The Empty Tomb

Our Easter celebrations began with sore throats, stuffy noses, itchy noses, and lots of sneezing.  The virus invaded our home a week before Palm Sunday with one child and has slowly moved around to each one of us.   It's still here, lingering, it won't go away. I am it's latest victim.

Our church, Fellowship Bible Church attempted something knew this Easter.  Instead of holding Palm Sunday service they decided to host an Easter egg hunt.  I know at first it sounds odd and not to mention just plain weird.

My kids say I'm getting old.  Maybe I am!

FBC would still hold Palm Sunday service but instead on Saturday evening and call it Palm Saturday, then hold the Easter egg hunt on Sunday morning.  Fellowship Bible desires to expand their outreach ministries with the Gospel of Christ, so the thought would be to take the light of Christ from inside the church walls and out into the community on Palm Sunday morning.

I desperately wanted to go to Palm Saturday evening service, however with Dave and Elise sick I didn't feel I could leave them.   So on Sunday morning those of us not yet sneezing went to the Great Easter Egg Hunt.  Rachel participated in Gospel Face Painting, sharing the Gospel according to each color.

Oh, and I might add weeks before this took place the church asked members and attendees to donate 1500 dozen plastic filled eggs.  Yes, you read that correctly, that amounts to 18,000 plastic eggs.  Well, the Lord provided much more than that.

I guess this really wasn't an egg "hunt" as most of the eggs were in plain view.  I tried to get a picture once all the children were released but I'm just not that tall.

Some stats from the egg hunt:

22,000 filled plastic eggs
2500 people in attendance of that 800 kids searching for eggs
335 children's faces painted as the message of Christ was explained
458 pounds of hotdogs
80 racks of hotdog buns
Countless seeds of truth sewn

Of course we have to dye Easter eggs every year.

Every year we also make Easter Tomb Cookies.  An Easter devotional that explains the Gospel by using ingredients like walnuts, vinegar, egg whites, salt and sugar.  The "tombs" are then placed in the oven over night.  In the morning they are hollow or empty, just like the tomb on Easter morning. 

After church on Easter morning we hid our plastic eggs around the house since it was 40 degrees and sprinkling outside.  Actually Rachel wanted to help hide them this year, I guess she's too cool for searching. 

Finding eggs!

Now we have to count the eggs and yes Dave and I sat on our behinds while they searched for 67 eggs. 

Rachel was attempting to take a picture of us.  Of course Dave has to be goofy.  Clearly I am the level-headed mature one. 

Finally after six or seven pictures he decides to obey me and get with the program.  He is so difficult sometimes.  Yes, he is sporting a beard these days, I like it.

This is how we spent our Holy Week leading up to Easter. 

Because of the work that Christ accomplished on the cross we have hope here on earth and hope in eternal life with Him someday. 

Hope you had a blessed Easter Sunday!