When Easter Makes Sense

Getting older has an upside. It's called Wisdom! When I was a child and even a young adult, I didn't truly "get" Easter. I knew Jesus died on a cross even though he wasn't guilty of anything, and I knew he rose from the dead on the third day. I believed he did it for us because of his great love, yet the full meaning of what it was really about escaped me.

Now that I'm old and wise (heh heh), I get it. But I didn't acquire this understanding just by celebrating birthdays. It came from reading the Bible. Sounds simple, and yet it wasn't until I was in my thirties that I truly became a student of the Word. Imagine my utter amazement when I discovered that reading the Bible from cover to cover--from Genesis 1:1 to Revelation 22:21--makes things soooo much clearer than picking and choosing verses and books to read. The Bible truly is a story, and as a writer of fiction, that really speaks to me. I wouldn't pick up a novel and start reading from the middle or flip to this page or that page. I'd read it from Chapter One, page one, and continue on until I reached the end.

Don't get me wrong. I am NOT saying the Bible is fiction. Far from it! But it IS God's story. A story that has a beginning, a middle, and an end. And when you read this amazing story, you can't help but see the order--the plan--that was in place from the very first four words:

"In the beginning GOD..." Genesis 1:1

The word for GOD used here is Elohim. It's plural. Why? Because God the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit were all present at the creation. When God made man, he said, "Let us make man in our image, in our likeness..." Genesis 1:26

John 1:1-3 says, "In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. He was with God in the beginning. Through him all things were made; without him nothing was made that has been made. In him was life, and that life was the light of men."

When Jesus left heaven to come to earth, he knew it was temporary. He knew he'd only live a mere thirty-three years before he would die a horrific death on a cross, yet he came willingly. He lived in relative obscurity the first thirty years of his life, earning a living with his hands, and obeying the Laws of God. Yet he had a far greater purpose. When John the Baptist saw him, he spoke truth and prophecy about Jesus: "Look, the Lamb of God, who takes away the sin of the world." John 1:29

Those words came true when Jesus was crucified. He was nailed to the cross at 9:00 AM, the time of the Jewish morning sacrifice. He committed his spirit into the the hands of God the Father at 3:00 PM, the time of the Jewish evening sacrifice. When he spoke, "It is finished," (John 20:30) he became THE sacrificial Lamb for all humanity. He bore all our sins--every single one that I've committed, and that you've committed, and that every person who ever lived committed!--offering us reconciliation with God in a way that had never happened before. And God himself acknowledged this new relationship, this new covenant, by tearing the veil--a huge, thick curtain in the temple that separated the Holy of Holies, the place where he dwelt, from the rest of the temple--making it possible for us to approach him, to know him, as very few had experienced up until this point.

My prayer for you on this Easter Sunday is that you will know the truth of the cross and the empty tomb, and that the truth will set you free! Free from sin, free from shame, free to live with hope and joy, free to forgive and be forgiven, free to give and receive, free to die in the knowledge that Jesus has prepared a new home for you where you will dwell in God's presence for all eternity. 

That, my friend, is Easter. 

May you and yours have a blessed day celebrating all that Jesus is!!

HE IS RISEN! HE IS RISEN INDEED!

~Michelle

He's Alive!!

HE IS RISEN! HE IS RISEN INDEED!

Are Stones Doing Your Job?

We have a lot of rocks here on the ranch. Especially up at the top of the hills. Don't ask me what kind, because I don't know. The hard kind, I would say. Maybe some limestone. Maybe not. All I know is there are acres and acres of them, making it difficult to walk up there. Even the ATV has to work to get over and around them when we go out on our daily search for the sheep.

My mom loved collecting rocks. I still remember a certain camping trip to Colorado where she and my sister hiked up a mountain to see the view, only to come back down lugging a huge rock that Mom just had to have. When Mom passed away last May and I knew we would sell the family home, I brought some of her rocks home with me to put in my yard. They make me smile and think of her, but for the most part rocks simply don't interest me.

But yesterday I gained a whole new appreciation for them.

Palm Sunday reminds us of the day Jesus entered Jerusalem. He came riding on a donkey, surrounded by crowds shouting, "Hosanna!" They thought their new king had arrived. A king who would rescue them from the oppressive Romans. Reading Luke 19:38, you get a feel for what their mindset was that day:

"Blessed is the king who comes in the name of the Lord!"

They'd seen Jesus do some amazing things so far. He'd healed the lame, the blind, the deaf. He'd raised Lazarus from the dead. There wasn't anything that Jesus couldn't do. Surely he now came to kick the Romans out of town and take his rightful place on the throne. 

