On the Third Day...

I know, it's been awhile since Easter, and I actually do have several posts to type up, but I haven't been on this site this week...still, here is my Easter morning post...a little late...

"He is not here. He has risen, just as he said he would."

I'm not sure there have ever been more beautiful words to read. I can only imagine what it would have been like to experience. The worse moment in history is over and, like all friends and family mourning the death of a loved one, Jesus' family and friends are struggling to get on with their lives. It's a Sunday morning and two women are on the way to the tomb. When they get there, the stone is rolled away. Looking inside, the body is gone! Where did they take Jesus? Why would they take him?

Can you see it? The fear, the frustration, the sadness...they didn't even allow him a proper burial, did not allow His family and friends to mourn. All they want to do is say goodbye, and now it seems they cannot even do that.

Then, those words...

He is not here.

He has risen.

Just as he said he would.

God's promise fulfilled through tragedy and triumph. Death conquered. Peace will reign again.

The world kept spinning, the disciples kept living their lives, all the time the truth ringing in their ears, hearts, and lives. He is risen. He is risen.

Amen.

The Body & The Blood

While they were eating, Jesus took bread, gave thanks and broke it, and gave it to his disciples, saying, "Take it; this is my body." Then he took the cup, gave thanks and offered it to them, and they all drank from it. "This is my blood of the covenant, which is poured out for many," he said to them. "I tell you the truth, I will not drink again of the fruit of the vine until that day when I drink it anew in the kingdom of God." Mark 14:22-25

Today is the day. As Jesus looks at the world, He has to know that everything is about to change. All of eternity has been holding its breath, wondering if it would really happen. Would God really demand that sacrifice? Would Jesus really obey? Would the world really change tonight?

The pieces had already been put in motion and the earth was revolving toward resolution. As Jesus looked at his friends, his disciples, even his betrayer, he felt love. He knew the time was right, so when the hour was upon him, he broke the bread, offered the cup, and began a tradition which we hold tight to even today. The Lord's Supper was begun - a time to remember the broken body and the spilled blood that would serve as penance for all our sin.

Take a moment to think about your life. The times you've made mistakes, fallen down, and sinned against your God. The times everything has gone wrong and you've felt alone and isolated in the middle of your own pain. While you can't change the past, you can change the focus of your future.

• Next time you fall down, remember He fell on the road to Calvary, and He fell for you.
• Next time you can't see the sunlight through the pain, remember He was beaten for you.
• Next time you feel alone, remember He experienced something you never have to - complete isolation from God.
• Next time your life doesn't follow your plan, remember God's plan put His only son on a cross. For you. Forever.
  
  Prayer: Father, help me to remember the sacrifice in the body and blood. Help me to remember what You did, You did for me. Not because you had to, but because you chose to. Not because You didn't know how much it would hurt, but because You wanted me close to you. Help me to remember that Your sacrifice renews my life. Forever. Amen.

What God Asks Of Us

In essence, there is only one thing God asks of us--that we be men and women of prayer, people who live close to God, people for whom God is everything and for whom God is enough. ~ Brennan Manning, the Ragamuffin Gospel

The Ragamuffin Gospel changed my life and completely changed how I view God. There is a lot about being a Christian and living a Christian life that I find hard to understand and confusing. There is a lot about following Christ that I never feel like I will be able to do enough of - helping the poor, feeding the hungry, clothing the naked. There are so many ways in which I fail at living up to the expectation I have for myself when it comes to my faith. And, in the midst of all of that, I read The Ragamuffin Gospel and felt peace.

There are a lot of commands, a lot of things that are good for Christians to do and a lot of ways we are called to be set apart, different, and unique. The foundation of that 'being different' is prayer - reaching out to an unseen hand and asking for His guidance in all we say and do.

It's easy to get caught up in the do's and don'ts of religion - it's easy to dwell on the ways we fail, the ways we fall short, and the ways we do not make a difference. When the essence of our call as a Christian is boiled down to the above quote - be a people of prayer - live close to God - God is everything - God is enough - those are things I think I can handle, goals I think I can meet, expectations I think I can exceed.

Choose today to be a person for whom God is enough and God is everything. Choose today to be a people of prayer. Choose today to live close to God. In doing those things, the rest of your Christian walk may become easier to see, even if the 'doing' part still seems almost impossible!

Prayer: Help me today to focus on the reality of what You expect of me - that I am a person of prayer - that I live close to You and that I rest in the fact that You are enough for me. Amen.

Consecrated

Joshua told the people, 'Consecrate yourselves, for tomorrow the Lord will do amazing things among you.' (Joshua 3:5)

This is one of my favorite scriptures. In just a few words, it says something deep and meaningful to my heart. Consecrate literally means "dedicated to a sacred purpose."

In what ways is your life consecrated? How are you dedicating yourself to a sacred purpose in what you say, what you do, how you react to trials and tribulations? The reality is that your sacred purpose does not change from day to day. Your purpose is to be open to God's will and leading in your life. You are set apart to be exactly the person God created you to be, regardless of how far away from 'sacred' you feel sometimes.

The second part of this verse deals with expectation - the promise that God has something amazing in store for your life. For tomorrow the Lord will do amazing things among you. A promise that He is always at work in your life, never ceasing, never resting.

The challenge today is to believe this! God has already planned something amazing for your tomorrow (and the tomorrow after that). You work on the consecrated part - the being dedicated to a sacred purpose part - and God will work on the amazing things He has in store for those who love Him.

Prayer: Father, help me to be set apart today. Help me to be different, to be challenged, to be, as the verse in Joshua says, dedicated to a sacred purpose. Help me to focus on You and the amazing things You will do in all my tomorrow's. Amen