Arrows in the Making (AIM)
We may not be perfect, but our prayer and aspiration is to empower and inspire Christian families to sharpen, target, and launch themselves, their children, and future generations—along with a sprinkle of fun for good measure!
Christ serves as the ultimate role model for living boldly and courageously in faith. You are not alone in your desire to nurture your family in the faith and to raise your children in a countercultural way!
“Do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewal of your mind, that by testing you may discern what is the will of God, what is good and acceptable and perfect.” Romans 12:2, ESV
"Behold, children are a heritage from the Lord, the fruit of the womb a reward. Like arrows in the hand of a warrior are the children of one's youth. Blessed is the man who fills his quiver with them! He shall not be put to shame when he speaks with his enemies in the gate." Psalms 127:3-6, ESV
Arrows in the Making (AIM)
19. Reclaiming Easter: Beyond the Bunny
The resurrection of Jesus Christ stands as the cornerstone of Christian faith—yet in our culture, Easter often receives less attention and celebration than Christmas. In this heartfelt conversation, Cody and Caitlin explore this surprising imbalance and make a compelling case for why Easter deserves greater emphasis in Christian homes.
Drawing from 1 Corinthians 15, they discuss how the resurrection serves as the pivotal moment that validates everything about Christianity. "Without the resurrection, Christmas doesn't matter," Cody explains, highlighting that while Christ's birth was necessary, it's his victory over death that provides the foundation for our faith. The conversation weaves through scriptural insights, including fascinating cultural context about the folded burial cloth that signaled "I'm coming back" in Jewish tradition.
What makes this episode particularly valuable are the practical ideas for making Holy Week meaningful for families. From creating cross-stained glass windows with painter's tape and paint to holding intimate family feet washing ceremonies, Cody and Caitlin share traditions that have created powerful memories with their children. Their suggestions range from simple (Easter worship playlists) to more involved (resurrection gardens), offering options for families at every stage.
Whether you're looking to deepen your own appreciation of Easter or create meaningful traditions with your children, this episode provides both theological grounding and practical inspiration. The resurrection isn't just another religious event—it's the defining moment that makes Christianity distinct from every other faith. How will you celebrate it this year?
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Be blessed!
Hello and welcome to Arrows in the Making our podcast. I am Cody and this is Caitlin. She's not talking. Okay, this is going great. So I have a question for you, caitlin, who is in the room? Okay, what is your funniest or most epic Easter fail?
Speaker 2:Easter fail.
Speaker 1:Yes, you want me to tell mine, so you can think.
Speaker 2:Yeah.
Speaker 1:Okay.
Speaker 2:I don't.
Speaker 1:Well, I was about six or seven. I to this day, my favorite Easter candy are those milk chocolate little eggs, that, what brand is that? Caterberry, whatever word.
Speaker 2:You like Caterberry? Yes.
Speaker 1:I love them so much. If I ever saw one, I snuck them until we were out at my grandma's house and we were doing Easter eggs and I thought I found one and I ate it. And it turned out to be a real blue robin's egg.
Speaker 2:It was tiny like that.
Speaker 1:It was a little baby one and it dripped down my face.
Speaker 2:That's disgusting.
Speaker 1:Yeah, and I stopped looking for I learned then. And there, do not eat the Cadbury egg you find in the grass.
Speaker 2:Yeah. Yeah, what about you I mean. I don't think I've ever had an Easter fail Well that was like a fail for me. Like I can't think of anything that happened on an Easter that I've been.
Speaker 1:I think of like when our two oldest were our two babies and like trying to do Easter with them.
Speaker 2:Well, yeah, back when we tried to dye eggs and all that, we had two under two is that what?
Speaker 1:no, no, it's not. What I say is that when he, he dyed himself red no, that was he had that. He fell asleep with a cup of kool-aid caitlin had to take her baby to a wellness check. Just you know, like 10 months, 12 months, 13 months, whatever 16 months yeah and he had kool-aid in his bed and spilled his entire cup of red kool-aid and slough in it and he was tinted red going to this wellness check and it was his whole face his whole face and his arm and it looked like he had been sunburned and it was so funny, all right.
