Happy Easter

I had a seminary professor, Laurence Hull Stookey, who challenged the notion that “Every Sunday is a Little Easter,” an ecclesiastical and theological statement that many aspiring pastors are often taught. He supported the idea that every worship service should proclaim God’s grace, but he would often ask, “If every Sunday is a Little Easter, what does that make Easter Sunday?”

We celebrate Easter Sunday this year on April 5 with an in-doors 6:30 a.m. sunrise service at Kurtz’s Beach, (2070 Kurtz Avenue, Pasadena, MD 21122) and at our regular worship times at 9:00 a.m. and 11:00 a.m. Easter Sunday, in answer to Professor Stookey’s question, is a GREAT SUNDAY, not because many of us dress up extra-special or because we see people we have not seen since last Easter or Christmas Eve, but because we worship the Risen Christ! In the empty tomb, we find proof that God forgives us for all of our sins. The empty tomb also proves that death does not have the final word over our lives, but that God does. And in the rising of Christ, we are given the opportunity to rise with him by allowing God to transform us into an Easter people who can offer the same proof of forgiveness, hope, and grace God gave us on the first Easter Sunday. As we come to an end of the Lenten season, a time of penitence and repentance, let us look forward to the GREAT SUNDAY of Easter and the promise of God’s presence in our lives!

Happy Easter!

Pastor Martin