BAKERSFIELD, Calif. (KGET) — As people all over the world gather for services, the Easter season continues to be a time for celebration, gratitude and remembrance of the ultimate sacrifice.
For the Bakersfield church community, it’s far more than just a spring holiday. Staffers spent all weekend setting up their places of worship for an abundance of guests.
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“I am super excited to see everybody just come together with their families and their Easter best — those that maybe have not been to church in a long time, I’m just excited to see them come and get to experience what Easter is all about,” said Amanda Sanchez, who attends New Life Church.
While the Easter bunny and egg hunts sometimes dominate the holiday, Bakersfield’s Christian community is honoring the resurrection of Jesus Christ, who sacrificed his life so that the world might be saved.
“It gets me emotional because it’s just the thought of how much someone loves us,” Sanchez said. “And what he would do — pay the ultimate sacrifice for us to be able to live in freedom.”
New Life Church in southwest Bakersfield is planning several services, just like Discovery Church.
Staff at Discovery Church in Southwest Bakersfield prepare for a large crowd ahead of Easter Sunday.
“We have powerful worship, life-changing messages, engagement — and so it’s just, you’re going to hear the power of the resurrection,” said Nick Gagliardi, a pastor at Discovery Church.
He said the goal is to spread good news.
“I hope that they really understand what God did for them,” Gagliardi said. “He sent his son to die on that cross for them so that they can have salvation — and that Jesus conquered that grave — and that we get to celebrate that resurrection.”
Easter Sunday is traditionally the biggest service of the year.
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“I’ve been a part of this church for six years and each year we’ve grown and grown and grown,” said Jaisun Lyons, the youth director at Discovery. “I think this year we’re expecting 10,000-plus people to come to see our services.”
And there’s a theory behind why many people who don’t usually go to church will show up on Easter Sunday.
“The power of Jesus dying on the cross on Friday and then resurrecting on Sunday, that’s something that speaks for itself,” said Nalleli Garcia, a member at Discovery Church.
“And so people, regardless of whether they come or they don’t come for the entire year, that’s something special that will nudge them to say, ‘Hey, I can recognize that sacrifice, and for today, I want to remember, and I want to be there.’”
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