Easter Sunday
Love Is Come Again
The angel said to the women, “Do not be afraid; I know that you are looking for Jesus who was crucified. He is not here; for he has been raised, as he said. Come, see the place where he lay. Then go quickly and tell his disciples, ‘He has been raised from the dead, and indeed he is going ahead of you to Galilee; there you will see him.’ “This is my message for you.”
- Matthew 28:5–7
Our journey of thoughtful self-reflection on cultivating the fruits of the Spirit these past six and a half weeks now leads us to be able to proclaim today:
Alleluia. Christ is risen.
The Lord is risen indeed. Alleluia.
A story is told of a young girl who had overheard the adults in her life talking about how beautiful the season of Spring was. She knew it had to with something outdoors, and so she went outside several times to look for this thing called Spring that everyone was talking about.
Feeling frustrated, she went to her parents and said, “I hear everyone talking about Spring, but I can’t see it anywhere.” Her parents asked her what she had seen when she went outside to look for Spring. She responded, “I saw the grass turning green, new flowers coming up, lots of beautiful singing birds, and buds on the trees.” Her parents replied,” Those are all the signs of Spring, and so you have seen Spring now!”
This story applies to our own longings to not just believe in the resurrection of Jesus, but to see the signs of it. And as we have learned on our journey through Lent this year, whenever we are cultivating and manifesting the fruits of the Spirit—peace, joy, love, kindness, generosity, faithfulness, patience, gentleness, and self-control—we are seeing signs of Jesus’ resurrection.
Our hope and prayer is that we may all continue to both see these fruits of the Spirit and cultivate these fruits of the Spirit in our lives.
The last verse of The Green Blade Rises, a beautiful Easter hymn, reminds us that all of this is possible because of the One who is always cultivating the fruits of resurrection in the “fields of our hearts.”
When our hearts are saddened, grieving, or in pain,
By Your touch You call us back to life again;
Fields of our hearts that dead and bare have been:
Love is come again, like wheat that springs up green.
—John M. C. Crum
It has been an honor to provide this resource to you and to walk with you through Lent to Easter. In the name of the Risen Christ, may we all know in our hearts and souls that “Love is come again, like wheat that springs up green.”
Listen To Our Lent Podcast Episodes
We also invite you to listen to the Living Compass Spirituality and Wellness Podcast hosted by Scott Stoner. This is a year-round, weekly podcast; however, during Lent, there will be two new episodes each week to enrich your experience of our Lenten readings on Cultivating the Fruit of the Spirit.
You can listen to the podcast on our website by clicking HERE. You can also find this podcast in your favorite podcast listening app (Apple, Google, Spotify, etc.)—just search for Living Compass Spirituality and Wellness