![]() Homes: The surrealism of everyday life, a childhood spent in Washington D.C., friends whose children didn’t know where their father’s worked. Hua Hsu: I grew up obsessed with songs that seemed loud and quiet at the same time.Ī.M. Without explaining why and without naming other authors or books, can you discuss the various influences on your book? And as much as it is a story about how we got to where we are politically it is also equally a story about a family, about the power of secrets to disrupt, about coming of age, coming to consciousness and embrace one’s own identity and desire. The Unfolding is an illustration, a cultural road map charting the intersection of dark money and the political establishment having lost touch with the American people. The desire for those in power to hold onto power-at any cost. The message, like Jesus, is ageless.Steve Stern: The kind of outsize vision that displaces everything else in experience, Paris when it was the dead center of the cultural universe, Paris when the Nazis came and the lights went out, fugitive Jews making beautiful and terrible images despite God’s caveat, the romance of self-loathing.Ī.M. I’m sharing this previous post again for Easter. God’s not dead! He is risen! He is risen indeed! Then as you text, e-mail, Twitter, Facebook, or whatever you do daily, and especially on Easter, share your Easter Declaration: “Jesus is risen! He is risen indeed!” Wouldn’t it be fantastic to share a million or more Easter declarations! Beginning today, start an Easter Declaration: “Jesus is risen! He is risen indeed!” Share this blog on Facebook or other social media. What stones are you dealing with? What stones has God already rolled away? Join Me in an Easter DeclarationĪfter Jesus rose from the dead, the early Christ followers greeted each other with the words, “Jesus Is risen!” And the other would respond, “He is risen, indeed!” Keep looking up! “Who will roll the stone away from the entrance of the tomb?“ But when they looked up, they saw that the stone, which was very large, had been rolled away” (Mark 16:2-4 NIV). ![]() There is only One who can roll away your stones and bring joy, new life, and freedom through Christ. The “stones” that imprison us or block our path have no power to destroy us. Jesus’ death and resurrection opened the door to new life. Whether you are looking for a way in or a way out, Jesus says, “I am the way, the truth, and the life” (John 14:6). But remember, it is God who specializes in stone removal. When those barriers disappear, hope emerges from the other side-new life in Christ. There is a huge opening, and maybe you hear a faint divine whisper in your spirit, “I have already rolled the stone away.” Easter Is About Removing StonesĮaster is all about removing stones. You see not stones, but pebbles, not darkness, but daylight. Then you “look up” in faith, and what you see is truly amazing. You speculate, “Who will roll this stone away?” You don’t know where to turn, but you know you want the stone removed. Whatever those stones or circumstances are, your “enemy” has been closing the entrance of your heart and mind, until there is no light remaining. Have you tried to roll away your own stones, only to realize that no amount of heaving or shoving would budge them? The obstacles are not made of stone, but they seem just as massive and powerful-and you feel helpless to remove them. Who moved the stone? The gospel of Matthew answers with “an angel of the Lord.” What About Your Stones? Some sources say the stone, which rolled along a carved-out “track” in front of the tomb could have weighed more than a ton. How could the women anoint Jesus’ body if the stone blocked the entrance? Imagine the women’s shock when they “looked up” and saw that the stone was gone. These women were obviously not strong enough to remove it themselves. “Who will roll away the stone?” they asked one another. I’m sure their hearts were still downcast as grief flooded their spirits. The stone represented a barrier to their goal: to anoint the body of their beloved Master with spices. They expected to see the stone still hiding the tomb, and they needed a way to enter the resting place of their beloved Master. When Mary and the other women approached the tomb after Jesus’ death, they saw an amazing sight. Ones like the massive stone in front of Jesus’ tomb.ĭo you have stones stuck in deep ruts at the entrance of your heart-stones of fear, rebellion, despair, or discouragement? Do they loom so large, you surrender at the thought of even trying to remove them? However, I think our capacity to believe may have to do with stones. Who Will Roll Away Your Stone? Empty Tomb, Image Courtesy of Is God dead? That’s a question that’s been debated not just at Easter or in movies, but throughout history.
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