“Where there is ruin there is hope for a treasure.” – Rumi

“The goal of human life is not death but resurrection.” – Karl Barth

“Why do you seek the living among the dead?” – Luke 24:5 NKJV

I don’t know about you, but many Easter seasons have come and gone, each of them surfacing thoughts of renewal and restoration – contemplating the areas of my life where I longed for a change, a new beginning or a fresh outlook.  I always saw the Resurrection as a beacon – shining light on the beauty and hope we all have in a new and improved tomorrow.

This Easter season certainly puts an exclamation point on the longing for restoration – a desire to go back to a place where things were more normal.

How about you?  This Easter, what in your life longs for renewal?  Are there aspects of it that yearn to be restored to what they once were?  In this season of Resurrection, what needs to be brought back to life again?

As you contemplate those things, take the following into consideration:

 Death is a Prerequisite to Resurrection

We never like to face the fact that for things to be restored or renewed, other things must die.  Death is a required ingredient in the birthing of a resurrection.  We tend to look at it fatalistically – to view it as definitive, final, and absolute.

Death has a way of causing us to look backward – to ruminate in what was and to reflect on the present feelings of loss.  But if things don’t die, things don’t change.  If death isn’t felt, resurrection can never be experienced.

Can we renew the way we SEE death – viewing it as the very precipice of new life and restoration – not the end, but the beginning of something positive and new?

The physical death of a loved one initiates the birth of a life eternal – it closes the door on disease and deterioration and opens the door to a vibrant, living spirit.  The death of an addiction begins a renewal process toward positive habits. When a marriage is dead, only then can it be restored into something new again.

Can you see how death is needed for new life to begin?  Can it resurrect a change that moves us to a better place in the long run?

Acknowledge the Void and the Silence that Exists Before Resurrection

As we recall the story of the Resurrection, remember that death and life were not simultaneous.  Good Friday brought death and the result was three days of emptiness and uncertainty before the renewal of Easter Sunday came forth.

Too often when we experience the void and silence that death brings, we cling to the loss, we get stuck in the bereavement and we spend our days reminiscing about what was.  This mourning period is a natural one – a healthy way to process what is now gone.

But as we experience this period, we need to SEE it not only as an END, but a new BEGINNING.  We mourn the death of a loved one but see the new, eternal, unending existence it initiates as well.  We mourn the loss of a close friendship, but see how it has changed us into someone stronger and more resilient – someone who will become a better friend and companion down the road.  We grieve lost love, but anxiously anticipate the new love that will restore us again. 

During this current period of uncertainty, we must resist the urge to remain stuck in the fear and the sadness brought about by unwanted and unforeseen change.  We must recognize that Good Friday has happened, but Easter is coming!  It won’t happen immediately.  Recognize that fact.  Remember there will be a void in between what once was and what will be.  

Learn to View Restoration through the Lens of What is Temporal and What is Eternal

Too often in my own life, I have longed to restore something that was meant to die, meaning; I was too concerned about losing something or holding on to something that wasn’t meant for me in the first place.  Like Mary in the Easter Scripture verse above, I was “looking for the living amongst the dead.”

If this Easter finds you longing for restoration, think hard about what it is you truly long to restore. When you do this, segregate those things that are more temporal in nature from those that are more eternal in perspective.

How about resurrecting new feelings of gratitude and appreciation for what blessings are before us today? Do we long to restore the days when we could just do whatever we desired?  Instead, do we want to start anew – realizing how our actions can affect the lives of others more than we thought possible?

Do we long to embrace the thought that life is totally under our own control and command again, or do we need to renew our thinking – placing our trust and faith in a Sovereign God who is ALWAYS in control?

Can you see the difference between what is temporal and what is eternal – the attitudes and actions that are temporary and those that have lasting, eternal significance?   Can you see what needs restoration – what truly needs a resurrection in your life versus those things that need to be left behind – that need to die so a new way of life can begin?

“For I am about to do something new. See, I have already begun! Do you not see it? I will make a pathway through the wilderness. I will create rivers in the dry wasteland.” – Isaiah 43:19 NIV

 “After your season of suffering, God in all His grace will restore, confirm, strengthen and establish you.” – 1 Peter 5:10 NIV

“Jesus said to her, ‘I am the resurrection and the life. Whoever believes in me, though he die, yet shall he live’”. – John 11:25 ESV

May each of us this Easter season embrace the power of the Resurrection – seeing how a tragic death led to unending life for all.  May we each be given the grace to see the necessity of death in our own lives and its paradoxical tie to restoration.  May God grant us the patience we need as we traverse the void territory between the deaths and resurrections each of us face and the wisdom to know what needs restoration and what needs to be left behind.

KNOW that your Redeemer lives! 🙂