Easter

My little jailbird on Easter Sunday...

I guess I was just too tired to think about arranging my little 3-man family for a family picture while we all still had our Sunday best on!  Plus, this outfit was much more comfortable for Robbie so it's what we changed him into right after church.  A mom's love for dressing her kids up on holidays can only go so far. 

We had such a nice Easter though - my mom made a big ham lunch and one of her friends who goes to her bible study and lives in their cul-de-sac came over with her family to join us.  I love that my parents are so inclusive of others, especially around holidays.

We had managed to get to church that morning... on time even!  But I was conflicted about putting Robbie in the nursery since it would be a busier-than-usual Sunday in his room.  It didn't go well, and although I know that I can't hang on to him everywhere, forever, I still try to gauge whether a situation is worth entering into.  By the time we picked him up after the service, apparently all of the babies but one were bawling.  It was chaos in that room and I felt really badly for the workers!  Oh well.  Hopefully next Sunday is better.

I am not going to post all of my thoughts about Easter on here... partially because I don't have the luxury of time right now, and partially because I feel like that sometimes comes across as being preachy.  But this IS the place where you come to peek in on our lives - and Jesus is a big part of that, whether that is apparent or not to you (I hope that it is!).

So I will let you know that this Easter, I have been struck by the idea that God knew that He would send his only Son to the cross for all of us... He knew before time began, He knew on the night Jesus was born, He knew when Jesus prayed to Him and asked that He 'let this cup pass from my lips'...  And not only did God know this was going to happen, as our pastor reminded us - God SENT Jesus to the cross.  What love... You can read the story of Easter and of love in the book of John, chapters 19 and 20 if you haven't gotten the chance to already.

Becoming a follower of Jesus has been and will continue to be a life changing process for me.  Becoming a mom has, in some ways, been similarly transforming (I hope that doesn't sound blasphemous!).  By that, I mean that some days I feel like a completely different person than I was before Robbie existed.  I saw myself, my life, my husband, everything... differently.  Then I held Robbie for the first time, and suddenly my universe shifted and everything I knew to be true was still true, I just saw it all in a new light.  I have a greater understanding of how God might feel towards me (his daughter) because I myself now have a son.  Certain things have deeper meaning and significance.  I am also more acutely aware of the blessings we have been given, and of how temporary they can be.  How fragile life is.  

This Easter, I am thankful for the sacrifice Jesus paid for me on the cross.  My salvation is dependent upon the truth that Jesus not only died, but was raised from the dead - and I believe it.  I am thankful that I can take all of my sin to Jesus and find forgiveness and grace each day, and continually be transformed - resurrected daily, in a sense, from the death that my sin brings.

I put a new song on our playlist (finally!) - it's Chris Tomlin's "Unfailing Love".  Here are the lyrics, if you're interested... I think they are beautiful.

You have my heart

And I am Yours forever

You are my strength

God of grace and power

And everything You hold in Your hand

Still You make time for me

I can't understand

Praise You God of Earth and sky

How beautiful is Your unfailing love

Unfailing love

And You never change God You remain

The Holy One

My unfailing love

Unfailing love

You are my rock

The one I hold on to

You are my song

And I sing for You

And everything You hold in Your hand

Still You make time for me

I can't understand

Praise You God of Earth and sky

How beautiful is Your unfailing love

Unfailing love

And you never change God You remain

The Holy One

My unfailing love

Unfailing love

And everything You hold in Your hand

Still you make time for me

I can't understand

Praise you God of Earth and sky

How beautiful is Your unfailing love

Unfailing love

And you never change God You remain

The Holy One

My unfailing love

Unfailing love

I will praise You 

Praise you God of Earth and sky

How beautiful is your unfailing love

Unfailing love

And you never change God you remain

The Holy One

My unfailing love

Unfailing love

Unfailing love

Unfailing love

Unfailing love

Unfailing love