Today is the Saturday of Palm Sunday, and so we will begin our Easter celebrations tonight. Even though we are not commanded to commemorate the birth of Jesus, there are myriad resources available to celebrate Advent and help moms make Christmas more Christ-centered. On the other hand, we are commanded to remember Christ’s death and resurrection, and the only real resource (outside of good books) is The Resurrection Eggs. I guess I should be bothered by this, but I like the fact that the real meaning of Easter isn’t as highly marketed and caricatured like the real meaning of Christmas. Easter should not be a time of gaiety, lights, silly cartoons, and happy songs (at least not until Sunday morning).

One book that I pull out for different, Christ-centered ideas whether it’s for everyday stuff or a big holiday) is Noel Piper’s Treasuring God in our Traditions. If you do not have this book, then you must click or race to your nearest book store and purchase it. This is a must-have for any homemaking woman who desires to point her family to Christ everyday and especially during holidays.

Her chapter for Easter is one I’ve drawn from for the last two Easters. She writes so clearly that Easter is a time to reflect on the depths of our sin and the heights of God’s love for us in Jesus. She explains Lent, where the term originates, the historical tradition behind it, and some of the ways Christians can use it to demonstrate their desire for God. She certainly is not in favor of a legalistic adherence to the tradition, and does not write in that way. The best parts of this chapter are her ideas for building anticipation for Easter in your home.

The first idea, and one I’ve used the last two years, is Lenten Candles. Lent is a time of waiting. “To symbolize this, we can begin Lent with seven lighted candles. On the first Sunday, one is snuffed out. On the second Sunday, the second candle is extinguished, and so on until Good Friday, when the last one is darkened. It is as if we have seen sin growing in power and finally crucifying the Light of the World, leaving us in darkness” (p. 94).

I will pull out our candles this afternoon. We will light all seven tonight during dinner and snuff one out. Then, tomorrow night we will light six and snuff one out, and so on until Good Friday, when the last one is snuffed out. Starting in February with Lent is just too long for the little kids to stay focused on this, so I start on the Saturday before Palm Sunday. The anticipation builds better with little kids in one week rather than going a whole 40 days.

Another good idea is the Resurrection Tree. It works the same way as the Jesse Tree used at Christmastime, but uses different symbols. Take a bare branch from the back yard, and “on its twigs we hang symbols that remind us of the Crucifixion and Resurrection and things that point us toward the names and facets of Jesus that are related especially to his sacrifice for our redemption” (p. 95). Then, read the gospel accounts of Jesus’ last week to go along with the symbols as you place them on your tree.

The third idea, and one I am considering for this year (while my kids are still young enough to appreciate it), is the Easter mountain. She includes a recipe for creating a play dough mountain, which has to be cooked ahead of time. While reading the gospel accounts of Jesus’ last week, the kids act out the activities of Jesus, the disciples, and the other people (as chenille stick figures), around the mountain each evening. I’ll just let her describe it:
“Each day we play out part of the story with the chenille stick people. Finally on Good Friday the Jesus figure is placed on the cross and then laid in the grave under the mountain with a rock “sealing” the entrance. After activity all week there is nothing to do on Saturday except wait. Perhaps that gives the children a tiny bit of empathy for the disciples who were hidden away, thinking all was lost” (p. 95). I think my kids would enjoy this idea this year.

Noel wrote a booklet called “Lenten Lights,” and it is sold by Desiring God Ministries. I bought it after reading her book. I can testify that it is a really good way to get the family thinking about their sin, God’s love and grace, Jesus’ sacrifice, and the wonder of the Resurrection. Each evening, as we blow out the candles, the kids get a real picture of the increasing darkness of sin. Then, on Sunday we light them all up again and celebrate the fact that darkness has not overcome the Light, and Jesus is alive!! The other thing we always do is watch a good Jesus movie. We’ve watched The Jesus Film, The Gospel of John and the animated ABC special that aired a few years ago, The Miracle Maker. The last two are my favorites. (No, I’m not letting my kids see The Passion of the Christ).

If you don’t already have a Christ-centered approach for celebrating Easter in your home, then I’d like to point you to Lenten Lights. You can start it tonight. All you need is seven candles. The readings for each evening can be found on Desiring God’s website.

If you have some other Easter ideas you’d like to share, please email me or leave a comment with a link to your blogpost, and I’ll include you in what I hope will be a long list of Christ-treasuring family ideas for Easter! If you don’t have an activity idea, please send along your favorite books to read for Easter!!