Many surveys show that our biggest fear is dying; leaving familiar surroundings, saying goodbye to prized possessions, planned experiences, the precious people we love, and going someplace or no place at all.

We fear death so much that we deny or deflect it, after all thinking about death can be scary, creepy, and downright depressing.

During this 50-day season of Easter that subject comes up a lot. In church we hear stories of Jesus and his life after death.

We hear how the resurrected Christ magically appears to his disciples, goes through locked doors, and is not always recognized by even his best friends.

So there's a lot of mystery, especially when we remember all the promises Jesus made before he died, promises about the life that awaits us at resurrection - as a beautiful reunion with those we love and the loving God who gave them all to us.

A theologian named Martin Luther was once asked to address this mystery - of what happens when we die. And he used a simple analogy of a fetus moving through the birth canal, asking, "Does that fetus have any idea what awaits her when she is born into earthly life?"

In the same way, how can any of us right now understand what awaits us when we are born into resurrected life?

One thing we can say, is that in both cases, what awaits us is the presence of God and an unimaginable adventure bathed in God's essence, which is love.

So, what are our fears?

How are we entrusting them to God?

How are we taking on the Easter challenge, to live into God's promises of care and provision, and the cessation of our biggest fear, that we need not be frightened of death - so that we might more fully embrace the relief, freedom, and joy, that is Easter?