Surprise! (Easter 2013)


Easter Sunday 2013 - Children's Time

How many of you like surprises?   How many of you were surprised earlier today when all the confetti came flying out of the cannon and the air was filled with Alleluias?  Do you know why we did that?  Because today is Easter, and Easter is a story that started out sad but ended with a big surprise!    
 
The sad part is that there were some people who did not like Jesus.  They were really angry with him—so angry that they decided to kill him by hanging him on a cross.

It was a very sad day.  Jesus’ friends took his body off the cross, wrapped it gently in white cloths, and laid it in a cave. A big rock was rolled across the entrance to the cave so that no one could get in.

On Sunday morning, Jesus’ friend Mary came to the cave, but when she arrived the stone had been rolled away.  The tomb was empty!  Jesus’ body was gone!

At first Mary was so sad because she didn’t know what had happened.  She thought that somebody had stolen Jesus’ body.  Then she saw someone in the garden who she thought was the gardener---but, surprise! it was Jesus.  Jesus told her to go and tell his friends what she had seen.  So Mary ran back to tell Jesus’ friends, “Jesus is alive! I saw him!” 

At first no one believed her.  It was hard to imagine how something so sad could turn into such a wonderful surprise.

I have something to show you.  . .