Happy Easter!

It's almost 1:00 a.m. and the Easter Bunny a.k.a. me, just finished hiding all the eggs.  My kids are 15, 13 and 11 and they still love looking for eggs, mostly because some of the eggs contain money, but I think they still enjoy the hunt.  And this year I was able to hide some of them outside! Hallelujah for warm weather!  We went to church tonight for Easter and my kids helped me serve coffee.  The best part is they like to do it. 

The church service was great even though I didn't understand why they picked songs that we don't know...again.  I don't remember much of it, but the story Jenna and I both liked was a father who's life was a little rocky with his wife and daughter.  After talking to a friend, he realized he could change the course of their lives by changing their "story". He created a new story where each of them had better roles to play.  He decided as a family they would build an orphanage in Mexico even though they didn't have the money.  His wife, although shocked at first, told him how proud she was of him and their daughter broke up with her scuzzy boyfriend because her new role in helping her family with the orphanage didn't fit with her druggie boyfriend's life.  Just because the father created these new roles, didn't mean his family members would choose to take on the roles as partners with him, but at least they had the option.  In their old "story" there didn't seem to be many options for role playing and the story was only getting worse. 

I guess what our pastor was saying was that Jesus provides us with a better story.  We don't have to take on the roles he creates for us.  I could have remained an alcoholic mom and possibly left my family in search of happiness.  Instead, I chose a better story of sobriety, trusting my husband with my fragile heart, being a hero to my kids and working toward my dream of being a published author.  What I remember at Easter, is that even though I chose the better story, I wouldn't have had the choice at all if Jesus hadn't offered it to me and I think my story has barely just begun.