He is not here!

He has risen, just as he said he would!

Come and see the place where he was lying.

Matthew 28:6

Devotional

Guide

Easter Story Stones

Devotional Guide

Welcome to Holy Week – one of two most special holidays for Jesus followers. Holy

Week is particularly special for Christians as it is the time of year when we celebrate the

sacrifice Jesus Christ made on our behalf so that we could have receive forgiveness for

our sin and have an ongoing relationship with God our Father in heaven.

Holy Week is a full eight days long, starting on Palm Sunday and ending on Easter

Sunday. In Scripture, these eight days are packed with many individual events in Jesus’

life as well as many lessons for us to learn from them. This devotional guide will walk

through Holy Week highlighting just some of the most pivotal events of that week.

Use this devotional guide to slowly work your way through Holy Week. Take your time

each day. Read the Scripture passage. Pray that God would speak directly to you.

Spend time thinking about the questions. Share your thoughts with someone close to

you. As you allow the Holy Spirit to work in your heart, you may find yourself drawing

closer to God throughout Holy Week.

STORY STONES

What are Story Stones? Story Stones are a way for you to tell a story using a common

object – stones – and simple images painted on the stones. Every year, you can get

your Easter Story Stone set out and retell the story of Jesus and the events of Holy

Week using these stones as prompts to help you remember all the parts of the story.

Story Stones are a great way for you to share your faith with someone else – maybe a

friend that hasn’t heard about Jesus before, maybe a younger brother or sister, maybe

with Grandma or Grandpa. The images on the stones are there to help you remember

what comes next.

Palm Sunday

HE IS THE PROPHET!

Airports with extra security. Extra police on the beat. City streets blocked off. Alternate

routes marked for regular citizens to use. Certain areas of the city closed down completely.

Extra security checks to get into other areas. What’s all the fuss?

Who is it? Who’s coming that my normal routine is being thrown off like this? The

President of the United States. If you have ever experienced a time when the President

has come to town, you know that there is a full force of people that arrive ahead of time

to make sure that everything is safe before he arrives and that security force swarms

around him the entire time he is in town, keeping him safe. Most of us regular people are

left wondering “Who is this? This must be someone incredibly important!! Oh, that’s right,

the President is in town this weekend.”

That’s exactly what happens in today’s Scripture reading. A big fuss is happening over

someone entering Jerusalem – palm branches waving, crowds shouting “Hosanna!” coats

being laid down on the path. And what was the response of the regular people?

WHO IS THIS?

The people asked, “Who is this?” Throughout Holy Week, we will continually ask that

question – Who is this? Today, the answer is: This is Jesus, the prophet from Nazareth. Let’s

see how else we will answer this question in the coming days.

Pray: Dear Lord, open my heart to Your coming. Stir my mind to ask, “Who is this that has

come into my world?” And may my heart respond with a shout: “Blessed is He who comes in

the name of the Lord!” Amen.

Scripture Reading: Matthew 21:1-11

MONDAY

THE ANOINTING OF JESUS

What is the most valuable thing you have? A rare baseball card? A special piece of jewelry

handed down in your family? Or maybe it’s your unique set of gifts and talents – you have a

beautiful singing voice? Are you the one that always notices when someone else needs a

friend?

In today’s Scripture reading, the woman had something of great value – a jar of perfume. In

biblical times, jars of perfume were sealed at the time of production. When you wanted to

use the perfume, you broke the jar open rendering the entire jar of perfume worthless.

This woman chose to use this perfume in an act of worship of Jesus, using it to anoint his

body in advance of his death and burial. Because of the monetary value of the perfume and

because of how she anointed Jesus publicly, this became a truly extravagant act of personal

worship on her part.

What would an extravagant act of personal worship look like for you?

WHO IS THIS JESUS?

Jesus is One who is worthy of extravagant personal worship. This woman used the perfume

she had to worship Jesus. What do you have that you could worship with? What gifts could

you lay at Jesus’ feet to worship Him?

Pray: Dear Lord, I lay my heart down before you. Show me how to worship You extravagantly

like the woman who anointed You did. Amen.

Scripture Reading: Matthew 26:6-13

TUESday

TWO PLANS TO KILL JESUS

As I write this, our world is in the midst of the COVID-19 crisis – responding to a

pandemic that has global reach.