Speaker 1:Well, we wanted to do a easter kind of themed episode and it's easter's coming up, so easter apparently is april 20th.
Speaker 2:I was born like two days before easter in march in 1989 yeah, I feel like it's a little later this year, but I like it later do you know why easter moves?
Speaker 1:no so it's something to do with the lunar calendar. The Jewish custom of the day was I could be wrong, so if I go back and make a disclaimer, I have to repost this, but to my knowledge, off the top of my head, if somebody came to me and said why is Easter not like this? Like Christmas is always December 25th and so Easter is something to do with the, according to my knowledge, I could be wrong lunar calendar thing.
Speaker 2:Hmm.
Speaker 1:Yeah.
Speaker 2:Interesting.
Speaker 1:That's why it moves every year. I didn't know that, yeah.
Speaker 2:Okay, so what's called Holy Week starts on Palm Sunday, which is April 13th Is it Palm or Psalm? Palm, palm, palm.
Speaker 1:Palm perfect.
Speaker 2:Because they lay down palm branches.
Speaker 1:Oh, that's true.
Speaker 2:And it goes through Easter, which is Sunday, april 20th this year. You're right, it changes every year.
Speaker 1:I just looked it up. It's for the moon, summer and winter, equinox or something. Okay, yeah.
Speaker 2:So I don't know. I've always been somewhat convicted on, especially since we had kids. I never really thought about it as a kid, to be honest, but since we've had our own and just how we're choosing to raise our family, feeling a little convicted about all the emphasis on christmas. Um, you have the advent and 25 days and you do all these activities and look at Christmas lights and decorate your tree.
Speaker 1:It's like a whole season, it is Like a month or two, and then you have Easter.
Speaker 2:That seems to always just sneak up and then, before you know it, it's over.
Speaker 1:Like a fart in the wind. It's here and it's gone.
Speaker 2:That's a good way to compare Easter to a fart in the wind it's like that, a mist or a vapor, and it's gone oh, my goodness, anyway, uh, I started feeling convicted about that and so, and we still don't do probably as much as I would like for our family less on the gift side, I think yeah, not so much about the eas, the Easter Bunny and Easter baskets and all that, it's more.
Speaker 2:You know, I do feel like we've kind of shifted that change, as I think you should, as a person of the faith, shift that view of it's more about Christ and his death and resurrection and the reason why Easter is important to the Christian faith. You know, you always hear people say well, you can't have Easter without Christmas. Well, that's true, like we needed Christmas, like Jesus had to come and reign on. Well, anyway, I'm getting into semantics but be on earth as God incarnate in order for him to go to the cross and die for our sins.
Speaker 1:But without the resurrection there is no salvation yeah, so you said earlier without christmas there's no easter, but without easter christmas doesn't matter, correct? Yeah?
Speaker 2:so, like jesus could have came on earth and then then had he decided which he wouldn't because he is without sin, but if you want to play the if game If he had decided because, like you know, I've been studying the book of Matthew and he told his disciples in the garden, like this is how the scripture said it has to be, do you not think I could call down from God like pray to God? And he would send 12 legions of angels to stop this? He would.
Speaker 1:But god or jesus said not my will, but thine that has to be interesting, to have his fleshly side feel convicted not not never like questioning, but like to to know what is coming in his mind, if that's even where it is, if that makes sense, and struggling with that reality of I know, having foreknowledge.
Speaker 2:Oh yeah, knowing what has to happen, and it's going to be awful.
Speaker 1:Yeah, that has to be his trouble.
Speaker 2:I think that's a cool moment, though, of seeing his humanity, because he is 100% God, 100% man. It doesn't make sense to us, but that's a cool moment, though, of seeing his humanity Because he is, you know, 100% God, 100% man. It doesn't make sense to us, but that's the truth, and the humanity side is not questioning but the how, just knowing the sacrifice, Not that it has to happen but like, is this how it has to happen?
