I am “toast” today after having guests in my home for the past 10 days. It started with my cousin Trina and her two boys; daughter Stephanie and her boyfriend arrived the day Trina left; two days later son Kyle and wife Marie arrived with her parents and sister along too. We plowed through a phenomenal amount of food that took me three days to prepare in advance. We took a very cold horseback ride yesterday after a fabulous Easter brunch. Most of my guests left at 5 AM this morning so Kyle could get to his 1 PM class on time, and Steph and her boyfriend are leaving shortly. Have I mentioned that I’m wiped out?


Our church has a contemporary service on Saturday and Sunday evenings, and Easter weekend was no exception. The service on Saturday night was awesome. Of course, the central theme was resurrection and what that means for us. Amy attended church with us and joined us for dinner beforehand. Although there were 12 in our party, Amy and I ended up sitting together… something that doesn’t happen too often. I noticed with pleasure and surprise that she actually sang on key! This was a first! When I complimented her about it, she said she decided to “listen to the tune”! Amazing what a little effort and focus can accomplish.


The message of the sermon was centered on the “seasons of life”. The pastor and a dozen other members of the church had just returned from 3 weeks in Russia, including Siberia. When he left, it was still winter in Kansas. When he returned, the tulips were in full bloom (although they all froze last weekend.) He showed a brief video clip of the cold, dreary, sun-less existence that defines Siberia, and then contrasted it with the gently blowing tulips and budding trees in Kansas.


He said Easter means that winter is never the final word. There is always a spring around the corner, after every winter, no matter how bad the winter might be. And no matter whether we are in the spring of our lives, or the summer where the harvest is gathered, or the fall where the leaves are turning, or the winter where things are slowing down significantly….there will always be a spring around the corner. (To listen to the sermon online or via podcast, this link will take you to the archives page. The Easter sermon is not posted yet but will be soon.)


I pondered several interpretations of this message as I sat next to Amy. I wondered if she understood that she, too, could leave the winter of her existence and find something new and fresh? I thought about all you parents with tough kids, parents who (like me) have had some very, very long winters. It can be nearly impossible to remember that spring will appear some day.


I hope you had a good Easter—a spiritual Easter if that is what it means to you. I hope you can see the hope that Easter represents. Even if you no longer believe that your child or children will be the family members and the adults you hoped they would be, I hope you can see that some day, your life will get easier. Some day your troubled children will need to make their own way through their own seasons of life, and you will catch a glimpse of spring.


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