Easter is over! What a relief. For those of us in the church business Easter is one of the busiest times of the year. There are Easter egg hunts, passion plays, holy week services, extra weekend services. It can wear out even the most devout ministers. Don’t get me wrong – we love all the planning and revel in the full houses we get to preach to on Easter Sunday but come Monday we all breathe a sigh of relief. We made it through another Easter season.
We’re glad Easter is over.
Yet, at the same time, we’re sad Easter is over. The Sunday
after Easter may be one of the most depressing for ministers. The additional
seats are no longer needed. The gaps in
our sanctuaries and worship centers return. We welcomed back some church members
on Easter Sunday whom we hadn’t seen in weeks, maybe even months, maybe even
since last Easter. And then the Sunday after Easter we look around for them and
they’re not there. We’re glad they were here last week and will welcome them
back next year with open arms. But it is
sad. It’s sad that Easter is over.
I know it’s just a fact of life for us ministers. We were told to expect such through our
training. We even have become accustomed
to it to some degree. No minister in
their right mind expects the same crowds on the Sunday after Easter. It’s a
reality of the trade, so to speak.
If you’re one of those who show up for Easter and rarely
come any other Sunday, I hope you don’t think I’m mad at you. I’m really not. Don’t think that I’m trying to make you feel
guilty. That’s not my intent. I do want
you to know that you’re missed.
We loved seeing you Sunday, but we’d love to see you more
often. And it really isn’t all about
having full churches. I admit, we
struggle with our egos and having larger crowds feeds that egotism that I
suppose every preacher struggles with. But we really do miss you. We want to see you every Sunday.
Certainly, we ministers are part of the problem. Maybe we make so much of Easter that somehow
we’ve communicated that the other 51 Sundays are not as important. Maybe you wonder why we haven’t called,
emailed, or texted you all those Sundays you’ve missed. Perhaps we’ve said
something or have done something that has upset you. We’re sorry. We hope that
our weaknesses don’t keep you away. Please forgive us.
This Sunday may not be as exciting as Easter, but we’ll be
here nonetheless. We’ll have another
sermon that we’ve worked hard on. Our
worship may not have as many “bells and whistles” this Sunday, but is God
really looking for “bells and whistles”? I don’t think so. I hope that’s not
why you came last Sunday.
The Sunday after Easter is back to business as usual, but we
believe it’s an important business. This
resurrection we spoke of Sunday is something to be celebrated every week. We
believe that the real power of the resurrection is truly experienced when
church is a habit and not just a holiday.
So, we invite you back – again and again.
We minsters will be back at it this Sunday and every Sunday
of the year. We love what we do. So,
come to church the Sunday after Easter.
We’ll be looking for you!
