Happy Easter!

On Friday night, my family met with another family from church to share the sedar meal. Although I believe that we are not required to keep the feast days and observe the ceremonies of the Old Testament, I believe that there are great spiritual lessons in them.

One part of the meal involves dipping parsley in salt water and eating it. The kids complained miserably about how bitter it was. What a great opportunity to teach them of the bitter lives of the Israelites in bondage.

On Sabbath we had an Easter service entitled "What's Love Got To Do With It"? I was a participant in a play entitled "But He Says He Love Me". The setting was in a hair salon. My hair stylist, Natasha, was just putting me under the dryer when her next client, Dana, showed up. Dana complained about the traffic being a mess and went on to explain that her controlling boyfriend was getting out of hand. He calls her job all day-so much so that her boss said something about it and he even called her while she was at the hair appointment demanding to know where she was.

Natasha is lovingly "fussing" at Dana for allowing her man to be so controlling and telling her that she need to get him under control. Dana begins to ignore her and realizes that I am reading the "Five Love Languages". She interrupts my reading and asks me about it. She believes that reading this book will help her relationship with her abusive boyfriend. I listen and ask her if she has ever tried counseling. She goes on to say that he believes he doesn't need counseling. I shift the tide of our conversation to get her to focus on her. Explaining to her that she needs to focus on establishing a relationship with Christ. "Dana, no man can ever love you like Jesus" Once you experience what it feels like to be loved by a man who would lay down his life for you, who did lay down His Life for you, having a man who puts his hands on you while claiming to love you won't even be an option... Falling in love with Jesus is the best thing I've ever done."

I talked to her about how love is patient and kind, it build up. It doesn't tear you down.

I mention this play because the ideas of it are real. Every day women are getting into abusive relationship with men who don't love them. I suggest to you today that part of the problem is that the woman themselves do not know what real love looks like.

Falling in love with Jesus is the best way to know what real love looks and feel like. There is no greater demonstration of love than His ultimate sacrifice on the cross.

Thank God that Jesus paid it all!!