Tears of Grief and Joy
Father, in this wee hour before the dawn on this Easter Sunday morning I cannot help but think of Mary Magdalene and her friends readying themselves for their journey to the tomb. There are no smiles – they have no reason to. There, I’m sure, were tears – they have every reason to.
Jesus is gone – they are still in shock. How did things spiral out of control so quickly? But…they blow their nose and wipe their tears for there is a job to be done. Jesus had done so much for them, the least they could do was to lovingly care for his body. The Sabbath was almost over, only three days had passed. They still had time before his body began to decay. It would be difficult seeing him lying there, touching his now cold skin, but it needed to be done.
As they headed out darkness was still about but they wanted to be there for the task at hand as soon as the morning light broke the horizon as they came closer, it dawned upon them that they would have to move the stone that had been rolled over the entrance of where His body lay. I was way too big for them to move – what were they to do? But they were almost there – they would figure something out. As the sun crept over the horizon they could see the shadowy details of Golgotha and tears once again threatened to rise but there was work to do and they would do it. And then they were there and nothing was as it should be! The stone had already been rolled away – they had worried for no reason. They carefully and reverently stepped into the tomb and… the body was not there! They knew they were at the right place. They would never forget watching Nicodemus assist Joseph of Arimathea lovingly place the body in its final resting place. These facts were just going through their minds when out of nowhere two beings stood before them blinding them in their brilliant attire. Terrified they fell to the ground. Then came the question. “Why do You seek the living amongst the dead, He is not here, he has risen. Remember what He said?” Luke 24:5-6
What? How could this…? He said so many things that they couldn’t understand. But…wait…he did tell us!! Why didn’t we believe? He is risen? He is risen!
Once more there were tears – but no longer tears of grief but tears of joy! Praise God! We must tell the others and off they went!
Mar 27th, EASTER Sun, 5:30 am
Someone Does Care
Father, as I sit here at this early hour I can give You nothing but praise! So many ignore You or curse You, blaming You for their heartache and pain, they accuse You of not caring enough to fix all the world’s problems.
But You do care. You have given us a means of being more than conquerors. You blessed us with a perfect world and because of our defiance we have polluted it, we have filled it with hate and pain and disease and death. We and our predecessors have made it what it is.
Even with all we had done – You still loved us. You had mercy on us and despite our rebellion; You got Your hands dirty and intervened on our behalf. You sent Your one and only Son to live amongst us. Before He came He knew the agony and sorrow that we know but His coming enabled us to grasp the reality that we are not all alone, that Someone does understand what we are going through and does care.
And even more than that because Christ chose to take upon himself the penalty for our defiance – our sin – that we can now find forgiveness. And (as if that weren’t enough already) our great enemy death has been defeated!
Father, You are worthy of all our praise! You love us more than we deserve and I choose to love You back. You are my Lord! You are my Savior! I give You my all! Amen!
Mar 25th, Fri, 5:50 am
The Answer
Today is the day, Father, when many things must get done. I give myself over to You. Help me to focus on the task at hand. Help me to be sensitive to Your leading. May this vessel be deemed worthy to bear Your Word. Amen.
Hebrews 7:1-14 (<<click here)
As the book of Isaiah tells us “… my ways are higher than your ways and my thoughts higher than Your thoughts.” 55:9 Lord, this is surely true of You. This passage from Hebrews 7 is shrouded in mystery and in the middle of it all is the priest/king Melchizedek. He is first mentioned in Genesis 14 in an encounter with Abram and his name pops up again in Psalm 110. The number of verses with which he is associated in the Old Testament are few but obviously in light of his impact on the writer of Hebrews he plays a substantial role in the mindset of first century Judaism.
I don’t pretend to understand everything in regards to the character of Melchizedek but I do realize that he was a precursor of Christ. God Almighty laid things out for the nation of Israel to give them guidance in following him – the Law, the tabernacle/temple and all their multifaceted directives. It was what they needed at that time but in a lot of ways it was only a shadow or maybe a reflection of what was reality in view of eternity.
