live in the hope that He comes back for us and that He never leaves us.
#443 - Because He comes back for us!
"...And be sure of this: I am with you always, even to the end of the age.” - Matthew 28:20