When Faith is Hard to Hold Onto

Scripture

⁵⁴ It was the day of Preparation, and the sabbath was beginning. ⁵⁵ The women who had come with him from Galilee followed, and they saw the tomb and how his body was laid. ⁵⁶ Then they returned, and prepared spices and ointments.
On the sabbath they rested according to the commandment.

Devotion

We don't tend to talk much about Holy Saturday.  On this day, Jesus presumably lies died in the tomb.  Meanwhile, his grieving and disenchanted followers stay in the upper room and observe the Sabbath.

One wonders how they spent that day marked for rest and worshiping God.  Did they share their favorite memories of Jesus?  Did they sit in silence?  Did Peter and John call a truce for the day, or did their raw feelings make them even more competitive with one another?  We don't know the answer to any of these questions. What we do know is that they disciples were shocked and grief-stricken they entered into the Sabbath.  They had expected to shout praises to God as Jesus was crowned king.  Instead, they had watched him die an agonizing death on the cross. 

 So what do these disillusioned followers do in those first 24 hours after Jesus's death?  They observe the Sabbath.  Even when they are at their lowest point, they dig deep and find enough faith to keep following God's commandments. Imagine the strength that must have taken to rest and worship God in the midst of their pain.  Imagine the trust it showed.  On the worst day of their lives, Jesus's followers kept living into their faith.  Everything else was secondary.

It's easy to have faith when times are good.  It's much harder to do so when the world throws us a painful or ugly curve-ball.  Jesus's followers understood that is at times when life is at its worst that we need God the most.  And that means we need to keep trusting God; we need to keep worshiping; we need to keep following God's commandments.  Keeping our connection to God open even when it is painful will help us get through the time of trial.  What's more, our continued trust will be a witness to others.

If you feel hurt or confused or disillusioned today, then that's okay.  Our heavenly Father knows those feelings well.  Make sure to take those feelings to God as a form of worship.  As you do so, trust God enough to rest in the Lord, just as scripture commands.  Pray as Jesus taught us.  Listen for the still small voice of the Holy Spirit as it brings you comfort.  Your faith will get you through this dark night of the soul as you await God's promised Day of Joy.

Prayer

 Today's prayer is the Lord's Prayer.  You can say it while listening to it chanted in Aramaic.  May God bless you on this Holy Saturday as we await Christ's resurrection.

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Our Father in heaven, hallowed be your name. Your kingdom come, your will be done, on earth as it is in heaven. Give us this day our daily bread, and forgive us our debts, as we forgive our debtors. And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil.  For thine is the kingdom, and the power, and the glory forever.  Amen.