Do you ever ask yourself, “If I had been there, what would I have done?”
For a few moments, write yourself into The Story on that early Easter morning. No Starbucks, no Egg McMuffin, no breakfast bar. Just a broken heart and a grief stricken question: “Who will roll away the stone?”
What we know:
It was early, very early, just after sunrise, and three women faced a challenging, emotional task. Someone dear to them died the day before, and they took it upon themselves to anoint the Body for a proper burial. Since two of them stood with the owner of the tomb the previous evening, they knew the location. Staring at a problem of gigantic proportion, they asked themselves the question, “Who will roll away the stone?”
What we don’t know:
Who first raised the question? Was it Mary Magdalene, or Mary the mother of James, or was it Salome?
Why had they not thought of this before now?
Was the question one of worry and anxiety or just a concern for the obstacle?
What they discovered:
Their ordinary question received an extraordinary answer! When they looked up, the stone was rolled away and the empty tomb confirmed the resurrection!
As the Scriptures record:
But when they looked up, they saw that the stone, which was very large, had been rolled away. As they entered the tomb, they saw a young man dressed in a white robe sitting on the right side, and they were alarmed. “Don’t be alarmed, he said. You are looking for Jesus the Nazarene, who was crucified. He has risen!” (Mark 16:1-6).
Our place in the Story:
In our life journey, like the ladies, we grapple with the obstacle: “Who will roll away the stone?”
In our finances, in our family, in our future?
In our habits, in our hearts, in our hopelessness?
Yet when we look up—like Mary, Mary, and Salome—we discover that God, in His glorious faithfulness, has already rolled away the stone. Just when needed, His grace for the moment is greater than the stone, regardless of its size.
But there is more:
God always longs to accomplish a greater miracle than just rolling away the stone. In our finances, in our family, in our future, in our habits, in our hearts, and in our hopelessness, He desires to display the Resurrection of His Son!
Dear One, may this be the most meaningful Easter you have ever experienced, and may you and I pray together: Father, as I write myself into this Easter Story, I ask You to roll away the stone in every crack and crevice of my life, and reveal the glorious Resurrection of Jesus, my Lord and my God.
Living With Eternal Intentionality®
1. How would you have felt if you were walking with the women on that early morning, just after sunrise?
2. What would your concerns have been? Would you have been worried and anxious?
3. Where do you need God to roll away the stone in your current circumstances?
4. What would it look like not only for the stone to be removed, but for the Resurrection to be displayed in that situation?
