I love this time of year, when life begins to emerge out of its lifeless status. Brown turns to green and green turns to vibrant colors of Spring. God provides warmer temperatures and the tempo of life begins to beat a little faster and people begin to emerge from winter hibernation. I realize that Spring happens every year and it has happened for a long, long time, but we need to be reminded of the emergence of life within us, because God created us to live with Him.

Nested between two celebrations, Palm Sunday and Easter, was a day of devastation. The day was Friday when Jesus was arrested, tried and sentenced to be crucified. A day that would be the center point of the Christian Life.  But it seems out of line and a little twisted to be celebrating the horror of a crucifixion; I think that is the point, the celebration comes before and after the crucifixion; we are called to remember a horrific day in order to fully celebrate the day of Easter.

I love the way Scripture describes the People of God: we are living rocks (1 Peter 2:5)…that explains a lot, a temple in which the Holy Spirit dwells (Ephesians 2:22), we are the resurrected body of Christ (Colossians 1:18), we are the branches of the vine that bear fruit (John 15:5ff). These are but a few of the images that describe the relationship between God and His People.

Happy New Year! It is time to begin. This is the time of year that people make, with good intentions, New Year’s Resolutions. Unfortunately, there is another part of the year where the resolution seems to fade away.