"...since Easters...."

The first Easter that I remember was in 1971 (?). I wasn't 5 yet. I wore my new dress with matching socks, really cute shoes, white gloves and a HAT to church. I remember a little girl with a sailor dress wasn't too nice to me. I didn't like church.

The next Easter I remember was in 1976. It was 4th grade and pantsuits were COOL! I got a fantastic polyester green one and my sister had a matching blue one. Of course we had cool shoes and ditched the idea of a hat and gloves. At this church I found out that I wasn't really wearing the Easter dress code at the time. I didn't know about that though. I thought that God would really like my new outfit. I liked God and I went to church to learn more about Him.

In 1984, right before Easter, I met my husband in a field in Mexicali, Mexico. I was a junior in high school. No, he's not from Mexico and yes that is a whole other story for another blog. The week before Easter I had worked with the poor in Mexico. When I came home on Good Friday my mom was so cool about taking me to the mall to get a new Easter dress. This was one constant tradition at our house. At the mall I just remember seeing all the abundance and reflected on the poverty that I had just seen across the border. We went to lunch and talked. I think that I just wore something that I had in my closet that year to church and thought that God would be happy with me just as I was. Serving Him in Mexico and worshipping Him at church on Easter.

In 1985 Dave invited me to my first ever sun-rise service. Have you ever been to a sunrise service? It's really early to a challenged morning person. Greg Laurie spoke that morning and told the Easter story. I don't remember much of the rest of the day except a lot of family time with Dave's family and mine.

Fast forward to 2009. Easter over the past years has been different. I spent the Easter of 1989 married to my wonderful husband, Dave. Then came the kids. David Jr. was born 2 days after Easter 1990 (no wonder I was so cranky and emotional when my Easter feast didn't work out the way I had invisioned it). With Bethany coming along in 1991 and Kirsten in 1993 Easter each year changed as the kids grew. Some years we were back in Mexico the week before Easter helping the poor. Some years we had sun and some years we even had snow (in California and in Idaho!). This year we are celebrating with friends in Idaho and our oldest two are celebrating with their friends in Michigan.

I've learned a lot about church and God since that first Easter memory. I've learned that God loves it when I go to church no matter what I am wearing. He loves it when I go to church even when it isn't Easter. I've learned that most people at church are nice and that we all can be not so nice once in a while. In fact that's why God sent His son, Jesus, to the earth from heaven. It is because of our inadequacies and failures, our meanness and selfishness that we needed someone to save us. It is because of God's penalty of death for any sin (not measuring up to God's standard) that Jesus died. It is because of God's grace, mercy, power over death, and hope He promises that Jesus came back to life.

"For God so loved the world, that He sent His Son, that whosoever believes in Him, would not perish, but have eternal life. For God sent not His son into the world to condemn the world, but that through Him all might be saved." John 3:16-17