Living Beyond Your Circumstances Through The Resurrection

A little boy named Philip with Down Syndrome attended a third-grade Sunday school class with several eight-year-old boys and girls. Typical of that age, the children did not readily accept Philip with his differences.

The angel said to the women, “Do not be afraid, for I know that you are looking for Jesus, who was crucified. He is not here; he has risen, just as he said. Come and see the place where he lay.” — Matthew 28:5-6

On Easter Sunday, the teacher brought egg-shaped pantyhose containers for the students and told the children to go outside, find some symbol for new life, and put it in the egg-like container. Back in the classroom, they would share their new life symbols, opening the containers one by one. After running about the church property in wild confusion, the students returned to the classroom and placed the containers on the table.

Surrounded by the children, the teacher began to open them one by one. When one was opened, revealing nothing inside, the children exclaimed, “That’s not fair! Somebody didn’t do their assignment.”

Philip spoke up, “That’s mine.”

“Philip, you don’t ever do things right!” a student retorted. “There’s nothing there!”

“I did so do it,” Philip insisted. “It’s empty, just like Jesus’ tomb was empty!”

Silence followed. From then on, Philip became an accepted member of the class. He sadly died not long afterward from an infection most normal children would have shrugged off. At the funeral, this class of eight-year-olds marched up to the altar, not with flowers, but with their Sunday school teacher, each to lay on it an empty pantyhose egg.

Whatever challenges you face today, the resurrection of Jesus Christ can give your life hope, meaning, and purpose. So this Easter, rest in the goodness of God and the new life you’ve been given through Jesus’ resurrection!

Prayer Challenge

Ask God to help you live beyond your circumstances and rest in the new life you’ve been given through the resurrection of Jesus Christ!