Each year as we walk through Holy Week and approach Good Friday, there is an irony to it. We annually hold the tension of remembering Christ’s final days before his crucifixion and gruesome death with the foresight of his resurrection. We are inclined to consider it “good” because of what it brings, knowing that in his death and burial the story was not over and a victory had only just begun.
This year even more so we can reflect on what is “good” about this day. In remembering the work of Christ on the cross, in seeing God dwell among men and sacrifice his son for the ransom of many, we do have reason to hope. And it is not a foolish hope—we have a firm hope that God is at work to restore his creation and draw his children near, regardless of the circumstances that surround or overwhelm us. He has declared an eternal victory over sin and death and sent us out in his Spirit to bring his kingdom to Earth.
Today we pray that God’s nearness would bless us with that tangible hope, lifting our eyes above our circumstances to see his beauty. Let us pray for those who are without any measure of security or hope in these days, that they would know the Lord. Let us pray also for our missionaries who are scattered and weathering this storm, that they would be empowered by the Spirit to be ministers of light and bring refuge to those around them.