Easter Hope

M asked me this morning if I prayed for God to make her creative. I told her that I prayed a lot of things for her but that was a special gift God gave her to use for Him. She had asked me just after I finished my coffee if we could "do art with our art supplies." She diligently painted for over 30 minutes and took care in the details of each of her lovely pictures.

I love seeing these special gifts unfold in children as they grow. M is so good at creating things and artistic things. S is very inquisitive and has a scientist’s mind about approaching everything he does. He is also great at building things. I is very sweet and affectionate and also has some artistic aptitudes. His latest thing is drawing chalk scribbles. It keeps him focused longer than any other activity right now. All of our kids love music and singing and playing instruments, and we see some potential giftedness growing in them in this area as well. 

As I sit in reflection about Easter and celebrating what that means for us, I can’t help but be thankful for the way God loves us. Not only did He saved us from death and darkness and despair when Jesus went to the cross, but we can now live with hope that reaches beyond the darkness and sadness and anxiety of this world as we look forward to eternity in Heaven. And even beyond that, God touches us in this world, and gives us glimpses of that eternal hope. He brings His Kingdom here, in the present, in the midst of imperfection, and gifts us with incredible abilities to create beauty and think inquisitively. When we use those gifts to honor Him, we can feel a bit more “whole” and complete. I believe that’s a glimpse of Heaven, when we will be fully whole and complete in the presence of God. 

As we enter this Easter week, in the midst of a pandemic and quarantines, I pray we all take the time to spend listening for the Lord—through the Holy Spirit, through Scripture, through song, through others—and truly appreciate the weight of Jesus going to the cross for us. To truly appreciate the wonder and glory that He rose from the dead. That this isn’t just some fabled story, but that it truly happened. And that it changed everything. And praise the Lord it did! Because it allows us to live in hope and spread joy despite circumstances. This is what we celebrate this week and long for others to know and experience all year long!