Down But Not Out

What a week. Make that two weeks. Last week, my Mac hard drive burned out taking all my family photos for the last eight years with it. This was bad. Then I'm checking my daughter's math grade and she has a 100 average! This was good. This week, a trusted friend hurt my heart. This was bad. Then I got to speak at a women's event and the Lord showed up in a beautiful way. This was good.

Life is rather funny this way, isn't it? You just never know what might hit next - good or bad. The trick is to not let it drive you crazy (some of us have a shorter way to go than others). How can we maintain peace in the midst of life's radical ups and downs???

Mary Magdeline was a woman in the Bible who's life was filled with extreme ups and downs. First, Jesus delivers her from demonic bondage. This was good. She becomes Jesus' devoted follower. Her life was absolutely transformed. Then, her Lord was arrested and brutally murdered. Remember the moody crowd? At the beginning of the week they were shouting "Hosanna" but by week's end they were shouting "Crucify him"! This was bad.

Then, as if she hadn't been through enough, this poor woman goes to the tomb to care for Jesus' body and finds the tomb empty. She begins to weep, assuming someone had stolen her precious Jesus. An angel asks the question, "Why are you weeping"? (I always thought this angel must be a man!) But then she is told Jesus was alive! Talk about your ups and downs. I'm exhausted just thinking about it.

We can't count on smooth travel through this crazy thing called life. The Christian walk is unpredictable. Jesus said, "I've told you these things so that in me you may have peace. In this world you will have trouble, but take courage, I have overcome the world." (Jn. 16:33) Do you hear the Rocky music? That empty cave is our rallying cry. It promises that nothing, not even death itself can defeat God's purpose!

Yes, life is full of ups and downs; highs and lows; victory and defeat. We must keep our eyes on the empty tomb if we are to make it through. The empty tomb is our hope and our happily ever after. It's the exclamation mark at the end of life's sentence. The next time I lose my photos (heaven forbid!), get locked out of my blog or get hurt by someone I trust, I won't stand weeping at an empty tomb. I'll look up to my risen Savior and I'll say, "This is good."