The other day a friend posted on face book a gorgeous picture of a hot cross bun. Apparently the supermarkets are now full of them and she was stoked. ‘C’mon they are pretty yummy; I wish they were here all year!’

Many parents will moan when they see the hot cross bun, Christian or not.
Already? It was only Christmas a few weeks ago?
Should we be paying attention?
Does it matter if Easter is on our brains only 3 weeks after Christmas?
Could it even be a good thing? Might it give the faithful the kick we need to note the approach of our most important calendar moment and ponder…what should we be doing with Easter?

I’ve been wondering for not a few years about this conundrum. Easter is our ‘summit’, if you’re a believing Christian.  Some people overseas, far from my southern hemispheric island of Oz treat Easter very sacredly. Some even re-enact the crucifixion. Some create a big song and dance. But in Oz, it’s a pretty passive affair. In the land of the long weekend, Easter is a double header with not one but two public holidays to really hit the camping grounds.

Do we as parents need to be concerned that our kids think primarily of chocolate and bunnies and buns at Easter?

What can we do about it?

Surely it's up to the church?

Recently I sent out a survey about your past experiences of Easter and hopes for the future (you can still access that survey using the link below if you'd like to contribute). I wanted to see how much churches involved parents in Easter, how well we used Easter for outreach and what ideas you had for Easter.

Thanks for all the responses so far, its interesting to see the range of responses. Some people feel their church does well at Easter for outreach, others very poorly. Most agreed that parents weren't involved much either at school or church.

I want to challenge and encourage you as a parent to really seize the opportunity that Easter brings every year for your church, school and family.

How so?

I'm putting together a couple of videos together that I think you'll enjoy. I'm hoping they'll really get you thinking and discussing the great potential of Easter for your child's faith.

For now, here’s the link to the survey
Just click: Easter Bigger than Christmas?