“Even though I walk through the darkest valley, I fear no evil; for you are with me;”
What does it mean to celebrate “resurrection”??? As easy to answer as that question might seem at first glance, it is probably a lot more complex to really take on. For indeed each of us is likely to give as unique an answer as our hearts and stories are unique. What it means to look for resurrection is as varied as the kinds of death we experience (are experiencing?) in our lives. To someone who is grieving, it literally means there is assurance that a day/time is coming when we will be reunited with our loved one in God’s Kingdom. To someone who has just lost their job or is enduring some kind of chaos in their life, it is the hope that one day there will be new sense of promise, peace & future on the horizon. For the people who struggle with loneliness or brokenness of heart, it is the hope that grace & healing are coming to them again. And so the list could go on and on…
In any and every case however, what this weekend ultimately means for us – as we walk through the dark days of Holy Week to the incredible good news of Easter morning - is that there IS a promise of light and life on the other side of every darkness/death. And what’s more.. as anguished as your personal Good Friday can be to endure… as impossible as it can sometimes feel to even dare to dream of life beyond our sorrows… Christ’s empty tomb stands forever as the assertion that - for our God - NOTHING IS IMPOSSIBLE. It is the promise that not even the most immovable stone can get in the way of God’s will to bring healing and new life to our stories.
May this Easter Sunday and its explosion of “Alleluias” seed in you the verdant hope of new life beyond whatever it is you are facing these days/may face in a day ahead. And may the resurrection of Christ remind you every day that – no matter what “valley” you are walking through right now there is always more life and wholeness and joy to come.
A Blessed Holy Week and Easter to you all!!!
- Pastor Stewart Miller, Easter 2019