Christ, the ultimate, priest/king, brought everything together. He completed it. He showed the reality of what the Law and the Temple only reflected. In his life, death and resurrection, Jesus fulfilled it all!
Lord Jesus, thank You for all You did. Oh my, it was not a simple matter to do so – but You took something of great complexity – something that we were absolutely incapable of solving – and with great sacrifice on so many fronts You provided the answer. And that answer was You!
All the requirements have been met. All the penalties have been paid. Every “i” has been dotted; every “t” has been crossed. Life is so complicated and messy. Many spend their lives searching for answers and it is futile if the only place we look is this world. Only when we look to You does it fall into place – holes are filled, rough places are made smooth (Isaiah 40:4, Luke 3:5) Thank You, Lord, for being the answer for which we long have searched!
Mar 24th, Thurs, 6:28 am
Hand on the Plow
Father, I continue to pray for Your leading in my life. I realize the importance of my responsibility in living my life as Your son. And there is no place that that is not a reality – in the pulpit, at Kohl’s or at home. That is a heavy load to bear but You have graciously given me someone with whom to share the yoke – Your Son, Jesus Christ. And along with that You have given me Your Holy Spirit as Counselor, Comforter and Guide. I am obviously well supported! And it is also obvious that I am loved.
Really, the only thing that can de-rail my forward movement in You…is me. Many things can fall across my path but it is how I respond to them that makes all the difference. I have ample support from You, but if I disregard it, it doesn’t help me. It is imperative that I keep my eyes on You. I must keep my hand on the plow with no looking back. Luke 9:62
I feel Your presence. I see Your hand at work in my life. My constant prayer is being answered. I am truly blessed.
Mar 21st, Mon, 5:02 am
We Have an Anchor
Good morning, Father. I am glad to be with You and I’m looking forward to what You share with me. Thank You for Massey getting safely back to Texas. Thank You for a nice quiet evening with Karen and for a good night’s sleep.
Hebrews 6:16-20 (<<click here)
“…a strong and trustworthy anchor for our souls.”
Lord, all of humanity yearns for security. And we invest great amounts of time and energy in, quite often, futile attempts to obtain it. What’s crazy is that the things we clamor for are in no way sure things. Every worldly thing can be gone in an instant – wealth, fame, power, love, family, knowledge, and on and on.
But You, on the other hand, are “a strong and trustworthy anchor for our souls.” v19 Only what You promise can we build our lives upon and not just for here and now but for all eternity! As it so clearly stated You have given us both Your promise and You oath and those are unchangeable “because it is impossible for God to lie.” v18
One of the greatest mysteries of life is why humanity as a whole refuses to trust You but we fall, hook, line and sinker for all the devil throws out to us. Why can’t we believe what You said? “[The devil] has always hated the truth; because there is no truth in him… he is a liar and the Father of lies.” John 8:44
Our lives prove this over and over again. We put our trust in the things of this world and they are taken from us, they are yanked from our hands – and the devil laughs at us. And he laughs all the more because we don’t just do it once or twice but repeatedly for the entirety of our lives! We are fools!
But, Jesus, some have come to our senses. We have placed our faith, not in the worlds, passing things, but in You! You never fail us! Your promises are “a strong and trustworthy anchor for our soul.”
An old hymn continues to pop into my head
‘Tis true, O yes, tis true,
God’s wonderful promise is true;
For I’ve trusted, and tested, and tried it,
And I know God’s promise is true.
And here’s another!
Will your anchor hold in the storms of life,
When the clouds unfold their wings of strife?
When the strong tides lift and the cables strain,
Will your anchor drift, or firm remain?
We have an anchor that keeps the soul
Steadfast and sure while the billows roll,
Fastened to the Rock this cannot move,
Grounded firm and deep in the Saviors love.
Lord, I claim Your promises to me this day and for the rest of my life. May I be a purveyor of Your love to all!
Mar 19th, Sat, 6:27 am