Eastertide

April 13, 2020

Scripture Reading: Acts 2:14a, 22-32

But Peter, standing with the eleven, raised his voice and addressed them: ‘Men of Judea and all who live in Jerusalem, let this be known to you, and listen to what I say.

‘You that are Israelites, listen to what I have to say: Jesus of Nazareth, a man attested to you by God with deeds of power, wonders, and signs that God did through him among you, as you yourselves know— this man, handed over to you according to the definite plan and foreknowledge of God, you crucified and killed by the hands of those outside the law. But God raised him up, having freed him from death, because it was impossible for him to be held in its power. –Acts 2:14a, 22-24

I just sang the Hallelujah Chorus at the close of Easter Sunday worship and then discovered, in the Lectionary at least, Pentecost happened. Jesus’s Disciples had 50 days to mourn and wonder and recover from the shock of the events we now cluster into Holy Week before Pentecost. Retrospect has its advantages. One of which is that the time of Lent and Holy Week is a time of remembering who we are and whose we are. Those first Disciples of Christ cleared the path and explained the course Christ called us to complete. They needed those 50 days. While we take sabbath as needed, our work continues with even greater enthusiasm because we took the time to revisit the parade of Palms, the Last Supper, the Cross, and the empty tomb.

And yet, sheltering at home because of the COVID 19 pandemic, some are experiencing a time of waiting, not unlike that time between the Resurrection and Pentecost. We are dealing with an unknown future, our whole way of being is upside down. While I sit at home pondering what is next, I watch reports in the news of all those working around the clock to save lives and bury bodies.

So, I am challenging myself, and welcoming you to join me, to discern where we are missing the mark in answerings Christ’s call to further the Kingdom of God in our world and begin making the changes to correct our aim.

Prayer: Lord, open all our senses to receive the insights you have for us as you draw us in the Spirits tether* focusing us on our next steps. Amen.

*Derived from the hymn, Draw us in the Spirits Tether by Percy Dearmer. See at: http://adventisthymns.com/lyrics/259-draw-us-in-the-spirits-tether

All scriptures are quoted from the New Revised Standard Version Bible: Anglicized Edition, copyright 1989, 1995, Division of Christian Education of the National Council of Churches of Christ in the United States of America. Used by permission. All rights are reserved.