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Lilies, parades, bonnets and bunnies, colorful eggs with baskets of yummies! These all come to mind when the world thinks about celebrating Easter.  It is a joyful holiday that children love and families can enjoy sharing together.  Who can resist a cute little bunny that delivers chocolate eggs and other yummy treats?  However, there is a deeper, more eternal message that this Sunday evokes for the disciples of a Jewish man who lived in first century Palestine.  This message is the Good News that “Jesus is Risen”. Easter, also called Pascha (Greek, Latin) or Resurrection Sunday, is a festival and holiday celebrating the resurrection of Jesus from the dead, described in the New Testament as having occurred on the third day of his burial after his crucifixion by the Romans…

What do rainbows, clover, gold and leprechauns have to do with spring?  In March, we look forward to the first days of spring when green things are popping out all over, including clover, and rainbows sparkle brilliantly through the spring rains.  Many folks also enjoy celebrating an Irish holiday, St. Patrick’s Day. This global celebration of Irish culture occurs on or around March 17. It particularly remembers St. Patrick, one of Ireland's patron saints, who ministered Christianity in Ireland during the fifth century.  The shamrock (or clover) is symbolically associated with Ireland, St. Patrick, and mythical leprechauns, who supposedly hide their gold in pots at the end of rainbows. Of course, real rainbows don’t have pots of gold at their end, however, they are a symbol of a covenant promise,…

Springtime! Oh, how lovely are the crocuses, daffodils, and tulips! The signs of newness, growth, and revival are popping up all over as the buds awaken with the warming weather and the birds are chirping in the spring sunshine. It’s the time of year where our spirits are also feeling the stirring of springtime renewal. A classic song from the 1960’s by “The Byrds” was based on words Solomon wrote in Ecclesiastes 3:1-2 “For everything there is a season, and a time for every matter under heaven… a time to plant, and a time to pluck up what is planted”.  One question we may ask is “where shall we look to find this spring of renewal?” God has actually provided us with the perfect plan for our spiritual renewal, and…

“What’s in a name?  That which we call a rose, by any other name, would smell as sweet…” This quote is from Romeo and Juliet, Shakespeare’s classic story of love lived out in its bitter and sweet experiences.  February is a month in which we celebrate loving relationships. Our traditional holiday of Valentine’s Day brings to mind roses, chocolate, hearts, and jewels.  It is a holiday symbolic of love. A day for children to share the love of friendships by exchanging heart-shaped cards and sweets with friends. A day for husbands, wives and sweethearts to celebrate their romantic love with gifts like roses, chocolates, and fragrant perfumes. God’s love for us is also distinctly fragrant like the rose and bitter sweet like dark chocolate.  Jesus is the symbol and the…