A Christopher Prayer for Easter

Lord,
Instill us with the hope we celebrate this Easter,

the hope we’re supposed to experience because of Jesus’s resurrection,
the hope that’s difficult to believe in when we live in a world with much pain and suffering.

Every day, we’re surrounded by signs that life isn’t fair.
Good people suffer hardship and we wonder why a loving God
would allow these things to happen.
Maybe we even wonder if a loving God exists at all.

But then we remember that Jesus, too, experienced intense suffering:
Betrayal, abandonment, persecution, torture, crucifixion.

He didn’t exempt Himself from all these human hardships.
Instead, He humbled Himself
in order to identify with those of us who live in this broken, yet beautiful world,
thereby allowing us to identify with Him,
and reminding us that God does not cause suffering,
but rather that He walks through it with us.

Ultimately, by believing in Jesus as “the way, the truth and the life,”
by accepting Him into our hearts and minds,
and following His commands,
our defeats can be turned into victories
just like His death led to the greatest victory of all.

Through His resurrection, Jesus brought light to the world in a new way,
a way that offers us all the opportunity for redemption,
the opportunity to receive mercy if we choose to accept it.

This Easter, we celebrate the eternal life you promised us
encompassed by Your unending love and joy,
eternal life that will reunite us with our deceased loved ones
whom You have already embraced.

This Easter, we choose hope in You, O Lord,
and offer our humble gratitude for the priceless gift of Your Son.

Amen.