For many years, I spent the week between Palm Sunday and Resurrection Sunday (Easter) with my favorite musicians—Dallas Holm, Sandi Patty, and Don Francisco.  Early in the week, Dallas Holm’s cd, His Last Days, was played continuously. The music took me through the week, with special focus on the night He was betrayed, his trial, death, and resurrection. Who doesn’t remember his greatest musical accomplishment, Rise Again?

That week before Resurrection Day, I pondered the questions posed on the cd—Did I believe in Him? Did I trust His words? Did I understand and have full confidence in His ability to save me? I mourned the treatment of Jesus during that week, and I mourned His death. The musical ended with Rise Again, and my heart swelled with anticipation and joy of what I knew was going to happen early Sunday morning.  Of course, I knew all these events had occurred a couple thousand years ago in real time, but each year these events occurred again in my heart and mind. It was a ritual observed to remain focused on Jesus and what He did for me.

Every Easter morning I bounced out of bed and ran to the windows to watch the sunrise. As was my habit, I grabbed my cd player–already tuned up to the family’s “wake-up song,”–and turned the volume all the way up to Sandi Patty’s, Was It a Morning Like This? It didn’t exactly thrill our children to be awakened so, but they eventually got into the spirit of the day as we celebrated our risen Lord, Jesus Christ. Another resurrection song I played—very loudly—was Don Francisco’s song, He’s Alive. Talk about a celebration!

Life moved forward, and the ritual continued—our churches produced plays about the Easter week; I played Sandi Patty on Easter morning; I sang along to Dallas and Don; and I contemplated what Jesus’ death meant, reinforcing my belief that Jesus was who He said He was, and I could trust Him with all of my life.

What does Easter mean to you? How do you celebrate the week between Palm Sunday and Resurrection morning? It’s a personal journey, folks. I encourage you to give the events of the week more than a passing thought as we celebrate the risen Lord.

Our children are grown and now have their own families. I don’t know what goes on in their homes during these holiest of days for Christians, but our household will begin this Easter Sunday morning with a rousing rendition of our old favorites, and we will celebrate!

He is risen! He is risen, indeed! Hallelujah.

-Claudette Wood

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