Christian Peeps

Do you have a favorite Easter candy? Some people love Cadbury Eggs, others can't resist biting the ears off a chocolate bunny. I'm a simple jelly bean kind of girl. Scott is a huge lover of Peeps. I don't understand the devotion to a stale marshmallow covered in colored sugar cut into a cute shape, but it turns out that I'm in the minority on this one. According to their website, Peeps have been the most popular non-chocolate Easter candy for the last decade, and over 4.2 billion are sold each year. That's a lot of marshmallows! Who would have dreamed that a little handmade treat that took 27 hours to make in the 1950s would turn into an empire, with a following of over 200 fan websites, or that the Peep would become gourmet favorites as fondues, pizza toppings, crème brulee ingredients, and cappuccino toppings? Can ice cream be far behind? By the way, it now takes only 6 minutes to make a chick. Modern machinery is amazing.

I'm afraid that there are far too many Christians with Peep-like attributes. Too often we put on a lovely colored sugar coating to hide our bland, soft, insubstantial inner self. We say the right things, we act the right way in public, and we hide behind sweet but shallow interpretations of our faith. But the truth is that the marshmallow middle still shows through in even the best coated Peep, and even the best act a Christian puts on allows glimpses into the real person inside. If we only 'act' like a Christian, we end up only fooling ourselves. If we do not mature spiritually, we remain soft and gooey on the inside, with little to offer others. But if we dispense with the pretty covering and work to deepen our faith, increase our knowledge, and grow our relationship with our Lord, then we become solid inside, knowing what we believe and why, and willing and able to share it with others.

I'm afraid peep describes many Christians in another way too. We each should be broadcasting the most important message there is to as many people as we can. And yet, barely a peep. We share recipes, hunting and fishing and golf and football stories, pictures of our kids, news of a great sale, stories of awful experiences, and even the mundane details of our everyday lives with other people. But the Gospel? Barely a peep. I've had people I was barely acquainted with tell me amazingly personal things about their life, medical problems, family, and financial issues. But the Gospel? Rarely a peep. Are we as God's people going to be peeps, or trumpeters? Whisperers or announcers? Timid or bold? Useful to the Kingdom or insignificant? I want to be a bold announcer, trumpeter, broadcaster. I never want to be a peep.

Today, we celebrate Easter, the holiday that is most meaningful to me. Christmas is only the beginning of the story. Without Easter, nothing else matters. The enemies thought they won when they killed Jesus, but they could not keep Him dead. The grave couldn't hold Him. Death couldn't restrain Him. Satan couldn't beat Him. And because of this, we are victors too. Jesus won the battle for us, without our help. We didn't do it, but we benefit from it.


Easter Sunday: the day we loudly proclaim “He's alive!!, He's alive!!! He's alive and I'm forgiven, heaven's gates are open wide!” It's the day we celebrate His, and through Him our own victory over death and sin. But don't stop proclaiming it tomorrow when the eggs are all gone and the crosses come down and life returns to normal. Proclaim His resurrection tomorrow, and the next day, and next week and next month. Proclaim it to everyone, always. It's the balm a hurting world needs. So be a trumpeter instead of a peep.