The Year I Didn't Want to Buy an Easter Dress by Tracie Miles
"Set your minds on things that are above, not on things that are on earth." Colossians 3:2 (ESV)Last year as Easter quickly approached, my daughter Kaitlyn asked me to take her dress shopping, which we've done every year since my daughters were little.
We spent hours looking until she finally found the perfect dress. As we were paying, she asked, "Hey Mom, aren't you going to buy an Easter dress this year?"
I responded, saying, "I have lots of dresses. I don't really need to spend money on a new one," but my next sentence made my heart skip a beat: "Besides, I'm not that excited about Easter this year anyway."
She shrugged with a faint smile and muttered, "Oh, okay," with a little hug as we picked up our bags.
Driving home, tears trickled down my face. What kind of mother tells her child she isn't excited about Easter? How could I say I wasn't enthusiastic about the celebration of the resurrection of the Son of God? What kind of Christian says that?
I felt so ashamed for having those thoughts, much less speaking them aloud to my precious child. Mercy.
But I knew this Easter was going to be incredibly different and hard. It would be the first Easter Sunday in 26 years where my family wouldn't attend church together. Instead of looking forward to the celebration for all the right reasons, I was secretly dreading it, knowing it would be difficult to get through the day.
Due to circumstances beyond my control, my husband and I had abruptly separated six months earlier. Holidays look different through the lens of a broken heart and a broken family, and I thought and felt differently about them too. Rather than focusing on the meaning of the resurrection, my thoughts centered around my earthly problems. Sometimes when life is heavy, our hearts and minds can get heavy, too.
That's exactly why in today's key verse (Colossians 3:2), Paul encourages us to set our minds on the things above — not the problems of this world. Because whatever we set our minds on determines our thoughts, drives our emotions, fuels our words and actions, and ultimately steers the direction of our faith. When our thoughts are sinking, our hearts will too.
However, if we intentionally fix our attention on "things that are above," — what makes us joyful, hopeful and positive — like the resurrection of Jesus Christ, eternal life, hope found in our Savior and blessings of all kinds that make us smile, then our attitudes can stay uplifted, despite our circumstances. |
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