That Easter Day With Joy Was Bright, ELW 384
1 That Easter day with joy was bright;
The sun shone out with fairer light,
When, to their longing eyes restored,
The apostles saw their risen Lord!
Alleluia!
2 O Jesus, king of gentleness,
With constant love our hearts possess;
To you our lips will ever raise
The tribute of our grateful praise.
Alleluia!
3 O Christ, you are the Lord of all
In this our Easter festival,
For you will be our strength and shield
From ev'ry weapon death can wield.
Alleluia!
4 All praise, O risen Lord, we give
To you, once dead, but now alive!
To God the Father equal praise,
And God the Holy Ghost, we raise!
Alleluia!
Devotion
with constant love our hearts possess…
for you will be our strength and shield
from ev’ry weapon death can wield.
I don’t relish the thought of my granddaughter finding out about death. She’s only 15 months old and lives in an innocence that is precious, but full of difficulty ahead. I think of her distress as she sees me getting older and when she has to give us up once my wife and I are gone. I want Jesus to be by her side.
In Easter defiance of death, we sing to Jesus, inviting him to possess our hearts. We invite him to come into our locked rooms, to get past our defenses and to dispel our fears. He is the one who destroys death, our ultimate enemy. No weapon that death can wield will stand up to his strength and strident, protective love. All enemies will melt away; all swords will become implements of harvesting (Isaiah 2:4).
Prayer
Precious Lord, hold me by the hand and lead me home. Amen.