Mid-week Message

Greetings!

“Then Jesus told his disciples, ‘If any want to become my followers, let them deny themselves and take up their cross and follow me. For those who want to save their life will lose it, and those who lose their life for my sake will find it.” - Matthew 16:24-26

This week we remember that Jesus died on the cross, and then we celebrate that he was resurrected. One of the challenges of the Christian life is that the cross comes before resurrection. Sometimes we lose or we suffer on the journey toward new life. In the midst of loss or suffering, God is our shepherd, guiding us to new life and resurrection. In the midst of the trials, we ask, “Why?” Asking God, “Why,” is an act of faith. It affirms that God is the one with the answers and it affirms that we trust in God no matter what. Reflect on this poem by Rev. Sarah Speed, reminding us that asking, “Why?” is an act of turning to God, an act of faith.

To ask why

To ask why is to break open your heart, to pour yourself out, to stare into the gnawing emptiness of the tomb, to peel away any layer of security, to walk on fire, and stand in the rain.

It’s talking about the bad dreams after you’ve had them.

It’s courageous and vulnerable, painful and necessary.

To ask why is to declare that God is God.

To ask why is to say, be my God even when, especially when, the world falls apart.

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Grace and peace,

Rev. Sarina