The Gift of The Cross

Apr 2
5 min read

If you declare with your mouth, “Jesus is Lord,” and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved.

Romans 10: 9, NIV

Celebration is in the air! The spiral ham is bought, and the scent of homemade cinnamon rolls, quiche, and fresh flowers will soon welcome in family for a traditional Easter brunch, and egg hunt.

As a mom and grandma my deepest desire is for each member of my family to "have the power to understand, as all God’s people should, how wide, how long, how high, and how deep his love is" (Ephesians 3:18).

Jesus’ ultimate sacrifice on the cross says it all. "For this is how God loved the world: He gave his one and only Son, so that everyone who believes in him will not perish but have eternal life" (John 3:16).

To help convey the true meaning of Jesus’ Resurrection, and His amazing love, grace, and forgiveness, each year I design an Easter egg hunt or activity ‘with a twist’ for my grandkids. In the past we’ve had homemade Resurrection Eggs with symbols from Holy Week in plastic eggs with coordinating scriptures to match, and Bible Trivia games with prizes.

This year, a scavenger egg hunt has been requested by our precious twelve year-old, so soon I’ll be typing verses to be read, discussed, and matched with sweet and salty items in a homemade ‘Resurrection Trail Mix,’ (also simple enough to mail to our grands out of state).

Some ideas I’ll be using were passed onto me to help launch this event, and I think you’ll enjoy them, too. (Though, I do not know who to thank and credit for these ideas, please let me know if you do). Recommendations, of course, may be elaborated and substituted to suit your littles, and level of understanding.

Knowing that you and I are “wholeheartedly called to obey, and commit to passing on God’s commandments to our children and grandchildren, repeating them again and again, talking about them at home and on the road,” (Deuteronomy 6: 6-8), along with the rest of scripture, I have found that these activities engage and spark conversations, with folks of all ages.

I invite you to take a few minutes to slowly read each verse below, and reflect on how these words and symbols have impacted your personal journey.

This fun recipe with your littles, or young at heart is sure to delight, and perhaps inspire your creativity with other verses and symbols, too.

Resurrection Trail Mix

"Then God made you alive with Christ, for he forgave all our sins. He canceled the record of the charges against us and took it away by nailing it to the cross" (Colossians 2: 14). ~Cross, pretzel sticks

"He is so rich in kindness and grace that he purchased our freedom with the blood of his Son and forgave our sins" (Ephesians 1: 7). ~Jesus’ blood, craisins

"But if we confess our sins to him, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all wickedness" (1John 1: 9). ~Jesus washes us whiter than snow, marshmallows

"They found that the stone was rolled away from the entrance. So they went in, but they didn’t find the body of the Lord Jesus" (Luke 24: 2-3). ~Stone, round cracker, or banana chip

"Come, follow me, and I will show you how to fish for people" (Matthew 4: 19)~Share the Good News, Fishers of men, Goldfish crackers

"Taste and see that the Lord is good" (Psalm 34: 8). God’s love visible in numerous ways, Chocolate chips or kisses

(To assemble your Resurrection Trail Mix, place a variety of the above treats in individual baggies with Easter stickers. Write or type each verse, and cut to place inside plastic eggs to hide as part of your Easter egg hunt. Open, read and discuss each verse, and guess what item in the trail mix it represents. Eat and enjoy).

I hope that whether you are humming Easter songs as you work, gathered with children, or are enjoying a quiet Easter Sabbath, that today’s verses have blessed you!

God’s unconditional, eternal, perfect, everlasting love is still bigger than any one could ever imagine.

Let’s pray.

Loving God,

We praise you and thank you for showing us how much you loved us by sending your One and Only Son to suffer, and die for us. He gave his life to free us from every kind of sin, to cleanse us, and to make us his own people, totally committed to doing good deeds (Titus 2: 14).

Help us wholeheartedly be receptive and attentive to the nudge of your Spirit, so we may spread your Word to the next generations. Guide us to fix our eyes on you, to praise you even before the victory is won, believing, surrendering, and trusting you as our Lord Jesus did. Thank you, Father. In Jesus’ name we pray.

Amen.

Thank you for your loving presence here today, my friend. As we continue to meditate and praise God for the gift of the Cross, may the miracle of Easter fill your heart with gratitude, love and lasting joy!

Until next time…

May the Spirit of God lead you,

The Word of God sustain you,

And the Promises of God grant you the gift of everlasting peace.

Have a beautiful Easter!

It is my honor and privilege to pray and celebrate with you. Please email your prayer requests and praises to sue@faithfirstwomen.com. I would also love to hear if you were inspired to share today’s Easter idea.

Share this with friends and invite them to subscribe at https://faithfirstwomen.com/blog

✏️Reflection Prompts

Sister Catherine of Siena once said, “It is love alone that kept Jesus nailed to the Cross.” Knowing Christ’s cross represents victory, how can His love bring you to victory in the days ahead?
How can attentiveness and receptivity make a greater impact as you pause throughout the day to pray? How will these two things help you reveal who Jesus is to others?

🙏A Special Invitation

If you or someone you know would like to start your week with others in prayer, please consider joining me for our Monday morning “Power of Reflection Prayer Circle.” We meet virtually to lift one another up, reflect on scripture, share intentions, and support one another along our spiritual journeys. For further details email me at sue@faithfirstwomen.com.

For additional inspiration throughout the week follow us at https://www.instagram.com/faithfirstwomen and https://facebook.com/FaithFirstWomen

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