discovering joy in the journey

Joy to the Heart

So many things have been competing for our attention: multiple showings of our home (over 30 in a month!), trying to make time for goodbyes, continuing work on the spelling curriculum, and just keeping up with the day to day homeschool with our kids.  I am realizing that we just moved away from our home church and family two weeks before Easter – and we have not intentionally done a thing to prepare our hearts to remember and celebrate.

But, God has been working His own plan without us even realizing. So, I share our family’s unplanned meditations for celebrating Easter this year…

With encouragement from close friends to memorize longer passages or even an entire book from the Bible, our family began memorizing Ephesians about a month and a half ago.  We are all at different sections within chapters one and two, but we are constantly hearing it, reading it, and letting His Word soak in.

Chapter one speaks of all our blessings in Christ – our adoption as His sons, the redemption and forgiveness of our sins, how God has chosen and predestined us, how we have the gift of the Holy Spirit dwelling in us, and how we have power through Christ.

In him, we have redemption through his blood, the forgiveness of sins, in accordance with the riches of God’s grace that he lavished on us with all wisdom and understanding. ~Ephesians 1:7

As we continue into chapter two, we are soberly reminded of who we were without Christ –dead, gratifying the cravings of our sinful nature, objects of wrath.

But because of his great love for us, God, who is rich in mercy, made us alive with Christ even when we were dead in transgressions – it is by grace you have been saved. ~Ephesians 2:4-5

Now, as we read the account of the first Easter from Scripture (as found in Matthew 26-28, Mark 15-16, Luke 22-24, and John 18-20) we are reminded of Christ’s sacrifice for us.  Oh, how our blessings in Christ are so interwoven with His suffering!    ‘In Him’, ‘in love’, and ‘according to his pleasure’, Christ died to save us from our sins and lavished on us the riches of His grace. Undeserved, unmerited – We have been brought near through the blood of Christ.  To the praise of His glory!

Looking back, another way that God has been allowing us to meditate on His love and sacrifice for us is through song.  Glorious Day by Casting Crowns was sung at our commissioning service at the end of February.  We have been singing it ever since!

Glorious Day
One day when Heaven was filled with His praises
One day when sin was as black as could be
Jesus came forth to be born of a virgin
Dwelt among men, my example is He
Word became flesh and the light shined among us
His glory revealed

Living, He loved me
Dying, He saved me
Buried, He carried my sins far away
Rising, He justified freely forever
One day He’s coming
Oh glorious day, oh glorious day

One day they led Him up Calvary’s mountain
One day they nailed Him to die on a tree
Suffering anguish, despised and rejected
Bearing our sins, my Redeemer is He
Hands that healed nations, stretched out on a tree
And took the nails for me

One day the grave could conceal Him no longer
One day the stone rolled away from the door
Then He arose, over death He had conquered
Now He’s ascended, my Lord evermore
Death could not hold Him, the grave could not keep Him
From rising again

One day the trumpet will sound for His coming
One day the skies with His glories will shine
Wonderful day, my Beloved One, bringing
My Savior, Jesus, is mine
Oh, glorious day

 

How do you see God preparing your heart for celebrating our risen Savior this Easter?

But he was pierced for our transgressions, he was crushed for our iniquities; the punishment that brought us peace was upon him, and by his wounds we are healed.   (Isaiah 53:5)

What a small, but powerful reminder that we will carry with us everywhere we go today… Christ died for our sins!  He died for me.  He loved me and took my place – suffering the punishment that I deserved. 

The original idea was found on The Celebrated Family blog.