As a child, I hardly ever gave Easter much thought. It was a holiday of confectionary delights and colorful hard-boiled eggs. Though I loved coloring the eggs, I tended to only eat the candy. I was good with any holiday that involved sugar.
Being the youngest of four, I don’t remember ever truly believing in the Easter Bunny. I knew that we celebrated Easter because Jesus had risen to life after being dead for three days. AND that there was candy and pretty dresses. It wouldn’t be Easter without sweets and fancy clothes.
As I got older, became a Christian, and grew more mature, Easter came to have a deeper meaning, but still with sweets and finery. Easter was about Jesus dying for my sins and being raised back to life. Because of this, I (and everyone else) have the opportunity to accept Jesus Christ as my Savior. Go to church in a special Easter dress and come home and eat candy.
About twenty years ago, I became obsessed with Easter. Well, not so much Easter as what it really meant and what Christ had done for me. God loved me (a sinner) so much that He didn’t want me to be separated from Him. He wanted me (a sinner) to be with Him for Eternity. My sin kept me from being with God.
There was only one way for me to be with God. My sins had to be paid for. The only thing that could wipe out my sin debt was a perfect sacrifice. The only perfect sacrifice could be God Himself. So He came down and died a terrible death for me so I could live with Him. He died for everyone. His is the only sacrifice that could abolish everyone’s sins from all time. No other sacrifice could expunge even one small sin.
They say that, even if I (you or anyone) was the only person on earth, Jesus still would have died for my sins. The life of one perfect and pure for one sinful and defective. That’s powerful. But I take that one step further. If I were the only person one earth and Jesus died for me, then I would have been the one to arrest Him, mock Him, beat Him, drive the nails into His hands, and crucify Him. And yet, He still would have died for me. And what was His reply to this brutality?
Hanging on the cross, Jesus said, “Father, forgive them. They don't know what they're doing.” (Luke 23:34)
Forgive them.
My sins arrested Jesus.
“Father, forgive her.”
My sins mock Jesus.
“Father, forgive her.”
My sins beat Jesus.
“Father, forgive her.”
My sins drove the nails into Jesus’ hands and feet.
“Father, forgive her.”
My sins crucified Jesus.
“Father, forgive her.”
On the third day, Jesus rose again to life so I could be assured that there were no hard feelings and I was forgiven.
I still like pretty dresses and candy, but I don’t connect them so much with Easter anymore.
Thank You, Jesus, for loving me so much to make a way for me to live with You for Eternity.
COURTING HER AMISH HEART is a contemporary romance, the first in the Prodigal Daughters series.
A doctor or an Amish wife? She can choose to be only one…Kathleen Yoder comes home after fourteen years in the Englisher world. Practicing medicine means sacrifice—no Amish man will want a doctor for a wife. Widowed Noah Lambright offers a cottage as her new clinic, seeing how much Kathleen’s skills can help their community. But as their friendship deepens, could love and family become more than a forbidden dream?
#ChristianRomance #HistoricalRomance #Romance
MARY DAVIS is a bestselling, award-winning novelist of over two dozen titles in both historical and contemporary themes. She has five titles releasing in 2018; "Holly & Ivy" in A Bouquet of Brides Collection in January 2018, Courting Her Amish Heart in March 2018, The Widow’s Plight in July 2018, Courting Her Secret Heart September 2018, & “Zola’s Cross-Country Adventure” in MISSAdventure Brides Collection in December 2018. She is a member of ACFW and active in critique groups.
Mary lives in the Pacific Northwest with her husband of over thirty-three years and two cats. She has three adult children and one incredibly adorable grandchild. Find her online at:
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