It’s now officially spring but it doesn’t really feel like it. The temperature is only in the 30’s today and I hear that we may get snow mixed with rain this afternoon. Yuck! I’m over it. Winter can go anytime. I’m ready for a warm spring breeze and flowers blooming. Soon, very soon, the warmth will return.
Waiting is tough. Every spring before Easter, I am reminded of one of my favorite stories written by CS Lewis, “The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe.” The kingdom of Narnia was held in eternal winter by the evil witch. They were waiting for a spring that seemed to never come. Does this sound familiar?
When it feels like winter will go on forever, Aslan arrives and everything starts to melt. Even the witch’s sleigh gets caught in the mud created by the warmth of spring. When Aslan comes, hearts are warmed and there’s nothing the witch can do to stop it. She tries to destroy him but by doing so she sets in motion the very thing needed to redeem Edmund and all of Narnia. What a beautiful picture of the Cross of Christ told in child-like terms.
Deep inside each of us, we know that justice must be served for evil. We demand it for the likes of Hitler and ISIS but we don’t want to admit that we deserve justice as well for our own evil deeds. We must come to the realization that we are all like Edmund in Narnia. We have all betrayed the One who loves us unconditionally and we deserve punishment. So Aslan (Jesus) steps in to take the punishment for us all. I’ve heard it said that Grace is getting the gift we don’t deserve but Mercy is not getting the punishment we do deserve. Jesus does both. He takes the punishment that should be given to each of us and instead gives us the gift of life, free of guilt and shame, forever.
The joy of Easter and spring are coming. I want to let the warmth of that joy invade my soul like the first rays of the spring sun. Awaken me again to the beauty all around me. After the long, harsh winter, the colors almost hurt my eyes. Don’t we all sometimes fall into the deep sleep of winter and need to be awakened again?
After the crucifixion of Jesus, two disciples walked along the road to Emmaus with heavy hearts. Their Lord and Master was gone. They did not yet believe that he could be alive after such a brutal death. Little did they know that the stranger who came to walk with them on their way was the risen Christ. It was only when they invited him to join them for dinner at the end of their journey that they recognized him when he broke the bread and blessed it. They exclaimed to each other, “Were not our hearts burning within us as he talked with us on the road?”
During this Easter season, my hope is that as the spring sun physically warms your spirits, that your heart will be warmed by the presence of the risen Christ. May he awaken you from the deep sleep of winter and refresh your soul anew as he walks beside you every step of life’s journey.
