As I write this, it’s March 27. One year ago today I boarded a plane to come to you for call weekend. I was nervous and excited; hopeful and shaky. I was praying you would like me enough to say yes to me. When I arrived for dinner with the search committee that night, one member embraced my and said quietly, “Welcome home.” I was overcome in all the best ways. 

Easter Sunday 2024 came just five days after Neal took his final breath. I could not wrap my head around the idea of a resurrection. 

Easter Sunday 2025 was the Sunday after I had resigned from my previous church where I had served for eleven years. There were some glimpses of resurrection, but there was still a lot of pain as I grieved leaving a congregation that loved me well even though I knew God was calling me towards you. 

So, we arrive to Easter 2026. And this year I am feeling tugged toward that empty tomb, the cavernous space that reflects hope and light. 

Wondering and Wandering towards resurrection is a chance to see what might be, to be curious about what could happen. I think what I have learned is that I needed to shift my thoughts, my beliefs, my assumptions about resurrection. We tend to make it a one and done. “Up from the grave he arose… with a mighty triumph o’er his foes.” Indeed, that’s it. 

But it is also that Christ leads us to have resurrections as well. Rise from our failures and our foibles. Arise from our insecurities and our uncertainties. Arise of our hopelessness and our scarcity. Arise to find joy and peace, new life in ways we never imagined. 

I am realizing that it does not have to be as dramatic as moving your life across the country. It can be as simple as stopping to notice the sunrise or sunset, taking a moment to tell a friend you have been thinking about them. Allow yourself to let go of the expectation that you need or want someone to meet. Give yourself permission to say I am wrong and I need to admit that. 

These are the little, always present resurrections. Like the women who went to the tomb that day, bringing bravery and vulnerability, we arrive with what we have to see what Christ will reveal to us. 

I look forward to seeing you on Easter. May we discover together a new resurrection. 

Grace and peace, 

Pastor Carrie

Senior Pastor | Second Baptist Church