Happy Easter, everyone! We rejoice for He is risen, Hallelujah! Death has been destroyed. Darkness is forever overcome by His light! He died to sin once for all.  (Romans 6:10) Hallelujah! We praise the Lord for His great glory! We thank Him because He died for us all! For Peter. For Paul. For Mary. Given their roles in developing the early church, we can easily see our Savior’s death was not in vain. But what about people you encounter every day? Seriously, when you think about your own life, can’t you come up with a dozen or so who this plan probably doesn’t apply to? You know, the usual suspects like the colleague/boss that is always getting on your last nerve by not pulling their weight? Or, the family member that is forever hitting everybody up for some money when they could just live within their means? Oh, yeah, the neighbor that acts like their too good to speak? No, I got it, the church member that’s always asking what you have been up to just so they can brag about their latest accomplishment? And, certainly the one you heard about in the news who has done the most despicable, unthinkable crime? It may be hard to fathom, but, yes, Jesus died for them, too! Of course, on the surface, we already know this, but our human understanding can make it hard to believe certain souls are worth saving. There are times when we encounter people that just don’t quite fit our description of a saint. But, we must strive to resist the temptation to judge, lest we be judged. (Matthew 7:1) The call of Jesus is for everyone. By revealing Himself first to women after His resurrection, Jesus once again showed the importance of including those who have been marginalized.  So, why now; why bring this up on Easter evening after a day filled with celebration and joy in the resurrection? Because we are a part of His plan. Our preparation wasn’t merely for this holiday but rather for our continued journey to the Kingdom. We cannot afford to only play the role of witness on Sundays and holidays or other days and moments that suit us. We are called daily to bear witness even to those we don’t want to talk to or those who don’t appear to be listening or want to hear. Remember, dear friends, Christ provides us strength for all things (Philippians 4:13) and we never walk alone because He lives.