On the one hand, it is easy to focus on how the world is falling apart: Our schools have

closed, sports leagues have cancelled entire seasons, countries have closed their borders,

and churches across the world have locked their doors. We can no longer hang out with

our friends, grocery store shelves may not have all that we need, and on and on and on.

On the other hand, neighbors are checking in on each other to make sure they have what

they need, teachers are driving past each of their students’ houses to wave hello, parents

are spending much needed time with their kids at home around dinner tables, churches

are livestreaming into more homes than ever attended the church building.

It really is true: there are always two sides to the same story.

WHO IS THIS JESUS?

The Pharisees were certain that Jesus had come to take power away from them. They

allowed fear to control their thoughts and decisions. They set out to kill Jesus – and in the

process they did exactly what God had set out for Jesus to do: be the one-time sacrifice for

all our sins. God’s plan was in motion the entire time.

Pray: Dear Lord, when the world around me starts to look confusing and hard to understand,

help me to remember that Your view is very different. You are sovereign and in control – I

praise and worship You. Amen.

Scripture Reading: Matthew 26:1-5

WEDNESday

JUDAS’ BETRAYAL

Has a friend ever betrayed you? Shared a secret you had told them in confidence? Gotten

you in trouble when they could have kept quiet? That has happened to me – it hurts.

My first question tends to be, “Why would you do that to me?” If you are really my friend,

you wouldn’t do something that would hurt me like this!

And yet, when we look at the story of Judas and what he did to Jesus: Judas didn’t just

accidentally let it slip where Jesus would be that night. He starts watching for the right time

to betray Jesus (v. 16). Ouch! That’s intentional, seemingly malicious betrayal.

My response would be anger, revenge, confusion – would you feel the same? Yet, Jesus –

well, He’s Jesus. Not only was He not surprised by Judas’ betrayal, He was expecting it. He

greeted Judas by calling him, “Friend.” Jesus’ response to betrayal is forgiveness – exactly

what Jesus had come to earth to accomplish for all mankind. And here He is living it out

before the full penalty for sin has even been paid.

WHO IS THIS JESUS?

Jesus is who we turn to when we want to see what forgiveness looks like. Is there someone

in your life that you could extend forgiveness to – even if they don’t deserve it? How could

you extend a greeting of “Friend” to someone that has betrayed you?

Pray: Dear Lord, Your love is deeper than even intentional betrayal. Show me Lord how to

mend relationships, how to forgive, how to ask for forgiveness, how to truly be Your disciple.

Amen.

Scripture Reading: Matthew 26:14-16

THURSday

THE NEW COVENANT

Have you ever made an agreement with Mom or Dad or your grownup that goes something

like this: If I clean my room really well, will you promise to take me to the movies (or

something else super fun)? What happened when you didn’t finish your end of the deal?

In a way, your agreement sounds a little like a covenant. In the Old Testament, covenants

were special promises made between two parties that were like super-duper promises.

Each side committed to keeping their side of the covenant. When God made a covenant

with the nation of Israel, God promised to bless the nation and in return, the nation of Israel

was promising to keep God’s commandments. Think hard: How well did the nation of Israel

do at keeping their side of the covenant?

In today’s Scripture reading, Jesus says, “This is my blood of the new covenant. It is poured

out to forgive the sins of many.” (v. 28) Jesus is entering into a New Covenant with all the

people of the world – from this point forward God is promising forgiveness of sins.

WHO IS THIS JESUS?

Jesus is the promise between God the Father and believers. His perfect blood allows us to

enter into relationship with God. Have you asked Jesus to be the New Covenant for you?

Pray: Dear Lord, thank You for pouring out Your blood to forgive the sins of many – to seal a

New Covenant with all who believe and commit to living out a life of discipleship. Show me,

day by day, the way to follow You. Amen.

Scripture Reading: Matthew 26:17-30

GOOD FRIday

JESUS PRAYS IN THE GARDEN

Have you ever had something so big happening in your world that the only thing you can do

about it is pray? I have. More than once in fact. I remember when my dad was in a really

bad car accident and he was flown to a trauma hospital to be cared for – the only thing I

knew to do was to pray. I didn’t know how things would turn out, but I knew I needed to set

all my worries at my Father’s (in heaven) feet.

And the best part was knowing that I had friends that were also praying for me and for my

dad. I remember sitting in the hospital room holding my dad’s hand, praying for him

through the night. I looked up and saw several of my friends sitting in uncomfortable

hospital chairs dozing off in the room.

