A Reflection on Christmas, Easter and Church
by LewisIn the “funnies” yesterday I saw a comic strip called “For Better or For Worse” by Canadian Lynn Johnston. In the first three panels the family is headed off to church, with the focus on a little boy who is perhaps six years old. In the last three panels, Mom is helping him with his jacket when he asks her, “Is church open every Sunday, Mom?” and she replies, “Yes, Michael” as he looks around. And as they are walking out, within earshot of his father, the minister and a few others, Michael asks, “Then how come we only come twice a year?”
Frankly, I’m glad that Christmas and Easter both bring people to church. It’s a start. And it shows that somewhere in their hearts is the realization that church is a place where they should be, the realization that Jesus means something and has something to do with their lives. My hope is that even those who only come to church on those occasions — whether it is out of a sense of obligation or duty or respect for family wishes or the direct calling of the Holy Spirit — will benefit from being with the body. Perhaps they’ll also hear something in the songs or prayers or message that works in their lives to bring them closer to God.
But I’m also glad that those of us who attend church on Sundays other than Christmas and Easter get there on those days. It deepens our appreciation for the gifts that we have received, it deepens our fellowship with other believers, and it deepens our faith. Easter, especially, does that for me as I focus on the resurrection and see my life in its glorious light!
I hope that you had a marvelous Easter, and I hope that the wonder of the resurrection lives in your heart every day.