written by Leona Bergstrom, Director, Re-Ignite
Easter weekend is when Christians memorialize the death of Christ and celebrate his resurrection.
Saturday is a particularly perplexing day. Sandwiched between a dark and solemn Good Friday service and the glorious dawn of Easter morning, Saturday is when communities hold lively egg hunts; offer photo ops with the Easter Bunny, and promote sales on frilly dresses and chocolate candy. Buried in all of the holiday activity is an almost unexplainable emptiness. The soul feels sad, even melancholic.
On the eve of his resurrection, Jesus’ lifeless body lay in a cold, hard and eerie rock tomb. Guarded by men and supervised by angels, deathly silence ricocheted throughout the heavy air. Now called “Saturday,” the day in the middle was anything but lighthearted. It was sad, grim and somber.
We all have “Good Fridays” in life; times of death, bereavement and extreme suffering. As we age, it seems like loss becomes a frequent companion. Empathizing with the women traveling to the tomb on that dark morning, we feel heavy-hearted. While we believe Heaven looms ahead, we live in uncertainty. Like the Saturday following Christ’s death, we live somewhere between what was and what is yet to come.
Many think of aging in terms of gloom and doom. Society either ignores its reality or paints it up with the promise of leisure and play. In actuality, the journey of aging provides the opportunity to realize and experience the profound power of the resurrection. Certainly, difficulties do not pass us by, but the risen Christ never leaves us.
Everything changed on Easter morning. Light burst forth dispelling all darkness. Hope rose anew. Death became life.
What do we need for this season of life’s journey? The power of his resurrection!
I want to know Christ
and experience the mighty power that raised him from the dead.
–Paul, Philippians 3:10, The New Living Bible
©Re-Ignite
Originally published 2016
Photo courtesy of CanStock