Speaker 2:But ultimately saying it's, and but ultimately saying it's not my will, it's the will of my father. And following through that um and having that struggle, so you do see his humanity. But all that to say, um, in luke 24, 34, obviously christ was risen, you know. It says he is risen indeed, but there's a some scripture in first corinthians that's really stuck out to me. That kind of explains this. Um, and this is from paul. Um, I don't want to read the whole thing, but at the same time I don't know about you, but the more I study the bible, the more it's hard to take just a few verses. It's like I want to read the whole chapter, which is the context yeah, I won to read the whole chapter With the context.
Speaker 2:I won't read the whole chapter, but I'm going to be pretty close. Okay, so 1 Corinthians, chapter 15. Again, it's from Paul. It's titled the Resurrection of Christ. It says Now, I would remind you, brothers, of the gospel I preached to you, which you received, in which you stand and by which you are being saved if you hold fast to the word I preached to you, unless you believed in vain, for I delivered you, as of first importance, what I also received that Christ died for our sins, in accordance with the scriptures, so he fulfilled all the prophecies, that he was buried, that he was raised on the third day, in accordance with the scriptures, and that he appeared to Cephas, then to the twelve, then he appeared to more than 500 brothers at one time, most whom are still alive, though some have fallen asleep so they've passed. Then he appeared to James, then to all the apostles, last of all as to one untimely born. He appeared also to me, verse 1. It was I or they. So we preached and so you believed.
Speaker 2:Okay, so here's where it gets good. Now, if Christ is proclaimed as raised from the dead, how can some of you say there's no resurrection of the dead? But if there's no resurrection of the dead, then not even Christ has been raised. And if Christ has not been raised, then our preaching is in vain and your faith is in vain. So without the resurrection, without him dying and then dying for our sins and then resurrecting and resurrecting being, I feel like I'm about to sneeze. I'm so sorry. My nose has like that burn where it's fixing to happen.
Speaker 1:The priest sneeze.
Speaker 2:Yeah, all that to say. What it's saying is that if that had not happened and then Christ raised again and defeated death, then our faith is mute. It's a mute point. Also, I never realized I just read that that so many people eyewitness saw him after he died on the cross.
Speaker 2:Yes, hundreds right saw him after he died on the cross. Yes, so we have evidence that there are eyewitnesses who saw jesus after he died with their own two eyes, and the resurrection is what our faith hinges on. If it had not happened, everything else is mute then we're not, our faith is in vain. So, anyway, it goes on, but I'll stop there. But I think that just goes to show. Yes, christmas is important because christmas had to happen. Jesus had to come in order. You know he was born to die in order for him to go through the Easter process. But Easter and the resurrection is really what our faith hinges on. So, all that to say, for us, easter I feel like Caitlin's opinion should be more celebrated than Christmas per se, or at least more emphasized than Christmas.
Speaker 1:We could have more focus on it right? And what script did you just read?
Speaker 2:1 Corinthians, chapter 15.
Speaker 1:Yeah, so in 14, it said if Paul said, if Christ has not been raised, our preaching is useless and so is your faith. So I think of that. One of the crazy songs I like, the Don't Waste.
Speaker 2:Your.
Speaker 1:Life. Yeah, he says, as Paul says, if Christ is not resurrected, then we've wasted our lives. It hinges on the resurrection and the resurrection is what proves that Jesus is who he says he is. He fulfills the prophecies and it separates him from every other false god. And there's eyewitnesses outside of christians. There, you know, there's the famous like I can't even say him right now, but the jewish historians, the roman historians, the, you know the different, the, the agnostic historians that all point to more than 500 brothers at one time yeah whom most, most of whom were still alive Obviously not alive today, but in biblical times, and they testified to it.
Speaker 1:You know we think of the disciples being martyred. I think almost all of them were, except for John. Yeah, but of those 500, there has to be countless people who testified to to seeing jesus and were martyred for it, yeah, and it's like. It's hard to to die for something you don't believe in yep but regardless of that, we have non-christian historians and non-christian.
Speaker 1:We're talking within 90 to 80 years of his life, and that might sound like a long time to me or you, but like the uh, it's like who was it soccer? No, um alexander the great, like the first book written about him was like 500 years after he died yeah and we, we all trust that he existed.
