In movies and other entertainment media, artists might hide “Easter eggs” that require a bit of searching to enjoy. Such extras usually include extra content or bonus features, and it can be fun to find them.
In PLANET OF EDEN, I even hid a few Easter eggs within the story that are meant as nods to other books, films, or people who have influenced my imagination. If you think you’ve found any, comment below or make contact and let me know. Eventually, I’ll share some of those “eggs” on this blog.
Just like children hunting for eggs during Easter, I believe adults never lose their hope of finding something good that has been hidden. The possibility that there is still something good “out there” keeps us hopeful and searching. NASA’s current Artemis II mission symbolizes this (Godspeed, Artemis II crew!), as does the mission’s tagline “For all humanity.”
The Easter season, which is being celebrated right now, is the ultimate culmination of all such hope. For in Easter, we indeed find something good that was previously hidden to us: the ultimate hope.
My best illustration of this is found in a previous Easter blog post, which I would like to share with you again because its message is even more needed today than when I first wrote it…
I wanted to take a moment to wish all my readers and fans out there a very Happy Easter! If you’re into the Easter bunny, plastic eggs, pretty baskets, and ham, I wish you a day of enjoyment and rest. For those, like me, who celebrate Easter as Resurrection Sunday, I wish you deep joy in the knowledge that because Jesus defeated death by rising from the grave, you will never truly die. That’s good news, and it’s worth exploring if you have never considered this astounding claim of Christianity.
Is there a life beyond this one? Every living person has asked this question, and make no mistake, every dead person knows the answer for certain. The next question is: Can anyone know for sure? Christians say, “Definitely, yes!” We base that on what Jesus Christ said: “Soon the world will no longer see me, but you will see me. Since I live, you also will live” (John 14:19 in the Bible). And if saying it was not enough, He proved it by rising from the grave after laying down His life for ours (see John 3:16-18). I choose to believe the One who said it—and did it.
For those who believe, the life after this one will be lived in Heaven until God redesigns this planet for us. The last book in the Bible, Revelation, describes how He will create a new Heaven and a new Earth. Until then, our eternal spirits and souls reside in a perfect place called Heaven, and I believe we have some kind of body there (not ghosts).
Where is Heaven? No one really knows. It might be very close. It might be some sort of different dimension—a parallel, spiritual universe if you will. Sometimes, I like to think of Heaven as being somewhere out in the “heavens.” The more we see the vastness of space—the uncountable number of galaxies—the more I wonder if Heaven is somewhere “out there” waiting for us.
Ultimately, Easter gives us all hope. If that’s what you need, I invite you to consider a new perspective. People make fun of Christians a lot nowadays. We’re easy targets because in a world that everyone knows is spinning out of control, we talk about hope…and live it. When things look dark, the ones talking about light seem crazy. That is, until you realize that it is crazier to remain living in the dark when beautiful Light is right there for you. Because He lives, you can live also. Truly.
Happy Easter, dear friends!
