So I thought about writing an original post and then thought, "Hey, lasts year's post was great." so I decided to do a REPOST! Oh yeah. This post is so near and dear to my heart. I think it's so relevant to most of us and where we are in our lives. So with this said, I hope you enjoy :)
Happy Easter weekend! Isn't it such a great time? Flowers are blooming and families come together to celebrate one of the most monumental times in history. Friday, Jesus dies, paying the price for sin. Sunday, He raises, proving He was God and had power over death. I could say many things about either one of these days.
But what about Saturday?
The Bible doesn't say much about Saturday, but all you have to do is use your imagination to see what it was like:
Imagine you were one of Jesus' followers. Maybe you've followed him for three years, maybe three months. Either way, you've come to love him; his spirited attitude, but gentleness at the same time. You love his carefree smile and grow concerned at his troubled expression. You've seen those hands embrace people and serve them. You've dropped everything for this man, if he truly is one.
Then, you find that he's been arrested for a crime though you know he's innocent. You see him suffer a horrific death. You spend your night sleepless, troubled, devastated.
Can you imagine the next day?
You sit outside, barely able to speak. It's the sabbath so you can't even work off your pain. Who was this man? He said he would save us. He promised deliverance was coming. He spoke of freedom. Empty promises.
You have had a rough life, an outcast from everyone. He was the only one you could turn to, the only one to count on, the only one to truly love you.
There's no point of living anymore. You're bombarded with intense loneliness, despair, and unspeakable sorrow. You've cried your last tear and you now sit shaking, looking at the trees but not seeing them. Life would never be the same.
Of course, we know the next part - Jesus comes back, defeating even death and saving us, offering freedom forever. But they didn't know that. All they were left with was emptiness, unfulfilled promises, pain, even anger.
I wrote about Saturday, not Sunday, because it's the one you and I relate to best. Sunday's great, but life isn't all Resurrection Sundays. There are Saturdays, too.
I've had many Saturdays in my life, where everything is fallen. Where I can no longer even feel raindrops on my skin anymore. Where I would look out my window, but not see a thing. Where even God's arms are a questionable place to turn.
I know you can relate at least a little. Everyone's had pain. And at the time, it's all we see. We can't see the Sunday yet. We have no clue that joy is on its way and quickly approaching.
If you're at a point in your life where all you see is Saturday, it's not forever. Jesus is coming and He's bringing joy, peace and freedom with Him. It's not a trite, empty word.
I remember the first time after loss that I stood by my window (recently, actually), feeling so much joy. I could FEEL the sun again. It warmed me right down to my toes. It was wonderful. I remember thinking, "Joy DOES come in the morning. There really is peace." I had no idea that feeling existed. Sunday really did come. Just like He said.
Even as I re-read this post, I drink in the words. I'm currently working my way out of a Saturday period (which I'll write about soon). I had given up recently actually. I didn't know if I even believed in God anymore and I sure as heck knew I didn't want to be here anymore. I honestly believed that God, if He was existed, abandoned me. He was not around and I was utterly alone. All I was left with was empty promises.
I still struggle. I don't come to you with a resolved issue and say I have found the answer to always living with a Resurrection Sunday mindset. But this I hold on to: Sunday is coming, my friends. It's coming to save us all and our tears will cease and we will remember that we are not forgotten. For now though, we are left with new mercies in the morning - though we may not see it - and just enough strength to get through the day. And soon enough, we will see our Savior on Sunday morning. Joy is on its way and is quickly approaching....
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