Easter is happy time...... the reason we celebrate it is not

Tonight my youth pastor was speaking for the second time of a three week series about how the resurrection changes everything. Tonight he decided to focus on the crucifixion though. He took a different angle than anyone would've thought, but it spurred some great thoughts in my mind. One thought I had was this: "The ABSOLUTE joy of the resurrection was intensified by the ABSOLUTE suffering of the crucifixion."
This thought held me suspended in thought for a few moments. If we thought about all the suffering of the cross and tried to imagine how it would feel to be broken and so COMPLETELY forsaken the way Jesus was, if we imagined the pain, sorrow, and feeling of completely lostness (yes I know that's not a word) that His followers experienced that DARK day, Easter would be an all out celebration!!!!!! I'm not talking about the candy, easter bunny, or even egg hunts that we have today. No, I am talking about an all out, amazing, and loud worship session for God that celebrated His victory over death and over hell.
The Bible tells us that Jesus  now holds the keys to death. It makes me think of the song that says, "Oh death, where is your sting? Oh hell, where is your victory? Oh church, come stand in the light. The glory of God has DEFEATED the night. Oh death, where is your sting? Oh hell, where is your victory? Oh church, come stand in the light. Our God is NOT dead. He's alive. HE'S ALIVE!!!!!" God cannot even be overcome by the grave.
Wow! What a hope that should give Christians. If God can DEFEAT death, how much more can He help you defeat and overcome and fix stuff in your life? God wants to help you conquer everything in your life. He loves you and He wants what's best for you and He has a great life planned for you!
I may not be a fan of happy endings because I'm tired of them, but this is one happy ending that will never get old and that will always bring tears to my eyes, because I know it is what brought me back to life again. This is a happy ending that I certainly did NOT deserve and yet God has chosen to give me the free gift of life in His son. I could not conquer anything without Him, and yet He has given me the power to DEFEAT the grave and Satan forever.
Do NOT forget the suffering that Jesus had to go through before the resurrection. This Easter, before you go on an easter egg hunt or before you start digging into your candy, take a moment to realize what God went through to make it such a joy-filled day of celebration!