Of course we know that was never Jesus's intention. He did come to save the lost, but not the way they thought. And aren't we who weren't even born yet thankful? If Jesus's only mission two-thousand years ago had been to remove the Romans, we would have no hope and no future with God. 

But not everyone was happy about Jesus coming to Jerusalem. The Pharisees in particular. These party-poopers grumbled and mumbled and complained while everyone else is shouting and singing and dancing. Can't you just picture them? Dressed in their fine robes, standing off from the "regular" folks, with scowling, dark faces. 

I've seen "Pharisees" like this. People who don't "get" Jesus or his followers. They don't understand what the big deal is. They laugh at and criticize believers's faith. They deny Jesus's very existence. Some of them even go to battle against Christians and Christianity. They may not be the religious leaders of biblical times, but they are cut from the same pattern.

The Pharisees watching Jesus ride into Jerusalem didn't get Jesus. They didn't see him as a Savior. They saw him as a troublemaker. Anyone who could gather crowds that large and that noisy had to be trouble. It was obvious to them they had to stop things before it got out of control. Their control. 

"Teacher," they said to Jesus, "rebuke your disciples!" (v. 39)

In other words, tell the crowd to shut up! Tell them to stop acting like Jesus is someone worthy of being praised. Stop lifting your hands to heaven. Stop singing and shouting. Stop waving the palm branches. Go home and be quiet. Keep your religion to yourselves. 

Sounds a little like today's world, doesn't it?

But Jesus IS worthy of being praised! He IS worthy of singing and shouting and palm branch waving. He IS worthy of people crowding around to see him and hear his voice. Because he IS God! And if the people didn't shout his praises, something else would.

"I tell you," Jesus replied, "if they keep quiet, the stones will cry out." (v. 40)

Let that sink in for a minute. Cold, hard, lifeless, bothersome rocks will cry out praises to God if we keep silent. The rocks here on the ranch. Mom's collection of rocks. Rocks all over the world. They will step in and do our job if we don't. 

Jesus lived. He died. And He lives again. All because of His great love for you and me. He is more than worthy of our praise! So lift those hands! Shout that blessed name! Tell the world the Good News that Jesus saves!

Let's not let the rocks have all the fun. 

Have a Blessed Easter as we celebrate our Risen Lord! 

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This week's Prayer Shout-Out countries are:

USA, Canada, Poland, Spain, Philippines 

The "Good" in Friday

Good Friday.

It's a bit of an oxymoron. As a kid, I always wondered why we call the day Jesus was crucified "good." "Black Friday" or "Sad Friday" seemed more appropriate.

I understand it now.

Jesus suffered a brutal death on Friday. That isn't the good part. I am ashamed and broken when I think about him being mocked, beaten, spit upon, kicked, wounded by a thorny crown, and finally nailed to a cross to die an excruciatingly horrific death. Because of me. Because of you. Because of our sin. There is nothing good found in any of that. There is nothing good in knowing that each of us played a part in his death, even though we weren't there. There is a song out that says, "I am the thorn in your crown. I am the nail in your hand. I am Judas' kiss." Oh, how my heart aches to know the truth in those words.

Yet why do we call today Good Friday?

Because the good is found in his great love for you and me!

The good is found in his willingness to die for our sins!

The good is found in knowing we can have life eternal because of his death!

The good is yours for the asking! A free gift! Given to you by your Father in heaven.

Today is Good Friday!

And it truly is!

If you don't know Jesus as your Savior and Lord, today is the perfect day to meet Him! He loves you so very, very much. Read through the Gospel of John if you aren't sure who Jesus is or what He's all about. I'd love to share the Good News with you, too, so feel free to send me an email at MichelleShocklee@MichelleShocklee dot com.

Sunday is coming, folks! Hallelujah!

Have a blessed Easter!

~Michelle

Easter on the Hill

Christ is risen!

He is risen INDEED!

What an awesome day it's been! While waking up to an alarm at 5:00 AM is not normally my idea of how a great day starts, I was more than willing to do so today! Hubby and I arrived at Celebration Church, Georgetown, Texas in the dark, with a big moon lightly shrouded in clouds hanging overhead, wearing our bright red Volunteer T-shirts. There were already dozens and dozens of red-shirted volunteers there with more on the way. (A total of 1,200 volunteers!) After checking in and receiving our badges, we grabbed our lawn chairs and cooler with water and Gatorade (which seemed appropriate considering the guest speaker!) and made our way to the top of the hill.

