Inspiring or Distracting by Steph Beth Nickel

As the celebration of our Lord’s substitutionary death and triumphant resurrection approaches, one of two things can happen.

We can spend extra time meditating on what Jesus accomplished on our behalf …

OR …

We can face a tsunami of extra plans and preparations coupled with trying to accomplish five days' worth of work in only four.

True Confession

Because I have extra work to accomplish this week (thankfully, some of it is even paid work), both in my office and beyond, I haven’t been spending near the amount of time I would like to focused on the Saviour.

I am thankful, however, for Christ-centred podcasts that I can listen to while I’m cleaning the church (and my house, although this won’t get near as much of my attention).

While I’m taking my daughter to work and picking her up or toodling around, running errands, I can listen to faith-based podcasts and audiobooks.

Even in the midst of my busyness, there are things I can do to keep my thoughts centred on Jesus and the price He paid on my behalf.

There are also other things happening this week that have the potential to help me focus even more intently on the most profound weekend on the Christian calendar—as long as I don’t let my mind wander to the tasks yet undone:

1. Worship team practice on Thursday night.

2. The Good Friday Service (to be followed by a fellowship lunch).

3. The Resurrection Sunday service (preceded by yet another worship team practice).

 And then there’s the amazing reminder in Colossian 3:23, “Whatever you do, work at it with all your heart, as working for the Lord, not for human masters” (NIV). (emphasis mine)

So, whether I’m spending quiet time with the Lord, participating in the church services, cleaning my house, preparing meals, or working in my office, I can turn my thoughts heavenward. I can work at my tasks as if doing them for God—because, ultimately, I am.

This week—or any week—I can and should commit my To-Do List to Him. In fact, I repeatedly make plans to begin each task by committing it to Him. This is not a habit I’ve gotten into, but it is one I intend to work on today and in the days ahead.

So, is the upcoming weekend an inspiration or a distraction? 

While it has the potential to be both, as we take our thoughts captive to obey Christ (2 Corinthians 10:5), even the distractions can inspire us.

Do you find this week inspiring, distracting, or a bit of both? How do you stay focused on our Saviour when you’re especially busy? How do you point those around you to the One we are to honour each and every day He gives us breath?

I Am the Song of Easter .... by Jocelyn Faire

“Do not abandon yourselves to despair. We are the Easter people and hallelujah is our song.” ― Pope John Paul II (Karol Wojtyła) 

I am the song of Easter,

Many voices add fullness to my tune

My anthem began before the creation of the world

It took shape and form as the earth was birthed

It wandered the wilderness in search of a homeland

It has been the aching of the ages

It became visual with the birth of a baby ...

a special child who grew in favour in the eyes of the Lord

a special child who was the Lord.

I am the song of the seasons

The praises formed in the heat of summer

The harvest song of a well-lived life

The frozen despair in the dead of winter,

The irrepressible burst of new life in spring.

I am the song of celebration

The song of beauty.

I am the song of despair .. the longing song

How long oh Lord will you hide your face from us?

I am the song of confusion

Afraid to trust the melody when the notes are unclear

I am the song of plenty and the song of want

The lament of pain, the balm of comfort

I am the song of amnesia,

with words forgotten in the dark of night

I am the song of light and memory

Sing this in remembrance of me.

I am the voice in the crowd ... joining in the Hosanna of Palm Sunday ...

and I am the same voice in the crowd calling crucify him, crucify him ...

I am the song of silent shame

And I am the song of Grace, of Forgiveness, of Love

I am the song of strong surrender

The song that hung rugged on the cross.

I am the song of Power ... this same resurrection power lives within you

I am the song of Hope ... green seeded hope that overflows

Hope to join loved ones again

I am the song of Rest, abide in me, sing my lullaby

I am the song that resides in your heart

Come let us make a joyful noise unto the Lord

We join in the song, with voices weak or strong ...

This is the song of humanity

This is the song of a God who sings over us in the night

This is a song of gratitude, of praise, of sorrow

This is a song unstoppable.

And centuries later I am the receiver of this song

I am the one at the graveside of a son, a daughter, a loved one

and I can barely whisper ...

we do not grieve as those who have no hope

Others help carry the tune which I cannot hold

The spirit sings the resurrection song to aching hearts around the world.

Will you join in the singing of the Hallelujah song?

MORE THAN A MERE STORY - Bruce Atchison.

Though adults assured me the accounts were true, Bible stories seemed like fables to me when I was young. In the black-and-white comprehension of my juvenile mind, tales of crossing the Red Sea on dry ground or the walls of Jericho falling down had no bearing on my daily problems. God seemed to be a remote figure who perform miracles, such as healing blind people, long ago in "Bible times." Now he seemed to do nothing to help those who prayed to him.

While attending a vacation Bible school in my home town of Fort Saskatchewan during August of 1969, I heard the gospel for the first time. Until then, I believed I had to be a good boy or I'd go to hell. The glorious meaning of Christ's resurrection finally burst upon my mind, blowing away those unbiblical notions.

In Deliverance from Jericho (Six Years in a Blind School), I described how Christ's resurrection took on a whole new dimension for me. In this excerpt, I wrote of the impact that the Easter Sunday service at the Church of the Nazarene had after I gave my life to Christ.

-----------------------------------------------------------------

Now that I was a born-again Christian, the Easter message held special relevance. In years past, it was merely a story like all the others in the Bible. Now I understood the tremendous price Christ paid for purchasing our forgiveness as well as why he needed to die and rise again the third day. I believed in previous years that Pontius Pilate defeated him. Now I understood that Jesus died voluntarily for everybody who put their faith in him and rose victoriously on the third day.

-----------------------------------------------------------------
Deliverance from Jericho abounds with vignettes of what life was like in that government-run institution. These range from poignant experiences of homesickness to hilarious incidents of mischief. Please feel free to click on this link to my books or contact me directly for more information about them.