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Hi Friends, This is a week that many believers are anticipating Good Friday and meditating on the cross. It has me pondering grief. Let’s look into it together. First, part of a song I wrote with friends some years back: Jesus, Oh my Brother There are moments of grief and uncertainty in life where time seems to slow to a crawl. This is when we most need Jesus our Brother. When the door shut behind him, and you didn’t realize it would be for the last time. When the diagnosis comes in, and the ground swims under your feet. When answers are elusive, and life is hanging precariously in the balance. When all you can do is wait, and tomorrow feels impossible to face. There is a pain that seems to split the heart in two. It most certainly splits a life in two. There is a “before”, an “after”, and in the middle? Gethsemane. These are the moments we need Jesus, our Brother. The One who gets down in the trench with us, down in that dark valley, and suddenly we are no longer alone. He breathed these same agonizing prayers in the garden, drops of blood on His brow. The Hill of Golgotha stretched out ahead. In that moment where all we hold precious is suspended in mid-air—life in slow motion—He hangs suspended in mid-air, too. His arms, stretched wide on either side, reach far beyond what is possible for the human frame. His very love is reaching, reaching, beyond decades and centuries, beyond the bounds of time and space. In His suffering, His waiting, He is holding us. The sudden awareness of His presence. The gentle nearness we feel, even in the middle of earth-shattering pain and uncertainty. This is Him. He is carrying us, right here, right now. He is with us. Thank you for being right here with me, Jesus. I need you now more than ever. I can make it to the next moment, and the next after that, if You are with me. Your love is carrying me now. —Anna P.S. You can hear the song I reference here, sung (and co-written) by Chris Tofilon. |
I am a singer, songwriter, wife, mother, Jesus follower. I send out a 2-minute read every Tuesday about Jesus and life in God.
Hi Friends, Welcome to week 2 of our Advent series for those overcoming spiritual anxiety. We left off last week with the angel Gabriel visiting Mary. At the end of his message, the angel seems to leave Mary with a subliminal hint: he mentions Elizabeth. And then he is gone. What does Mary do when she’s had the kind of spiritual encounter that turns her whole life upside down? Without skipping a beat, she runs straight to her friend. The Bible says she hastens to her. Yes, Mary travels to the...
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