Rest
Saturday, April 3
“On the Sabbath day they rested…” Luke 23:56b
The women were exhausted. The trauma of a turbulent arrest, trial, and
crucifixion sent them into shock. They prepared spices and ointments
expecting a burial, not a resurrection. The sabbath required rest. They
were stuck in the Waiting Place. The Dr. Seuss book describes well both
their experience and ours. We‘re just waiting… exhausted by a year of
pandemic, social upheaval and disruption of worship. The communal
trauma we’ve experienced has left us in shock. We want things back to
how they used to be. We wait.
Yet, we know how the story ended. Instead of death, there’s new life.
Nothing went back normal; incredible transformation came through
resurrection. It can be the same for us. Let go of that spot in the Waiting
Place. Embrace the new life that’s possible for us with the resurrection of
Christ Jesus. We wait, but new life is bursting forth! Can you feel it?
God of the resurrection, help us move from waiting to the new life you
bring to all of creation. Amen.
Pr. Patrick Patterson, Trinity Lutheran Church