Where, O Death, is your victory? Where, O Death, is your sting?

But on the first day of the week, at early dawn, they came to the tomb, taking the spices they had prepared. They found the stone rolled away from the tomb, but when they went in, they did not find the body. While they were perplexed about this, suddenly two men in dazzling clothes stood beside them. The women were terrified and bowed their faces to the ground, but the men said to them:

"Why do you look for the living among the dead? He is not here, but has risen.

Remember how he told you, while he was still in Galilee, that the Son of Man must be handed over to sinners, and be crucified, and on the third day rise again?"

Then they remembered his words, and returning from the tomb, they told all this to the eleven and all the rest. Now it was Mary Magdalene, Joanna, Mary the mother of James, and the other women with them who told this to the apostles.

But these words seemed to them an idle tale, and they did not believe them.

But Peter got up and ran to the tomb; stooping and looking in, he saw the linen cloths by themselves; then he went home

Amazed at what had happened.

-Luke 24: 1-12

Finding the Holy in Holy Week...

Is really hard to do. For clergy, it's a busy week full of services and ideally contemplation. I wonder what the people in the pews think about it- is it any different to them, except for perhaps a new outfit on Sunday, because we all know Jesus can't be resurrected if we aren't dressed in three piece suits and frilly dresses adorned with floral patterns.

Maybe I'm just being snippy. It's just that it's hard for me (and I'm assuming others in ministry) to find time to really dwell in Holy Week when we're running around coordinating 3-5 services, all while trying to keep up with the rest of our day-to-day tasks in ministry. And I'm not even leading any services! I just have to show up, and it's tiring. It leaves one tapped out, which for me makes it hard to tap in to the beauty and mystery of this sacred time.

For example, yesterday I worked in the am, then helped Jill and others at her church prep for a Seder meal, then I jetted back to the church where I work for Maundy Thursday service. I'm getting ready to leave our house to go back to Jill's church for their Good Friday service. Then Sunday, I've gotta be at church starting at 6 am for the sunrise service, then two more after that.

Wow. It's a busy time.

But in this time, I'm trying to really get a sense of what it is all about, instead of just rushing through it. I'm trying to get my mind around the fact that today, what we call Good Friday, Christ is dead.

Christ is dead.

And now we wait, holding on to a blessed hope. We wait. We wait for what was promised. We wait for the Kingdom. We wait for God.

Peace.