Jesus did the same exact thing in the Garden of Gethsemane – he was troubled over what

was happening. His soul was very sad. He just wanted to pray and to have his friends pray

with Him and be near Him.

WHO IS THIS JESUS?

Jesus is a pray-er. Throughout all of the gospels, we see many examples of Jesus praying. He

prays with others, for others, by himself. He teaches his disciples how to pray. Who is Jesus?

He is a prayer warrior!

Pray: Dear Lord, Stir in my heart a desire to be a prayer warrior just like you. When life goes

a little crazy, bring my soul directly to Your throne. Help me to know how to pray. Amen.

Scripture Reading: Matthew 26:30-46

GOOD FRIday

JESUS ARRESTED

I can remember when I was a little girl, I did something really bad. Oh, I knew I was in big

trouble! It was torture just waiting until my parents found out about it. I was miserable

waiting until they were finally told and then they would come and talk to me about it. I

worried over what they were going to do about it – would they ground me for two months,

take away all my privileges, or *crazy-talk here* call the police on me???

Have you ever done something bad? You know that feeling of misery while you wait to get

in trouble? What would it be like if when your grown-up came to you to talk to you about it,

you responded by hitting them, or by striking them with a club or sword? That seems a bit

extreme doesn’t it?

What about when your grown-up gives you a stern talking to about something you didn’t

even do? How do you respond then? When we are innocent and are being treated as if we

are guilty, then we often feel that we have the right to be more defensive, don’t we?

WHO IS THIS JESUS?

Jesus had done nothing wrong – and yet He responds with peace as He is arrested and taken

away. In fact, He tells everyone to put their weapons away. He knows that this is exactly

what needs to happen to fulfill His Father’s plan. Jesus is modeling peace for all his disciples.

Pray: Dear Lord, When I am wrongfully accused, bring to my mind how You responded when

You were arrested. Thank you for being an example of strong peace. Help me to live that out,

too. Amen.

Scripture Reading: Matthew 26:47-56

GOOD FRIday

PETER’S DENIAL

Do you have brothers or sisters? If you do, I bet your Mom or Dad know you all pretty well!

I have three sons and I can tell you this – when something has gone wrong around the

house, I am fairly confident I know which of the boys is the culprit without even having to

ask them! How can that be? Well, I’m their mom, of course!

When they were little boys, they were all convinced that I had eyes on the back of my head,

because I always seemed to know exactly when they had done something wrong. In fact, I

could even go so far as to predict when one of them was about to do something they

shouldn’t.

In today’s reading, Peter experiences this exact same feeling – only instead of being a little

boy with his mom – he’s a grown up fisherman, turned disciple that has just disappointed

Jesus, who has already predicted that Peter would deny knowing Him. Peter’s response

acknowledges that Jesus is truly the Son of God – Peter goes outside and sobs.

WHO IS THIS JESUS?

Jesus is the Son of God – for only God could predict Peter’s denial. What does this mean for

us? Jesus knows us better than we know ourselves. He knows our innermost being, for He is

God – He was right there when we were created.

Pray: Dear Lord, Thank you that you know me better than I know myself. And You love me

through all my mistakes. I know that when I blow it, You are still right there and want me to

keep following You. Amen

Scripture Reading: Matthew 26:69-75

GOOD FRIday

JESUS’ TRIAL

Jesus undergoes two separate trials in today’s passages – one with the religious leaders and

one with the Roman government. In both trials, Jesus stays fairly quiet. He certainly could

have entered announcing to these leaders and decision-makers exactly who He is – and

called down legions of angels to prove it! Instead, He remains silent.

Until… in both cases, the man in charge asks Jesus point blank: are you (the one I’m most

afraid you might be)? Caiaphas, the high priest, asks if He is the Son of God. Pilate, the

governor, asks if He is the king of the Jews. Then, and only then, Jesus breaks His silence

and responds the same way both times: “Yes, it is just as you say.”

What an odd trial! Jesus didn’t get distracted by trying to convince people of anything. He

wasn’t trying to save himself, or stop the trial or what was coming afterward. He focused

only on what was most important – being the Son of God and the king of the Jews.

WHO IS THIS JESUS?

In the midst of a trial for his very life, Jesus remains humble, focused on truth alone. When

you are in the midst of a trial, how easy is it to get distracted by all the little details that

might make you look bad? What would happen if you remained silent like Jesus did and

focused just on the truth alone?

