April 7: Today’s lesson is based on Matthew 28:1-10, Resurrection. In this story, women are the first to find the empty tomb. They do not come to anoint Jesus‘s body, like in Mark, they come to see the tomb. Some argue. This is because they remember Jesus’ teachings about his resurrection, and wanted to see if God‘s promise had been fulfilled. As the women approach the tomb, there is a great earthquake, and they see an angel roll the stone away, and sit on top of it. The angel tells the women not to be afraid. The angel says that Jesus is not in the tomb. Jesus is alive!  “Go tell the other disciples that Jesus is alive and will meet them in Galilee,” the angel says. In awe and amazement, and maybe fear, the women run to tell the other disciples what the angel had said.  But wait! As the women run down the path, Jesus himself appears to them. They fall to their knees when they see Jesus, and he reiterates what the angel had said: “Go, tell the disciples I will see them in Galilee.” A direct command from Jesus to the women – to remember his resurrection, share the good news with others. We have many ways of remembering Jesus’s resurrection. On Easter, we use symbols like Easter lilies to represent the new life offered through resurrection. Resurrection can remind us that with each new day, there is opportunity to see God‘s goodness, and to share that goodness with others. God continues to give us new life, exemplified in the story of Jesus’s resurrection. We may also shout in worship,“Christ is risen!” to remind ourselves and one another of the many ways God offers us new life through the life of Jesus.