My youngest daughter didn’t want me to tell you that you’re going to die. I gave her a preview of my upcoming Easter sermon, the one that the pastor’s family gets each spring, but she wasn’t a fan. “Maya,” I said, “I think I’m going to start the Easter sermon with, ‘You’re all gonna die.’”

She objected, “Dad, it’s Easter. It’s supposed to be happy.”

“But how can I talk about the resurrection of the dead unless I talk about death?” I explained.

“Dad,” she repeated, exasperated with my logic, “it’s Easter.” 

She’s probably right, but for real, you’re going to die. From small earthly losses to your big final breath, death is something we all have in common. I know we’d rather not think about that, but seriously, what do you do with that? How do you cope with that? How do you have hope in that? 

That’s where Easter comes in. Instead of avoiding or denying death, Easter offers hope on the other side of death. You don’t have to pretend like you’re not getting older or losing those you love. Instead, with Christian hope, you can look to Christ and know that your story ends in glory, just like Jesus’ earthly story didn’t end with a cross but with an empty tomb.

Yes, you’re going to die. But yes, you’re going to live forever. “The one who believes in me will live, even though they die” (John 11:25).