(I really need/want your creative input on this post so PLEASE comment as God inspires.)
In the "ole days" of church life, Easter was an opportunity to invite family and friends to the Easter event or special service. The numbers would swell on that Sunday morning causing all of us to feel good about the "impact" we were having. Those visitors would not return until the following Easter, and the next week's attendance returned to what it was before, nevertheless we would approach every Easter as another opportunity to "reach people."
So here is my question: Is Easter still an opportunity? Rather than invite people to an event or to some thing, is it an opportunity to invite someone or some people into our life?
Bear with me while I process this thought.
For several years, our house churches tended to shy away from anything that looked like an event. Therefore, we tended to hole up on Easter and celebrate the day among our own communities and friends. This was comfortable, different, and enjoyable in many ways though it did feel a bit cloister-like.
Last year we changed things up and did a bit of a throwback to the ole days: we threw an event as a group. We held an outdoor Easter party in a beautiful setting and invited friends who were not "churching" anywhere. Again, it was a mixed blessing. The event was fun, people had a good time, but I am not sure that any meaningful connections resulted. This may have been our own fault in regressing back into an event-mentality: throw the event, make it good, then go home.
So, I ask the real question one more time: Is Easter an opportunity to invite someone or some people into our life? In other words, perhaps the Easter opportunity, if there is one, is not so much about them as it is about us. Is this an opportunity to get out of our comfortable boxes and remind ourselves once again that God has involved us, through our everyday lives, with people whom we can choose to receive more fully into our lives? Is this an opportunity for us, one more time, to think incarnationally: live among, build relationship, invite into our life.
This concept is really not about Easter but about every day and every week of our lives. Nevertheless, it might be fun to brainstorm and share ideas/experiences on how Easter might still be an opportunity if it can be used to invite people into our life.
For example:
- An Easter party of some kind that is done from the heart and freed up from an event-mentality
- Inviting one person/couple to share Easter with you and your family in your home around brunch.
- Taking someone an Easter gift; let them know ahead of time that you are coming.
- Or, or, or?
I am not trying to come up with strategies for "targeting" people; rather, I just want to spark our imaginations a bit, move us outside of old ways of thinking, and help us engage our own creative processes in living into the world around us with love and care. Perhaps this is the real opportunity.
With that in mind, please do share any/all thoughts you have on this…
Comments
8 responses to “Is Easter Still an Opportunity?”
I think that’s a GREAT idea! Here are a couple of thoughts to help stir the pot for you:
Make the celebration a total gift to others with no “religious” agenda. Just throw a party. You and your HC members will know that you’re doing this to celebrate the resurrection, but for other’s is’t just a gift you’re giving to the community. Of course, if they ask why your’e doing this… then it’s an opportunity to answer.
Think about who Jesus want’s you to bless with the party. Maybe it’s the poor and homeless downtown, or people in a shelter. But maybe it’s the people who live on your street or nearby in your community. I’d think seriously about the latter, because it’s more likely to involve people that you could have ongoing relationships with rather than a one-time contact.
Wow your guests with joyful generosity. Give people a real reason to wonder why you are behaving this way! I have no idea how your community handles financial stewardship, but I’ve always been captivated by Deuteronomy 14:22-29. One of the places it talks about tithing, it basically says to take the tithe and use it to have a huge party! Verse 26 even says to go ahead and get whatever you want: “You may spend the money for whatever your heart desires : for oxen, or sheep, or wine, or strong drink, or whatever your heart desires ; and there you shall eat in the presence of the LORD your God and rejoice, you and your household.” (How’s THAT for a bible verse about tithing?!) So, what if your people each contributed a tithe from one month of their income and spent it all on a huge, free party for the community? Do a little math… if you’ve got 10 households involved averaging $50k annual income, then a one-month tithe could give you over $4000 to work with. You could hire a band! Rent one of those inflatable bouncing things for kids! And if you REALLY, REALLY want to get the community asking questions, be sure to have a beer garden!
Well, I don’t know if any of that will be helpful to you but it sure got my kingdom-building imagination going again this morning. Thanks for that and blessings on your community and it’s work!
Hi All, Have we ever really come to the conclusion why Easter does not work no matter what you do. I have witnessed church and house church scheme there hearts out, with little to no fruit ever!
Our family testimony is that we do not celebrate Easter at all! Why you may ask?
Because it is Pagan through and through. Yes I celebrate the resurrection of Jesus Christ everyday as we serve the Lord. My suggestion is that you take your family on a journey this year to know the real meaning behind Easter and if you do have a pot of money chose to bless a mission or reach the poor. In being a living testimony for Jesus and not following the schemes of man I have seen more people walk in a real and living way following Christ Jesus because they ask why should we not celebrate Easter of Christmas or Valentine’s day etc… people why to know God not a pagan festive since the previous reply quoted from Deuteronomy here is a verse to help us Deut:ch 12 v 29-32 you must not worship the Lord your God in their way etc….
On the Tithing thing I long for the day when the body of Christ gets the revelation that we are in the New Covenant and tithing is replacement theology and linked to the temple of old. now Jewish house of worship wold never consider asking for a tithe and nor should a Christian group.
I want you to know that I am a giver and all i have I give unto the Lord with every year giving tens of thousands for the work of the Lord.
So again my suggestion is to be different for 2009 don’t celebrate Easter and use it as an opportunity to introduce people to an authentic relationship with Jesus without the junk of the world in doing so people around you will be inspired to walk in freedom and will respect you for helping them pursue truth and knowing God more. this is our testimony.
hope this helps?
http://www.OrganicChurcToday.com
Kenny Russell
Our family gets excited every year for our Christian Passover Seder. We use it to teach our children about the links between Old and New Testament. Our kids look forward to it as much as Christmas or birthdays.
