The Easter Bunny and I have a love/hate relationship.
As a mother of young children, I’ve struggled with how much swimming I should be doing against the cultural tide of Easter as a pastel-colored, candy holiday.
I’ve wrestled with potentially diminishing Christ
and the work he did on the cross when I allow a few plastic eggs and some fake grass to cross my home’s threshold.
And while every family has to pray through this issue on their own, my husband and I have made peace with the concept of the Easter Bunny and provide a space in our Easter celebration to partake in the cheesy fun of an egg hunt, hidden baskets, and rainbow-hued, hard-boiled eggs.
In exchange for allowing eggs and chocolates to be a part of the celebration, my husband and I are very intentional about our approach to Easter.
The Easter books found on my children’s bookshelves talk of Jesus, not of bunnies.
We have age-appropriate conversations about the cross – what it means, what it did, why it matters so very much to our lives today.
And, as unpopular as it might be, my children know that the Easter Bunny isn’t real and that daddy is the one who is figuratively hopping around the back yard, hiding eggs in tree branches. (Although we do what we can to make sure they do not share that information with their classmates, as that is a decision for other families to make).
Because if I do not show my children how to carefully discern those things in our culture that are merely fun from those things that hold sacred significance, then I leave them vulnerable to the whisperings of others. There will come a time when others will tell my children that Jesus is a myth, a fable, a story just like Santa Claus and the Easter Bunny, and I need them to understand the difference between a fun activity and authentic faith.
If you are looking for ways to incorporate more Jesus and less bunny into your own Easter celebrations, check out the following ideas:
- Resurrection Eggs. These eggs contain items that follow the story of Jesus’ last week on Earth. Its a great way to have fun with little ones while also talking about what makes Easter our most important Christian observance. You can buy these or you can make them via a myriad of directions on Pinterest.
- Resurrection Centerpiece. I love the idea of replacing that silly, pastel-colored rabbit surrounded by eggs (what is the deal with a rabbit who lays eggs, anyway?!) in the middle of the table with a homemade scene of the tomb and the three crosses, complete with the rolling rock and grass! Check out Pinterest for a million easy ideas for those of us who are just as likely to superglue our fingers together as create a crafty masterpiece.
- Books and Movies. There are many books and movies about Jesus’ last week on Earth that are appropriate for young children. For more mature teens and adults, The Passion of the Christ is a powerful and realistic recreation of Jesus’ death and resurrection.
- Passover meal. Although my family and I are not Jewish, there is tremendous spiritual significance between Passover (remembering that death passed over homes marked with the blood of the lamb in the final plague brought against the Egyptians before the Israelites were released from bondage) and the willing sacrifice of Christ as he died upon the cross. Celebrating the Seder meal with your children is the perfect opportunity to open up a conversation about God’s great faithfulness from generation to generation.
You can check out this Pinterest board my co-bloggers and I at The Ruth Experience have put together for additional fun ways to incorporate more Jesus and less bunny into your Easter celebration!
In what ways do you intentionally incorporate Christ into your own Easter celebrations?
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