Speaker 1:we all trust that socrates. We all trust that Socrates existed. Who his first book was about him? No, it was either Aristotle or Socrates, where there was no actual writing of Socrates, as all his disciples wrote quotes about him and that's how we got his quotes.
Speaker 2:So yeah, but we all take that for face value.
Speaker 1:But anyways, I'm sorry, it does all hinge on the resurrection of Christ. And to your point, why do you think it is that we are so all and there's nothing wrong with celebrating Christmas, but why is it that as a country and as a nation, as a world, as a community, we're so open to celebrating Christmas but a little more drawn back in celebrating Easter?
Speaker 2:I mean personally. I think Christmas just has more traditions and we can easily turn it away from Christ. You know, you have all the traditions of it's cold and you go to Christmas lights and hot chocolate and blankets.
Speaker 1:The music. We don't have any good Easter music.
Speaker 2:Yeah, so it has this whole thing Come on. Mariah Carey Stockings and Christmas gifts. And all the things you can do, whereas Easter it really is just the easter bunny and you get an easter basket. There's not easter movies, there's not easter traditions, there's not easter um song, like to your points, at least secular yeah there's not easter christian. I mean, there are christian songs. I mean there's no easter songs there's no Michael Buble Easter album. Yeah, no, and so I think, it just has an easier build up to it.
Speaker 2:Where Easter, I think it's harder to turn away from, the focus is Christ.
Speaker 1:So to your point. I think you're absolutely right. I believe that with Christmas, it's easy to make it very commercialized. It's easy to make it very commercialized. It's easy to say, hey, we don't really buy into the Christian thing, but this is still a really cool thing. We can spend time with our family, we get to do these fun things, we get to eat this amazing food and people can really buy into the outside parts of Christmas, but Easter it's so directed to. The only thing in Easter is Christ died and was resurrected and he will come back again, like it's. That's the central message, and so it's hard for people who are outside of of East of Christianity to jump on board, because it's it's really boiled down to that they took the um commercialism out of Christmas and we get Easter.
Speaker 2:If that makes sense.
Speaker 1:So I think that's why people are so hesitant to outside of Christianity to buy in and participate in Easter.
Speaker 2:I think they participate. They just participate through Easter Bunny and Easter baskets. It's not a bunch of tradition. Now I do think it's interesting. I mean Christmas too. Christmas time and Easter are church high attendance times.
Speaker 1:Yes.
Speaker 2:Because they know that's what you're supposed to do and that's what those seasons are for. But I would say Easter, probably more than Christmas, is probably a higher attendance Again, because you can't turn away from the fact that that's what Easter is for. It's not hidden. The message cannot be hidden under all this extra stuff.
Speaker 1:It's not funny, but like in my mind it's like oh, here's christmas, this beautiful baby newborn. How awesome is that, this beautiful child? And this beautiful scene and the easter's like he's beaten and murdered in death. But he's coming back, but like the tone is very is a little more morbid, a little bit with Easter services and the focus is on the death, not the life, of course, Okay, so in saying all that some things, activity, ideas, traditions we do not do all of these. We want to.
Speaker 2:Well, I mean we do most of them but not all. But these are just some ideas to help, you know, turn the family towards it towards christ yep and not all the things.
Speaker 2:So one is just to slow down during holy week. So again, holy week starts. Palm sunday, apr. Like to have less TV, less time on our phones, I don't know. I try to block that week where there's not as much going on. You know, our kids go to jujitsu several times a week. That week we probably will not go as much because we'll try to be home more in order to focus on that.
Speaker 1:So just in the past, we've done like no TV or anything like that for a week or two.
Speaker 2:Yeah, just slowing down and using that time to focus on what Easter is really about. And then during that week I have an Easter worship playlist. I mean all worship songs kind of point to the gospel message of him dying and resurrecting, but not all of them, and so I try to pick ones resurrection themed strictly go with him dying, paying for our sins and then rising again.
Speaker 2:And I don't know if you notice, but when you listen to a lot of these, I mean when you just listen to worship songs in general, not so much hymns I love hymns, don't get me wrong but when you listen to a little more modern day worship songs, they do kind of have this like lull when it talks about the death of Christ, but then it amps up into this powerful moment when he's resurrecting and that he's victorious over death and he'll come back again. You know there's this natural buildup. I mean, I know it's not natural, it's they write the music and they coordinate it that way, but it.
