Matthew 28:1  After the Sabbath, at dawn on the first day of the week, Mary Magdalene and the other Mary went to look at the tomb. (NIV)

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Someone told me once that tomorrow never comes, and yet here we are. Not only is it a new day, but it’s also a new week. It’s too early to be up and about. I haven’t slept much all weekend. I don’t know when I’ll ever sleep peacefully again. I want to revisit the events of last week before people began rushing around doing the things they do day by day. I really don’t want to talk to anyone. 

The rains have gone. I guess we needed them. We always need them in this part of the world. The damp lingers, the cool air makes me wish I hadn’t put away my heavy robe for the season. 

It’s so early there’s not really enough light to see well yet, but that makes it perfect for not being seen, or at least identified. 

I used to enjoy getting up early in the morning to be by myself, to be alone with, well, you know. Today, I’m just alone. And I have never felt more so. 

Ah, well, I will need to stop here for a moment. Two women are coming with bundles of spices and such. They’ve come to finish what they started before it got dark on Friday. And there goes another woman coming up the hill from a different direction. I’ll linger here until they finish what they need to do. 

What the . . .

Lightning? From a clear sky? Brilliance glowing beyond those trees. Voices shrill, but not with terror. Another voice, clear as a bell, authoritative and welcoming. “He is not here; he has risen, just as he said. Come and see the place where he lay. Then go quickly and tell his disciples: He has risen from the dead . . . . “

Where am I running to? What am I running from? I don’t understand what I’ve just heard. I’ve got to go somewhere, but where am I going to go? Do I go hide? Do I go shout the news to everyone? What do I do now? 

Why can’t I stop laughing? Oh, if I had a song, I’d sing it! And I can’t sing!

Suddenly, the whole town seems to be waking up and running. The women are running and laughing. Moments later, men come running toward the graveyard, but they look terrified. Soldiers come running away from the graveyard, but not in order. They look like they’ve seen a ghost. 

But that’s no ghost. That’s Jesus!

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I will sing and shout the best good news ever: Jesus is risen!

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Our Father, thank you for this indescribable gift. Thank you for changing our lives forever. Thank you for loving the world so much that you gave your one and only Son, and that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life. Amen.