Week 370

Positive post Sunday, March 31, 2024…. Week 370.  As I was preparing to write this PPS, I decided to look back over the last few years and see what I wrote on Easter Sunday.  Not surprisingly, I began each PPS with, He has risen, Alleluia, Alleluia!  I also wished a very Happy Easter Sunday to my family, friends, and Christians throughout the world. 

Considering that I started writing PPS articles during Lent in 2017, and lent ends with Easter Sunday, it’s certainly appropriate to celebrate the resurrection of our Lord Jesus Christ once again, and to wish all those who believe and observe Easter a very special day.  And, to those that may not believe or who are developing their faith, please know that you are always welcome, and my prayers are with you. 

Just a few days ago, on Good Friday, we acknowledged and mourned the brutal crucifixion of our Lord Jesus Christ.  His willingness to accept and experience incomprehensible pain and suffering to fulfill his Father’s will is honorable and foundational in my faith.  I am deeply humbled, eternally grateful and feel truly blessed that our savior loved us so much that He gave his own earthly life, enduring unimaginable pain, to open the gates of heaven for all of us unworthy sinners to someday be with Our Father who art in heaven.

I have experienced considerable physical pain in my life from accidents and illness.  And, like most of us, I have also experienced sorrow and tragedy.  As painful as it has been, my suffering pales compared to what Jesus endured. I have chosen not to ask, “God, why have I had so much pain and suffering in my life?”, but rather, like Jesus and his crucifixion and resurrection, continue to trust and believe in God, especially in my most challenging moments.  Knowing He has a plan for me, including carrying my own cross at times throughout my life, deepens my faith and helps me understand my purpose and journey here on earth.  My life experiences and prayer have helped me focus my limited time here on earth doing God’s will by serving others, until He brings me home.

Here are three scriptures focused on our Lord’s resurrection and that keep me grounded in my faith and focused on eternal life:

John 11:25-26, (25) Jesus told her, “I am the resurrection and the life; whoever believes in me, even if he dies, will live, (26) and everyone who lives and believes in me will never die. Do you believe this?”

1 Peter 1:3, (3) Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who in his great mercy gave us a new birth to a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead.

Luke 24: 6-7, (6) He is not here, but he has been raised. Remember what he said to you while he was still in Galilee, (7) that the Son of Man must be handed over to sinners and be crucified, and rise on the third day.

He has risen, Alleluia, Alleluia!

How has the pain and suffering you have experienced in your life brought you closer to God?

How have you shown thanks to the Lord for giving his life here on earth so you could have eternal life?