Sorrow

Psalm 5:1-7

      Grief can be one of the most difficult emotions to handle. It can overpower us and even take away our will to live. Some people do some pretty crazy, out of character things when grief strikes. Sorrow can get us questioning our most basic beliefs about life and God. It can be a time of inner turmoil unlike any other experience in life. And everyone walks through grief differently.

      It often feels like a roller coaster ride when going through grief. The ups and downs, twists and turns come and go, often without any notice. We seem to be at peace, and OK with what is going on, and then in the next moment, the tears and despair roll in like the fog along the Maine coastline. And then without notice, the fog seems to lift.

      Our Psalm today is attributed to David and he was a man just like you and me. He experienced his share of losses and betrayals. You can hear some of this up and down, back and forth as you read the Psalm. He goes back and forth between his cries for help directed to the LORD and his struggle to understand the actions of the wicked. Putting the righteousness of the LORD together with the seeming lack of judgment of the wicked causes this tension.

      We hear this same tension expressed today in words like this. If God were a loving God, then He would do something. He would not allow cancer deaths, starving children, AIDS, incest, rape, murder, and a million other evils. If He really cared, He would do something. He wouldn’t let them get away with that.

      David goes back and forth between expressing his trust in the LORD and the actions of his enemies. He wants action. He starts by pleading with the LORD to listen and consider his words. He wants to be heard. He wants intervention that will relieve his sorrow.

      David points out that he made the LORD aware of what was going on “in the morning” and yet things still have not changed. It is difficult when the LORD works on His timetable rather than ours. We always want answers now, and the LORD sometimes makes us wait. David even seems to make the case to the LORD for His intervention. He lays out the things they are doing wrong, as if the LORD didn’t know them already. These evil people aren’t welcome in God’s presence, but David is. Come on, LORD, do something.

      Notice that David tells the LORD, and us by extension, that the wicked can’t stand in God’s presence. They aren’t allowed. David says that by the LORD’s great love, His grace, he is allowed to be in His presence. David knows that the only way he can be accepted by the LORD is because the LORD has made it so. He has poured out His love on David, thus making David acceptable.

      And as a result David is able to bow in the LORD’s presence. He assumes a humble, lowly position. He knows He doesn’t deserve to be there, so he expresses that knowledge by using a body position of humility. This is in contrast to his enemies who lift themselves up. They are trying to write their own rules of life. They are leaving the LORD out of their equation.

      So the next time your life seems to be on a roller coaster because of the evil around you, perhaps the best place to end up is on your face before the LORD. He is able to bring about the needed changes, both in our situation and in our hearts. Assume the lowly position. Give up your ‘rights’ and allow the LORD to be in charge.

Missed Step

Mark 16:3

      The best thought out plans sometimes miss some things. It can be almost impossible to think of every possible contingency. This is where having many minds focused on the task is important. But not just minds like yours. We need a variety of minds, temperaments, training, professions, backgrounds, and learning styles, among other things. You need fresh eyes, as well. Sometimes things are too familiar, too routine. And because of that, you can miss some obvious things, things an outsider would see right away, but you miss.

      Well, our ladies missed something in their plans to finish the burial process of Jesus. They forgot about the stone rolled in front of the entrance. They were not strong enough to move it. You see, normally all the burial preparations would have been made prior to the stone being rolled in front of the entrance. The body would have been washed, wrapped and placed in the tomb, along with the normal burial spices. Then the stone would have been placed.

      But because Jesus burial was done hastily, all these steps did not take place. Pilate had released the body to Joseph, and Joseph had to rush to get it in the tomb before the beginning of the Passover festival. On these holiday celebrations, everyone was required to attend. The death of a non-relative was not a valid excuse for missing it. So things were done quickly.

      The women, in their grief and sorrow, missed the stone step. Their minds kicked into ‘burial routine’ mode and as is usual when there is an unexpected death, they were probably running on autopilot. Their emotions were numb, with occasional moments of overwhelming sorrow.  That is the way grief is. Things seem to be going just fine, all of a sudden out pops the grief. Over time there are fewer pops, but they can still happen, even years later.

      But for these women, the grief is fresh. They aren’t thinking straight. This is why it is important to have other people be around when important decisions need to be made right after a death. Talking with the funeral director about the arrangements is one of those times when a clearer thinking mind is needed.