(Pictured: the stage and seating area on the "hill" behind our current facility. It is the highest point in Williamson County, with a 360 degree view including Austin to the south and Georgetown to the north. One day in the not-too-distant-future our new sanctuary and other buildings will be here!)

There was more seating behind the camera with 2 huge jumbo screens

By 7:30 AM buses began rolling in bringing folks from the off-site parking locations even though the service wouldn't actually start until 10:00 AM. Families, couples, young people, old(er) people. Black, white, brown. Rich, poor, middle class. The exact kind of crowd we'll find in heaven. All with different backgrounds, heritages, lifestyles, yet all with the same need of a Savior.

A birds-eye view!

Bus after bus after bus. By the start of the service there were 19,000+ people ready to praise God with awesome music, a great message from Pastor Joe Champion, and hear an inspiring message from NFL quarterback Tim Tebow! It was awesome to hear this young man share how much he loves Jesus Christ! Although he was raised in a Christian home, like each of us Tim had to come to a point in his life where he asked Jesus to be Lord of his heart and soul. Now God has given him an amazing world-wide platform to share the Gospel and the Truth about Jesus Christ! When speaking to those in the crowd who didn't know Jesus as their Savior, he reminded us all that Jesus said if we were ashamed of him, then he would be ashamed of us when he returns in his glory. (Mark 8:38) Powerful words!

Now that the day is winding down, reports are filling up Twitter and Facebook of people turning their lives over to the Lord. Over 1,000 people stood at the end of the service to receive Jesus as their Lord and Savior! Hubby and I were part of the team handing out cards so these new Christians could be contacted to help them with the "Next Step" in their walk with Jesus. Hundreds came forward to pray with prayer partners and elders. A mother and her two teenage daughters drove all the way from Indianapolis -- a 17-hour drive. The reward for this faithful mother: both daughters accepted Christ as their Savior! Another person told how their parents drove in from out-of-town and ended up giving their lives to Jesus! And those are just a few of the many, many stories of lives being changed forever at Easter on the Hill!

All in all, it was an amazing day! It was such a privilege to be part of it. It is such a privilege to be counted among those who claim Jesus Christ as our Lord! It is because of Him we have life everlasting!

Praise His Holy Name!!

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Click on this news link for a great slideshow of the day!

With You Always!

Tomorrow is Easter! Our church, Celebration Church of Georgetown, Texas is preparing for an amazing day celebrating our Risen Lord, Jesus Christ!! We're expecting thousands and thousands of people to join us. Our special guest speaker is NFL Quarterback Tim Tebow who will share his testimony, his faith and his hope in Jesus Christ. It's going to be a powerful time on the Hill tomorrow!! I can't wait to be part of it!

Today, however, I can't help but think about the reality of Easter and what took place on a hill called Golgotha. Two-thousand-plus-years ago Jesus hung on a cross on my behalf. He took my sins upon himself and was willingly brutalized and finally murdered. Why? Because of his great, amazing love for me! For the world! It is a love that I honestly can't fully understand but am so very, very grateful for! It was all part of a great plan. A plan that allows you and me and anyone who will believe access to God! Eternity with God! Truly, truly amazing grace!

We have a couple of really large nails sitting on our mantle. One is mine and one is hubby's. They were given to us at a one-day seminar our church offers several times a year called "Encounter." It's a day filled with learning, prayer and going deeper in our walk with Jesus. During one of the prayer sessions, each person is encouraged to write out something they've been carrying around with them -- whether it's a sin or a shame or whatever -- and then place the paper in water where it dissolves away to nothing. Afterward you're given a nail to remind you that you nailed that issue to the cross and, like the paper, it's gone.

Thinking of how Jesus was nailed to the cross for my sins, I took one of those nails the other day and  pressed the point firmly into my hand. It hurt! Tears flooded my eyes thinking of the pain Jesus bore that day for me. For you. He'd told his disciples it would happen, yet they didn't understand. I have the benefit of having been raised to know the Easter story from the time I was a child, so I do understand it. And the older I get, the more the truth of it touches my very soul.

Tomorrow is not about bunnies or eggs or even Tim Tebow. It's about Jesus Christ! He lived. He died. And He lives again! He did not stay dead in the grave nor was his dead body stolen away to make it look like he'd been resurrected. Jesus is alive! And he made us a promise I will leave with you. A promise filled with love and hope!

"And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age." ~JESUS in Matthew 28:20

God bless each of you. He is Risen! He is risen INDEED!

