My Friend lived a sacrificial life.  He defended outcasts and made sure that those who came to Him for help got what they needed.  He traveled far distances to let people know that God was near.  He didn’t always tell people what they wanted to hear, but He told them what they needed to hear, and He always told the truth.  He was compassionate.  He was forgiving.  He spent a lot of time in prayer.  He was a good Friend.  That’s why I feel the need to say that He is Easter.  Although I am an animal lover and appreciate rabbits for the simple fact that they are God’s creatures, they are not Easter.  They are cute.  They are fun.  I myself buy Easter cards with bunnies on them, and I always enjoy receiving those same kinds of cards, but they are not Easter.  Easter is the news that Jesus is still alive.  It is the news that He is in heaven.  It is the news that death could not keep Him in the grave.  It is the news that we can all have life through Him; that we can all approach God the Father through Him.  It is the news that God loves us.  It is this . . .

“Mary was standing outside the tomb crying, and as she wept, she stooped and looked in.  She saw two white-robed angels, one sitting at the head and the other at the foot of the place where the body of Jesus had been lying.  ‘Dear woman, why are you crying?’ the angels asked her.  ‘Because they have taken away my Lord,’ she replied, ‘and I don’t know where they have put him.’  She turned to leave and saw someone standing there.  It was Jesus, but she didn’t recognize him.  ‘Dear woman, why are you crying?’ Jesus asked her.  ‘Who are you looking for?’  She thought he was the gardner.  ‘Sir,’ she said, ‘if you have taken him away, tell me where you have put him, and I will go and get him.’  ‘Mary!’ Jesus said.  She turned to him and cried out, ‘Rabboni!’ (which is Hebrew for ‘Teacher’).”

(John 20:11-16, NLT)