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I hope all of you are having a Blessed and Happy Easter!

I wanted to share this wonderful prayer I heard at this morning’s service by our associate pastor Amy Aspey:

Just like your disciples long ago, we peer into the tombs of our hearts.  So many things fill our inner tombs-broken relationships, failed attempts at self-improvement, shame, anger, missed opportunities, debilitating grief. Lord, some pieces of ourselves feel like they have been dead forever and other things so affect our living that although we breathe, we feel dead within. We lift up to you all that is within us.

When those who came to Your tomb looked within, they two men in dazzling clothes, but couldn’t find you. So often, we too, go through difficult times and can’t find you. Perhaps, we, too, are looking in the wrong places. You are always with us, but often in ways that defy our expectations. Just as the tomb couldn’t limit You; neither can we. Open our minds, ears, eyes, and hearts to all the ways that you dwell in our midst.

Lord, there is no tomb that You can not break through, including the tombs in our hearts. May we experience Your resurrection this year, inside out. May we experience life in places that we thought were dead. May we experience Your reconciliation in relationships that we thought were damaged forever. May we find Your peace in things that once gave us anxiety. May we experience healing in the places that have been hurting for too long. May we see your presence in all the times that we always thought we were alone.

As we celebrate the empty tomb, we rejoice that death does not have the final victory, but rather that life, love, and goodness prevail. Lord, break open our lives to receive all the love, forgiveness and freedom that You so freely give. May we allow Your resurrection make a difference in how we live. May we forever live in hope of all that is yet to be.