When all seems lost…

And when the crowd that came to see the crucifixion saw that Jesus was dead, they went home in deep sorrow. Meanwhile, Jesus’ friends, including the women who had followed him down from Galilee, stood in the distance watching.

Then a man named Joseph, a member of the Jewish Supreme Court, from the city of Arimathea in Judea, went to Pilate and asked for the body of Jesus. He was a godly man who had been expecting the Messiah’s coming and had not agreed with the decision and actions of the other Jewish leaders. So he took down Jesus’ body and wrapped it in a long linen cloth and laid it in a new, unused tomb hewn into the rock at the side of a hill. This was done late on Friday afternoon, the day of preparation for the Sabbath.

As the body was taken away, the women from Galilee followed and saw it carried into the tomb. Then they went home and prepared spices and ointments to embalm him; but by the time they were finished it was the Sabbath, so they rested all that day as required by the Jewish law.

Luke 23:48-56 TLB

Life could do nothing for her, beyond giving time for a better preparation for death.

Jane Austen

Even in the grave, all is not lost.

Edgar Allen Poe

Not too long after my husband and I bought our first home, it seemed like everything was going well and according to plan. We had one child at that point, my husband had a good job while I worked part time at home, and we were excited to expand our little family. We anticipated smooth sailing and life seemed full of hope and promise.  Then came my husband’s diagnosis of testicular cancer.  Now, the future looked dark and impossible on every level.

When I read the Gospels, I think about the disciples on Holy Saturday. Though Jesus arrived in Jerusalem with a triumphal entry of crowds cheering and shouting joyfully, less than a week later, he was crucified. I can’t imagine the deep, dark place of despondency and hopelessness that the disciples and all Jesus’ followers experienced after the crucifixion. They couldn’t see any possibility of joy or resolution ahead; the future looked bleak. How I can relate to that feeling of hopelessness about the future. In fact, I think most of us have faced a time in life when the future that we planned and expected was not going to happen the way that we envisioned.

Of course, what the disciples and followers didn’t know was that God had a bigger plan, the coming resurrection. Yet, at that moment, it was overwhelming.  Just as my husband and I were in a dark place fearing for his life and our family’s future, we couldn’t see anything but grey shadows ahead.  Yet, God had plans for us, life challenges that would cause us to value life and family deeply and to grow closer as a couple. And, yes, God used doctors to bring healing to my husband which also allowed us to expand our family…all in God’s timing and path. 

When you are in a dark place where life seems dreary and dreams have shattered, remember that God is still with you…bringing hope and love.