Songs for the Souls Fighting to Make it to Easter

My favorite holiday is Easter.

This wasn’t always the case. If you’d asked me when I was a child, I would’ve said Christmas. I loved Christmas partially for the birth of Christ, but also for more material reasons, like getting to give and receive presents. However, as I’ve gotten older, I’ve come to view Easter differently.

I think a lot of people overlook Easter because it doesn’t have the same grandness as Christmas. We don’t hang up lights or decorate trees. We don’t make it a spectacle, which has always felt weird to me because what bigger moment could we possibly celebrate than the day that our King rose from the dead?

For me, Easter is about discovering new layers of God that I’ve never known before. It’s about recognizing that our entire lives are changed because of what happened three days after the greatest sacrifice the world has ever known.

As I write this now, it’s officially Palm Sunday. I went back to church today for the first in months (my sleep schedule has been a mess, to put it lightly), and one of my pastors talked about the triumphant entry. If you’re familiar with the story, you probably know that the people who praised Jesus as the King of the world were the same ones who would turn on him in only a matter of days. They were the same people who would cry out for His crucifixion.

Now, if you’re anything like me, this has always felt very bittersweet. On one hand, how can we not love that, at least for this moment, the people were united and praising our Lord. But, then on the other hand, why does it matter when they turn against him and shout for His death in only a few days?

I’m still wrestling with this. It’s a weird thing to think about, at least for me. But, after hearing my pastor’s sermon about how that whole moment was just one big misunderstanding between the people and Jesus, I’m starting to realize that it does matter.

It matters because it shows us that we’re not the only ones who had an expectation of Jesus that was suddenly not coming to fruition. It demonstrates that I’m not the only person to ever doubt what God’s doing.

And maybe you find yourself doubting this week, too. Maybe you’re trying to hold on because you know that the resurrection is coming. But maybe you’re tired. Maybe you’re exhausted and so tired of holding onto something that feels like it’s never coming.

So, I want to share some of the songs I have on repeat this week to help me remember why this Easter season matters to me and the God who would do it all over again just for me.

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Gethsemane by Reese Oliveira

The hardest thing that ever was done
The greatest pain that ever was known
The biggest battle that ever was won
This was done by Jesus
The fight was won by Jesus

The prayer in the garden of Gethsemane is one of my favorite moments of Jesus. I love the intimacy of him praying directly to God, and I’m so thankful that we are able to see what this moment actually looked like. But, more than that, I love that Jesus allowed us to see His humanness.

Jesus knew that He would have to die. He wasn’t a stranger to His fate. And yet . . . He asks God to take this cup from him (Luke 22:42). The human part of Him didn’t want to do this, but His very next words were to emphasize God’s will, not His. He knew that He had to submit to the Father’s will, even if it meant mockery, shame, and ultimately, death.

This song captures so much of these feelings for me. It’s sung by a young girl, and the innocence in her voice melts my heart every time I listen. She’s singing about something so heavy with such a sweet voice, and that duality really creates something powerful.

Carry My Cross by Third Day

So I’ll carry my cross
And I’ll carry the shame
To the end of the road
Through the struggle and pain
And I’ll do it for love
No, it won’t be in vain

If I had to pick one favorite Easter song, it would actually be this one. I listen to it every Easter season, and nearly every time, it brings me to tears. Every lyric captures so much of what I imagine Jesus thought as he went from the garden to the trial and eventually to the cross.

He didn’t have to die for us. He could’ve chosen to end His suffering in an instant. But He didn’t. He accepted His mission because He knew that it would be worth it. That we were worth it. That we—in all of our messiness and brokenness and sinfulness and darkness—were worth dying for.

And we were worth rising for.

Sunday is Coming by Phil Wickham

Friday’s good ’cause Sunday is coming
Don’t lose hope ’cause Sunday is coming
Devil, you’re done, you better start running
Friday’s good ’cause Sunday is coming

If you’re truly on the edge and can’t see yourself making it to Sunday, I hope you listen to this song right now. I’ve only heard it a handful of times, but it explains so beautifully why you should stay.

It’s easy to feel like the crucifixion is the end of the story. I mean, even His apostles thought it was the end. But they didn’t have the gift of knowing what would happen three days later. We do. We know that in three days time, Jesus will breathe again and the tomb will be empty.

So don’t let the enemy convince you that that’s not worth staying for. Because it absolutely is. Jesus is coming back, and He is still moving in our midst. And I really hope you decide to stay so you can see what He does this Sunday.

Living Hope by Phil Wickham

Then came the morning that sealed the promise
Your buried body began to breathe
Out of the silence, the Roaring Lion
Declared the grave has no claim on me

Phil Wickham has been my favorite Christian artist for a few years now, so it just made sense to put two of his songs on this list. No matter what new music he puts out, I always come back to this song. Because it’s the point of Easter in a five minute song. It’s why I cry alone in my car on the way to church while listening to worship music.

