Living life in an Easter Key

Last updated on: April 22, 2017 at 8:08 am by Billy Kangas

Living life in an Easter Key 2017-04-22T08:08:24-04:00 Billy Kangas

LOGO Patheos Explore the world's faith through different perspectives on religion and spirituality! Patheos has the views of the prevalent religions and spiritualities of the world.

A picture of a spring flower I took this week

The Christian life can be summarized as the living out of the pascal mystery in every part of our lives. It is making the celebration of Easter a lived reality in each day we are given. What this means is that by the Grace of the Father, in Christ and through the Holy Spirit, we commend each element of our existence into God’s hands. It is the setting right of an appetite that has ceased to hunger for God alone. It is a process of living out in action that which was sacramentally given to us in our baptism. We offer God our life in all of its brokenness and God offers us his life in all of its fullness. This progression toward life in an Easter key is what we talk about when we discuss “spirituality.”

The greatest expression of this dynamic life each year is the celebration of Easter itself. At Easter the people of God join in sacramental participation in the death and resurrection of Jesus. On Holy Thursday we go with Jesus to the garden, on Good Friday we meet him at the Cross, and at the vigil we join in exclamation of Joy as we celebrate Christ’s resurrection, trampling death by death. We also experience this every Sunday at mass. These times are sometimes referred to as “little Easters.” However most of our lives we have to live out the Easter reality of the Christian life in the messy particularities of our own lives.

This can be very difficult. I know this is true. I am a father, I run a business, I am a student and on top of that I am called to live life as a mission in deep relationship with God and others. I often feel like I am just too busy for spirituality. I know I am not alone. As I talk to people about their faith I often here people confess that they simply can’t find time to pray. The business of life, work, family, and even ministry can feel like it chokes out any space for God. If this is where you find yourself, I have some good news.

In all of these areas God calls us to offer ourselves to Him and in all of these areas God offers himself to us. Developing a life in an Easter Key does not require you to leave your life but simply to invite God into the living out of your life. God is working to turn you into the person Jesus would be if Jesus were you.

I recently read a great little book that offers some ways on how to do this. It’s called Busy Lives & Restless Souls. It offers The Ignation spirituality in a quick and easy format. In it there is a treasure trove of wisdom. It gleans the very best from the Jesuit reserves and offers it in a way that is easy for busy folks to not only read but to live.

Written by a spiritual director who is also a mother, wife and all around busy person herself the book seeks to help readers understand and explore opportunities for prayer in their lives they may never have experienced before. She rightly sees Jesus himself as a busy person, and points to ways that we can follow him in our own contexts. Here is a great excerpt.

Jesus teaches us many things about God. Jesus also models the way for us to live: rooted in God and living in the reality of this divine-and-human life. To illustrate this, let me use an example I came across years ago in Margaret Silf’s book Companions of Christ. It’s the image of the oil lamp…

…The oil lamp represents us. In each of us, there is a “wick” that runs through us. One end of this wick is immersed in the oil, and the other end of the wick is extended outward, hoping to bring light. We are like this oil lamp in that we can choose to root our lives somewhere—be it God or anyone or anything else. Where we immerse the wick affects what we bring out into the world. This is how most of us live; we attempt to ground our lives somewhere or in someone, and we live in the world, just as Jesus did.

Jesus demonstrates that if we root our lives in God, we can live in the world, bringing light and hope to all we encounter, and we can walk through anything that comes our way. If our oil is God, we never run out of it. Our wick is always fed and fueled and is capable of lighting

But let’s be honest. Sometimes, we pull our wick out of the “oil of God,” and we place it instead in the oil of our work or of our pursuit of money or ambition. Perhaps we center our lives and ground our lives in family or in another person, hoping that that person can continually refuel and provide the oil we need to live in the world. Maybe our other end of the wick can give light for a while, but eventually we realize that our light is flickering and fading and not giving much help to anyone.

And then there are times when were not grounded in anything. Our wick is not immersed in any kind of oil. We feel empty, restless, longing for meaning. Imagine trying to light an oil lamp without any oil. We can try multiple times to light it, but without oil, nothing happens.

Jesus shows us how to keep our oil lamp fueled and lit. Jesus shows us how to live in the world and how to live a life of prayer while tending to our roles and responsibilities. Jesus was not a hermit, focusing his entire day on prayer with God. He was out there in the world, as each of us is. He was in relationships. He was doing his work. He encountered people of all kinds, just as we do each day

If you feel like you need a jumpstart on your own life with God. This book is a great resource to begin the journey with God again. It even has discussion questions at the end of each chapter, making it a great resource for a small group.

What resources have you recently encountered that have helped you live life in an Easter Key. Let me know in the comments below.

Uncategorized

Previous Post

April 13, 2017

Prayers for the Veneration of the Cross

Next Post

April 26, 2017 Aurora lucis rutilat: Reflections on an Ancient Hymn of Easter

Browse Our Archives

Select a Category Art Bible Books CCC Prayer Christmas Current Events Family Film Free Photo Fridays Humor hunger liturgical calendar liturgy Music Photos pope Prayer Prayerful Leader questions Quotes Review Saints Satire Scripture SYNOD SYNOD FOR THE FAMILY teaching Uncategorized video Weekly Round Up

Select a Month October 2026 September 2026 August 2026 July 2026 April 2026 February 2026 December 2025 November 2025 October 2025 September 2025 August 2025 July 2025 June 2025 May 2025 April 2025 February 2025 January 2025 September 2024 June 2024 May 2024 February 2024 December 2023 August 2023 May 2023 February 2023 November 2022 July 2022 June 2022 May 2022 March 2022 May 2021 April 2021 March 2021 February 2021 January 2021 September 2020 April 2020 March 2020 February 2020 January 2020 December 2019 November 2019 October 2019 August 2019 June 2019 May 2019 March 2019 January 2019 December 2018 August 2018 June 2018 April 2018 March 2018 February 2018 December 2017 November 2017 September 2017 August 2017 July 2017 June 2017 April 2017 March 2017 February 2017 December 2016 November 2016 February 2016 January 2016 November 2015 October 2015 August 2015 July 2015 June 2015 May 2015 April 2015 March 2015 February 2015 January 2015 December 2014 November 2014 October 2014 September 2014 August 2014 July 2014 June 2014 May 2014 April 2014 March 2014 February 2014 January 2014 December 2013 November 2013 October 2013 September 2013 August 2013 July 2013 June 2013 May 2013 April 2013 March 2013 February 2013 January 2013 December 2012 November 2012 October 2012 August 2012 July 2012 June 2012 May 2012 April 2012 March 2012 February 2012 January 2012 December 2011 November 2011 October 2011 September 2011 August 2011 July 2011 June 2011 May 2011 April 2011 March 2011 February 2011 January 2011 December 2010 November 2010 October 2010 September 2010 August 2010 July 2010 June 2010 May 2010 April 2010 March 2010 February 2010 January 2010 December 2009 November 2009 October 2009 September 2009 August 2009 July 2009 June 2009 April 2009 March 2009 February 2009 January 2009 October 2008 August 2008 June 2008 May 2008 April 2008 March 2008 February 2008 January 2008 December 2007 November 2007

TAKE THE

Religious Wisdom Quiz

Who said, "Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest"?

Select your answer to see how you score.

Jesus David Moses Paul