He is Risen!

The Morning after the Night Before

Our house is quiet, as I sit and watch the Robins run across my back fence in the rain.  The gray mist that covers our neighbourhood is indicative of my mood.  I have just spent wonderful, uninterrupted time in my bible and yet I am pensive, agitated and restless.  As the steam from my fair trade coffee rises in the air, I am realizing that I am not sure I have a full understanding of what it must have been like for the disciples and His followers the day after they watched Jesus crucified on the cross.  Can I ever really understand the hopelessness, confusion, and utter loss that they must have felt as I stand here on this side of the cross?  Maybe I need more days like this.  Days in which I see the world in light of His death.  It is hard for me to imagine.  What if His story ended at the cross?  What if my world's reality ended with Christ's death.  The harshness of that statement is difficult for me to fully comprehend and yet I know that for many today that is their reality.  Many of those I love and admire, live day to day in the reality that Jesus Christ was a historical figure, who was a good teacher and whose life ended,  period.  My heart is heavy because I am not sure I can understand what life would be like if His story ended with his death.  Our world is too broken, the grief is too much, the injustice so overwhelming that when I allow my mind to live in his death, life just seems like the weather today, cold, damp and endlessly gray.

For me, tomorrow can't arrive soon enough.

Good Friday - Reflecting on His Grace

The sounds of music, have filled our home since early this morning, as Jason, Liam and I spent time recording a new song that my husband Jason wrote called "Yes, this is Grace".  Jason has posted the recording as part of his Free Art Friday series.

You can listen to it here.

Now from the sixth hour darkness fell upon all the land until the ninth hour.

   About the ninth hour Jesus cried out with a loud voice, saying, "ELI, ELI, LAMA SABACHTHANI?" that is, "MY GOD, MY GOD, WHY HAVE YOU FORSAKEN ME?"

   And some of those who were standing there, when they heard it, began saying, "This man is calling for Elijah."

   Immediately one of them ran, and taking a sponge, he filled it with sour wine and put it on a reed, and gave Him a drink.

   But the rest of them said, "Let us see whether Elijah will come to save Him."

   And Jesus cried out again with a loud voice, and yielded up His spirit.

   And behold, the veil of the temple was torn in two from top to bottom; and the earth shook and the rocks were split. 

  - Matthew 27:45-51

The Hiding Place

I have been a little lack in writing mostly because of the move but I had to let people know about this deal.   Corrie ten Boom's The Hiding Place is one of my favourite books and they are offering it for free this month over at Christian Audio.   You can get this free audio book here.

If you have kids I would say that it is suitable for middle school kids and up.  We read this book to our older crew (ages 9-14) last year (it was too old for TJ age 4) and it led to some fantastic family discussions.  This true story about Corrie's life and how she used it for God's Kingdom has some very intense scenes of cruelty and evil that happened during second World War.  It truly is an inspiring book that shows of how there is "no pit so deep that God's love is not deeper still."