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It was Saturday morning. It was Sabbath day, and every good Jew would find them their way to the temple to offer up sacrifice, to worship, to spend time with their God.
I wonder what the followers of Jesus did on this sabbath day. Most sabbaths in the last three years they would be in the temple or listening to Jesus teach. But now he was gone.
I’m sure they were full of emotion. Fear that they were the next ones to be crucified. Confusion as to what happened. Loss of hope. For some there was guilt for abandoning him. For all of them and overwhelming sense of grief.
Yet, well, their hope seemed a locked behind a stone in a dark, cold tomb. They didn’t realize that in God‘s silence He was working.
We aren’t exactly sure what Jesus did during the time that he was in the tomb, but we know that God was working. Death was being destroyed.
Peter tells us, Jesus was preaching to those who had gone on before. Most importantly, a battle raged between death and life, forgiveness, and sin, Satan and God himself.
It’s Saturday, but Sunday’s coming.
You may be doubting God’s working in your life right now.
You may be full of confusion and grief and doubt and anger and guilt in a whole plethora of other emotions.
Remember this, hold tight to your faith. Because in the darkness of the tomb, God was working. And in the darkness of your life right now, God is working.
This may be your Saturday. But remember, God is working and Sunday’s coming.
Let us hold tightly without wavering to the hope we affirm, for God can be trusted to keep his promise. Hebrews 10:23
Hope is easy when what we are hoping for is out of our hands. Some will say, ‘I hope my team wins’, or ‘I hope this relationship works out’, or ‘I hope it doesn’t rain this weekend’.
Those are valid hopes but in reality those hopes are built on things that are either completely or partially out of our control.
Hope that is secure is built on trust and trust is a process of growing. It doesn’t exist in a vacuum. Is like a muscle that is often developed through hardship and, in some cases, uncertainty.
Trust is easier when we understand the make-up of the person or thing that we want to trust in. We can trust more easily when we know the intent of the person we are putting out trust in. For example, we can trust people, even in failure, if we are completely convinced of their intentions.
Trust is easier when we can trust in the ability of the person being trusted.
Lastly, the level of trust one has is dependent on the integrity of the person or thing being trusted. A broken and cracked chair doesn’t offer the same level of trust as a new chair.
The writer of Hebrews talks about the hope we have because we can trust God. When we believe his intentions are graceful and merciful; when we know in our hearts he has the ability to protect and guide us, when we understand his working because of our close walk with him, when we act based on his integrity, then hope is easy (er) during the confusing and discouraging times of life.
We live in hopeless times. We live in times when trust in people, government and media can attack our security and peace. Put your hope in the promises of God, not the fickle plans of mankind.
Day after day they continue to speak; night after night they make him known. Psalms 19:2
I love the mountains. A few years ago we took a trip from our midwest, relatively flat area to the mountains. Driving through one pass in particular, the mountains on either side of us nearly blocked the sky. They were huge.
One of the things I thought of as I gazed at these immense rocks is how they had withstood the passage of time, endured the changing elements and had been unaffected by disease, political change, or any other environmental issue.
They were the same in hot weather and cold, dry weather or wet, in the brightness of the day and the darkness of night.
The Psalmist writes of the stability and order of God’s creation. Here, in verse two he writes of creation enduring through time. Like the mountains I looked on with awe, God stands tall.
Night after night, season after season, He stands immovable and impenetrable regardless of what is going on around Him.
It’s so hard, in our frail humanity to fathom how God stands unaffected by anything going on around us. We are affected physically, emotionally and spiritually by weather, illness, social and political climate, relational differences and much more.
Yet our God isn’t moved. Mountains don’t speak words, but they speak lessons. They speak reminders of God’s immensity. They speak reminders of God’s resilience. They speak reminders that whatever is bothering you today; whatever fear you are dealing with; whatever worry is attacking you,
God stands strong. When we live in the power and shelter of his spirit, we can stand strong too.
In your mind, right now, picture the grandeur of the mountains and remember, your God stands strong through whatever you are going through.
The heavens proclaim the glory of God. The skies display his craftsmanship. Psalms 19:1
David paints a vivid picture of the majesty and wonder of how creation shows the beauty of God’s handiwork. One need only look at the stars in the sky and be reminded of the power and creativity of our Creator.
In the midst of the uncertainty and challenges of life, the heavens stand as a constant testimony to God’s faithfulness and provision. Each star in the sky, each cloud crossing the horizon, speaks of a divine order and purpose woven into the fabric of existence.
They remind us that we are not alone, but rather, we are part of a grand and glorious symphony orchestrated by the loving hands of God.
In a world filled with chaos and turmoil, the beauty of creation offers us hope. It reminds us that even in the darkest of nights, there is light to guide our way. Just as the sun rises faithfully each morning, God’s love, mercy and grace are new, offering us hope for the day ahead.
When you feel overwhelmed by Your circumstances, lift your eyes to the heavens and be reminded of God’s enduring love.
The same God who set the stars in place also holds you in the palm of His hand. In Him, we find our refuge and our strength, our rock and our salvation. In Him and Him alone is our hope. A hope that transcends all understanding, a hope that never disappoints, a hope that we can be reminded of every time we look at the awesome beauty of a starry night.
Great is the Lord, and worthy of our praise!
Oh, the joys of those who do not follow the advice of the wicked, or stand around with sinners, or join in with mockers. But they delight in the law of the Lord, meditating on it day and night. Psalms 1:1-2
Where to you seek answers to the things that are troubling you? Our lives abound with adversity that rob us of the joy of life.
We struggle with fear of failure so we procrastinate. We struggle with doubt, so we don’t take steps God has been nudging us towards. We worry even though God has proven over and over again that he will provide. We make promises to ourselves that we don’t keep such as I’m going to eat better and get some exercise…tomorrow.
During those times when you seek answers who do you call on. Advice for many is just a social media account away. The anonymity of the internet has made many ‘experts’, most of whom conflict with each other and some are just plain evil.
The result is more confusion and fewer answers. Those who have true purpose in life are often filled with joy because in spite of the conflicting messages of society, they are secure in who they are and why they are heard. Confidence in those two things (Identity and purpose) lead to joy.
True joy comes as a result of our allegiance to and meditation upon God’s Word, the prayerful advice of godly friends and reliance on the moving of the Holy Spirit.
The enemy screams at us through social media, physical disaster, global conflict and disease. Our Father speaks softly and confidently through His Word, His church (Godly individuals, not the organization) and His Holy Spirit.
Mike Fisk & Built with Grace 