Resurrection Eggs, that is.
The hub-bub surrounding Easter isn't quite as chaotic as that of Christmas, but it is still easy to lose the meaning of the holiday amidst all the other stuff. You know -- Easter dinner, chocolate, eggs, the bunny...
And for those of us trying to serve healthier fare on holidays, just trying to figure out what to serve can cause enough of a distraction from what we ought to be focusing on.
Today I am being forced to slow down because there is a bug in our house. Seems like a flu or something, but it really has me down today. I still would like to make some Chocolate/Carob Coconut Nests or another treat for my kids, but that will happen only if I am feeling more chipper between tomorrow and Sunday.
Regardless, I'd like to encourage you to also take a step back before Sunday and think about what Easter is all about and then try to celebrate the true meaning with your family.
One of our favorite ways to do this is with Resurrection Eggs. We purchased our set years ago when Family Life first came out with them. Some of the eggs have cracked over the years and we have had to replace them with similar colors, but the eggs continue to serve their purpose. And though they may seem simple and cute, the story packs a real punch. We have used the eggs both for our own family celebration as well as in Sunday Schools, and for evangelistic outreaches.
Resurrection Eggs are a set of twelve plastic Easter eggs that each have something inside that represents a part of the Easter story. For example, inside the eggs, there is:
- a small donkey (from the triumphal entry), and
- a die (for the casting of lots for Jesus' clothing) and
- cloth (the burial cloth)
- The final egg is empty to represent the empty tomb. (This one is the most fun to open as you get to watch the kiddos try to figure out why there is nothing inside :-)!)
There is also a sweet book called Benjamin's Box that compliments the Resurrection Eggs. My boys, in fact, are sitting by my side reading it as I write.
Here is one step by step easy was to use the eggs:
1. Label the Resurrection Eggs in numerical order (1-12) with permanent marker.
2. Fill some (clean) plastic eggs with trinkets or healthy treats (dried fruit, coins, super balls, tops, "healthy" candy, etc.).
3. Hide all eggs (Resurrection and trinket-filled) either inside or out. Instruct children (and adults :-)) not to open eggs until later. Make sure to make a list of where the numbered eggs are hidden :-).
4. Have everyone hunt for eggs.
5. Have everyone gather together after all eggs have been found
6. Have an adult call out to find which child has found egg #1. Have the child open his egg and show the group what is inside. Ask the group what that item represents and then proceed to expand upon that part of the Easter story. Continue through the twelfth egg. For ease of teaching, the Resurrection Eggs set comes with a narration that you can use on its own or to augment your teaching.
7. Once the meaning behind the contents in the 12 eggs has been shared, everyone can enjoy the contents of the rest of their eggs.
Even if you don't have your own set of eggs this year, it is still a great thing to buy and use even after Easter has passed. Celebrating the wonder of Easter is surely something that we can do even after the specific day has passed. Kind of like my philosophy of Slowing Down for Christmas. Don't let everything just speed by. Savor the miracle and make some real memories with your loved ones.
How do you celebrate the true meaning of Easter?
I also love showing the real Story of Jesus for Children...this is the Jesus Film (by Campus Crusade) cut into a wonderful children's version. It is a very wonderful way for not only kids...but whole families focus on the true meaning of Easter. *Note the resurrection is shown but it is well done. Many ministries like Samaritans Purse use the film. You can order it here for a good price.
What a wonderful idea, but why do we use eggs and why colored ones?
The Resurrection Eggs set that you can purchase comes with 12 eggs, each of a different color. Inside the kit there in an index for which Resurrection Story item goes with which egg. Of course, you could make up your own egg set with your own "insides." You could also augment their set with other eggs and items inside that go along with the Easter story.
I didn't know that there were plastic Easter eggs that weren't colored, but if you have them you could use numbers instead of colors to make up your own set. I just used the set that they sent us and added the numbers on each egg to make them easier to identify. It might be hard to kids to differentiate between "light pink" and "dark pink", for example, and also I think that the numbers make it easier to keep track of the eggs when having a hunt. You can more easily tell which egg has not been found yet. Hope that makes sense!
New to your blog - our journey to health began about 5 years ago, but my daughter is now on a very strict diet - no dairy, no grains, no starch, no sugar - for 4 months, then gluten-free. So I have been searching for ways to help her and continue to ensure that the whole family is healthy.
Anyways! We've had the Resurrection Eggs for about 6 years now. My children are 10 (twins) and they LOVE the eggs and can't wait until we get them out each year. Unfortunately they didn't come out this year, because we are packing to move. My favorite way to use them is at the meal table - I put an egg at each place setting (especially on Easter when we have more than 4 people here) and we go around and each person opens their egg, reading the description and verse that I placed inside with the trinket. It's a beautiful time!
We also used these Ressurection Eggs since my kids were old enough to participate. Now that we have teens, we focus more on studying the "passion week" or last week of Christ's life as well as watching "The Passion" together. My kids take the time to serve in someway either at church or in the community. My service this week was jury duty (what an unusual one, right?), but witness can be made anywhere. Thanks for your post!
I'd love to add something like watching The Passion to our celebration. Thanks for the idea.