How is it that we can anticipate celebrations such as Easter far ahead of their coming and yet miss the moment when it finally arrives? So busy with the planning, the preparation, the presentation, we rush headlong into holidays distracted and exhausted. Before we know it, the awaited day is over, and we ponder how could it have transpired in such a blur.
I can’t help but think of the story of Mary and Martha in Luke 10:38-42. The two sisters invite Jesus to their house. Martha is miss-the-moment busy. She is preoccupied with all the preparations and growing increasingly resentful toward her sister who, instead of helping, is sitting at Jesus’ feet. When Martha complains about Mary to Jesus, his response is, “Martha, Martha, you are anxious and troubled about many things, but one thing is necessary. Mary has chosen the good portion, which will not be taken away from her.” (Luke 10:41-42)
How many times have I been “anxious and troubled about many things” when I should have been focused on Jesus? If I would center my attention on Jesus in the first place, perhaps I too would be found sitting at the feet of my Savior, instead of missing the beauty and wonder of a moment spent in Jesus’ presence. All the activity would seem superfluous—and quickly prioritized—in comparison to that precious visit.
We can arrive at Easter distracted and anxious about many things, or we can choose “the good portion, which will not be taken away…” We can slow down and dedicate time to pondering the meaning of Easter—the immensity of Jesus’ sacrifice on the cross. We can grow still long enough to sit at his feet, hear his words, see his affection toward us, and know that we are priceless to him—and so loved by his Father in Heaven—that he was willing to die to save us.
Perhaps this Easter, with the drastic changes the COVID-19 virus has brought, we will naturally have slowed down. This Easter we likely won’t rush around stores to spend materially but may find riches in our own homes. We may discover our anxious and worried behaviours surrounding making everything perfect disappear and instead find peace in place of perfection. And maybe, in this slowed-down time, we will welcome Jesus into our homes and hearts allowing his Spirit to fill us with his love, hope, joy, and especially, his much-needed peace.
It could be that this Easter will be the most memorable and sweetest one yet. The one where we don’t miss a moment. The one where, instead of preoccupied, we are fully present. The one spent surrounded by what matters most—Jesus and those closest to us. May this Easter be the one we found ourselves at the feet of the One who bought us our freedom and our future.
“I have told you these things, so that in me you may have peace. In this world you will have trouble. But take heart! I have overcome the world.” (John 16:33)
Born in England, Melanie Stevenson has never lost her love for British tea and gardens. She now lives in Southern Ontario surrounded by her husband, four children, and a house full of pets. She entered the University of Waterloo as an English major and graduated with a Bachelor of Fine Arts degree. An avid prayer journaler, she has been writing devotionals for over a decade. With a passion for the arts, she has directed numerous plays and teaches acting classes to young people and adults. Melanie spent eighteen years homeschooling her children, still finding the soul-nourishing time to write, garden, and paint. One More Tomorrow is her debut novel and Soul Focus is her first devotional book.
