Deuteronomy 16: Passover

Observe the month of Aviv and celebrate the Passover of the LORD your God, because in the month of Aviv he brought you out of Egypt by night.  Sacrifice as the Passover to the LORD your God an animal from your flock or herd at the place the LORD will choose as a dwelling for his Name. Do not eat it with bread made with yeast, but for seven days eat unleavened bread, the bread of affliction, because you left Egypt in haste—so that all the days of your life you may remember the time of your departure from Egypt. Let no yeast be found in your possession in all your land for seven days. Do not let any of the meat you sacrifice on the evening of the first day remain until morning. You must not sacrifice the Passover in any town the LORD your God gives you except in the place he will choose as a dwelling for his Name. There you must sacrifice the Passover in the evening, when the sun goes down, on the anniversary of your departure from Egypt.  Roast it and eat it at the place the LORD your God will choose. Then in the morning return to your tents.  For six days eat unleavened bread and on the seventh day hold an assembly to the LORD your God and do no work. - Deut. 16:1-8 NIV

It has been three months since I posted anything and I have not kept up as diligently with my devotional reading as when I was writing every day.  It's fitting, however, that my reading today brings me to this portion of scripture where the laws for celebration of the various feasts were laid down.  The first one mentioned is Passover.  Passover, where they were commanded to do away with any sort of levening for seven days so that they would remember their suffering.  It was a death of sorts, they were not permitted anything that would rise as a remembrance of the price that was paid for their passage out of Egypt. 

Passover begins this evening and so does our remembrance of the price that was paid for our passage out of bondage.  A sacrifice always has to be made.  Perhaps instead of all the new frocks, the colorful baskets, the Easter eggs, all of the frivolity this holiday has become, we should be taking up unleavened bread.  Perhaps we should let go of anything that makes us want to rise up and instead ponder the sacrifice that was paid.