God is willing to do whaterver it takes

Weather is an amazing thing. Weather causes plants to grow (or not), it dictates what we can (or should) do, and it affects our moods. Weather can affect our moods differently. Some people love the moodiness of a cloudy day. I don't. No matter how hard I try, cloudy days just seem gloomy to me. I guess I'm a bit like Eeyore.

Today is different for me. Today I have been pondering Christ and His sacrifice. I've been thinking about all that He endured for each of us. Christ was mocked, He was turned into a laughing stock. Christ was abandoned by His friends and family members, Christ was condemned for crimes He didn't commit. Christ was scourged.

Christ didn't just endure a beating, a whipping. The scouring the Romans practiced has been documented to kill. Many people died from the scourging, yet that wasn't the plan for Jesus. He had more to endure than just a deadly beating.

After the beating Christ had to carry His own cross (and it wasn't light, it was a huge timber) through the streets of Jerusalem, His beloved city, as people lined the streets to mock Him, spit at Him, degrade Him.

Then, when He finally made it up the hill, He was nailed (through his wrists, not the palms--the palms wouldn't be strong enough to hold Him to the cross) hands and feet to the cross. The cross was pulled upright and then sunk into the ground. Christ had ALL His bones out of joint. He was hot, He was thirsty, His body was in more pain than any of us could imagine.

All this, and one of the first things He prays is, "Father, forgive them." That is the part that causes me to weep. To think of all that Jesus was going through (and He was about the age my husband is now) and knowing that more important to Him than His pain, was ME (and you). WOW! Sends chills throughout my body.

The humanity in Christ prayed for His Father to find another way. This prayer shows us that it is ok to be confused, to cry out for help, for relief. But, like Christ, if God says, "this my child is your path. It isn't easy, but I'll be there for you, and in the end, will be glory." we need to embrace and endure.

Christ's suffering was only beginning. For you see, none of what I've described is the worst of what He experienced. Christ was ABANDONED, FORSAKEN by God, totally left alone. God can't abide sin, and Christ was covered in the sin of all humanity. That is why, as His time one the cross was winding down, Christ SHOUTED, "MY GOD, MY GOD, WHY HAVE YOU FORSAKEN ME?"

Christ was forsaken, so we would never be alone. Christ took on our sin, so we could enjoy His glory. Christ paid our penalty, so we could inherit His birthright. It was after Christ endured being abandoned by God, that He gave up. Christ couldn't live without God.

It wasn't nails that kept Christ on the cross, it was His love, His determination to show humanity just how much we each mean to our Creator. Christ endured it all, so we wouldn't have to.

Yes, we go through hardships, yes life can be really hard and the valleys will seem dark, but Christ paved the way. Nothing we experience will ever come close to what Christ experienced. Christ wants to be our guide. Christ wants to say, "Child, I've been there. I know pain, I took it on that Friday, to buy your way to Heaven. Now let me take it from you again, to make your load easier. If I could endure Friday, I can endure today. The Father and the Spirit will also help."

As amazing as the events of Friday are, and as horrifying, the best part, the part that makes me shout HOSANNA! Friday was not the end. Friday was only the beginning. What seemed like a period was only just a comma.

Sunday came, and the tomb that Jesus was buried in, the tomb that was shut and guarded, was opened and Jesus rose. Jesus died, but Jesus came back, the victor over death, no longer the suffering servant. Jesus came back as the conquering Savior. Not even death could defeat Jesus! Oh boy! Hallelujah!!!

Out of the grave Jesus came, and Jesus invites each of us to partake in life everlasting, in peace, in joy, in Him. The weekend began like today, gloomy, moody and with a sense of defeat, but the weekend ended in victory, in sunshine, and in beauty.

God is willing to do whatever it takes to work in our hearts, to draw up to Him. God went to the cross, God rested in the grave, and God left and is the conquering, victorious Savior. Yet, it is up to each of us to say, "Yes Lord I believer. Write my name in Your book. I want to claim my title as Your child. I'm on Your side." We have to say and believe those words.

Christ did the hard part, we just have to say thanks! So, on this gloomy day I'm going to do just that. As I ponder all the Christ did, and all the Christ continues to do for me, I am going to enjoy this cloudy, gloomy day.

HOSANNA!!