The Easter Egg Is Not All It's Cracked Up To Be | Some Easter Eggs & Bunnies Alternatives

We'll be celebrating Easter in a couple of days and you could see signs of this in store displays, on church signs, and even in the preparation of parades in some cities. The kids are excited to be going to the Easter egg hunts that has become a commercial, symbolic part of this holiday in some part of the world, and it seems that's all the kids want to talk about.

This got me thinking, this Easter, what do I want my children to remember about this very important holiday. You see, as Christians, believers in Jesus, Easter is not just any holiday, like Christmas, it is a hallmark holiday in my life. To me it is not about the egg hunts or any other commercialized idea out there. It is about the purposeful journey and sacrifice of my Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ, here on earth.

So, this Easter, my family and I will be spending our time at an Easter Retreat, where we could focus more on the person of our Lord Jesus Christ, his life and purpose here on earth, and the ultimate sacrifice he paid for our sins, the sins of all who believe, and those who will believe.

†♥♥♥†♥♥♥†♥♥♥†♥♥♥†♥♥♥†♥♥♥†♥♥♥†♥♥♥†♥♥♥†♥♥♥†♥♥♥†♥♥♥†♥♥♥†

There are many who are raised in Christian homes that have grown up with the concept and belief that egg hunts and the likes are all part of the Easter holiday. The truth is, the Easter egg hunt has nothing to do with Christianity, neither does it have a place in the story of the Cross. The Easter Bunny and Easter Eggs are pagan traditions that have been somehow incorporated into a holy holiday. This events have sort of clouded and, if I may say, overshadowed the real event of Easter in the minds of kids everywhere.

When christian parents fail to take the time and educated their children on the truth of the Bible, and pass on the values that they grow up with, the result is, we raise children who know nothing about their faith. The real truth becomes a blur in the midst of all the errors, and what is then passed on is a bunch of accepted norms and practices that's often a combination of pagan traditions and fictions.

†♥♥♥†♥♥♥†♥♥♥†♥♥♥†♥♥♥†♥♥♥†♥♥♥†♥♥♥†♥♥♥†♥♥♥†♥♥♥†♥♥♥†♥♥♥†

Our children do listen to us and look to us for guidance, so as parents let us start this Easter by steering them in the right direction. How do we do this? For starter, take the time to explain to, or tell your kids, especially the little ones, The Real Story of Easter.

The Easter Story as I was taught is about a savior, Jesus Christ. This story started when a child was born in a manger through the Virgin Mary. This holy child was born for a purpose, and that was to save his people from their sins.

Tell your children of Jesus's life here on earth. Tell of His teachings, His message of hope, and how he had to die on the cross for our sin. Then, tell them of the greatest news of all, that He rose from the dead and lives forever so that we (you and I, including our children) might have life, and have it more abundantly. Nowhere in this story does it make any mention of eggs and bunnies.

†♥♥♥†♥♥♥†♥♥♥†♥♥♥†♥♥♥†♥♥♥†♥♥♥†♥♥♥†♥♥♥†♥♥♥†♥♥♥†♥♥♥†♥♥♥†

As a parent, you may be wondering, since your kids are already used to the Egg Hunts and Easter Bunnies tradition. How can I take that away from them?

Well, for the little ones, not having the usual tradition of the egg hunts and Easter bunnies may be a little difficult to comprehend. So, do not eliminated the Easter gift bags all together. What you can do is to use it to further point them towards understanding the True Story of Easter by doing the followings:

• Replace the eggs with goody bags - Hide the goody bags around the house and do a treasure hunt to reveal the bags.
• Use scriptural candies in bags instead of jelly beans. Most scriptural candies are mints and contains less sugar than the regular candies, so they are not bad for your kids.
• Stuff bags with Bible Story Books that are easy to understand for kids. This create an opportunity to tell your kids the real story of the Easter holiday. Choose books with good pictorial and biblical illustrations.
• Stuff bags with Scriptural DVDs or CDs, such as, sing-along. There's so much to choose from that you'll find that your kids will get the picture in no time. Just visit your local christian bookstore or online stores for numerous biblical literatures, videos and sing-alongs on the Easter story.
• Stuff bags with little boys and girls bracelets. You can always get those with scriptural texts, like Jesus Loves Me, He's Alive, or I love Jesus.

Church administrators can also adopt the above into their Easter events. Plus:

• Organize a movie day instead of an egg-hunt day.
• Give out Easter Goody Bags instead of egg baskets.
• Rename your Easter Theme - Something like, "Finding Treasures on Golgotha", instead of Easter Egg Hunt
• Organize parades that emphasizes the Cross, not the Eggs.

Little changes like this will go a long way to steer our future generation of believers and leaders in the right direction. We may not be able to fully eradicate or right the wrong in the whole world, but we can do the best in our little corners.

Not Just Easter, Even For Halloween

These same ideas can be applied to replace the celebration of fall festivals that promotes wearing scary costumes on haloween. Organize kids-friendly, biblical themes that promote Christ, and not crisis. As believers in Christ, we are called to be the salt of the world, not to embrace the filth of the world.

†♥♥♥†♥♥♥†♥♥♥†♥♥♥†♥♥♥†♥♥♥†♥♥♥†♥♥♥†♥♥♥†♥♥♥†♥♥♥†♥♥♥†♥♥♥†

Do you love to write? Do you have a passion for sharing with others what you know? You can do that by signing up right here on hubpages. And guess what? You'll make some money doing it too. Writing, that is.

Author: Comfort Babatola - © 2013