As temperatures begin to rise again, the sun lengthens its stay in the sky, pollen graces the ground, and bluebonnets bloom along country roads, the evidence is clear that spring is upon us at last- and with it, new life all around. I can’t help but think that the rhythms of nature may be intended to draw our attention to a greater Truth that is available for each of us as well. Just as the trees and grass that once were dead are now springing to life with vibrant colors, so we once were dead in our sins but have now been given new life because Jesus died for us and powerfully defeated death through His resurrection.

I don’t know when the Gospel message first transformed your life - maybe it was through a colorful beaded bracelet, or while gazing at stars on the Sports Field, or sitting around a campfire at Lake Travis. Whatever the moment or season may have been, the power of the Gospel is just as impactful and necessary for you today as it was then. You see, the Gospel isn’t just our power for salvation. It is the daily sustenance by which we are strengthened, sanctified, and anchored in hope.

If we really believe that the Creator of the World loved us enough to live the life we were incapable of living and willingly die the death we deserved to die on our behalf, we get to live forgiven, not ashamed of our past. And if we really believe that He rose again from the grave... Well, that changes everything. 

Yes, the death of Jesus paid the penalty for our sins, so we can live forgiven! But what’s even more remarkable is that His resurrection defeated the power of our sin! We are free to live with Him, now and forever! 

The resurrection hope reshapes how we live, how we forgive, how we lead, and how we trust God with what we cannot control. It anchors us in truth when life feels uncertain. 

In 1 Corinthians 15 Paul explains that if Christ had not been raised, we would have no hope, our faith would be in vain, and we would be pitied. But indeed, Christ has been raised! Death was not the end. In His glorious might, He came back to life and is now living inside each of us who would believe! 1 Corinthians 15 finishes with the declaration, “Death is swallowed up in victory. O death, where is your victory? O death, where is your sting? The sting of death is sin, and the power of sin sin the law. But thanks be to God, who gives us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ”! (1 Corinthians 15:54-57).

If this same power that rose Jesus from the dead is not only available to us, but actually living in us, what shall we fear? If Christ has forgiven all of our sins and given us new life, how shall we withhold grace from our neighbor? If Christ overcame death and the grave, who are we to hesitate in trusting Him with any detail of our life?

You may not be sitting on the sports field gazing at the stars this Easter, but wherever you find yourself, may you be refreshed as you reflect on the power of the resurrection and the hope it infuses in everyday life. As calendars fill up, both celebrations and griefs abound, and fear fights for your attention, pause for a moment to remember: the tomb is still empty. And our Savior isn’t finished. The one who paid the penalty for sin through the cross and defeated the power of sin through his resurrection, is coming back again to destroy the presence of sin forever with His glorious return. Until that day, we pray that the loving, almighty God of hope will “fill you with all joy and peace in believing, so that by the power of the Holy Spirit you may abound in hope” (Romans 15:13).