Easter is tomorrow, and for many people of the Christian faith, it is an important day in their lives.

Yet for many others Easter means something entirely different.

It seems that like Christmas, Easter has become way too commercialized. Easter no longer means celebrating a Risen Saviour or remembering the Resurrection: Easter has become more of a man-made holiday, where chocolate bunnies, Easter baskets full of goodies, and time off from work or school is more of the norm.

It's like Jesus or the meaning of His raising from the dead has been pushed aside. People no longer go to church unless it is for something special (Christmas and Easter tend to bring the people to church in droves; otherwise, they don't even bother, which is sad to see). Or people don't even know of the pain and suffering that Christ went through in order to save mankind from their sins. They don't know what the true meaning of Easter is, and it really bothers me.

Ever since I was a little girl, I remember going to mass (back then, before I was seven, I was Catholic; we went to Mass every Sunday or every Christmas or Easter); yet I really never paid attention to what was being said or what the message was about. I just liked sitting in a full sanctuary that smelled like incense, and the burning candles dazzled my eyes; I loved the way the priest's words echoed through the church when he spoke. I knew of God, about God, but I didn't, not really.

When I was seven years old, I had been invited by a friend to go to a church different than my own faith. It was an Assembly of God church. It was totally different than the Catholic faith I was accustomed to. The church was having a play called "Heaven's Gates And Hell's Flames", which was about the Great Judgement. Due to their actions on Earth, people were either sentenced to go to Heaven or Hell. What I saw affected me forever; by the end of the production, I was in tears, it scared me that bad.

It was then when I made the Decision that would change me. I decided to accept Christ into my heart. I remember going to the altar, where I gave my heart to the Lord. Immediately, I felt like the weight of the world had been lifted from my shoulders; I felt a sense of peace; I remember bursting into tears as I felt the Love of Jesus come into my body. It was a powerful moment, and I would never, ever forget it.

Still haven't.

Because of ME, and millions of others, Jesus died on a wooden cross; beforehand, He suffered terribly. People beat him unmercifully, spit on Him, mocked him, threw stones at Him. Yet Jesus had a Mission: He was tired of the sin that had enveloped the world, so God had His Son (Jesus) die on the Cross, as a way to offer freedom from the bondages of slavery and sin. He gave man a choice to become clean, to be washed in His Lifegiving Blood, to be FREE of sin, forever.

Jesus died on that cross; it was on a Friday. This is why we celebrate Good Friday, to remember the suffering that Christ went through, and then His dying on the Cross. He was then buried; for two days people mourned His Passing, but early on Sunday morning, two days after His Crucifixion, Jesus rose into the Heavens, to be with His Father, forever and ever. This particular event became known as Resurrection Sunday, or more commonly, Easter.

Jesus is the Reason for Easter; it is what Easter is all about. Ever since I became saved with the Blood of Christ, the importance of the true meaning of Easter has become more meaningful to me. Every Easter since then I go to church ('course, I go to church just about every Sunday now! :) ), to hear the Easter Story all over again, to partake in the annual Cantata that our church has as a way of telling the Easter Story "to the masses" that visit our church, and to celebrate His Glorious Ascension into Heaven.

Now whenever I hear the word "Easter", I think of the pain and suffering Jesus endured to save mankind from sin, not chocolate bunnies or Easter baskets overflowing with goodies. Oh, those things are nice, but as I said earlier, this isn't what Easter isn't about. It's all about Jesus, pure and simple, and we need to get back to that way of thinking.

Easter has become way too commercialized; it's no longer the holiday that my parents remember, that the older generation remembers. Too many of kids of my generation haven't a clue as to what Easter is about; most don't even know about Jesus (or if they do, it is only for a brief moment before they forget about Him).

This is something I would like to see change. We need to get back to our Biblical foundations. We need to bring prayer and God back into our lives. We need to remember the main reasons behind holidays like Easter or Christmas and thank God for His Son or His many blessings He has given to us.

Now, people may not agree with me (that is okay), but I am a Christian, and I must proclaim the Good News. That is my Mission, that is what God wants me to do. I feel it is my duty to tell others about Christ and His Free Gift of Eternal Salvation.

                                              The End.

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To all my readers and friends here at AuthorsDen~

May y'all have a blessed and beautiful Easter season, and remember the price Jesus paid for US. That is what Easter is all about. :)

~Love, your friend in Texas, Karen Lynn the Texas Tornado. :)