Easter is almost here, just one more day.

It is such a joyous holiday when Christians celebrate the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the tomb to conquer sin and death.

The chocolate bunnies are pretty good, too.

I hope this Lent has been one of spiritual growth for you.

Some years, Lent has been an amazing time for my faith and I have felt like I’ve grown much deeper in it. Other years, I’ve felt almost like I was going through the motions. This year, unfortunately, has been more like the later.

I had every intention of making this a very good Lent.

I was going to go to church on Ash Wednesday to have a cross of ashes rubbed on my forehead, but I was out-of-town and it just seemed like too much effort.

Then I was going to give up dessert for Lent. OK, I know it sounds like a cliché, but I love sweets. It really would be a sacrifice to give them up. Needless to say, that didn’t last too long.

Some years, I do something special like read from the Bible daily instead of giving up something. I didn’t do that either.

I was going to go to Stations of the Cross every Friday night, but I have had some health issues and it just didn’t work out. I love the Stations, really I do, and I’m disappointed to have missed them.

For anyone who isn’t familiar with the Stations of the Cross, it is a 14-step Catholic devotion that follows the events of Jesus’ last day.

Some people don’t like to focus too much on Christ’s suffering and death, but I find solace in it. It gives me a deeper appreciation of His sacrifice by reflecting on His last hours.

Life is tough sometimes. It’s full of disappointments, struggles and injustices. But reflecting on Christ’s path to the cross, gives me the strength to endure my own sufferings. If He can undergo a brutal whipping, a sharp crown of thorns pushed into his scalp, the carrying of a heavy beam of wood while bleeding, dehydrated and hungry, and the final blows of crucifixion all for nothing that He did, then I can handle my own insignificant (by comparison) struggles.

Today is Holy Saturday. It is the day when the body of Jesus Christ still remains in the tomb, but not for much longer.

Today is a day to get ready to celebrate for God gave humanity His only Son, Jesus (Himself incarnate), to reunite us to Him in his everlasting home of Heaven.

Happy Easter!