      Someone must roll the stone away. It seems so obvious to us. How could they forget to think about it? But they did. And now they are walking to the tomb on that Sunday morning, and it hits one of them. I can almost see the light bulb go on. I can see it on her face. Her eyes widen, realization, shock, dismay, and then she speaks the words. It had probably been a fairly quiet journey up until that point. I don’t imagine them joking and kidding around. And then she speaks and the others react as she did. Can you see it? Can you imagine what it would have felt like to realize you had forgotten about the stone?

      You see, these women were people just like us, real emotions, real life situations. Their reactions would have been very much like our reactions. They were on their way, doing their job, and the missing piece hits them.

      Who will roll away our stones and let us into the life that Jesus’ resurrection brings?

Unfinished Business

Mark 16:1-2

      I have a confession to make. I often procrastinate on unpleasant tasks. That’s right. I said it. I don’t like doing things I don’t like doing. And when I have to do something I don’t like doing, I will often push it off into the future as far as possible. That’s right. The guy who writes a BLOG everyday about spiritual disciplines, walking out our faith in Jesus, living a life worthy of the sacrifice Jesus made on our behalf, that guy procrastinates!

      So why do I do it? I don’t like doing some things. It is that simple. There are some unpleasant things that I do right away, to get them out of the way. I do them quickly to remove the pain of prolonged procrastination. But some things sit on my To Do list for a very long time. And to be honest, some things don’t even get put on the To Do list, because I really don’t want to do them. They do linger out there in To Do land, in the city of Someday. I hope to visit there in the future.

      The women in our text have a task that I am sure they are dreading. No one likes funerals. Even under the best of circumstances, a very old person with a life well led and at peace with their death, having said all their goodbyes, even that funeral would be hard.

      But these women have the task of preparing Jesus’ body, a body that was hastily placed in a borrowed grave after what I am sure they view as an untimely and unjust death. I mean, what did Jesus ever do to the Romans? What did Jesus every say to the Jewish religious leaders that wasn’t true and wasn’t deserved? They had it coming, didn’t they?

      These women had seen Jesus die from a distance. They were there when Joseph of Arimathea received the body from the Roman authorities. They had followed him to his tomb, a tomb that he had paid to be cut for he and his family. And then they had to retreat to remain ‘clean’ for the Passover and the Sabbath. They were forced to wait, to retreat, to contemplate. I am sure they spent those multiple hours talking, crying, praying, sharing their memories. And I am sure there were many questions swirling in their heads, and probably swirling in the room.

      The biggest question is the one we try to avoid, but inevitably arises. Why? They got an answer in the coming days and months, but in that moment, that question probably loomed large. The same is true for us when we have the big ‘why’ come our way. In the moment it looms large, but then usually fades over time, either because we get bits and pieces of an answer, or because we get a peace that makes the answer not so important. Either way, for most of us, the ‘why’ does not become the center of our lives. It was just part of the grieving process.

      So these women get up at the appointed time, gather their supplies and head together to prepare Jesus’ body. They had to buy the spices. Burial spices weren’t something you kept in your spice rack above your stove. And even if you did, no one had that much on hand. Remember, the spices weren’t meant to embalm the body, just to cover the smell for a short period of time. The body would have been left there to decompose over time. Then at some future point, the bones would have been gathered and placed in a burial pot, or smaller niche in the wall of the tomb.

      But for them, this unfinished business was delayed by a religious festival celebration when family would have gathered, the past deliverance would have been celebrated, food eaten, laughter and catching up. But none of that happened. They had been overcome by the grief and shock of Jesus’ death. They had expected a different outcome.

Up Early

Mark 16:1-8

      Most people I talk to want a bit more sleep. This is especially true this time of year. All the preparations, all the late night gift wrapping, the baking and shopping. It can really wear a person out. And yet there are times when coffee just isn’t enough. I hope this isn’t one of those mornings. This is Christmas morning, after all. And if you have little ones, they have a hard time waiting for you to finish your coffee before they want to open those presents.

      My tradition growing up was that we could open our stockings before breakfast, but that we had to wait until after our breakfast, everyone’s breakfast, before we could sit together and open the presents, one at a time.

