Occasionally, I compose short pieces for our church bulletin. While most would consider 250 words or less shorter than the ideal blog post, allow me to share one such recent post below. If such articles are useful to you or your church for similar use, consider permission granted. Please just tag on my blog address for the sake of reference.

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COME AWAKE

Easter marks a season of awakening. Seedlings press through the darkness of dirt into the light of life. Chicks break free from restrictive shells into a wide-open world. Small children and their mothers jailbreak from too-tight living rooms into the energy-burning spaciousness of the yard!

But Easter is not just your average awakening. It does not resemble the groan of reaching for a too-early alarm clock. Nor is it like dim mornings when first thoughts include longing for the too-far-away re-entry into bed.

Easter speaks of an awakening tied to readiness. Perfectly ripened, Easter delivers us from defeat. It is the provider of possibility and the feeder of faith. It dares us to dream and frees us to function on levels we had considered unreachable.

Whatever the sensation is of a stalled and still heart bursting forth to beat again, a similar power seeks to break forth into any life submitted to the risen Lord.

Be assured that whatever death-deposits you feel – fear, addiction, despair, isolation, apathy – the board is set to see such realities devastated as you enter a life of freedom and power, provided for you by the same Spirit that raised Jesus from the dead.

Whatever your slumber, it is time to come awake!