What’s On Your Resurrection To-Do List?

Starting the day right: A to-do list focused on coffee essentials and priorities.

I wonder—are you a ‘to-do list’ person?

I definitely am. I use them all the time at work to keep track of what needs doing. Honestly, one of the greatest feelings in the world is putting a little X in a box next to a task. There's something deeply satisfying about it. Maybe that’s a bit sad—but I know I’m not alone!

What I particularly love, and perhaps this reveals more about my laziness than anything else, is when I get to tick things off without actually doing them. You know those moments when plans change and a task just disappears? Glorious. A little unexpected gift of time.

I don't know if Mary Magdalene was a ‘to-do list’ kind of person, but if she was, I suspect her list on that first Easter morning didn’t fill her with joy:

1. Get up at sunrise

2. Walk to Jesus’ tomb

3. Find someone to move the big stone

4. Supervise moving of said big stone

5. Anoint the body of the man she had followed for three years

That is not a to-do list to be envied. But Mary loved Jesus. So she got up, at sunrise, and began her day. Except, as we know, when she arrived, points 3 to 5 suddenly became unnecessary. The stone had already been rolled away. And there was no body to anoint.

In one awe-filled, world-changing moment, her whole list was torn up and replaced with a new, single task: Tell the others.

The resurrection shattered the expectations of that day—and of every day after it. Mary’s world changed dramatically. And 2,000 years later, the resurrection should still be impacting our to-do lists.

What Changes—and What Doesn’t?

You could argue that some things still need doing whether Jesus rose or not. The bins still need to go out. The shopping still has to be done. The bills still need paying. But even the ordinary things can take on new meaning in light of the resurrection. Taking out the recycling, for example, isn’t just a chore. It’s an act of love for the creation God made. As we lug box after box to the curb, we’re participating—however mundanely—in God's redemptive work: old things made new.

But let’s also think big.

Just as Mary no longer needed to worry about that heavy stone, there are big stones we no longer need to carry because of the resurrection.

One of those stones might be perfectionism.

We live in a culture obsessed with being perfect. Just ask any new parent—or grandparent! There’s constant pressure: from sideways glances in the supermarket when a child throws a tantrum, to subtle (or not so subtle) messages in every baby shop. Yes, this £9.95 car seat is legal. But if you really loved your baby…

Or turn on the TV—why don’t we look like the beautiful people smiling at us from every ad? Why don’t we have it all together, like the seemingly super-spiritual folks around us at church?

But here's the truth: Jesus lived the perfect life so that we don’t have to. And the resurrection proves that his life and sacrifice were enough.

So let’s take “being perfect” off our to-do lists.

A New List

But that doesn’t mean we stop trying altogether. The resurrection removes some things from our lists—but it also adds some.

For Mary, the heavy lifting was no longer required. Instead, she was given a new job: Tell the others.

And so are we.

The resurrection gives us a job to do—to speak about it, to live it out, to let our lives bear witness to its power. That will look different for each of us, but one thing I’m convinced of is this: many of us need to let go.

Here are a few things that might need adding to your resurrection to-do list:

• Let go of guilt and shame – maybe there's something you've been carrying for a long time. The resurrection says: it’s time to give yourself a break.

• Let go of unforgiveness – perhaps someone hurt you, and you're still holding onto it. The resurrection offers the power to forgive, even if the other person never asks.

• Let go of destructive habits – maybe it’s time to be honest, to seek help, to step into freedom, trusting that the power that raised Christ can also set you free.

None of that is easy. But the resurrection reminds us: everything is possible.

A New Chapter for Us as a Church

This Easter season, I’ve been reflecting not just on what the resurrection means for me, but what it means for us as a church.

You may have noticed some changes recently—more meditative practices in our services, more prayer exercises and personal reflection prompts in the e-news. Don’t worry, I’m still me. Preaching is still important. But I’ve been asking: how can we go deeper in our relationship with Jesus—not just on Sundays, but throughout the week?

That’s why we’ve started exploring things like Ignatian spirituality and Celtic practices—ancient ways of connecting with God that help us reflect on our lives through the lens of the resurrection.

It’s a bit like that old saying: “Give a man a fish and he eats for a day. Teach him to fish and he can feed himself for a lifetime.” We want to learn how to fish—how to nourish our own faith throughout the week, not just rely on the Sunday sermon.

I know these practices won’t suit everyone. But my hope is to offer a variety so that we each find something that helps us draw nearer to Jesus in the day-to-day. Because the resurrection isn’t just a date on the calendar. It’s a living reality.

Your Easter Homework

So here’s a simple exercise for this Easter season.

Grab a piece of paper. Draw a line down the middle. On one side, write “To Do”—the things the resurrection calls you to. On the other, write “To Not Do”—the burdens and expectations the resurrection frees you from.

Reflect. Pray. Be honest.

Let’s allow the resurrection to change not just what we believe, but how we live. Let’s rewrite our lists with the freedom and power of the risen Christ.

Because the stone has been rolled away. The old list is gone. And a new life has begun.