Easter: An Holy Celebration

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I am the Youth Sunday School teacher in my ward, so I have the privilege of teaching the young men and women between the ages of 12 and 18. They are a small group, but they have such wonderful testimonies of the Gospel and of Jesus Christ. They also have many questions as they come to learn more about God's plan for each of them. This morning I shared an Easter lesson that consisted of four short videos with discussions before and after each to help them focus on the purpose of our Easter celebrations. I am going to share all of them here for those who may be interested.

The first video we watched featured words and phrases that we associate with the life and mission of Jesus Christ. I love that this video includes scriptural references that can be used to learn more as we ponder what the Saviour means to us.



The second video we watched focuses on what is possible in our lives because of Him. This was the LDS Church's official Easter video for last year and is still one of my favourite "Mormon Messages" that has been produced.



The third video was the church's Easter message for this year. In traditional Christian liturgy, the forty days between Lent and Easter are days in which the word "hallelujah" is not uttered. However, Latter-day Saints do not follow all of the traditions of the Christian liturgy and so I have been sharing songs and talks about Easter on social media throughout this week, using two hashtags: #hallelujah and #holyweek. (If you go onto Facebook and search either hashtag, you will find my posts mixed with those of others throughout the world. I have not vetted any of the posts from other people, though.)



The final video clip I shared was the testimony of Elder Jeffrey R. Holland regarding the Atonement of Christ. Elder Holland is a man that I believe is an apostle of the Lord, called as a special witness of Jesus Christ. While I treasure the words of all of the men who have served as apostles, I have felt a special connection to the testimony that Elder Holland shares, especially as he has focused his message of compassion.



I believe in Christ. I know that He lives. On this sacred Easter day, this is not a day about candy or even a day about family and friends. It is, above all else, an holy celebration of the Resurrection of Jesus Christ, our Lord and Saviour, who partook of that bitter cup and suffered so that we would not need to if we will accept Him and follow His way.

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