Crisis and Confusion
April 11, 2023|Easter 2023 Series
April 11, 2023|Easter 2023 Series
Early on the first day of the week, while it was still dark, Mary Magdalen went to the tomb and saw that the stone had been removed from the entrance. So she came running to Simon Peter and the other disciple, the one who Jesus loved, and said, “They have taken the Lord out of the tomb, and we don’t know where they have put him!” John 20:1-2
Read: John 20:1-10
Listen: John 20
Jesus’s followers wake up to crisis and confusion on a day we now celebrate as Easter. Their leader, Jesus, has been betrayed, arrested and murdered. The shock and pain are significant a few days later. Jesus-followers are terrified wondering if they might be next, grief-stricken and mourning the seeming failure of this Messiah they had put their trust in. It’s a full-on faithquake for them.
As we look back on that fateful morning, we see what they could not. We see that God is at work even in the midst of their crisis and confusion. They didn’t understand why Jesus had to die, where he had gone or anything that happened, but God did.
We all face different challenges—many of us are in the midst of crises or confusion. Whether our belief is strong, wavering or new—we can take great hope that the God we serve is the same God that raised Jesus from the dead. God is often at work in ways we cannot see and has a way of bringing beauty out of pain and difficulty. This doesn’t mean our circumstances will change or we won’t experience pain. But it means God wants us to trust and cling to him, especially in crisis or confusion.
Journal, “What crisis or confusion do I need to take to God today?” Then pray in a way that acknowledges the challenge and expresses trust in God. May we have peace knowing our gracious God meets us in our crisis and confusion and helps us see where he is at work, even in the difficult spaces of our lives.
Join us all of 2023 developing a different spiritual practice each month. SPIRITUAL PRACTICES are intentional regular activities to deepen our relationship with God and mold us to be more like Jesus.
April is CONFESSION. Keep track of our spiritual practices at beyondtheweekend.org/spiritualpractices.