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March 24, 2002

PREPARING FOR EASTER

According to the traditional Church Calendar, this is Palm
Sunday-a time to prepare for Easter. Are we ready for Easter?
Oh, we may have bought some new clothes and dyed some Easter
eggs and ordered a pot of lilies; but are we really ready for
Easter? Jesus tried to prepare his followers for the events to
come, but they never understood. Do we understand? In this
week before Easter, let's get ready. Let's use each day to
prepare ourselves for this wonderful celebration.

The E in Easter stands for Educating your mind.
On Monday, lets increase our understanding of the gospel
message. Paul said, "Study to shew thyself approved unto God, a
workman that needeth not to be ashamed, rightly dividing the
word of truth" (II Tim. 2:15, kjv)..
We need to keep learning all our lives. On the day of his
death at the age of seventy-eight, artist Pierre Renoir painted
some flowers and then said, "I think I'm beginning to understand
a little about it . . . Today I learned something."
Jesus began learning early. The Scriptures say, "After
three days they found him in the temple courts, sitting among
the teachers, listening to them and asking them questions.
Everyone who heard him was amazed at his understanding and his
answers. And Jesus grew in wisdom and stature, and in favor
with God and men" (Luke 2:46-47,52).
You are not ready for Easter unless you have an open,
inquiring mind. As we prepare for Easter, our assignment on
Monday is to read Matthew 26:17-30.

The A in EAster stands for Analyzing your attitudes.
On Tuesday, let's examine our views and eliminate our
prejudices. Paul said, "Be made new in the attitude of your
minds" (Eph. 4:23); and "Your attitude should be the same as
that of Christ Jesus" (Phil. 2:5).
Epictetus said, "We ought to be more concerned about
removing hostile feelings and negative thoughts from our
disposition than removing tumors and abscesses from our body."
But, unfortunately, they aren't always as obvious. Henry James
once gave his nephew some excellent advice. He said, "Three
things in life are important. The first is to be kind. The
second is to be kind; and the third is to be kind!"
Jesus was tolerant and kind. He said, "Take my yoke upon
you and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and
you will find rest for your souls" (Matt. 11:29).
You are not ready for Easter unless you are willing to
overcome intolerance and care for all people. As we prepare for
Easter, our assignment for Tuesday is to either listen to
someone of a different race or religion; or read material from a
different viewpoint.

The S in EaSter stands for Searching your heart.
On Wednesday, let's discover our real feelings and deepest
desires. The Psalmist said, "May he give you the desire of your
heart and make all your plans succeed" (Psa. 20:4, niv).
Sometimes we hide our fears. We sweep our angers under the
rug. We bottle up our sorrows. We squelch our ambitions. We
deny our longings; and we refuse to let our hopes and dreams
come to the surface. Too often we live in a world of pretense.
The 10 social commandments seem to be:

1. Thou shalt not feel;
2. Thou shalt not cry;
3. Thou shalt not acknowledge a weakness;
4. Thou shalt not reveal a need;
5. Thou shalt not admit a fault;
6. Thou shalt not discuss a failure;
7. Thou shalt not say, "I'm afraid";
8. Thou shalt not ask for comfort;
9. Thou shalt not show affection; and
10. Thou shalt not hug a friend.

No wonder we live in a world of alienation.

Jesus was different. He expressed his honest emotions. He
was angry: Mark said, "He looked around at them in anger . . ."
(Mark 3:5a). He was sad. John said, "Jesus wept" (John
11:35). He was happy. Luke said, "At that time Jesus, full of
joy through the Holy Spirit, said, "I praise you, Father, Lord
of heaven and earth, because you have hidden these things from
the wise and learned, and revealed them to little children . .
." (Luke 10:21).
You are not ready for Easter unless you are honest and
authentic and free of pretense. As we prepare for Easter, our
assignment for Wednesday is to share a personal hope or dream
with a friend or loved one.

The T in EasTer stands for Thinking about your actions.
On Thursday, let's consider our behavior and habits. Paul
said, "Command them to do good, to be rich in good deeds, and to
be generous and willing to share" (I Tim. 6:18).
A very wise man said, "Doctrine divides; but service
unites." A businessman wanted to follow Jesus. One morning he
prayed, "Lord, I'm going to be a loving Christian all day." As
he was running to catch his train, he felt his briefcase bump
something. He looked down and saw a little boy who had been
carrying a large jigsaw puzzle. Now, dozens of puzzle pieces
littered the platform.
The child started crying and the train started moving.
Suddenly the man remembered his promise, so he set down his bags
and said, "Here, Sonny, I'll help you."
As he picked up the pieces, the little boy watched him.
When they finished, the child looked up with a kind of wonder
and said, "Mister, are you Jesus?" And in that moment, there on
the train platform, the man realized that, "Yes! In a sense, he
had been; because the Scripture says, 'As He is, so also are we
in this world' " (I John 4:17).
Someone said, "Act the way your want to be and you'll
become the way you act."
Jesus served his disciples. "He got up from the meal, took
off his outer clothing, and wrapped a towel around his waist.
After that, he poured water into a basin and began to wash his
disciples' feet, drying them with the towel that was wrapped
around him" (John 13:4-5).
You are not ready for Easter unless you are productive and
helpful. As we prepare for Easter, our assignment on Thursday
is to do one good deed for another person.

