Saturday April 19, 2014
Building People of Substance for Works of Power
It’s Easter Eve, Friend.
It’s quiet this morning. According to the calendar this day after Good Friday is Holy Saturday or Easter Eve. Some in the Eastern Church call it The Great Sabbath because it is the day when Jesus rested in the tomb. Others call it Joyous Saturday because they associate it with the day Jesus accomplished the “harrowing of Hell” by gathering the Old Testament saints and moving them to Paradise. Still others emphasize the day of mourning and weeping for Mary who had lost a son in most horrible fashion.
Today, I am thinking of the disciples who had lost a friend and a mentor. They had failed him in his hour of greatest distress. Now they must have been devastated. The men no doubt were disturbed that their Messianic fantasies and Kingdom dreams had died horribly and unfulfilled. The women were waiting for the grim Sabbath to pass so they could prepare the body for burial. They didn’t know what was going to happen tomorrow.
From our post-resurrection perspective we can see the joy of the next morning. The Messiah is alive and the Kingdom is come, only neither in the manner the disciples had so ardently wished. The failures of yesterday are forgotten in the light of glory.
Today for us is a day of anticipation. We can turn loose of our failures and the shortcomings of yesterday and anticipate the fresh wave of grace that comes with the glory of an empty tomb. We can eagerly anticipate the creative realization of promises yet in the realm of faith. We can allow our fantasies of how things ought to be accomplished to die and await their resurrection in the way He wants them done. His way is always better.
Someone Said: We must accept finite disappointment, but never lose infinite hope. Martin Luther King Jr.
Scripture Reading: Sing to the LORD, all you godly ones! Praise His holy name. For His anger lasts only a moment, but His favor lasts a lifetime! Weeping may last through the night, but joy comes with the morning. (Psa 30:4-5 NLT)
Take a little time today to push through the agony of disappointment and failure and begin to thank Him for the joy of resurrection. I am anticipating great things!
vls
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