Barb Totterdell April 21st 2019 ~ Good News

Good News.Such good news.That’s what we are celebrating this weekend.I wonder what your Lent has been like. I’m someone who finds rhythms very helpful and the rhythms of the church year are often a part of that. But this year, for various reasons, I haven’t engaged strongly in a Lenten journey - well, not deliberately and intentionally anyway. God, on the other hand, has been doing His work of leading me to the Cross! So I’ve come to this Holy Week and Easter a little less ‘prepared’ than I often would be.This has left me thinking about the followers of Jesus who we read about in the Bible. They thought they ‘got’ Jesus, thought they knew what he was on about - and he had given them lots of hints and pointed towards his death and resurrection in many ways - but they were so unprepared. What happened left them feeling bereft, stunned and then completely overwhelmed. Their leader was dead. That’s not how it was meant to end. And it’s not how it ends – but they didn’t know that over the time between when Jesus died and when He rose again. They weren’t prepared for Him dying and they certainly weren’t prepared for Him coming back to life. They were shocked, devastated and stunned. Imagine the rollercoaster that they were on over those days, a rollercoaster they were completely unprepared for.And us? However familiar we are with this story that we are remembering and celebrating this weekend, we can never be prepared to grasp afresh the immensity of the love and grace that Jesus has accomplished on the cross - and then the completely ground-breaking freedom and life that comes because Jesus has conquered the grave. It’s the best possible news on the planet – sin and death being defeated; freedom and life offered to us because Jesus has died and risen again. We can never be prepared for this extravagant grace, this mind-blowing good news. Indeed, what we celebrate today is the greatest day in history!Jesus is alive . . . that changes everything.Because of this, the power of sin and death is broken.Because of this, we can be changed.Because of this, we are not the same.By His death and resurrection, Jesus has accomplished all that is needed.Oh, happy day!Jesus is risen!He’s risen indeed.Blessing,Barb