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Spring Church Special

Easter: More Than a Religious Holiday

By Paul Downing

Associate Pastor, Fellowship Church

Mary and Wayne Griffin are relatively new members of our church. They moved to Zachary after they lost all of their household belongings in Hurricane Katrina.

Nine months later on the way back from an Easter vacation they were in an automobile accident in which their teenage daughter, Sarah Hynum, was killed, and Mary’s mother, Nancy Bowser, was severely injured. That same day their family cat died. The next day, Mary’s cousin died and the family dog was hit by a car and killed. That’s a lot of trauma in a short span of time, wouldn’t you agree?

Two things struck me when I first met them. The first was how strong their faith was in spite of everything they had been going through. The second was their quiet joy in the midst of their pain. In spite of their grief and sorrow they had hope because of their trust in God. They exemplified the meaning of Romans 15:13:

“May the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace as you trust in him, so that you may overflow with hope by the power of the Holy Spirit.”

An article appearing in TIME magazine in January 2005 entitled, “The New Science of Happiness,” reported that researchers are finding that the people of faith, specifically those who claim a personal relationship with Jesus Christ, tend to be happier than the average population. Researchers speculate that part of the reason for this phenomenon is related to a sense of purpose. They’ve found that across the board the happiest people of all are those who feel they have found their purpose in life. Committed Christians tend to feel more of a sense of purpose than others.

I think a relationship with God not only gives us a sense of purpose for our lives but also in our lives. We’re convinced that no matter what happens in our lives God will ultimately use it for good.

This was certainly the case with Mary and Wayne. They held onto the belief that God was going to make sense out of everything they had been going through. That belief gave them the strength to bear up under adversity and to experience joy in the midst of grief.

God never promised that we wouldn’t have problems, only that he’d give meaning to them. For the Christian, finding purpose in our problems comes from realizing that this world is not our final destination; we’re just passing through it on our way home. Jesus ensured that for us by his resurrection. Therefore, this world doesn’t define us, but it can refine us. The fire of adversity that we go through here polishes our character so that we reflect the image of Christ. That is the purpose for which God created us in the first place, so when we see that happening we feel an inward sense of purpose, which renews our spirits with hope, peace and joy.

“Therefore we do not lose heart … we are being renewed day by day. For our light and momentary troubles are achieving for us an eternal glory that far out weighs them all. So we fix our eyes not on what is seen, but on what is unseen. For what is seen is temporary, but what is unseen is eternal” (2Cor. 4:16-18).

For Mary and Wayne Easter isn’t just a religious holiday. It is a reality of life. They lost a daughter but found a hope that is enduring and eternal. We here at Fellowship Church pray that your spirit will be renewed this Easter season no matter what you may be going through with all the joy and peace that comes from believing in the God of hope.