Life Abundant by Barry Hughes


As I walked the neighborhood late yesterday, hoping to get my miles in before the storm hit, I was struck by how much activity surrounded me. Each block seemed to have at least one house having a family Easter Egg hunt. People dressed up like it was, well, Easter, sitting on porches and watching their children as happy with their few found eggs as they would have been with fifty. Neighbors set up in lawn chairs across driveways from each other enjoying the afternoon and clearly relishing new conversations with new stories. Strollers and bikes and scooters and runners crossing back and forth from one side of the street to the other, thoughtful of others and quick to smile.
One house that I pass each day is home to a little baby and a little toddler. Mom knows me by sight, and we wave and say hello each day. The entire family was sitting in the center of the lawn, surrounded by the discarded remains of looted plastic eggs, candy wrappers, toys and a small child in constant motion. I waved and the parents laughingly said, “It looks like a bomb went off in our yard.” I replied, “No, that’s what Easter is supposed to look like!”
Life. Laughter. Love. Futures full of promise, no matter how many birthdays one has celebrated. Excitement and expectation. Joy. Peace with each other and with God. Even in these times it happens. Even in these times it shines through. Jesus said, “ I have come that they might have life, and life abundant.” He did. And we do. Happy Easter!

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