Sue’s Monday Morning Meditation
Easter Monday
04-01-2024
Scripture:
So if you’re serious about living this new resurrection life with Christ, act like it. Pursue the things over which Christ presides. Don’t shuffle along, eyes to the ground, absorbed with the things right in front of you. Look up, and be alert to what is going on around Christ—that’s where the action is. See things from his perspective.
(Colossians 3:1-2)
Comments:
If all went as planned, my husband, Ron, and I spent Easter in Charleston, South Carolina, and today, Easter Monday, we will be preparing to return home soon. Because of our planned getaway, I am writing this post a couple weeks early.
In Orthodox Christian traditions, the Monday following Easter is often called “Renewal Monday.” It is an important extension of the Easter celebration, marking the day Jesus, the Risen Christ, began a new phase of ministry prior to his ascension into Heaven forty days later.
Easter Monday is considered a holiday in many countries. I like the idea of making the day following Easter a holiday, a time to reflect upon the story of Easter, to renew before getting back to the routine of daily life.
Whether or not a holiday is possible, I never want to forget that spiritual renewal does not occur only on a set-apart Monday. Rather, it is a journey, a continuing process of discovering how my perspective as a follower of Jesus is to be walked out within the culture, circumstances, and relationships I am placed.
I hope your Easter was blessed in many ways, and that your spirit feels renewed as you remember Christ’s Resurrection. Thank you for continuing to join me on Mondays and Thursdays as we grow deeper in our quest for spiritual renewal and discovery. I appreciate you and look forward to sharing additional thoughts and photos from our time in the beautiful state of South Carolina.
Prayer:
Lord,
The weeks of Lent leading up to Easter are sobering.
The celebration of Easter Sunday brightens the sadness of difficult days such as Maundy Thursday and Good Friday.
But now it is Monday!
My soul desires to “pursue the things over which Christ presides.”
Where this desire meets and sometimes collides with the realities of everyday life,
Please keep showing me how to “look up and be alert” to what really, truly matters?
Thank you, and Amen
Reflection Question:
On this “Renewal Monday,” what aspect of my life might Jesus be calling me to consider renewal?
Blessings on your meditations this Monday!