Pray: Dear Lord, When I am feeling like I am on trial, show me the truths that are most

important to focus on. Give me the strength to remain humble like you did. Amen.

Scripture Reading: Matthew 26:57-68; 27:1-31

GOOD FRIday

JESUS’ CRUCIFIXION

For generations upon generations, the nation of Israel had sent one high priest into a

private set apart space in the Temple called the Holy of Holies just once a year to make a

sacrifice of atonement that would maintain the Old Covenant with God – we talked about

that on Thursday. The problem with the Old Covenant was that the sacrifice had to be made

on an ongoing basis – every year, by a high priest that was willing put his own life at risk in

the Holy of Holies. Being in the presence of God was risky business.

When Jesus died on the cross, one way we know that He fulfilled the Old Covenant and

ushered in the New Covenant is found in verse 51 – “the temple curtain was torn in two

from top to bottom.” There was no longer to be a Holy of Holies – a private set apart space

for an annual sacrifice by a high priest. The sacrifice had just been made on the cross by

Jesus.

I love that not only are we told that the curtain is gone – we are also told it has been torn

from top to bottom: that means that God did this for us.

WHO IS THIS JESUS?

Jesus is our Savior. When the curtain was torn, that represents to us how Jesus has opened

for us a way to be in relationship with God without the need for a high priest to make

sacrifice on our behalf. We only need come to Jesus individually and acknowledge His

sacrifice for our sins.

Pray: Dear Lord, Thank you for your willingness to be the sacrifice required for my sins. I

never could have come to You on my own. Thank you for tearing the curtain open for

mankind. Amen.

Scripture Reading: Matthew 27:32-54

SATURday

HOPE IN THE MIDST OF HOPELESSNESS

Wait.

That is often a harder word to deal with than ‘yes’ or ‘no.’ Have you ever been told “we’ll

just have to wait and see.” In your mind, what’s the first thing that comes to mind?

When my mom used to say that to me, I knew that was just her fancy way of saying, “no.”

But there was always this slim chance in the back of my mind that whatever I had asked for

might come to life. And that’s what always made it so hard to hear. What if? What if this

time “wait and see” actually meant “yes?”

Today, we see that Jesus has been put in the tomb. The disciples are devastated – their

friend is gone. But Jesus had said, “Wait and see.” The disciples didn’t know what to think,

so they are gone. The chief priests are taking no chances – what if Jesus actually meant

“yes” – so they post guards at the tomb.

WHO IS THIS JESUS?

In times of waiting, we often struggle to remain hopeful. How can you keep a “wait and see”

attitude? Jesus had told his disciples: Wait and See – I will come back in three days. And they

still struggled with remaining hopeful. Jesus is our hope, in the midst of our waiting.

Pray: Dear Lord, thank you that when you say Wait and See, there is true hope in that. Thank

you that you keep your promises to us. Thank you for filling my heart with hope. Amen.

Scripture Reading: Matthew 27:55-66

EASTER Sunday

JESUS’ RESURRECTION

Have you played hide-and-seek? When you’re It, you are seeking in all the nooks and

crannies to find all the other players that have hidden in and around the house. Can you

imagine what it would be like to watch someone go into a closet to hide and then when you

go to find them there – not only are they not there, they aren’t … anywhere.

The women that had watched Jesus die on the cross had helped to put him in the tomb.

They had watched the big strong soldiers seal the tomb with a stone so heavy it required a

ramp to roll down in front of the opening. These women had no idea how there were

going to move that stone in order to finish putting spices and ointments on Jesus’ body

that morning.

Instead, they arrive at the tomb to find angels announcing to them that Jesus … isn’t even

there. He has risen, just as He said He would! They were invited into the tomb to see where

He had been lying just a few hours before. Can you imagine what you would think? How

you would feel? What you would do next?

WHO IS THIS JESUS?

Jesus is ALIVE! Over the past week, we have discovered much about Jesus – He is worthy of

our worship, God’s plan for Jesus was happening in the midst of a very different earthly

story. Jesus shows us forgiveness, welcomes us into the New Covenant, shows us the value

of prayer, and is filled with peace and humility. He is the Son of God, our Savior, our Hope.

Pray: Dear Lord, Thank you for the gift of your Son, Jesus, and all of who He is. We praise and

worship You that You sent Your Son to be our Savior, our Hope and that He is Alive! Amen.

Scripture Reading: Matthew 28