Yesterday was Holy Thursday, today is Good Friday, tomorrow will be Holy Saturday, and Sunday will be Easter – the day our Lord has risen. What do these days mean to you? I’ll be honest, before this year they really didn’t mean that much to me at all. I know we’re supposed to be thoughtful, prayerful, sorrowful and eventually happy by the end of this Holy Week. But how many many of you can honestly say you understand the significance of it all? How many of you understand the amount of pain and hope, love and disappointment, misunderstanding and rejoicing that goes on this week? Who actually stopped this week to ponder all of this…to seriously begin to understand what our Lord did for us? Whether you are a believer or not, He did this for all of us.
Here are a few questions to ask yourselves and reflect on as you prepare for Holy Week:
Do you think you could have done what Jesus did? How about the Disciples? What about His Mother, Our Mother? Who would you have been back then?
Take a look at your life and think about it.
Would you have been the bystander who just watched as Jesus was welcomed, then taken away, then tortured, and then crucified? Would you have been too scared to act, to make a move, out of fear of what others would think? How you would feel? Would you have been like Veronica, who, even though she was scared, took a step out to wipe the face of Jesus and give him some water? Would you have done this even though you, yourself, could have been persecuted? How about Judas, who “betrayed the Son of Man with a kiss”; would you have been like him and choose the worldly benefits over the Heavenly ones? What about Peter? Would you have been the one to say that you would follow Jesus no matter what and then deny Him when confronted for fear of persecution? Lastly, how about the thieves that were on both sides of Jesus in His last moments? Which one would you be like? The one who knows he has done wrong and asks for forgiveness or the one who challenges the Lord? To be quite honest, no matter which one you closely resemble, they all have this one giant thing in common: Jesus died on the cross for every single one of them…those afraid to act, those who betrayed Him, and those that were alongside Him…He died for all of them – all of us. What type of love is that? What type of person could die for people who betrayed and persecuted Him? What love! The love of God. God loves all of us no matter what we have done. It’s not God who turns away from us, it us who turn away from Him.
Tonight, on Good Friday, our Lord died for us on the cross and we mourn this time until Easter, when He has risen. There is so much I wish I could say but I really just want to say this…love God. He is there with you no matter what happens, all you need to do is ask and He will answer. Times may be rough and you may ask yourself, “why me, Lord? Why do these bad thing keep happening to me and my family? Why can’t I have the same faith as those around me? I ask and I pray, why don’t you answer me?” Think about this…in Jesus’ own words to His Father during this time He said, “let Your will be done, not mine”. Most of us claim to understand this, but do we really? I will be the first to admit it. I know I say to our Lord that whatever happens, let it be done for You and You alone; and yet, at the first sign of something going bad, I will continue the blame, “why Lord, why me?” Instead of focusing on what bad things you may be going through, thank God for everything – your family, your friends, your life. God loves you no matter what, and remember, He would never give you more than you can handle.
I can tell you this…I’ve felt like I was at the end of my rope before and that I had exhausted all of my strength. In those times, I’ve called out, with every fiber of my being, for God to help me – and He answered with the same answer He has been telling me for so long; and yet I could not hear or understand. That answer was, “TRUST ME!!! I LOVE YOU AND WILL NOT LEAVE YOU, NO MATTER WHAT HAPPENS I AM HERE FOR YOU MY CHILD”.
For those that read this, LOVE God – no matter what happens, good or bad, thank Him. He died for you so you could be free, so you could live forever.
Remember what this week is all about. Jesus died for us to so He could save us – because He loves us You are never alone. The burden is not for us to hold onto and take upon ourselves. Remember, Jesus died and then rose to take away sin. Remember that this weekend.
Have a happy Easter and remember, there are people praying for you no matter who you are – believer or not.
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