Speaker 2:I think it just goes to show how important even in Christmas songs that are strictly about his birth, there's not this build-up right, it's kind of mono. I mean, in my opinion they're pretty still monotone. Christmas songs are where, when you listen to victorious yeah and I have some examples.
Speaker 2:But when you listen to some of these examples it builds up to the resurrection. And these are songs that like get me pumped. When they get to the resurrection I'm like two hands raised, let's go, and that. I think that just goes to point, like how important it is because without, again, without the resurrection, there would be no christianity. So some of my favorites and if you have some.
Speaker 1:You can know that was the one I was singing in my head. Yeah, so the billy gra, billy Graham special.
Speaker 2:Yeah, the Billy Graham special at the end of it. So it follows Lacey Sturm, was it? Hope, billy Graham, hope I think my Hope. My Hope.
Speaker 1:We actually saw her in concert when she was with Flyleaf.
Speaker 2:Yeah, so it's the lead singer, Flyleaf who, if you're old, had some real bangers in 2006.
Speaker 1:I didn, if you're old, uh, had some real bangers in 2006.
Speaker 2:I didn't even know who they were. That's not my kind of music, but anyway it was mine. Um, it kind of followed her salvation story oh, that was a cool story we probably should re-watch it because it is very cool, but anyway it's called mercy tree. She sings it along with her husband who's playing uh accompaniment, and it's a very it's moving.
Speaker 1:It is especially knowing her backstory yeah, that's a really cool one. So mercy tree by lacey stern that's when it was in my head um king of kings by hillsong.
Speaker 2:That is one of my all-time favorites. It literally I mean how I explained it to my dad it's literally the gospel written in a song, like from beginning to end, christmas to easter, to his second coming, it's all of it, and so I really like that one. Jesus paid it all. So that's a you know, a hymn, but particularly I like celtic worship.
Speaker 1:We listen to celtic worship a lot. That's a good like cleaning music yes, um so, uh, death.
Speaker 2:Death Was Arrested by North Point Worship.
Speaker 1:I forgot about that one.
Speaker 2:So that's one of my favorites.
Speaker 1:I always like that one. I got one when you're done.
Speaker 2:Okay, sunday Is Coming, by Phil Wickham and it talks about you know, it's called Good Friday because Sunday's coming. So I like that one and then another one I really like is In Christ Alone, by whoever I mean, I have some favorites. But, honestly, anybody could probably sing that one bad and I would like it.
Speaker 1:Celtic worship is really good at that too.
Speaker 2:Yeah, they are, I do.
Speaker 1:If you're more of a hip hop fan. The Gospel by Bizzle B-I-Z-Z-L-E Bizzle. Bizzle B-I-Z-Z-L-E Bizzle.
Speaker 2:Bizzle.
Speaker 1:And it's his sons asking Daddy, can you tell me about the gospel? And he goes through all the Old Testament stuff and how it all points to Jesus and it was always about Jesus' death and resurrection and he is the Alpha and the Omega and it's pretty cool.
Speaker 2:Yeah, our kids actually like it. Yeah, watson will ask for it. Yeah, our kids actually like it. Yeah, watson will ask for it.
Speaker 1:Yeah, can you play that gospel song, but no, I was thinking of the Mercy Tree. Every now and then, okay. So once I hear it for the first time, like around Easter season, I get really emotional.
Speaker 2:Yeah, and after that it's enjoyed, like every year the first time I hear it yeah, yeah, um, okay, so king of kings is a good one. Yeah, king of kings honestly probably is my number one. Okay, so another thing is just to have coloring sheets. You know you can easily find on google images pinterest whatever um coloring sheets and just have them throughout the week for your kids to color. Our kids enjoy coloring.
Speaker 1:It's a nice calming activity. It is.
