When Will You Rise?
The anticipation of Holy Saturday
In my early morning and late night travels back and forth to the airport between Philly and Orlando, I’ve met some of the most conversational Uber drivers I’ve ever encountered (especially at four in the morning!). Inevitably, they ask me what I do, and this morning was no exception. I always enjoy seeing where the conversation goes from there.
Now, to be clear, I’m not a natural evangelist. My internal monologue tells me that if I try to start a conversation about Jesus, I’m going to do it wrong and become one more example for this person of why they don’t need faith in their life. But telling someone you work for a Bible cause organization does tend to start certain kinds of conversations, and I try to be faithful to that. After all, God can use even the most bumbling words to speak hope to someone else.
Reflecting on that conversation, I’m reminded that today is Holy Saturday, a complex day of mourning and anticipation. We know the end of the story, but the disciples didn’t. They only knew the pain of loss, the fear of the future, and maybe the tiniest sliver of hope for what they believed Jesus could do.
As we remember them today, I’m struck that perhaps this is how God sees us all the time when we’re in the waiting space between what has been lost and what is yet to come. He already knows the resolution of the story. Like our hearts say to the disciples, perhaps He says to us, “Don’t give up. Hope is coming. It’s almost here.”
I don’t know what part, if any, this morning’s conversation will have as my Uber driver wakes up tomorrow on Easter morning. But I can appreciate that hope may yet rise in his heart through any number of touches God puts in his path. Perhaps not today, but Jesus is coming to bring hope and purpose to his heart.
Today, you get a song stack. First, I love this instrumental piece by Austin Stone Worship that captures the sadness and joy of Holy Saturday - When Will You Rise? Then, Jon Guerra’s Kingdom of God for a taste of Easter in anticipation of tomorrow.
May you be blessed as you wait for our coming Savior, in the small parts of our lives that need hope, and for the beautiful future that awaits us on His return.
Praises & Prayer Requests
Praise God that Jen has finished her first month at ABS, and things are going great! God has good things in store for this organization.
Praise God for the extra Spring Break time together as a family. This distance and transition are hard, and we needed the extra time to develop new rhythms to keep us healthy.
Praise God for good friends who are encouraging us throughout this process with their love and care.
Thanks for joining us in prayer for these requests this week.
Jen is waiting on a visa to see if she will travel in early April. Please pray for clarity one way or the other sooner rather than later. Either decision by the embassy can reflect God’s will for the next few weeks, so it would be helpful to know how to set up her time if she doesn’t travel.
Easter will be one of Jen’s last Sundays at Spring of Life church. Pray for a joyful celebration of the resurrection even though there’s still grieving as we make this transition.
Pray for our family as the date for the whole family’s move grows closer. Lots to process while we finish out the school year.
See you again in “Ordinary Time!” (a little church calendar joke, but there’s nothing ordinary about this time for us - ha!)
