A ‘different’ Easter
Little Wesley Mouse was cosying away in his little hidey hole, snug as a bug. He knew that some people were quite poorly at the moment and couldn’t visit his home – the church. He was safe and well, with enough food and nibbles to keep him going for quite some time. Wesley loved being a church mouse. He loved the company, the music, the stories and so much more. This Easter was going to be different, but Wesley had learnt so much from listening at church and now was the time to remember all the things he had learnt.
As he snuggled down sleepily for his afternoon nap, he smiled contentedly as he recalled what happened last year …
…” It was almost Easter. Wesley didn’t know what Easter was, but his mouse friends in the village had told him about the wonderful chocolate Easter eggs and chocolate bunnies that had been in the shop for weeks.
“Do church people eat chocolate too? “, Wesley wondered. “because it sounds delicious. There’s always food in church so I’m sure to find some somewhere”, he thought hopefully.
(Little did Wesley know, but he wouldn’t be disappointed).
Wesley listened carefully as the story of Easter was explained in Church. He remembered the story of Jesus being born in a stable and that Jesus would grow up to be a kind man and would show how much God loved the world. But how would that happen? Over the next few days Wesley learned more about Jesus.
During His life, Jesus had gone to many towns and villages, teaching the people how to be kind and look after each other. He was always very wise but some important people became jealous of him.
One day, Jesus rode into Jerusalem on a donkey. Oh, how the people cheered him! They waved palm branches in the air and shouted “Hosanna! Hosanna!” They even laid their coats on the floor for the donkey to walk across! The people knew Jesus was special. (This part of the story is told on Palm Sunday).
Wesley learned that in the following days, the religious leaders turned against Jesus and told lies about him. Soon some of the people turned against him too.
One night, Jesus met with his friends and they ate supper together. After the meal, Jesus shared some bread and wine with them. He told his friends that soon he was going to die, but every time in the future they shared bread and wine, they would remember Him and that all people would know how much God loved them.
Jesus was sad. He went to a quiet place to pray to his father God and His Father heard him.
On the Friday, Jesus was taken away and crucified on a cross. It was the darkest and saddest day and yet we call it Good Friday!… “
Wesley remembered how puzzling he found this.
Why would it be called Good Friday if Jesus died? Well, because at that moment God showed how much we are loved. He allowed His only son to die so that we could know Jesus and not have anything to fear. It’s difficult to understand I know, but then something else happened!
“…After Jesus died, his friends wrapped his body in clean linen cloths and laid him in a cool tomb. It was a bit like a cave. They rolled a HUGE stone in front of the entrance so no one could take his body. They were going to bury him in a few days. They went sadly home…”
Wesley had also felt sad at that time. The Jesus that he had heard about had died! Surely that isn’t how it should be? That couldn’t be the end of the story!
But it wasn’t and isn’t the end of the story!
Little Wesley snuggled even further and more securely into his cosy nest as he remembered the joy that was shared in church that next Sunday morning.
“… He’s alive! He has risen! Jesus is alive!” Wesley heard!
The music played. The people sang.
Wesley listened as the story was told about the very first Easter Sunday…
“Three days after Jesus was crucified, a lady called Mary had gone to the tomb where Jesus was laid. The huge stone that covered the entrance was rolled to one side. Jesus’s body was no longer there! He was no longer dead. He was alive!”
In time, Jesus would go to heaven to be with God, his heavenly Father, but for now he was able to meet with his friends and tell them not to be afraid, because He would always look after them…”
Wesley felt a warmth inside his little body as he shared in the good news that Sunday morning. There was joy and laughter as Wesley watched eagerly as children (and a few adults), had an Easter egg hunt in church. Wesley learnt that we eat Easter eggs because they’re like the shape of the stone that was rolled away at the tomb.
Little Wesley smiled as he remembered how one of those little eggs rolled right into his mousehole home and was there, right there, for him to enjoy! Oh, it was amazing!
“Thank you for everything Jesus”, he whispered through his chocolatey whiskers.
Wesley knew that Jesus would always be his friend and would look after him whatever happened. He did feel a bit lonely this Easter because he missed his friends, but he would look out of the window and had the run of the whole church and garden to explore and maybe, just maybe, the Easter bunny might have hidden an egg for him to find!
Happy Easter
Hannah Jackson