Speaker 2:And just having it free to them If they color 20, if they color none, it just gets their mind on at a kid level on what the week is about. Resurrection rolls so a lot of people, we don't do this, but a lot of people do. Resurrection rolls Bread so a lot of people, we don't do this, but a lot of people do. Resurrection rolls Bread, easter morning, and so what it is essentially, from my understanding, is a croissant that you put a marshmallow in the middle with some like cinnamon and sugar and that's you know. You roll it up and you bake it and when it cooks, the marshmallow's gone, symbolizing death Christ. I guess it is kind of cool when you think about it, because if you do the cinnamon and sugar, that could be like the burial spices. If you wanted to say that when you're teaching your kids the marshmallow is Christ, it cooks, those disappear Anyway, so it's like he's risen.
Speaker 2:One thing we do like to do I actually just did this last year. That was the first time I've done it, but I saw it on Pinterest and I thought it was really fun. We'll do it again this year. It's cross-stained glass windows.
Speaker 1:Oh, that was interesting.
Speaker 2:Yeah, so we have some French doors. That makes our house sound really fancy, but we have a set of French doors.
Speaker 1:You do painter's tape in the shape of a cross.
Speaker 2:And then you just do random shards designs of painter's tape To make it look like stained glass, random shards Designs To make it look like stained glass. And you just get washable tempura paint and the kids can go crazy.
Speaker 1:And when you take the paint off, you see the outline of the cross and then the shards and it's really pretty and then it comes off real easily when you're ready to clean it off.
Speaker 2:Palm Sunday, you can make palm branches and read the biblical account Of Palm Sunday. You can make palm branches and read the biblical account of Palm Sunday and you can kind of talk about you know, this is how it started. And then just seven short days later well, not even seven, five, four short days later they're yelling, crucify him. Now, something we started a few years ago that I actually it's become one of my favorites, somewhat selfishly, because I think it's just really sweet, but also, you know, it helps to make the real connection with our kids.
Speaker 1:We do a family feet washing. Oh, that is my favorite, and the kids ask for it every year.
Speaker 2:Yeah they do, they have already. Yeah, after Christmas. They're asking when are we going to do that? And so, you know, I turn all the lights off, I light some candles to make it, you know, special. I use my special stone bowl that my dad got me and just put some warm water in it with a little bit of soap, and then we take turns washing each other's feet I remember last year it was rosalind was just giggling the whole time.
Speaker 1:It tickles, it tickles and she's going to be so excited to do Edison's feet. But it's nice and it's intimate with your family. It builds really cool core memories. And we get to have a good conversation about why we do it and read the verses.
Speaker 2:Yeah, so we'll read the biblical account on where that happened and the Easter story in general, and then we'll end with a worship song of some kind that we sing together. Alright, and then I would just encourage whatever your local church is doing, you get plugged into that. So ours does a Good Friday service where we have communion, and then on Saturday they have a kids event and then, obviously, you know, sunday you have your easter what's the night thing we're doing? What do you mean?
Speaker 1:there's an evening service yeah, that's good friday, oh yeah and they're providing child care, which is a big important thing for us. So we get to dump the littles off and go enjoy a nice service with our older kids. It's really nice yep uh family togetherness. Yeah, you could. I'm sorry we're kind of sleepy because this has been postponed a little bit tonight because we had to kill a chicken. Yeah, anyway, sorry okay.
Speaker 2:So, um, you could do a passover meal or it's also called a cedar meal and go through that process. I've always wanted to do that, but it's a little intimidating, honestly, when you like, get out the process of it all and like it has to be anyway.
Speaker 2:So I have not tackled that, but I've always wanted to do it. I think it's cool, but anyway, if you have the time and resources and want to, I think it would be cool to do. You can read about the passover, because the passover is what points to christ, so how the old testament points to the new testament. There's a lot of imagery and symbolism in the old testament that points to they're called types. That points to the new testament jesus and what he will do. If you want to do an egg hunt, you can do an egg hunt and have Bible verses in it instead of, you know, candy or whatever.
Speaker 1:Candy's okay too.
Speaker 2:Oh yeah. I mean you could do both I don't know.
Speaker 1:Yes, you don't take all the fun out of that no.