      Don’t get me wrong, paper flew, but it was in a more controlled way. We took time to see what everyone else was getting. We tried to enjoy the process. Or at least that was the official line. You have to remember, that we, the kids, had already scoped out the presents under the tree. We had check tags for our names. We might have even tried to guess the contents. Lifting and shaking were off limits, but a little poking and x-ray vision were allowed. We knew there would be some of the standards, underwear and socks, but it was the other things that excited us.

      But for the women in our text today, their two previous nights of waiting would have been much more difficult. They had been waiting to return to the tomb. And not just any tomb, Jesus’ tomb. The hasty burial prior to the Sabbath meant that their job had not been completed. In fact, it hadn’t even begun. Joseph of Arimathea had received the body from the Roman authorities and quickly placed it in his own tomb as a place of safe keeping. The Roman’s has secured the site with a contingent of soldiers to ensure no one would steal the body.

      But the women, I am sure, haven’t thought of anything but the upcoming tasks. They must wash and prepare Jesus body, honoring Him with their tenderness and tears. So they might have spent some of the Sabbath day gathering the things they needed for their task. But remember, they couldn’t do work on the Sabbath. So maybe they just did all the coordination, finding where things were, devising a plan of action for that morning.

      The sun slipped above the horizon and off they went, plan executing, supplies gathered, rendezvous and walk. Remember, they are visiting the area for the Passover festival. They don’t necessarily know all the suppliers and connections. But they probably did what most people do, they connected with each other. They got the ladies’ supply network engaged. They ordered from Amazon, and asked for two day shipping.

      And all the while they are grieving! Jesus was dead. They were going to prepare His body. But when they get there, no body, just a young man telling them Jesus has risen! This did not compute. They were there to finish the burial, and now they are being told Jesus isn’t there. Wait a minute. He’s not here? Where is He? What do you mean He is going to meet the disciples in Galilee?

      And without resolution, they leave. Their hearts are now really troubled. How are we supposed to finish our task if there isn’t a body? They don’t quite know what to do now. Would you?

Caught in the Trap

Mark 6:26-29

      The words we speak can become a trap. So it is better to never speak again than be trapped? Of course not! But our words can get us in trouble. I notice this most when people are caught in a lie. I mean when they are really caught, evidence in hand, and then they lie. These are the worst webs of potential traps around. They are so complicated that it is impossible to keep all the lies straight. Most of the time the liars don’t even try. They just convince the other person that they must be crazy, that their memory is faulty, that they didn’t say or do this or that.

      The main character in our text today has been caught in his words. He made an impulsive promise in front of his important and influential guests, and now the words have come back to bite him. His scheming wife has finally gotten what she wanted. She has held a grudge and now she is getting what she wanted.

      I am sure there were many heated arguments when John the Baptist first went public with his condemnation of their marriage. He wanted him alive, and she couldn’t kill him fast enough. She lost those earlier rounds, but she got what she wanted in the end.

      The king’s pride trapped him. He gave his promise in front of his guests, and there was no backing down now without looking weak. And a ruler could not afford to look weak, then or now. Weakness means overthrow.

      So, even though the king regarded John as a holy man, and as someone to be protected, he follows through on his promise. He sends the executioner to behead John and return with his head on a platter. Can you imagine the kitchen help’s reaction when the request for the platter comes? They want a platter for what? I doubt there was a “head carrying” platter in the dining room dishes inventory. And when they got news of what was happening, you can bet the news pulsed through the whole palace staff in a flash. I can bet there were servants peaking from behind every possible vantage point when the head was returned to the dinner guests. They wanted to get a look. Disgusted though they might be, their morbid curiosity would have driven them to be in on the event.

      And the young girl carries the platter back to her mother. Can you imagine carrying a human ahead, fresh blood and all, back to your mother and handing it to her? I can picture her carrying it almost straight-armed in front of her, turning her face, trying not to breathe the smell. The servants along the way would have opened doors to speed her travel. And then to see her mother's reaction of joy when the head arrives, mother ignoring the pain and disgust of her daughter.

      Meanwhile John’s disciples also find out through the grapevine. Instead of morbid curiosity driving their movements, they are overcome with grief. Herod had been protecting John. What could have gone so wrong so fast? We talked with him just the other day. How could he be gone? So out of respect for him, they go and gather his body from the palace morgue, and they have a quiet burial. Probably no fanfare was involved, no stream of dignitaries, no finger foods, no entertainment. The prophet of God had been killed.