Christ has risen! He has risen indeed!

Dear Brothers and Sisters in Christ at "Alpha and Omega":

Greetings to you in the name of our risen, living, all powerful Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ.

Christ has risen! Of all the religions of the world Christ is the only true Lord whose tomb, grave, body you will not find buried, burned or lost. Jesus Christ is risen. If you do not think that He has risen than prove it! There have been a number of individuals who have tried to prove that Jesus did not raise again from the dead and the books they started to write did not end the way they had started. They started wanting to prove that Jesus did not raise again and they ended up as believers because all the evidence pointed to a resurrected Lord. That does not mean that one will believe. Faith does not come through a decision but rather faith is a gift from God. It is God who has chosen you and given to you faith to believe.

Do you, who hear this letter, believe in Jesus Christ as your Saviour and Lord? If you say: "Yes! I believe!" Then you have been chosen. Chosen by God! Have you ever thought of that! You Sasha, Natasha, Feodor, Petor, Misha, Julia, Igor, Pasha, Dema, Sergei, Olya, Anya, Ilya, Volva, Jan, Kolya, Olessa, Victor, Svieta, Slavik, Lidia, Oxana, Alex, Nadia, Vlad, Jenya, now everyone take a moment and say your name at the count of three: Raz, dwa, tree __________ Yes, you have been chosen by God. The Lord of Lord's the King of Kings, the almighty God, Father, Son and Holy Spirit has called you and chosen you and you are His... The Risen King and Lord's adopted child. Now! That makes all the difference in our lives and in our world and to the people who deal with us. When people deal with you then they are dealing with God's chosen son or daughter. When we deal with each other and how we treat each other is something that God is watching. He knows how you treat people in this room. Guys, He knows how you treat the girls and those you date and what sort of respect you have for God's daughter. That girl you like is God's daughter! How you treat her is important to God. Girls, how you treat the guys is very important too. If you speak poorly of them to others or play with them or hurt them then you have hurt God's son. The risen Christ makes all the difference because He lives and when we place our faith or trust in Him then He lives in us.

Jesus in you and Jesus in me. So the next time you treat someone badly what does that say about Jesus living in you? Maybe today, as we think about being chosen we need to ask God for forgiveness. Forgive me Lord when I have not treated others here as Your son or daughter. Lord, forgive me for treating you so poorly. Remember the words of Christ... Whatever you have done to one of the least of these brothers or sisters of mine you have done it unto ME!

Today, is the day when you celebrate Christ's victory over sin, death and the devil. Remember when Mary when to the tomb to further prepare Jesus body. She got to the tomb and the stone was rolled away. She came to the tomb crying and the angels in the tomb said to her "Why are you Crying?" What a strange statement to make. Where do you think is the best place to go if you wanted to find someone in tears? The grave yard!

So why would the Angels ask: "Why are you crying?" Maybe, it is because the Angels knew that Christ was risen and no longer is death fatal. No longer does death have the same sting. Death for the Christian is like the birth of a baby. It is like going from one womb into a new world.

Jesus tells us that He has gone ahead to prepare a place for us.. A room in a palace... Paradise.... So we leave this garbage pile that we live in.. Yes, we live in different types of garbage piles - Canada is one type, USA is another, Australia is another, India is another, Ukraine is another... Different locations but the same garbage - same sins, hurts, failures, divorce, sexual sins, anger, pain, sorrow. God has prepared each of us who believe in Jesus to come to Him and live in paradise... Remember the thief on the cross: Remember me, Jesus, when you come into your Kingdom!

Jesus answered him as he answers us... Today, you will be with me in paradise! Christ is risen! You are chosen! Praise the Lord!

So are you ready: If you believe in Jesus Christ risen from the dead as your Lord and Saviour then at the count of three everyone say your name:

Raz, dwa, Three...____________. You are chosen, you are called... you are saved... Now, go and be Jesus to others change your world, one person at a time... one relationship at a time... one family at a time, one community, raion, oblast, country... Jesus followers do... today over 33.3% would say they believe in the risen Lord... It makes a difference because... Christos Voscres...

With love, laughter, thanksgiving and joy from the risen Lord and Saviour Jesus.. and me.