The other E in EastEr stands for Evaluating your life.
On Friday, let's define our goals and find our purpose. In
Jeremiah, God said, " 'For I know the plans I have for you,'
declares the Lord, 'plans to prosper you and not to harm you,
plans to give you hope and a future' " (Jer. 29:11).
Author Stephen Covey says, "Begin with the end in mind.
Focus on what you want to be-that includes your identity and
your character. Focus on what you want to do-that includes your
achievements and your contributions. If you aim at nothing,
you're likely to hit it. An unfortunate man who didn't live up
to his potential evaluated his life this way:

Across the fields of yesterday,
He sometimes comes to me;
A little boy who likes to play-
The boy I used to be.

He looks at me so wistfully,
Before he creeps within.
It is as if he hopes to see
The man I might have been.

Do you know who you were meant to be? Jesus knew his
mission. When Pilate questioned him about his activities, Jesus
answered, "For this reason I was born, and for this I came into
the world, to testify to the truth. Everyone on the side of
truth listens to me' " (John 18:37b).
You are not ready for Easter unless you have a worthwhile
purpose in life. As we prepare for Easter, our assignment on
Friday is to write a statement that defines what we believe we
are here on earth to accomplish.

The R in EasteR stands for Repenting of your sins.
On Saturday, let's enumerate our faults and weaknesses and
resolve to forsake them. Solomon said, "He who conceals his
sins does not prosper, but whoever confesses and renounces them
finds mercy" (Prov. 28:13).
John said, "If we claim to be without sin, we deceive
ourselves and the truth is not in us. If we confess our sins,
he is faithful and just and will forgive us our sins and purify
us from all unrighteousness" (I John 1:8-9).
Little flaws can be very destructive if we ignore them. In
1958 the Chaplain at Yale University was counseling one of the
seniors. He said, "You're a nice guy. You have a lot of charm,
but not much inner strength. If you don't stand for something,
you're apt to fall for anything." Sixteen years later, this
student, Jeb MacGruder was convicted as a felon in the Watergate
scandal. When he stood before the judge, he said, "I know what
I've done and your honor knows what I've done. Somewhere
between my ambition and my ideals, I lost my ethical compass."
Evil grows gradually. Once a big tree fell over in a
windstorm. But if you had taken a close look, you would have
seen that little worms had bored into the tree and disease had
been rotting the tree for a long time. The storm simply
provided the final blow that knocked it over.
Prayer can help us discover and admit and deal with our
problems before they destroy us. Jesus spent much time in
prayer. "Then Jesus went with his disciples to a place called
Gethsemane, and he said to them, "Sit here while I go over there
and pray.' Going a little farther, he fell with his face to the
ground and prayed, "My Father, if it is possible, may this cup
be taken from me. Yet not as I will, but as you will' " (Matt.
26:36,39).
You are not ready for Easter unless you are willing to
admit your faults and confess your sins. As we prepare for
Easter, our assignment on Saturday is to spend at least 10
minutes in meditation and prayer.
Let's get ready for Easter! Peter said, "Therefore,
prepare your minds for action; be self-controlled; set your hope
fully on the grace to be given you when Jesus Christ is
revealed. As obedient children, do not conform to the evil
desires you had when you lived in ignorance. But just as he who
called you is holy, so be holy in all you do; for it is written:
"Be holy, because I am holy' " (I Peter 1:13-16).
An Episcopal minister was explaining why his church
observes a period before Easter known as Lent. He said, "During
this time we try to get close to the Lord so that we can
identify with him and experience his passion." Until we can
pray, "Not my will, but thine be done"; Until we can say,
"Father, forgive them, they know not what they do"; Until we can
let our hostilities and resentments and pride and
self-righteousness die; and let our new higher and better self
be raised at his resurrection, we're not ready for Easter
Paul described this process in his life. "I have been
crucified with Christ and I no longer live, but Christ lives in
me. The life I live in the body, I live by faith in the Son of
God, who loved me and gave himself for me" (Gal. 2:20).
Later he said, "Those who belong to Christ Jesus have
crucified the sinful nature with its passions and desires" (Gal.
5:24).
Spring is a time of renewal. Palm Sunday is a time of
preparation. Easter is a time of celebration. Let's prepare
for Easter.

****

These messages are from an unpublished manuscript © copyrighted
by Miles and Maralene Wesner, Idabel, OK. Please use them in
any way you think appropriate. The only thing we ask is that
you give credit for original material in published works.

Next Scheduled Update: 4-8-02

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