Auto Repair Shop Owner's Daily Dose 28: Easter (Faith)

Easter by Rick White, President 180BIZ

For Christians, today is probably the most important day in our calendar. I believe Christmas celebrates the promise.  It celebrates the gift. But I think on Easter, we celebrate the promise, the hope, the belief that Jesus died on the cross for our sins and for all the time that throughout the year that we could have been suffering through this virus. I think it is so appropriate to have it on Easter week and here's why. Then you can draw so many similarities between what the disciples, what the apostles went through, and what we're going through. In other words, the Jewish people thought the Messiah was coming to liberate them.  The Messiah would bring them out of bondage from the Roman empire.

There was a lot of misunderstanding. So they kept thinking that Jesus was going to overthrow Caesar or at least get him out of Israel. And they were very confused. Now at Palm Sunday, last Sunday, when everybody was saying Hosanna, Hosanna, and they were laying down their cloaks in the palms. That's when they thought, “Holy cow, this is really going to start now.” This is really where Jesus is going to pick it up and take over the Roman government.  Imagine, in basically four short days, from Palm Sunday to Thursday night at the garden Gethsemane when he was betrayed.  They were really getting excited.  And no matter what Jesus said, they couldn't understand. He told them again and again that he was going to die, but then he would rise again in three days.  But they didn't get it.

If you think about it, our economy has been going well. Business has been going well for a lot of people. We were on a wave and we saw this virus over in China and we thought, “Oh, that's a bad thing, but it's happening over there. It's not going to affect us.” We, we kind of lived with our head in the sand, but then suddenly they hit us and the sheer exhaustion and feeling like they were lost. The Bible said the disciples were going to be like a flock of sheep without a shepherd.  We're going to be completely lost and not know what to do. And that is exactly what's happening to us right now.

When you think of the disciples and the despair that they felt when they saw Jesus going up on the cross.  All their hopes and what they thought was going to happen dashed, completely lost, and deflated. Doesn't that describe where we're at right now? They went through Friday, Saturday completely lost. And then when Mary Magdalen came up to the disciples and said, “He has risen. He's gone. He's not in the tomb.” They go and check it out, and then later that day he's with them walking down the path and has dinner with them and he reveals them himself to them. They were overjoyed. They still don't completely understand it until Pentecost, when the Holy Spirit comes over and comes to them and then they get the whole picture.

You know, we're kind of blessed. Once we accept Jesus as our Lord, the Holy Spirit fills us. And it gives us wisdom and understanding. I'm not a preacher. I don't even play one on television. I'm just here sharing what I have found to be true.  The best I've ever heard it was from TD Jakes. He said, “Christianity is simply one beggar telling another beggar where the bread is.” Isn't that amazing? That's what this is all about. This is our day of celebration. This is the day where we know that the father in heaven loves us. God so loved the world, change that to God so loved me. God so loved me that he gave his only begotten son so that whoever believes in him shall live and not perish. John 3:16. This is amazing. It is such a gift.

What I'd like you to do is number one, realize that when you're feeling down, it's just a moment. Realize that you're staring at the weeds. Please look around you. See what there is to be grateful for in your life. You know we don't realize what we're grateful for until we don't have it anymore. I've talked about that before. That's the law of familiarity. We went through a period of time when we lost electricity at our house for a week due to a storm. It took a whole bunch of trees down and everything was terrible. We're on well water. So guess what? No electricity, no water, no toilets. This was in July. It was 98 degrees outside with no air conditioning. That's what this is all about.

Just step back. If you're feeling a little down, step back, and say, "What am I grateful for?" Then the second question is, "Who do I want to be today?" And then the third, "Who can I make a difference with today?" Think of other people. Think about what you can do. Those three questions are going to help you get out of feeling down and depressed and into a much better, healthier mindset. I was talking to somebody and they said, “I can't wait till things go back to the way they were before.”  I thought about that and I said, “You know, I don't want them to go back to the way they were before.” There are so many lessons to come out of this pandemic. There were people that we've taken for granted. There are relationships we take for granted.

There are gifts in our life that we have taken for granted. The next time someone shakes my hand, I'm going to be more present. The next time I get to share a hug, I am going to be more present. I'm going to appreciate it more the next time that I can hang out with my friends and have a beer and joke around and just get together. I will so enjoy that. I don't want to go back to the way it was. I want to recognize that today we are supposed to celebrate the joy, 100% ecstatic joy because Jesus is alive. Jesus has risen. Don't ask for it to go back to the way it was. I want it to be better. There are so many lessons that we have in this.

There are business lessons.  I could name off 10 business lessons right now that I have learned. There are so many lessons to get out of this on a personal level and on a business level. One of my personal lessons is that I'm in control. I am being very, very careful about what I eat and how I work out and the things that I do to get healthier and I'm in control of that and it's slowed down enough that I understand it. This is what it's all about.

I want you just to be beaming with Joy. Do that today. Do that for you. Do that for the guy or the gal. What I want for you is to feel and know the peace that God gives each of us. He doesn't always take us out of things. Sometimes he makes us go through them so that we can become more of what he wants us to be on the other side.  He wants us to be more on the other side. We are on the Potter's wheel and he is making each one of us into something precious. So don't fight it. Learn from it. Become more from it.  Please share the joy.

And then number two, what are the lessons? If you get a couple of minutes, quiet time, what are the lessons? What do you want to be different? What are you going to appreciate more in your life than you had before but took for granted?  And for those of you that have some free time right now that you're not working or you're working less right now, don't stare at the problem. Get better. Don't put all your time and effort into what is put your time into what you will become. Please enjoy the day. Enjoy your family. Enjoy your blessings.

I want to say just a quick prayer if I may.  Heavenly Father, I want to thank you for this day and I want to thank you for the gift of your son. You do love each and every one of us all the time, and the fact that you never pull away from us is amazing. If there's ever any distance between us, it's us pulling away from you. Thank you for the gift of free choice. Thank you for the gift of creation. Lord, please we ask today that you use us to be your angels here on earth and to help others in need. We ask this through your son's mighty name. Amen.

Thank you so much for being here. God bless. Enjoy the day. Take care.