In our home, we love to celebrate special occasions, especially those that lift our thoughts to God. Easter is very special to us because it reminds us of the most important event in this world – Jesus coming to die on a cross to save us. But just like all dates that make us think of God, the enemy has misused Easter to distract us and lead our minds to other things. And in a very curious way, at Easter, he does this by tempting our appetite with the famous "Easter eggs." Often, we don't pause to meditate on Jesus' sacrifice, which was the greatest act of selflessness ever performed in the universe, and instead, we simply think about indulging in chocolates just to satisfy our taste. Exactly the opposite of Jesus' selfless sacrifice on the cross! When we had our first daughter, my husband and I chose not to expose her to this "commercial side" of Easter for as long as we could. She had no idea what an Easter bunny was until she was 5 years old when, one day, she noticed the large number of decorations with bunny and egg motifs in stores and asked me about them. When I explained what they were, she said, "But what does that have to do with Jesus' death on the cross?" Exactly! I had to agree with her. So, this Easter, I invite you to turn back to the true meaning of the holiday and take the opportunity to teach your children a little more about God's infinite love. I'd like to share some activities we've done to help our daughters understand the true meaning of Easter.

1. When they were younger, a few days before Easter, we would start telling the story of the final events of Jesus' life, using volume 9 of 'The Beautiful Stories of the Bible' collection. It was interesting to note how, with each passing year, they would help us by recounting details they remembered from the story.

1. We also started noticing that, around this time, even their playtime reflected Easter. They would act out with their dolls the sadness of Jesus' death on the cross and, with great joy, His resurrection.

1. A few years later, we did things a little differently. From the Thursday before Easter until Sunday, we discussed its meaning using the final chapters of the book 'The Desire of Ages' for more details. On Thursday, for example, we talked about the Last Supper, and then we washed each other's feet, explaining its significance. For an afternoon snack, we served foods like grapes, grape juice, unleavened bread, and a mixture of bitter herbs (za'atar with olive oil), referencing the first Passover, when the people of Israel left Egypt. On Friday, during the sunset worship, we talked about Jesus' death and sacrifice. On Saturday during the day, we discussed the sadness the disciples felt that day, without fully understanding what was happening. On Sunday, during the morning worship, we talked about Jesus' resurrection and reflected on the joy the disciples must have felt when they encountered Jesus and understood the sacrifice He had made.

1. Another year, we were traveling during Easter weekend, so we moved the celebration up a bit to the week before and created a "Garden of Grace." A very interesting idea that I adapted from here. We put soil in a box, made a "Calvary" hill in one corner, and a tomb (with stones) in the other corner. We decorated with small stones and plants (I used my succulents because they are more practical), and the children prepared little figures for the characters (Jesus, angel, Mary Magdalene, and other disciples) and spent days reliving the scenes of Christ's death and resurrection.

If you have young children, try to do something meaningful with them this Easter. Visit this link to print some Easter drawings and ask God for wisdom to create activities that will be memorable for them.

Warmly, Rute Bazan

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