Easter Activity

 For most of March I was very busy planning and executing our ward Easter activity. I spent a lot of time pondering and seeking inspiration because originally the bishopric was going to do a fireside after a dinner but I felt there was a better idea out there and it did finally come to me. We did have a nice dinner (I made all the chicken cordon bleu and bought rolls, Erin made ham and then ward members brought the potatoes,

salads and vegetables). Amanda and Jen made a bunch of delicious Bundt cakes (so I heard; my one regret for the evening was I never got any cake!) and the whole dinner went very smoothly with plenty of food and all of it was so good. I also had classical music playing and I feel like that helped it feel fancy in a nice way. Emily made beautiful centerpieces so the tables looked lovely and we put up a lot of pictures of Christ. 

After dinner we had rooms each representing a day of Holy Week that people moved through in small groups. Leisa started us off with Palm Sunday and then Monday was Amy and she talked about the temple. Lily and Adi ran a parables matching game and Chelsea did a cool invisible ink box/positive message activity and a card making station for Wednesday. Gary talked about the Passover for Thursday (which many people told me was wonderful) and Jess did a coloring page and string activity for Friday. Dixie set up a beautiful room with white curtains and tablecloths everywhere and family history items for when Jesus was teaching in the spirit world on Saturday. Then we met up in the chapel for Bishop Wiest to speak about the resurrection. Things went rather smoothly and lots of people mentioned how much they learned or what a good experience they had so my many prayers were answered. It went just how I had envisioned and I hope helped our ward family have a more meaningful Easter celebration. 

It was a huge relief to have it over, especially after spending all afternoon and evening Friday setting up and then cooking all Saturday afternoon. Lots of people helped and I am so grateful for wonderful friends who supported me, even in odd ways. Lana had church table cloths at her house that I needed so even though she was out of town she told me how to get into her house so I could go get them. Such a blessing! We have a great ward with lots of people willing to participate and contribute and I was so grateful for everyone who said yes when I asked them to do something. I am also so thankful for the people who just helped without being asked, like Cody. He helps me clean up after every activity even though I have never asked him to and I feel inspired from his example of willing service. 

The activity was certainly a blessing to me and my family and helped us to have a more thoughtful Easter. I have an awesome family too. They were all so helpful and supportive and kept me from ever getting too anxious or losing perspective. My kids did whatever I asked them to do without complaint and they also kept telling me what a good job I was doing. I am so grateful for that experience alone. I had some nights where I didn’t sleep before the activity because I was so worried about how it would go and hoping I had thought everything through and other tricky situations in my calling but as it got closer I just prayed and prayed and I felt such peace and clarity about what to do. I am so grateful that the Lord supports us when we are serving our brothers and sisters. I also felt really close to my family and so thankful for them; another great blessing to be truly sustained in my calling by those I love most. 

I am also so grateful for Jesus Christ and what he did for me. His suffering and death and resurrection means I can be immortal and hopefully live with God and my family forever. He has given me the gift of hope and peace and comfort because he has experienced everything I ever will. I can repent and be forgiven and hopefully one day worthily stand before God. I love him so much and feel such a depth of gratitude to know we will all be resurrected and death is not the end of family relationships and that this life has meaning and purpose and that I am never alone. My love and understanding and gratitude has deepened these past few months as I have been preparing for Easter and also teaching a mission preparation class. General conference this past weekend was also amazing. I feel spiritually lifted up and that the emotional challenges I have been facing are being healed through the truth, love and doctrine of Christ.