Resurrection - The Time of New Life Begins

This past Sunday Christians celebrated Easter which commemorates the resurrection of Jesus Christ. It is a time of great hope and great inspiration, with the primary message being that anything can be overcome, with God, even death itself.

I spent the day reflecting on the way that life reassures us that there is always a chance for a new beginning. As spring is upon us, we see new life all around us. The trees and shrubs are budding out with their promise of summer's bold foliage. Daffodils, tulips and heathers are in bloom. The birds are beginning to make their nests in preparation of the new life they will bring into our midst. Everywhere you look there is something beginning.

The story of the resurrection reminds us that in order to be resurrected something must first die. The old must pass away before the new can spring forth. The lesson we are taught in Christ's crucifiction and ressurection is that in order to have the new experience that we seek, we must die to the old ways, the old habits, the old ways of thinking, the old ways of behaving. We must let go of the addictions, the self destructive habits, the unhealthy relationships, the limiting self talk and beliefs and any other 'old' construct that keeps us from being the people we are born to be and prevent us from living the lives that we were born to live.

We are shown that when we release something we *think* is all important, we can actually begin to have what IS actually important. So often we cling to things that hurt and destroy us. We must learn to lay down what is no longer healthy for us or useful to us, in order to reach for the new experience that we are being called into.

I believe that the story of Jesus' death and resurrection reminds us that ultimately, we cannot hold on to that which we are being called to release. Sometimes we think we are going to crumble if we let go of 'that thing' but his story reminds us that we not only can let go of things we feel are precious to us, but in some cases, it is required to ascend to our next level of consciousness and our next level of spirtual maturity and expression.

Happy Easter to us all! May we lay down that which no longer serves us, and step into a higher state of consciousness and fulfillment of our potential!