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This week's Prayer Shout Out countries are:
USA, United Kingdom, Sweden, China, Poland, Russia, Philippines, South Africa, India

He Went to Jerusalem With Purpose

Have you ever felt like you were in the wrong place at the wrong time? You know, when something bad happens because you made certain decisions or took a certain path you wouldn't normally take? A few years ago I received a speeding ticket -- the first one of my adult life -- for going 45 mph on a 35 mph road. The road was unfamiliar to me. I had taken it to avoid a traffic jam on the main road. That decision cost me $50 and eight hours of Defensive Driving to keep the ticket off my record. I'm sure many of you have stories of accidents or other negative events that took place simply because you were in the wrong place at the wrong time.

One would think an innocent man who was arrested, beaten, flogged, spit on, lied about, and finally brutally murdered would feel he was in the wrong place at the wrong time. Jesus was completely innocent of the charges made against him, and yet he was hunted down by a mob and was even betrayed by one of his friends. Knowing how much the Pharisee's and the Jewish leaders despised him, wouldn't it have been best to just lay low somewhere out in the countryside and wait until things simmered down? That's what most of us would do. 

Thankfully, Jesus isn't like most of us.

"Now as Jesus was going up to Jerusalem, he took the twelve disciples aside and said to them, 'We are going up to Jerusalem, and the Son of Man will be betrayed to the chief priests and the teachers of the law. They will condemn him to death and will turn him over to the Gentiles to be mocked and flogged and crucified. On the third day he will be raised to life!'" (Matthew 20:17-19)

Those verses make one thing crystal clear: Jesus went to Jerusalem with purpose! He knew what would happen when he entered the city. He knew who would betray him. He knew the physical torture he would endure. He knew he would die a horrific death on a cross. 

But Jesus went to Jerusalem anyway! He wasn't just in the wrong place at the wrong time! 

He wasn't surprised when Judas slunk off to betray him for thirty pieces of silver. He wasn't shocked when Peter denied him or when the other disciples were no where to be found. Jesus already knew Pilate would release Barabbas to the angry crowd, and he knew his human life would end in what has to be one of the most excruciatingly painful ways imaginable.  

Why would an innocent man do this?! Why would he put himself through an ordeal every single one of us would avoid at all costs if we could?

"For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life. (John 3:16)

Jesus went to Jerusalem with Purpose. He went for you and for me. He went so we could experience life eternal and free us from the bondage of sin and death. 

That, my friend, is Amazing Grace!

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This week's Prayer Shout-Out countries are:

USA, Ukraine, Germany, France, United Kingdom, South Africa, Indonesia, Russia, Israel, China, Slovenia

Tim Tebow is coming to Georgetown!

I think my jaw hit the floor last Sunday morning when our pastor announced that Tim Tebow will be our guest speaker Easter Sunday! Our pastor, Joe Champion of Celebration Church, Georgetown, Texas is quite the jokester, so it took me a few seconds of "Is he kidding? Surely he's kidding! NO! He isn't kidding!" before I practically squealed right there in church!

TIM TEBOW IS COMING TO MY CHURCH ON EASTER SUNDAY!!! WHOOP!!!

Now that I've had a few days to process the excitement, I thought I'd share some thoughts about it all. Already I've read negative comments about Tim, Celebration Church, and Tim's coming on Easter. "I've had enough of this show-boat," one man wrote on a local news station's Facebook page. A woman wrote, "I'd rather attend a church where the focus is the risen Lord and not a quarterback." Some question Celebration Church's motives, hinting that money and numbers are the goal. On and on. People choosing to be Negative Nanny's, as I like to say.

But let's get a few things straight!

Celebration Church is NOT bringing in Tim Tebow to replace Jesus!! Tim, like the rest of us, will be celebrating and worshipping the Risen Lord, not trying to outdo or outshine the amazing reason for Easter, which is JESUS!! Jesus rose from the dead all those many Easter Sunday's ago. Nothing and no one---I don't care how famous!---could ever be bigger than Jesus on Easter! Not even the Easter Bunny, although some merchandisers are trying their best to make him as big as Santa Claus at Christmas.

But there is simply no denying the fact that Tim Tebow has been given a huge, world-wide platform through football. I would venture to say that Tim is probably the most talked about Christian in the world at this particular moment in time. After the Denver Broncos won against the Steelers in a spectacularly dramatic overtime (says the Denver Broncos fan with a grin!) people all around the world were talking about Tim Tebow. Millions across the globe did Internet searches for John 3:16 and Tim Tebow.

