Why do we hide eggs at Easter? Where did that come from? I did some digging and found that during the Medieval period the Lenten observance did not allow for the consumption of eggs. Just in case you need a refresher, Lent refers to the 40 day period (not counting Sundays) leading up to Easter seen as a time of spiritual reflection. Eggs were the poor person’s protein and were very popular. So when Easter came and Lent was over you can imagine the feasting that went on. Eggs were on the menu once again, and they became an important part of the celebration. Eggs were given as gifts to the church and to the lord of the manor. It wasn’t long before royalty got involved and added their own flair to the occasion, such as decorated eggs.
Easter egg hunts can be a lot of fun for kids and the adults who watch them. But you have to admit it is a strange custom. It certainly isn’t an everyday occurrence. We only really do this once a year. But what do you think would happen if children showed up to a promised egg hunt and it got called off? This happens due to weather sometimes, and sometimes it is rescheduled but other times it isn’t. What do you think little children would say about an Easter egg hunt that was supposed to happen but didn’t?
I think they would be pretty upset.
Or what about this? You and a friend go to a fair or an amusement park. You both are very excited about going because you have heard of a new ride there and you want to try it out. You enter the park and do a lot of fun things and then get in line for the ride. But when it is your turn to ride it you see the employees put up a sign that says the ride will be closed for maintenance and won’t be running any more that day. How would you feel then?
Again, I think you would be pretty upset.
But if you look at these examples more closely you may get a better insight. In the first example nothing especially bad happens. Kids don’t get to hunt eggs but there is nothing else about the day that would cause anyone to be mad. And in the second example you and a friend had a good time at the park. It is only when you saw the ride closed that the good feelings went away.
This is all about expectations isn’t it? Children have an expectation to hunt Easter eggs. And you had an expectation to try out a new ride. The bad feelings come when the reality of the day doesn’t live up to those expectations. This is a pretty common occurrence. Our expectations affect us every day, whether for good or ill. We all create expectations about how a meeting will go, or how work or school will turn out today. We expect that certain things will happen and when there is a big difference in the reality of life our mood can change quite a bit.
False expectations can affect us badly. We see this with some people who spend a lot of time on social media. Maybe we see our friends putting pictures online of themselves having a great time on vacation or at a party. We don’t usually see the less desirable or mundane aspects of their lives there so we can easily develop a false expectation of their lives in relation to our own. “Look at all of the fun they are having,” we might say. “Why isn’t that me?”
Jesus’ ministry was filled with counter examples to established expectations. He preached a message of forgiveness and non-retailiation. He told people to turn the other cheek when they were wronged. He ate with undesirable people, like tax collectors and people who the local spiritual authorities would shun. When he invited himself to the house of Zacchaeus (Luke 19:5), people responded by saying “He has gone to be the guest of a sinner.” His parable of the Good Samaritan and the Prodigal Son defy established expectations of behavior.
What were the expectations that most people put on Jesus? He was going to be a King who would liberate the Jews from oppression under Roman rule. He was supposed to be like David, the military hero of legend. Freedom was coming with this man in the lead.
But what was the reality? Jesus was born in a humble setting. He wasn’t wealthy and was often at odds with the spiritual leaders. What he preached had nothing to do with might. And he rode into Jerusalem on a donkey, not a horse.
John 12:12-16
12 The next day the great crowd that had come for the festival heard that Jesus was on his way to Jerusalem. 13 They took palm branches and went out to meet him, shouting,
“Hosanna!”
“Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord!”
“Blessed is the king of Israel!”
14 Jesus found a young donkey and sat on it, as it is written:
15
“Do not be afraid, Daughter Zion;
see, your king is coming,
seated on a donkey’s colt.”
16 At first his disciples did not understand all this. Only after Jesus was glorified did they realize that these things had been written about him and that these things had been done to him.
How did it go from people shouting “Hosanna” to people shouting “Crucify him” in only one week? I think a big reason was the difference between the kinds of things the people expected and the reality of Jesus’ life and message.
All of us have unrealistic expectations. Maybe we expect everyone to like us, or that the world should be fair. Maybe you think that your marriage should be easy, or that your work will always be engaging. Maybe you think your kids will do what you expect them to do.
How can we handle unrealistic expectations? One thing we can do is to examine those expectations we do have. Are they realistic? Are they helpful? You can ask yourself how you would feel if this expectation isn’t met. Maybe you will find that if an expectation is not helpful you can modify or discard it.
Or you can ask yourself what you would say to a friend or family member that has the same expectation. If you make a mistake at school and you think you are not a good student because of it, what would you say to a friend that made the same mistake? You would probably say that everyone makes mistakes, but it doesn’t mean you are a bad student. If it is good advice for them it is good advice for you.
What would it have been like if the people in Jerusalem had, upon noticing that Jesus wasn’t going to fulfill their expectations, asked themselves instead what he was really all about? What if they were able to discard their wrong expectations about him and tried to find out who he really was and what he was really preaching?
As we head into Easter lets examine what expectations we have for ourselves and for others. And while we are at it we can ask ourselves what we really expect from Jesus in our life. Do our expectations align with the reality of Christ? Now is a great time to find out.
God Bless