Easter Reflections

As is the case with almost all religious holidays, the "religious" character of holidays is often overshadowed by commercialism and materialism. Easter Day is no exception, what with Easter bunnies, Easter eggs, Easter outfits, Easter candy, and the like. Even though it is the culmination of "Holy Week" within some liturgical churches, it still should be a day of great rejoicing as we commemorate the resurrection of our Lord.

Numerous composers have written profoundly beautiful music to celebrate the day, running the gamut from Bach and Handel to more contemporary Christian composers. Athough Handel's Messiah is often performed during the Christmas Season, many of the well-known and well-loved portions of Messiah are actually taken from biblical texts celebrating Easter. One of Ron Hamilton's earlier works, The Centurion, tells us the story of Easter from the perspective of one of the Roman centurions involved with our Lord's crucifixion.

Here in Owatonna, we enjoyed worshiping at Grace Baptist Church this morning. In our first service, we read several Bible passages and sang a number of hymns related to Easter. We also celebrated the Lord's Supper. Then we were treated to a nice Easter morning breakfast. During the second service, there were several special musical numbers appropriate for the day. And finally, we heard a message from God's Word that empahasized how we should be affected and influenced by Christ's resurrection.

Nancy and Tricia prepared a nice turkey dinner for Easter. We had some of our children (and our two grandchildren) over for the afternoon, because we consider family fellowship to be vitally important. Although there is probably not the same level of excitement as at Christmas, we eagerly anticipate these opportunities when our family members are able to get together for fellowship. All in all, this was a good Easter Day for our family.