As I sit down to
type this the calendar is telling me that it is March 1st.
How did we get to March already? Did we cut January shorter by a
couple of weeks? Because in my mind I am sure it should be the
beginning of February. Alas it is not. It is indeed March 1st.
And that means that exactly one month from today will be the pinnacle
of the church year.
No I am not
referring to April Fool’s Day (though a month from today is indeed
April 1st). It will in fact be Easter Sunday. It will be
that morning when we once again celebrate that life conquers death,
when hope shines from an empty hole in the ground, when God goes
“all-in” and then lays down the winning hand. On Easter Sunday we
look at the broken world and are reminded that God is actively at
work mending it.
Alleluia!
Sometimes it seems
hard to believe that hope can be more powerful than despair. Some
days, looking at the world makes it hard to believe that anyone,
not even God, could fix the broken-ness that fills up my news feed.
And then along comes Easter.
Easter
reminds me that God has not played all the cards. Easter reminds me
that God has an ace in the hole. Easter reminds me that God can
surprise us all. April Fool!?!???
Just
a couple of months ago we gathered and sang carols about a baby being
born. In those carols and stories were words of hope and promise. The
baby would change the world. The baby would bring on the Kingdom of
God. On the first Sunday of 2018 we heard the beginning of John’s
Gospel about the light that shines in the darkness and the darkness
can not overcome it. And yet...
On
the second last day of this month we will read about that baby, now
fully grown, being arrested, put on trial, convicted, and put to a
torturous death. Where is the hope of the baby in the manger? Has the
darkness actually overcome the unquenchable light? Has
the Kingdom of God been chased away? When will it come?
Then,
in what may be the greatest reversal of all time, SURPRISE! As
I read the Gospel accounts it is clear to me that none of Jesus’
friends expected Easter to happen. They were despondent and afraid,
some had even fled home to try and pick up the life they once knew.
But out of left field life came and defeated death, hope came and
chased away despair, resurrection came and transformed their lives.
Because
of Easter the world is different. Because Easter keeps happening the
world keeps getting transformed. Because Christ has been raised we
are able to be people of hope. Because God played the final card the
Kingdom is alive and well and growing in our midst – even when we
try to keep it down the Kingdom keeps sending out new shoots.
Alleluia indeed!
Where
do you need the truth of resurrection this Easter? What are the
places in your life where the power of death seems overwhelming? What
tomb do you go to visit to weep and mourn because something precious
is gone? Where might God
surprise you with new life, new hope, a new dawn?
Gord
PS:
What might it mean to have Easter Sunday on April Fool’s Day?
Maybe in a month I will have an answer to that question
No comments:
Post a Comment