Speaker 2:It's like, hey, let's go look for verses Like no, no, you gotta get some candy in there, but just to find ways to point it back to jesus, of course, yep, and then, uh, one I would like to do this year, if we have time, is a resurrection garden and kind of talking about it with your kids. So essentially what it is is you get a pretty bowl or you know it could be an ugly bowl, I guess it doesn't really matter but and you build up a little hill and you put on some wooden crosses like calvary, so three wooden crosses, and then underneath that is like a terracotta pot on its side, and then you get a rock and kind of half put it in front of it and then you plant, you know, pretty flowers and stuff and it just, you know, from the cross to the grave, to the grave being empty, it's kind of all summed up in one little pretty garden. I think it'd be pretty to have them as a centerpiece or something like that, that'd be cool and it gets the kids involved.
Speaker 1:They like getting their hands dirty.
Speaker 2:Yeah, do you have anything you would add?
Speaker 1:To this.
Speaker 2:No.
Speaker 1:I have a. The only thing that kept popping in my mind is a Bible verse that I recently learned about, and little nuggets in it, but about the culture of the time. But I'll wait until after you're done with this.
Speaker 2:Okay, and then some resources that are good. So there's resurrection eggs, so it's a dozen eggs and in it is you know, know, and each egg is a little trinket that points to the story of the gospel, like it's like a nail or something yeah, some have donkey jesus nail palm branch, like all those things.
Speaker 2:Um, I we have not used them, but a lot of people do and they're really cool. Focus on the family has a guide to holy week. Um, so from sunday to sunday there's a little activity for each day. Of course, sunday's the palm branches, I think. On monday it says you can make bread. Uh, you know, because jesus says I am the bread and then the communion. You know, this is the bread, remember me. It kind of goes into some of that so each day has something.
Speaker 2:One of them I want to say it's on thursday. It's like called monday thursday. Don't quote me on that. There is a day that's called monday something monday.
Speaker 1:Monday, no, I'm being maybe I don't know, I don't think so I'm joking.
Speaker 2:But it's like jewish culture.
Speaker 2:They would clean their house to prepare for passover I'm good with that and so, like I think one of the days is you, as your family, you know, get your house prepared for the easter weekend, which I thought was kind of cool, yeah, uh. So the jesus storybook bible is pretty common. If you get on their website, they have reading plans on like what pages to read during holy week and what day, um, so you're kind of picking out. It had some from old testament and some from new testament and honestly, that one's really pretty. I actually learned a lot from it, reading it to my kids when they were littler. Um, another one is the biggest storybook bible, the biggest story bible storybook. That's always a mouthful to me. Its the Biggest Storybook Bible, the Biggest Story Bible Storybook that's always a mouthful.
Speaker 2:To me, its images are a little more abstract and dark toned Not dark like evil, but dark toned.
Speaker 1:Colors.
Speaker 2:Whereas the Jesus Storybook Bible is kind of bright and vibrant and kind of watercolorish and pretty, this one's a little different, but I actually really like it. It also has a prayer at the end and, same thing, they have a reading plan that you can use for Easter. That's helpful, all right. So for your little littles, there's a series that we really like called Baby Believer, and there's like a series of like 11 of them, but it's just simple breakdown of like Christian theology and basic doctrine for toddlers. One of them is Holy week and the one for Holy week goes through emotions. Um and so it's really cool, cause it teaches them about Holy week on a toddler level. Like I'd say, you're, you know one year old, two year old, three year old, and teaching them their emotions. You know one-year-old, two-year-old, three-year-old and teaching them their emotions. You know sad, anxious, excited, happy. And then Bible Project is on YouTube and they have a lot of videos. Oh, I love the Bible.
Speaker 1:Project. I just I'm not going to go into it, but I really like that one. We went into wisdom with meaningless, meaningless, meaningless Everything is meaningless, and it broke down like the original language and what that word actually meant. It's so interesting. I love the Bible Project. I highly recommend you guys go check it out. Great visual, great information. It's really really good.
Speaker 2:Yeah, so there are videos on Facebook, I mean on YouTube, and they have one for every book of the Bible, but then they also have some specifically like this for Easter the resurrection, the death, and they're just quick little three to five minute videos, so they're pretty cool.
