A reflection written by the Revd Paul Child, Parish Giving Advisor
On Easter Monday, I popped into the big Asda in Boldon for a few bits, and was struck by the sheer number of Easter eggs still available. Big ones, small ones, some as big as your head – all types and makes were there, but as I walked around the store very few people seemed to have them in their trollies. I went back for a proper look before I left and found myself looking at the reduced prices – a few pounds off here and there – and thinking they still seemed pretty expensive for what they are. Don’t get me wrong, I love a chocolate egg as much as the next person, but the phrase that I got stuck on was ‘shrinkflation’. The eggs before me were lighter, hollower – still wrapped in bright foil and promise but offering less than they once did. Even at a discount, I was still left with a lingering sense that something was missing.
It is an oddly fitting picture of the culture we live in. We are offered plenty of things that look generous but feel thin. Consumer life can train us to measure worth carefully, to cling to what we have, and to worry that giving—especially financial giving—will leave us short. Yet Easter tells a very different story. The resurrection proclaims that God’s economy is not governed by shrinkflation. In God’s kingdom, life multiplies as it is shared, and generosity does not diminish us but enlarges us.
I think the phrase we should get stuck on this time of year is: ‘We are an Easter people.’ At its heart, this simple phrase reminds us that Easter is not confined to a single day of celebration – or, it can be argued, merely the Easter season, the 50 days running up to Pentecost. This is important, because while everything else seems to want us to move on from Easter to the next ‘thing’, we need to remember the resurrection is not an event we pack away with the empty boxes and discarded foil, but instead is a continuing invitation to live differently—to live as people for who the world has changed by the one who defeated death and rose again to lead us, and all around us, into eternal life.
Living generously is one of the most beautiful expressions of Easter faith. It’s not about reckless spending or guilt‑driven charity; it is about trust. When we give—whether to our church, to charities or to neighbours in need—we are declaring that we believe God is a God of abundance. We are choosing to live as resurrection people rather than scarcity people. In a world anxious about rising prices and shrinking portions, generosity becomes a quietly radical act.
The contrast with those post‑Easter eggs is striking. They promise satisfaction but often disappoint. Easter generosity, by contrast, may look costly at first, but it carries lasting joy. When we share our resources, we taste something of the shared life of the early believers and anticipate the fullness of God’s coming kingdom.
As we move through the Easter season—celebrating the risen Jesus, sharing the resurrection story again, and turning our eyes toward Pentecost—we are invited to embody that hope in practical ways. To be an Easter people today is to live open‑handedly in a shrinkflated world, trusting that God’s goodness is never reduced, never hollow and never on offer for a limited time only.
Ends
Notes
For those preaching or teaching in this season, the Church of England offers helpful resources — including Generosity Week materials, Parish Resources, Preaching Generosity and Sermon Starters — all designed to support churches in sharing the message of God’s abundant goodness.
These tools can enrich sermons, small‑group reflections and worship as we continue to live out the story of Easter in everyday life.