So who better to come to our church on Easter Sunday morning to help us spread the Good News about Jesus Christ?! We are expecting between 20,000 and 50,000 people!! Which is totally mind-boggling yet incredibly thrilling all at the same time! How many of those people might never go to church, even on Easter, but will come anyway just to hear Tim Tebow? A lot, I imagine. How many will hear this godly young man share about Faith and come into a relationship with Jesus Christ for the first time? A lot, I pray!

One negative commenter said Tim Tebow should stick to playing football and leave the preaching to the preachers. Wow! Do you really want to put people in a small, confining box like that?! Think about it. What would have happened if these people had never stepped out of the neat little box the world put them in?

• Jesus was a carpenter.
• Peter and John were fishermen.
• Matthew was a tax collector.
• Paul was a Pharisee. 
• David was a shepherd.

In Matthew 28:19 Jesus told all of us to "go and make disciples of all nations." That command isn't just for preachers. Football is the catalyst that propelled Tim Tebow into the international spotlight, but football doesn't have to be the only thing Tim is allowed to care about. The only thing he's allowed to talk about. Like the rest of us, Tim has been given more than one gift, more than one passion, more than one interest. He is running a race just like you and me. A race that was planned in advance for him to run!

"Therefore, since we are surrounded by such a great cloud of witnesses, let us throw off everything that hinders and the sin that so easily entangles, and let us run with perseverance the race marked out for us. Let us fix our eyes on Jesus, the author and perfecter of our faith, who for the joy set before him endured the cross, scorning its shame, and sat down at the right hand of the throne of God." Hebrews 12:1-2

If you are interested in coming to celebrate Easter with us and Tim Tebow, go to www.EasterontheHill.com for all the details (parking, time, what to bring, what not to bring, etc). It's going to be an amazing, Jesus-blessed day!!

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This week's Prayer Shout-Out countries are:

USA, United Kingdom, India, Ecuador, Venezuela, Belgium, Netherlands, Germany, Russia

The Last Supper...

Today is the day the Last Supper would have taken place. The Thursday before Jesus was crucified on the cross for your sins and mine. The Passover meal, or the Feast of Unleavened Bread, was shared in an upper room that was surprisingly ready for Jesus and his disciples, even though they hadn't made reservations or hired a caterer or anything. All was planned ahead of time by God.

One person I keep thinking about is Judas. My gut tells me Judas simply did not get who Jesus was, otherwise there is no way he could have betrayed him. At least not in my mind, anyway. I do realize that Satan entered Judas at some point that night (one of only two times we read of Satan himself actually entering a person; the other is the Anti-Christ in Revelation). I realize Judas' heart did not fully belong to the Lord. I realize God, and therefore Jesus, knew what Judas would do long before the deed was done. I understand it all had to take place as prophesied.

But Judas......Why?! Why did you do it? Why did you sell your soul for thirty pieces of silver? A fortune in those days, perhaps, but certainly not worth betraying the Lord of lords and King of kings, thereby losing all hope of spending eternity in paradise. Instead you died in shame. Jesus himself said it would be better if you'd never been born.

I believe Judas had a choice, just like you and I have a choice. I believe God gave Judas the same opportunity to do the right thing that He gives us today, but Judas chose not to.

How many people today are making the same choice Judas made? How many people are choosing to live in sin, when they know it's wrong? How many people deny who Jesus is, when the longing deep in their heart tells them the truth?

May the Hope and the Truth of Easter be yours.

He is Risen!!

He is risen!! Christ is risen, indeed!!

On this Easter Sunday, I want to make one thing abundantly clear:

JESUS CHRIST, who was crucified for our sins, died and was buried, ROSE FROM THE DEAD AND IS ALIVE TODAY!

There are some religions that claim he rose only in spirit. That is FALSE! They claim his body magically disappeared and will reappear sometime later. That is FALSE! Some claim his body was stolen from the grave. That is FALSE!

Read an eyewitness account and believe!

"A week later [Jesus'] disciples were in the house again, and Thomas was with them. Though the doors were locked, Jesus came and stood among them and said, "Peace be with you!" Then he said to Thomas, "Put your finger here; see my hands. Reach out your hand and put it into my side. Stop doubting and believe!" Thomas said to him, "My Lord and my God!" Then Jesus told him, "Because you have seen me, you have believed; blessed are those who have not seen and yet have believed." (John 20:26-29)

Thomas saw Jesus! A living Jesus! He touched the place where the nails held him to the cross. A spirit would not have nail holes! A dead, stolen body would not be visible.