Speaker 1:Is that your list? Yep, so I was doing this study about. So I've come to notice that, like there are no details in the bible just to be details, everything is there for a reason. And in john 20 and 7, john 20, chapter 20, verse 7, it says, as well as the cloth that had been wrapped around jesus head was folded. The cloth was laying in its place, separate from the linens, and I never put much thought to it.
Speaker 1:I was like, okay, cool, jesus isn't there, his cloth is on the ground, you know yeah and um, like I said, never put much thought into it, but apparently in jewish culture when, from what I've from, when there's a great feast at a table and the master or the host needed to step away for a moment for whatever reason, he would fold his towel, his hand towel because they're very clean people about hygienic stuff they would fold his towel and leave it at the table. When it's folded, that mean okay. When it's not folded, that means I'm done, I'm retiring for the night, I'm going to bed or I'm leaving the party, whatever it is. When it's folded, that means I am coming back. So that was a way to signal to his, his workers, his disciples whatever you say it, whatever the term you're looking for, that was his way of saying I'm leaving but I will be returning. So like, don't take my food yet, I'm coming back.
Speaker 1:So in Jewish culture, from what I've read, that was the case. So even in that way is a subtle nod to I will be coming back, I'm gone, I'm not here, I will be returning very soon. So I thought it was pretty cool. Good, cool little nugget for jewish culture, if what I'm reading is correct, which I believe it is. So like I just always skip past those little details, thinking like, okay, that's just. Oh. And and the wall was red. Well, I never thought. Well, why is it telling me this? I always just think, okay, there's a. Yeah, the towel he was covered in is there. I never thought of. Why did it stop to tell me it was folded?
Speaker 1:that's cool yeah so I thought it was really cool. Like every little thing is, especially through jesus is is pointing to something. It's never just for face value. There's, there's little nuggets everywhere in the scriptures. We just got to go and look for them. I thought it was pretty cool. I do remember one of my favorite Easter memories is when we tried to do lamb. That one time it was pretty good. Oh yeah, we did that. I love eating the lamb. We did it once. It was pretty awesome. But I really feel like we're getting to a cool season, to where we are able to have those deeper conversations, not just Jesus died and he's back. I understand, for kids level that little five word phrase can encompass a lot, but with adults, our younger minds, more deeper thinking minds, it's becoming more of a fruitful and really fun and engaging conversation with our kids, the older two especially. Yep, sorry, I went on a tyrant about ancient culture.
Speaker 2:That's fine, so I would just encourage slow down holy week. Focus on what really matters, and that's christ, what he did for us his death, burial, resurrection, defeating death and just making sure our children see us live that.
Speaker 1:Yeah, and I know, like for Christmas, we did a Christmas Around the World. I think it would be cool to do that in the future of Easter Around the World, because I was just looking shortly and there are some pretty different things that they do around the world. Awesome, you have anything else? Nope, okay, I'm going to say a quick prayer and then we will be I won't say dismissed, but we will end the podcast, going to bed.
Speaker 1:Jesus, thank you for this day.
Speaker 1:I thank you that we just you've blessed us and our family, that we get to live the life we have and that we had the option to focus on going slower and focusing on you and choosing to focus on you through Easter.
Speaker 1:I just thank you for the life we have and I thank you for our family and our kids, and I do pray that we talk about doing this, but that we truly do hold you center and anchor down on the meaning of Christmas and the death, the burial and the resurrection, because without that, like I said earlier in the scriptures, if Christ did not have resurrection, then our life would be a waste, all this would be in vain.
Speaker 1:It would just be another ancient religion that is lost in time. But because you are alive, lord, and you are sitting in the right hand of God, you did die on the cross. You did die and you are resurrected, and I thank you for that. And, if nothing else, if you give me or my family nothing else other than your resurrection and the promise of heaven that if we follow you and repent of our ways, that we will be with you in heaven, that is too much. That is enough for us and our family, but you continue to be faithful to us. I pray that we continue to be faithful to you and that we live a life in your will worth being blessed, and I just thank you for my family again and I'm so excited to go through this Easter season with them. I pray this in Jesus name Amen.
Speaker 2:Amen.
Speaker 1:Goodbye.