A Whispering Pines Easter
Story By
Harrison Woodard
Illustrations By
Donna Rosin
Boris and his friends want to do something special for Easter. Little do they know that the rest of the animal kingdom is way ahead of them. Easter in Whispering Pines will never be the same for the gang. An Easter story for kids of all ages.
In that day the wolf and the lamb will live together; the leopard will lie down with the baby goat. The calf and the yearling will be safe with the lion, and a little child will lead them all. — Isaiah 11:6 NLT
In that day I will make a covenant for them with the beasts of the field and the birds of the air and the creatures that move along the ground. Bow and sword and battle I will abolish from the land, so that all may lie down in safety. — Hosea 2:18 NIV
“Why do you look for the living among the dead? He is not here; he has risen!” — Luke 24:5-6 NIV
Boris woke up from his afternoon nap. He walked over to the window. It was still light out.
“I wonder who’s at the park?” he asked.
Boris ran down to the park. All his friends were already there.
“Hey Boris,” said Taffy. “We were just talking about Easter.”
“Easter?” asked Boris.
“Sunday is Easter,” said Montana. “Don’t you know what Easter is?”
“What is it?” asked Boris.
“That’s the day we celebrate Jesus coming back to life,” said Taffy.
“Everyone thought he was gone for good, but he came back. And he is still alive today!” said Buddy.
“That is an important day,” said Boris. “What do humans do on Easter?”
“After church, my family will have some friends over to hunt Easter eggs and give candy and gifts to the kids,” said Buddy.
“What about you Montana?” asked Boris.
“My mom is having some relatives over for the weekend,” said Montana.
“That’s nice,” said Boris. “Taffy, what about your family?”
“My family will go to church and then go to grandmother’s house to visit,” said Taffy. “What are your parents going to do?”
“I don’t think they have anything special planned,” said Boris. “They did talk about meeting Amanda for lunch after church. Maybe that’s it.”
The animals sat quietly for a moment and thought about their families’ plans.
“What are we going to do?” asked Boris.
“What do you mean?” asked Montana.
“This is a very special day,” said Boris. “Shouldn’t we celebrate in some way?”
“Boris is right,” said Taffy. “We need to plan something.”
“What should we do?” asked Buddy.
For several minutes nobody said anything. They sat there quietly trying to think of something they could do.
“Why don’t we go ask Fred?” asked Boris. “If anyone would know what to do, he would.”
They all agreed and headed over to Fred’s farm.
When they arrived, Fred was relaxing in the sun.
“Hi Fred, how are you today?” asked Boris.
“Mighty fine,” said Fred. “What brings you here today?”
“We have a problem,” said Taffy.
“We don’t know what to do about Easter,” added Buddy.
“We thought you might have a suggestion,” said Montana.
“We would like to do something special for Easter, but we can’t think of anything,” said Boris.
Fred smiled, “So you’d like to have your very own worship service?”
“Yes!” they all exclaimed.
“I think that’s a splendid idea,” said Fred. “I can’t think of anything better.”
“So what do we do?” asked Boris.
“Leave that to me,” said Fred. “Just be here before dawn on Easter Sunday.”
Early on Sunday morning Boris and his three friends arrived at Fred’s Farm. It was still dark as they headed out into the night.
“Where are we going?” asked Boris.
“We are meeting some friends on Reed’s Hill,” said Fred.
The sun was just appearing in the east as they arrived. Sitting on the hill were all kinds of animals. Bears, birds, cats, deer, dogs, ducks, raccoons, skunks, snakes, squirrels — all God’s creatures were sitting together in perfect peace.
Boris and his friends were a little nervous.
“Don’t be scared,” said Fred. “No animal will hurt another on this special day.”
“Are they all here to celebrate Easter?” asked Taffy.
“Yes, every year all the animals that live in these parts gather on this hill to praise God,” explained Fred.
The five friends found a comfortable spot and sat down with the rest of the animals.
Alex, a deer that lived in the nearby woods, addressed the crowd, “Every year we gather in peace to worship God. The oldest animal among us has the honor of sharing the Easter message. Ned the raccoon is no longer with us. So this year, our speaker will be Fred.”
Fred stood up and faced the animals.
“There are many new faces this year and few who are no longer with us. For those who are celebratin’ their first Easter, let me share the story once more.”
“God created each and every one of you and loves you. He rescued two of every kind of animal on earth during the great flood. And He provides for all of us. God says that not a sparrow falls from the sky that He doesn’t know about.”
“Many years ago, God sent his son, Jesus, to live on the earth. Some evil men killed Jesus. But after three days, he came back to life. A dove named Roxie was the first to witness his return and spread the news to all the animals. Every year animals around the world gather in peace to celebrate this special day.”
“We also celebrate that Jesus will return and destroy evil for good. In the new creation, the wolf will live with the lamb, the leopard will lie down with a goat and a little child will lead them. Paradise will be restored and peace will reign on the earth forever!”
All the animals shouted for joy and praised God.
“Let’s all sing together,” said Fred.
All the animals worshiped God with a song:
“You boys and girls, women and men
Must tell the world again and again!
Jesus Christ is coming again!
All God’s critters, you see in the zoo
They all know he’s coming back too!
Jesus Christ is coming again!
We’ll join him up in heaven
A great big jubilee
We’ll have a wonderful time there
With Christ for eternity!”
They all sang and praised God throughout the morning.
It was almost noon, when Fred asked the animals to bow their heads as he led them in prayer,
“God, thanks for sending Jesus and for this very special day. Thank you for your love and care for each of us. We look forward to Jesus coming back and the future you have prepared for all of us. In Jesus’ name we pray, amen.”
After saying farewell to the other animals, Boris and his friends started towards Fred’s farm.
“So what did you think of the service?” asked Fred. “Is that what you had in mind for Easter?”
“That was awesome!” said Boris.
“It was perfect,” said Taffy.
“Thanks for taking us,” said Buddy.
“Do you meet every year?” asked Montana.
“As long as I can remember, we’ve met on Reed’s hill,” said Fred.
“I can’t wait until next year,” said Boris.
“Well, you don’t have to wait until Easter to worship God. We can get together anytime,” said Fred.
“That’s right,” said Boris. “Can we come over next Sunday?”
“I’ll see you next Sunday mornin’,” said Fred.
Boris and his friends started home, praising God all the way.
The End
Search for Other Christian Web Sites.
© Harrison Woodard Illustrations © Donna Rosin All rights reserved. No reproduction or retransmission by any means allowed without the express written consent of the author and illustrator. See Legal Info for details.