Occasionally, we invite someone to join us. Anybody that has ever participated with us has commented on it as a meaningful occasion.
I (Roger) am posting this comment that was emailed to me by Ned:
“i’m a believer from malaysia. was at one time a pastor of a local church. guess have done all the ‘events’ that we could with easter!
in our eastern community, events like birthdays and anniversaries are always a welcome way of gathering family and friends to celebrate. therefore i guess i would say let’s celebrate and make HIS name known! . . . i a way that is appropriate in your culture.
blessings!!”
I (Roger) am posting this comment that was emailed to me by Bryan:
“We, as a family, do a passover meal almost every year as a way to teach our children the links between Old and New Testament. Our kids look forward to this nearly as much as Christmas. Occasionally, we invite others to join us. Every one that has joined us has commented positively about experience.”
I (Roger) am posting this comment that was emailed to me by DW:
Thank you Roger for asking the question.
Firstly, God bless you and your family and your fellowship.
My prayer is that you and your family and your fellowship realize Jesus in a new and personal way and in a dimension that you never knew Him before through this period where we have the opportunity to look at the great resurrection truths given to the church.
I think God has given us two great opportunities here.
We here in our family will be looking again at those truths which the Holy Spirit desired his church more deeply understand.
They are Co-death truths: I died with Jesus. I am dead and my life is hid with Christ.
and Co-resurrection truths: If ye then be risen with Christ seek those things which are from above.
These are not just liturgical words to us. we seek to make them our experience.
We also know we have an enemy who would love to switch this great time of opportunity for the Holy Spirit to inspire the church by having it concentrate on eggs and bunny rabbits and spring weather, and spring clothes etc. These are all what are traditionally known as Easter.
“Ishtar”, which is pronounced “Easter” was a day that commemorated the resurrection of one of their gods that they called “Tammuz”, who was believed to be the only begotten son of the moon-goddess and the sun-god.
By talking about how the enemy has mixed pagan elements into the Gospel of Jesus, am I putting a fly in the ointment of our opportunity?
Or is it the other way around. Is it possible that the enemy has put the fly in the oinment of God?
Perhaps are hearts are not burning with desire to be His bride spotless and beautiful for Him.
Perhaps we are simply focused on the things that of the earth.
Can we do both?
Can we teach God’s people about the powerful resurrection truths that help them to understand their calling and help them to apprehend that for which they’ve been apprehended, and thereby take back what the cancer worm has stolen.
Perhaps we can both do that and invite those who don’t know Jesus into God’s plan of salvation.
We know what the traditional church does.
It does not teach God’s people resurrection truths at all.
It simply focuses on keeping the outside of the cup clean.
And uses the pagan Ishtar, eggs, and bunny rabbits as an opportunity to celebrate and gather with those who would normally stay away.
To answer your question, I would agree with you, yes, we can use Easter as an opportunity to touch people normaly at distance.
But the opportunity which the church for so many centuries has lost and forgotten are the great Magna-Carta truths of liberty in Christ, walking in the spirit, and not in the dead letter, and growing out of being a church that is more a form of Godliness than she realizes.
This is also the great opportunity God has set before us today.
The first Eve was tricked in the garden
The serpent tricked her into giving up being one with God in order to be like God.
Jesus is the 2nd Adam
The church was birthed out of His side.
She is the 2nd Eve.
Satan has used the same exact trick on her.
Tricked her into giving up her oneness with God in order to get her to eat of the wrong tree.
To get her to focus on being like God, knowing good and evil, having a form of Godliness.
**** Will she simply eat of the wrong tree again, and call it another Easter holiday? ****
I hope my thoughts have been life giving.
Sincerely yours,
Brother Duane
i don’t celabrate easter,christmas,valentines day or any day that the spirit of the world remembers and regards its own. I remember the Lord by His Holy Spirit and follow what the apostles taught for us to remember, His death with a meal “The Lords supper” when the body gathers together. Let our light shine by our testimony and lives and forget trying to be the freind of the world! By my being rejected by the ungoldly the Lord witness with me my acceptance as his son. “Come out from among them and be seperate Sayeth the Lord, touch not the unclean, and I will recieve you.” I want to stand with Jesus outside the camp bearing his reproach and let the world know who I love the most. Deny yourself,pick up your cross and and follow me…Jesus Christ
wow, interesting comments here on what is obviously a very passionate topic. Actually I have considered, researched and discussed with other Christians the pagan origins of many of our “holidays”. To put my perspective in a nutshell. I have come to the conclusion that all of our holidays (including Hallowed eve to really stir the emotional pot up!) were historical moves by the church to take the attention of various peoples off of thier old pagan deities and place this attention on God and the victory of the cross. I am not afraid of reclaiming any holidy for Christ and celebrate my savior any way I can. I remind any who read this and are aghast that Paul wrote that we should “eat” without asking any questions pointing out that freedom in Christ means we can chow pagan flesh barbeque sauce and all!
So to answer the question, I think we can have an ‘event’ type of Easter celebration but that we should be careful to not drag unbeliever’s into a worship ‘service’ they do not care about. Our idea is this (we didn’t do it this Easter but it was our first as a house church and we are still developing our ideas); we have a sunrise service worshipping with believers and with a time of communion, then an advertised breakfast (like sausage bisquits or something simple) for any who would come would be a buffer between worship and “community event” followed by an Easter egg (gasp!) hunt. As a topper we would include the Easter story from the Resurrection Eggs which always holds the attention of the young and old alike. so that’s our idea…hope it helps.
btw I’m not trying to be critical or cynical of earlier comments please don’t take offense.