Mark Sorensen When my oldest son was little, his favorite superhero was Superman. I know this because of one simple truth: he loved to fly. Literally. He would climb up on the furniture, on plant stands, anything that had height, and he would jump off with his little hands held out directly in front of him. He was fearless. His favorite Superman moments, however, involved me laying on the floor and putting him on my feet while lifting him over my head. I’ll never forget these moments. He would slowly let go of my grip and balance while slowly moving his hands straight in front of him. Great memories. But, here’s the thing. It was never enough for Nicholas. After I would put him down, he would scream, “One more time”, and, back in the air he would go. “One more time” would turn into two more times, three more times, five more times, and the cycle would never end.
I get it. I love those moments that meet you with such awe and wonder that it takes your breath away. Sometimes, you just want the feeling to last and experience it again and again. For me, Easter Sunday morning will always be that “One more time!” moment.
There’s something about the anticipation that meets us on Easter morning. You just feel it before you even walk into the church hallway. There’s the crowd. The church halls are packed with friends and smiling faces. That’s what I was met with this past Sunday. Worship at church was beautiful. There was so much joy found in the good news of the Gospel message reminding us all that the tomb is empty, God has made a way, and death could not keep Jesus in the grave! But, as quickly as Easter morning seemed to come, it ended just as quickly.
As I drove away from the church on Sunday morning, I thought about my son’s Superman moments and his little voice shouting out, “One more time, dad!” That memory took me back to the Easter morning experience I had just had for the first time as an official pastor in the United Methodist church. My reaction was much the same: “One more time!” I really didn’t want Easter morning to end. Then, God hit me with a pretty amazing thought:
the Easter message we heard is not just a message of victory to be declared on one Sunday a year; it’s a Gospel truth that is worthy of our celebration on a daily basis.
Seriously. The truth that “Christ has died, Christ has risen, and Christ will come again”, is a message that needs to be celebrated, it must be communicated and it’s worthy of our attention on a daily basis.
This, my friends, is the good news of the Gospel.
So, as we move through this week on the other side of Easter, let me ask. How can you carry the celebration into tomorrow? What about the following day? And the one after that? Who do you know that needs to hear the good news that He is risen, He is risen, indeed?
Let’s keep the Easter worship going, my friends.
