PERSPECTIVE IS EVERYTHING

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Life is not so much about what happens, as it is the direction that you're looking at it from.  I've seen, as have you, people's totally opposite reactions to the same event.  Both saw the same thing.  Both heard the same news.  Both experienced the same stimulus.  But, they responded totally oppositely to the same thing.

The Resurrection is one of those things.  We, as Christ-followers, celebrate the Resurrection every Sunday.  But, we REALLY celebrate it on EASTER.  We build our calendars around it.  We plan for it.  Some get all dressed up for it.  Others, plan a feast for it.  We plan outreaches around it.  We, unapologetically invite everyone we know to join us in worshipping our risen Savior on this most special day of all days.

Jesus' disciples got to experience the Resurrection up close and in person.  So, how did they get ready for Resurrection day?  By hiding out, laying low, feeling sorry for themselves and rethinking the purpose and plans they had for their lives.  Their plans didn't include celebrating.  Theirs centered more around mourning.  A quiet early morning visit to a tomb to recollect what could have been and how it had all come to an inauspicious and unexpected end.  Their joy had been turned to sorrow and their hopes and dreams had all gone up in smoke at the foot of a cross as they stared at the one they'd left everything for come to a sudden and crushing end.  It was over.  Everything was over.

Those are two very different ways of living out the days leading up to the Resurrection.  The difference?  Which side of the Resurrection you live on.  It's one thing to live as we do, looking back on it.  We do that with joy and hope and anticipation.  It's quite another thing to live, looking forward to it.  By that, I don't mean expecting it, anticipating it and looking forward to it.  In reality, the Resurrection took them totally by surprise.  Sure, Jesus had left some pretty good hints.  It's a lot easier to see them looking back after the fact.  Looking through the lens of the Resurrection makes everything much clearer.  But, they didn't have the Resurrection to see through and to hear those hints through.

Still today, which side of the Resurrection you live on makes all the difference in the world.  If you find your hope in that Resurrection, then it becomes the defining moment, not only in history, but in your life and your history.

Yet, still today, if the Resurrection of Jesus is not your hope for forgiveness and eternity, then it's just another day, only one with a fable attached to it and religious holiday.  It still all centers on which side of the Resurrection you chose to live on.

Is it just a nice story or the answer to everything in your life and future?  That one answer to that one question changes everything,

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