Alleluia. The Lord is risen. Christ is risen indeed. Alleluia.
Many churches, clergy, and parishioners make a great effort at Lent and put even more into Holy Week. Many provide lovely Easter Vigils, moving early Easter services, enjoyable parish breakfasts or luncheons, and impressive music and flowers for the main Easter Sunday Service. Unfortunately, by midday on Easter Sunday, many church-goers are physically, mentally, and spiritually exhausted. So the rest of Easter week, we want to crash. Even if we have a few weekday services and take the Sacrament to some shut-ins, we seem to have run out of steam.
I understand the feeling, and even after decades in ministry, I have no easy or obvious solution. Yet, the fact is that Easter Week should be filled with spiritual rejoicing for individual believers and the localized body of believers. We should be inspired by our Lord's Resurrection. So even if the institutional church needs a little pause to catch its breath, let us remain personally focused on our risen Lord in our thoughts and prayers. Thanks be to God for His inexpressible gift!
