As you can imagine, church volunteers and staff work pretty hard leading up to Easter. There’s extra planning, extra cleaning, and extra praying. We always know that many guests stop by on Easter, and we want to do the best we can to love them and show them Jesus.
Easter attendance numbers are often much higher than regular Sunday attendance numbers, so the Sundays following Easter can sometimes leave me scratching my head and asking questions. Where did all our guests go? Did they not connect with us? Do we need to work harder? What can we do to help these people walk with Jesus? What do we do now?
Thankfully, I haven’t had to look very far for answers. Many years, right after Easter, I’ll start reading the book of Acts. The disciples dealt with many of the same tensions. The book of Acts shows the early Church working within their own cultural tensions and yet still pointing people to Jesus.
The answer continues to be, and will always remain, Jesus. In Acts, we see the early Church, by the power of the Holy Spirit, continue to grow and grow. We see those in the early Church continue to play their part, sacrificing their time, energy, and resources for the sake of others, and the result is people coming to know Jesus.
It is no surprise that our world is upside down, catawampus, and out of whack. And while we sometimes view those in disagreement to Jesus’ teaching as our enemies, the truth is they are just victims of the one true enemy. They just need someone to lovingly point them towards Jesus instead. Jesus is the one that tells us, “The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy; I have come that they may have life, and have it to the full.” (John 10:10)
So now what? What do we do now that Easter is over? The answer is we keep being witnesses to Jesus. “You will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes on you; and you will be my witnesses…” (Acts 1:8). The power of the resurrection that was on display during Easter is still on display today. Those that are living life upside down need to be shown who can turn their life right side up. Maybe there was someone you were hoping to invite to Easter but never did. Well, it’s not too late.
Peace,
Nick
Easter attendance numbers are often much higher than regular Sunday attendance numbers, so the Sundays following Easter can sometimes leave me scratching my head and asking questions. Where did all our guests go? Did they not connect with us? Do we need to work harder? What can we do to help these people walk with Jesus? What do we do now?
Thankfully, I haven’t had to look very far for answers. Many years, right after Easter, I’ll start reading the book of Acts. The disciples dealt with many of the same tensions. The book of Acts shows the early Church working within their own cultural tensions and yet still pointing people to Jesus.
The answer continues to be, and will always remain, Jesus. In Acts, we see the early Church, by the power of the Holy Spirit, continue to grow and grow. We see those in the early Church continue to play their part, sacrificing their time, energy, and resources for the sake of others, and the result is people coming to know Jesus.
It is no surprise that our world is upside down, catawampus, and out of whack. And while we sometimes view those in disagreement to Jesus’ teaching as our enemies, the truth is they are just victims of the one true enemy. They just need someone to lovingly point them towards Jesus instead. Jesus is the one that tells us, “The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy; I have come that they may have life, and have it to the full.” (John 10:10)
So now what? What do we do now that Easter is over? The answer is we keep being witnesses to Jesus. “You will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes on you; and you will be my witnesses…” (Acts 1:8). The power of the resurrection that was on display during Easter is still on display today. Those that are living life upside down need to be shown who can turn their life right side up. Maybe there was someone you were hoping to invite to Easter but never did. Well, it’s not too late.
Peace,
Nick