Good Friday

The Friday of Holy Week is called “Good Friday” only because we know the rest of the story. The death of Jesus on the cross when dramatically portrayed allows us to identify with the pain and suffering.  Yet the reality of that horrible event points to a great truth. Death does not have the final word. Easter is the answer to the cruelty of crucifixion on the cross. 

Good Friday plays a prominent role in Holy Week because it causes us to consider the cross and what it means for our lives as a people of faith. United Methodist pastor, Adam Hamilton reminds us that the cross represents “a divine love story centered on a God who suffered to save the human race.”  The cross is about selfless and sacrificial love.  It defines the gospel and explains the most popular verse in the entire New Testament: “God so loved the world that he gave his only son…” (John 3:16)

The cross is not only Jesus’ story, but our own. It reminds us that forgiveness is a part of God’s story told from the cross. As the central symbol of Christianity, it points to hope in times of despair, and leads to gratitude for God’s mighty acts on our behalf. The cross represents redemption, and points to the possibility of new beginnings, little resurrections in this life , that allow us to have a fresh start in spite of our failures and shortcomings. The cross points the way to the paths we are to follow through acts of love and kindness. And the cross symbolizes the promise that awaits us at the end of this earthly journey when, like Jesus, our “good Friday” becomes “Easter.”

Holy Week

What we’ve come to call “Holy Week” is here. A friend said she grew up calling this week “Quiet Week.” This week before the celebration of Christ’s resurrection is a time for quiet reflection and contemplation on matters of life and death. We consider Jesus' life lived in love and compassion. We note in the gospels the events of Jesus’ last week of earthly life: the places he went, the people he chose to spend time with, his actions, his final words to his disciples that still live on in the lives of his followers today. And we, too, encounter the meaning of the cross.

All of this prepares us for Easter and the glorious proclamation that continues to be the central message of the Christian faith: "Christ has risen! He has risen indeed." So let us make this week quiet and holy by reflecting on life and death, the places we need to go, the people we need to spend time with, the words we need to say. May the message of the resurrection find expression through us in all we say and do. Holy Week is here. Blessings abound!

Hurry Up and Wait

Wikipedia defines "hurry up and wait" as any scenario where part of the time you are rushing and working very hard and part of the time you are waiting around and prepared to work on demand when needed.  The expression seems to have originated from movie productions where most of the crew sit around watching the film director and actors until their services are needed and they rush to do what is necessary to get ready for the next part of the production.

I’m sure you have had such “hurry up and wait” experiences. You rush to make an appointment on time only to find that you have to wait.  It most frequently happens in doctors and dentists offices, but happens in stores, too.  When you’re ready to check out with only a few items, you get in the express line and find that the person ahead you has more than the limited number of items or has a problem with a credit card! 

I confess.  I do not like waiting.  Waiting calls for patience, something I don’t have a lot of. I have to constantly work on being patient. This is a spiritual challenge and a growing edge toward more faith-filled living. 

The Bible is full of references to patience. The Psalmist wrote these words: “I remain confident of this: I will see the goodness of the Lord in the land of the living. Wait for the Lord; be strong and take heart and wait for the Lord.” (Psalm 27:13-14); “Be still in the presence of the Lord, and wait patiently for him to act.” (Psalm 37:7) Scriptures also challenge us with such words as these: “Put on then, as God’s chosen ones, holy and beloved, compassionate hearts, kindness, humility, meekness, and patience, bearing with one another” (Colossians 3:12-13);   “And we desire each one of you to show the same earnestness to have the full assurance of hope until the end, so that you may not be sluggish, but imitators of those who through faith and patience inherit the promises. (Hebrews 6:11-12 ) 

According to scriptures, patience is a “virtue” and a sign of the “fruit of the spirit.” Practicing patience is not an elective, but a requirement for a lifestyle of faithful living. I am not there yet, but I take some comfort in knowing that I am always a work in progress, grateful for God’s abundant patience with me.  Challenged by life’s “hurry up and wait” moments I strive to be more patient by seeking and claiming that spiritual gift.

Saint Francis de Sales expressed the challenge this way:  “Have patience with all things, but chiefly have patience with yourself. Do not lose courage in considering your own imperfections but instantly set about remedying them – every day, begin the task anew.”  Good advice as we deal with the “hurry up and wait” experiences of life!