Yes, Jesus rose from the dead and defeated death. But that means He. Defeated. Death. He didn’t just defeat death for Himself. Death never had a grip on Him—it had a grip on us. And Jesus rising from the dead is exactly what broke us out of that death-grip (pun intended).

So, because of Him, we don’t have to fear death. We don’t have to fear what’s coming because our Abba Father is bigger than anything the enemy may throw at us. Because of His resurrection, we can live abundantly with hope and peace and joy that surpasses all understanding.

Because of what He did thousands of years ago on a cross and in a tomb, we can stand here and say that we have life.

God’s Not Dead (Like a Lion) by Newsboys

My God’s not dead, He’s surely alive
He’s living on the inside, roaring like a lion
God’s not dead, He’s surely alive
He’s living on the inside, roaring like a lion

Sometimes, I think it’s really easy to forget that God is still alive. We know and believe that He rose from the dead, but that was thousands of years ago, so it can feel distant. Not irrelevant, but harder to connect to.

This song helps me get out of that headspace because it’s so focused on right now. God is alive in this moment. In this season. In this generation. Maybe I feel this way because I adore the movie it was featured in (God’s Not Dead, in case you’re curious), but regardless, I genuinely love how unashamedly alive this song is. It’s loud and full of praise and makes me want to get up and dance because God is here. In this place. Right here. Right now.

So, if the resurrection feels a little too hard to grasp right now, I hope this song helps make it feel a little more current. Becuase I promise that it is.

Glorious Day by Passion, ft. Kristian Stanfill

You called my name
And I ran out of that grave
Out of the darkness
Into Your glorious day

Personally, I really love the live version of this song. I know not everyone is a fan of live versions, but I can’t help it with this one. It’s so lively and worshipful and feels like I’m in a big church surrounded by thousands of other believers who are all praising Jesus together.

This one also isn’t strictly about Jesus’ death and resurrection. Instead, it empahsizes what that moment means for us. That we can not only choose life, but that we can choose the light. Death has been defeated, and now we can run out of the grave, too. Just like Lazarus, we are free to step into the light of God’s glorious day and bask in the light of His endless love for us.

Because He Lives (Amen) by Matt Maher

Because He lives (He lives)
I can face tomorrow
Because He lives (He lives)
Every fear is gone

This is another one of those songs I always come back to. It feels like my childhood, where I spent my days listening exclusively to Klove and Christian worship music, and there’s something so comforting about this song for me.

The lyrics are a bit repetitive, but for this song, I love that. Because sometimes I need a reminder that Jesus’ resurrection means I can live without fear.

I’ve lived with anxiety my entire life. It’s the dragon in my mind that haunts every decision I make and makes me second-guess everything. I know that it will never completely disappear until the day I meet my Father face-to-face. But, this song reminds me that my anxiety does not hold any power over me anymore. It simply can’t.

My anxiety only has the control that I give it. Jesus has conquered all fear, and every demon quakes at the mere mention of His name. So, I can choose to walk forward with my head held high and my hands shaking and do the hard thing anyway. I can choose to step into the promises that Jesus made because He is bigger than every voice of doubt in my mind.

And, today, I invite you to join me. Come walk in the freedom of our Father’s light and know that fear no longer has to hold you back from living the life He has in store for you.

Easter Medley by Anthem Lights

Because I know my Redeemer lives
I know my Redeemer lives
All of creation testifies
This life within me cries

This is a mashup of several different songs, including Because He Lives, My Redeemer Lives, and Arise My Love. I’d be disappointed if I didn’t include at least one of their medleys because their voices are the perfect way to close out this little playlist.

If you’re interested in more Christian medleys from Anthem Lights, I highly recommend these three:

• The Cross Medley: Jesus Paid It All / The Old Rugged Cross
• Hymns Mashup: How Great Thou Art/ It Is Well / Holy, Holy, Holy / Great Is Thy Faithfulness
• Hymns Medley: Amazing Grace / Be Thou My Vision / Come Thou Fount / I Need Thee Every Hour

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I know that this week might feel like another hopeless stretch of days. I know that you’re tired, and I know you’re running out of hope to hold onto. But, if you hang on, I promise that the tomb will still be empty this Sunday.

The story doesn’t have to end with death. Today, we can choose life. He gave us His life, so that we can have life. So choose life. Choose to step out into a new day and let Him renew your strength. Call out to Him and ask Him to give you wings like eagles.

Let’s Talk!

What’s your favorite part about Easter Sunday? Do you have any songs that you listen to during this Easter season? Have you heard any of these songs before? Let’s talk all things Easter down in the comments!