"Blessed are those who have not seen and yet have believed."

Do you believe?

He is Risen!!!!!!!!!!!!

Christ is risen! He is risen, indeed!!

Those words were on my heart this morning as I awoke to a cloudy, wet Easter Sunday morning. My Lord and my Savior, Jesus Christ, who was tortured and crucified, laid in a tomb, is alive!! Death could not keep Jesus in the grave! Death had no power over him!!

The Truth of today means I don't have to be afraid of death, as I said in a post a few days ago. It means nothing, not even death, has power over Jesus, and therefore has no power over me!

Friday's events--the crucifixion--means I don't have to allow sin to ruin my life. I can come clean, so to speak. Jesus willingly took my sin on his shoulders so that I might be free indeed!

Saturday's events--the sorrow and despair of the disciples--is what we feel when we don't understand all that Jesus accomplished on the cross.

But Sunday!!

Joy comes on Sunday!! Jesus is alive! As the angel told the women in Matthew 28:6: "He is not here; he has risen, just as he said."

Believe!!

The Saturday after the Crucifixion...

I woke up thinking about the disciples and followers of Jesus today. Oh, the grief and despair they must have awakened with on the Saturday after Jesus, their leader and Lord, was crucified. I've suffered loss, but I don't think I can quite imagine how the Eleven and others must have felt the day after watching Jesus suffer torture and then be killed in the most horrific manner.

They also had other emotions going on besides grief. Many of them probably felt guilty for deserting Jesus in the garden. Poor, dear Peter was no doubt beside himself with regret. Mark 14:72 tells us he "broke down and wept" after the rooster crowed and he'd denied knowing Jesus three times. Others in the group were no less guilty though. They all ran away. I don't see any of them standing up for Jesus while Pilate and the High Priest questioned him.

Fear was something else they were dealing with the Saturday after Jesus died. Could they be next? What if the Sanhedrin and chief priests decided to go after everyone who was associated with Jesus? John 20:19 tells us about their fears: "On the evening of that first day of the week, when the disciples were together, with the doors locked for fear of the Jews, Jesus came and stood among them and said, "Peace be with you."

But you and I know something the disciples and others didn't realize that day. At least not to the full extent that you and I know now:

JOY COMES IN THE MORNING!!

Simon's Unexpected Encounter with God...

I positively LOVE IT when I go to church and come away with a brand new thought or insight!! Today's message was about Simon. Simon is the dude whom the guards forced to carry Jesus' cross. Mark 15:21 says, "A certain man from Cyrene, Simon, the father of Alexander and Rufus, was passing by on the way in from the country, and they forced him to carry the cross."

I guess I hadn't really paid a lot of attention to the verses about Simon. Sure, I knew the Roman guards grabbed a guy off the streets and made him carry the cross, most likely because Jesus' body and strength was failing from the beatings he had endured. But I guess I'd always just assumed Simon was part of the crowd watching the whole event. I assumed he was one of the many people who came to Jerusalem for Passover.

But the way Mark tells the account, Simon had basically just arrived in town from the country. He probably didn't have a clue what was going on. It doesn't appear that he was there for Passover, since the Feast of Unleavened Bread had already taken place. It appears, at least in my mind, that Simon just happened to be there at that particular moment in time. Just a coincidence? Hmm.

So, since Simon was simply minding his own business and going about his life, do you think he expected to have a major encounter with God??

I seriously doubt it!

Do you think Simon's life was changed by this event?

I seriously think so! How could he not be changed! I imagine he carried that cross to Golgotha and stuck around to see what would happen next. He probably wondered, "Who is this Jesus? And what's up with all these people, some shouting and some crying?" He, like most everyone who witnessed the event, was probably more than a little frightened when the sky went dark and the earth shook to the point of breaking rocks (Matthew 27:51).

We don't hear about Simon anymore, but one of his son's may have become a leader in the Church. Paul writes in Romans 16:13, "Greet Rufus, chosen in the Lord, and his mother, who has been a mother to me, too." If this is in fact the same Rufus whose father was Simon of Cyrene who carried Jesus' cross, then you can well imagine how great Simon's life was affected by the Crucifixion and Resurrection of Jesus Christ!! His wife, Rufus' mother, became a mother-figure to Paul!

Ya still think Simon's role in this whole "Passion Play" could have just been a coincidence? I sure don't!

You simply can't know when you're going to have a life-changing encounter with God!! And we all need one, that's for certain! Our eternal hope depends on it!