It's almost Easter!

Easter is less than a week away!  
Easter has always been a special time of year for me; even as a little child I remember extra emphases placed on this holiday. Of course as a child the emphases was on: coloring eggs, my new dress, hat and shoes, finding my Easter basket full of chocolate, going to church and Easter dinner with our family.

In some ways the emphases is the same; I still buy a new shirt to wear each year, and what Easter is complete without some chocolate? Easter dinner with the family is still a priority and going to church is a must!

However there is a difference now; my sole purpose is to celebrate the fact of the empty tomb! All my preparation is to honor the Risen Savior!

So as each of us prepare throughout the week for this coming Resurrection Sunday, remember to take time and reflect on what Christ has done for you. . .

Because of the cross He [Jesus Christ] has bridged the gap and gave us eternal life with Him. That is where our emphases should be. . .  Christ centered!

What is the emphasis of your life? To be happier here, more blessed here, and more fulfilled here? Is it all about what makes us feel better about ourselves and strengthen the bond of human friendship and family?

 While these are nice and even necessary, without heaven in clear view our Christianity will fail to have a heavenward impulse, that pulls us closer to God, closer to eternity and closer to home. It becomes self-serving, without focusing on heaven we will focus on ourselves and seek to satisfy our longings and needs here rather than serving and sacrificing here (on earth) with a view to satisfaction there (in heaven).

The center of life is beyond ourselves or our personal experience; the center must be in God. This means that the whole structure of being (for those who seek heaven), implies a reaching out, or a reaching forward, to that which is outside of ones self. It is the realization that life is not essentially self-expression, but grace, it focuses upon that which is beyond ourselves.

Without the reality of heaven, even the gospel can become a means to help feel forgiven and restored. Which can lead us to expect earth-side blessings as a result of finding and knowing Jesus. Then we have lost the true emphases - which is Christ!

Jesus is our: fulfiller, healer, helper, and friend.  But unless we focus our hopes on the ultimate healing that is fully experienced in eternity, disillusionment will set in and we will have difficulty when we experience hardship and struggle on this side of heaven. 

THIS WORLD IS NOT OUR HOME! Keep your emphases centered on Christ!