Good Friday Reflections

Today is Good Friday, and it is snowing quietly in Mandan and Bismarck, North Dakota. The day after tomorrow, Heart River Lutheran will open our doors early to serve our annual Easter breakfast to the residents of the correctional center. There will be egg bakes, fruit, and rolls. There will be smiles, fellowship, and warm conversation. Then we will worship with celebratory music and exclamations that “He is risen!”

But today is still Good Friday. Today, we remember Jesus carrying the weight of the cross. We remember his crucifixion. We remember him offering hope and forgiveness to the convicted man being crucified next to him. We remember him asking God why he had been forsaken, a feeling that is grounded in the human experience. We remember the fear, loss, and hopelessness felt by so many who had believed in him.

Much has been said over the millennia since then about the meaning of Christ’s crucifixion. One thing we can say with certainty as we reflect on Holy Week and the Passion is that Jesus meets us in the pain, difficulty, and struggles of life. Whatever we are going through, he understands. He feels it, too. Whatever guilt or shame we have, he takes it up onto the cross with him. And there is nothing our Savior wouldn’t do to be with us.

And another thing we can say with certainty?

Easter is coming!

Image credit: Alicia Quan on Unsplash