Friday, March 29, 2013

It's Too Early For Easter ... Or Is It?

 Wednesday, Easter's a few weeks away
Me, I'm quick to say I'm not ready for Easter -- not just yet
Couldn't seem to get into the spirit of the thing
(More than likely I hadn't let the Spirit get into me)
No matter, there it was, Easter would be here soon, too soon
Or so I thought
I said, "Man, I'm just not ready for Easter"
My pastor, he caught me off guard, taught me a lesson  
A brief but timely response
It essentially boiled down to this --
When you're dead, Easter is never too early.
Talk about sobering, man, was he ever on target with that
I was looking for an Easter feeling -- as if there really is just one
So I wasn't quite ready for it to come barging in
Wait a while, a few more weeks, maybe
Strange thing about timing though, it doesn't much pay attention
To what you had planned -- Life just steamrolls right over you
And ready or not, here it comes -- sort of like this Easter
I'm speaking with conviction here
Conviction borne out of a recent experience
Having been, if not steamrolled, at least put flat on my back -- literally
Laying in a hospital bed, waiting to find out if ....
No, you don't even have to ask
I was once again reminded in a very concrete manner 
About how fragile we are, how mortal we are
And how precious life is, what a gift life is
(You bet I caught the "connection -- it was easy to see)
If that's not a big piece of what it means to celebrate Easter 
(Once you dig deep inside words like "salvation and redemption")
Then it's not about anything at all that matters
Ah, but it is, it is and Hallelujah I'm here to say
I believe it all over again
It's a good time to stand in awe of the Miracle
Moving from "being dead as a doornail" to being so full of life                         
 That I wouldn't be surprised if several angels
Were dancing on the head of a pin that morning
While the Father clapped his hands in sheer delight
At what He had pulled off
And brother don't you know when you realize 
You were closer to leaving this planet
Than you care to think about
Had you not listened to that inner voice 
(Hey, pal, "Something's not right here, better check it out")
A voice that I'm pretty darned convinced was of Divine origin
Well, all of a sudden Easter looks different
It's not a bunny or a brightly colored egg or a delicious brunch
Or a new outfit or even a great musical presentation
It's a whole lot more than that
It looks like the brightest hope you could ever imagine
It looks like something so wonderfully impossible 
That it couldn't possibly be true
And yet your heart knows it is
God did a good thing, the best thing
Anyone could ever do
He spit in the "face of death"
And got away with it
For those of us who believe He did
We can too
Yes, for me this year, Easter ...
Feels different and yes ...
Right on time

George Gagliardi, March, 2013