Waiting.

To some, this is a sombre day. The day that Jesus was in the grave. But to me it isn't so much a sad day as it is an amazingly beautiful day. If I had been there at the time I would like to think that it would be have been a deeply sombre day, but with the hindsight that we have in the Bible this Saturday doesn't have to be sad, it can be a joyful one. Jesus has risen. We know this and we we know that He was risen for us.

One of the most beautiful parts of the crucifixion story for me is the part where the Temple's veil is torn in two (Mark 15:38). It separated the holiest of holy areas from the not-quite-as-holy places and was where God's presence was. The tearing of the veil (to me) symbolizes that God no longer needed to be in the Temple receiving sacrifices - He had received the final, necessary sacrifice through His Son. We don't have to separate our not-quite-as-holy places with our God-filled places anymore. He looks at those places and still calls us beloved because of what Jesus did on the cross.

Nothing But The Blood - Corey Voss

Good Friday

Struck by these beautiful words that popped up on my computer screen this afternoon. I think they do an amazing job of describing this day:

"It is finished. Complete.
And hear this today - really hear it: Because it is finished, there is nothing that any one of us can contribute to Jesus' work on the cross to bring us any closer to salvation."
- She Reads Truth, Lent Day 45

True Love - Phil Wickham

(my favorite Easter song) 

Easter Sunday

Jesus came so that we might live.

We love because He first loved us.

We are forgiven because He took our place.

Happy Easter!

Thought for the Week

I was listening to a Passion City Church podcast today and the pastor, Louie Giglio, said something that really caught my attention (this may or may not be a direct quote :)

"The miracle is not that Jesus did what He did but that He wanted to do what He did" (this was about healing the blind man in John 9).

Easter is coming and I want to challenge you to think about the amazingness behind the Easter season. God didn't have to come and save us from our sins but He wanted to. Jesus didn't need to die for our transgressions, but out of perfect love He did.

This weekend, take a few moments to be in awe of the fact that God loves the sinners that we are and that He wants a relationship with us, His beloved children. This is the true meaning of Christianity.