God Redeems our Brokenness Devo

April 1st, 2018

Devotional

“Mosaic: God Redeems our Brokenness” - Mark 16: 1-8

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Monday: “Might Go” - Mark 16: 1

No one wanted the job that the women did that early Sunday morning. As they prepared their spices and linens, they were going to give their master and friend one final gift - preparing his body properly for burial. Because Jesus died on a Friday, he was simply placed in the tomb, before the arrival of the Sabbath. Joseph had given his final gift of a place for the body to lay; now the women felt compelled to give their gift of anointing the body.

We have come a far way in distancing ourself from the bodily nature of death. There was a day and time, when the family would have the body of loved ones viewed in their home. Now, we leave that preparation of the body for the professionals. We don’t know what to make of the gift that the women were offering. 

Yet, it was a gift. A gift that no one would desire to give. A final gift of laying a body of a loved one to rest. In the Jewish custom of sitting shiva, people don’t do things while grieving. The seven days following the death of a loved one are to be a time where you are cared for by others - a time when you grieve. But for these women, they knew that they had to do something, and so as part of their own act of grieving they went to give a gift. 

What was the importance of the gift that the women offered?

How are grieving and gifting tied together in this particular passage of scripture? 

Prayer: God, we thank you for so much this Easter week. We thank you for the women who went to give their final gift to Jesus and how you blessed them. We thank you for for the mix of gift and grief in this passage, in all of its humanness. And above all, we thank you for Jesus who lived and died for us. In the name of Christ we pray. Amen. 

Tuesday: “Roll Away” - Mark 16: 2-3

While the women felt compelled to go and give this final gift to Jesus, they also knew that they were going to have a problem - the stone. If you remember last week, we heard how Joseph sealed the tomb with a large stone. The Romans were fearful that one of Jesus’s followers would come and steal his body, claiming that he had been resurrected. Each of the gospel accounts deal with this problem a bit differently - some had guards posted, but all had the stone. The women knew that it would be too large for them to roll away on their own.

One of the best Easter sermons I ever heard was at my home church a few years ago. We talked about the tomb and the stone, and then we were each handed a small stone of our own and a sharpie. We were asked on one side of the stone to write something in our life that we need Jesus to roll away. On the other side of the stone, we wrote what Christ has waiting for us. 

We all have things in our lives that are burdens. In the scheme of the sermon series we are finishing this week, those jagged and broken edges in our lives that God wants to redeem. What is God calling you to set aside for healing this week and what gift is waiting for you? 

Find a stone and write on one side something you need Jesus to roll away. On the other side write what Christ has waiting for you. 

Prayer: Lord, we offer our stones to you as a prayer today. We know that life is not always as it should be, Precious Lord. We have stones, large and small, that we have let accumulate in our lives, which we can no longer deal with on our own. We hand them over to you for healing and redemption this day. As we lay down those burdens, allow us to pick up the joy and freedom that you have waiting for us. Amen. 

Wednesday: “Alarmed” - Mark 16: 4-5

Sometimes we become so familiar with certain stories in scripture that they no longer surprise us. Stories like that of Christ’s brith and death and resurrection. Yet take a moment to soak in what happens in today’s piece of scripture. The women went to prepare Jesus’s body for a proper burial. They went knowing that a stone is going to be blocking their way. Yet, when they arrived, the stone is rolled away, and a young man in a robe is sitting in the tomb. 

The angels showed up. Just as the angels showed up at Christ’s birth. And the announcement of Christ’s birth. And the announcement of John’s birth. When angels show up, people are fearful. Alarmed. Because it isn’t an everyday thing. 

Yet, out of the alarm, comes a message of peace. A message of healing and resurrection. Sometimes we need to allow ourselves to feel a bit alarmed in order to appreciate all that Christ is trying to offer to us that we would otherwise gloss right past. 

How can alarm and blessing be related? 

Prayer: Lord, sometimes we wish that life would just go smoothly, when all you want is to get our attention. At times we act like we can do things on our own instead of leaning into all of your power that you are trying to coat us with. Lord, allow us to be alarmed in order to be blessed. Shake us from the status quo in order to proclaim your word to the world. Amen. 

Thursday: “Raised” - Mark 16: 6-7

I was listening to a discussion about Biblical texts a few weeks ago when one of the commentators made a point that struck me - there is a difference between being brought back to life and being resurrected. 

Lazarrus was brought back to life. And yes, that experience of being dead and then being alive again probably changed something about him. But he was still human. Still flawed. Still going to die. 

But when we are resurrected, we are changed. We are no longer sinful beings, but instead behold the glory of God as we dwell with him. Its about more than just coming back to life after death, its about being completely changed. 

What does Jesus’s resurrection mean to us today?

How does resurrection change us?

Prayer: Lord, we thank you for the gift of resurrection. We admit that it is hard for us to wrap our minds around - the change that comes with the gift. Yet, we embrace it, Lord, as our hope and your promise to us, because of Jesus. Thank you! Amen. 

Friday: “Went Out” - Mark 16:8

The Gospel of Mark is unique in that it offers a few different endings to the Easter story. In one ending, found in verse eight, the women are commanded to go and tell Peter about what they have experienced, but they flee in fear and tell no one. In what some translations call “The shorter ending of Mark” and they told these things to Peter and those around him. 

Why are there two different endings? Perhaps because we struggle with the same tension today. There are times in our lives, when we too simply want to flee and fear and not tell others about Jesus. We are afraid of what others may think of us if we start to proclaim his good news. But their are other times in our lives, when we cannot help but share the news with those around us, as we seek to further the Kingdom of God. We can see ourselves in both versions of the Gospel story, which are true in our own lives. 

Do you find it easier to be silent about Jesus or share his good news? Why? 

Prayer: Lord, thank you for inviting us to be amongst those who share your good news. Embolden us. Keep fear from our hearts and allow us to show in word and deed that you truly are Lord of all. Amen. 

Saturday: Preparing for the Word

You are invited to read and pray this week’s text and topic: “Following Christ: Joining God on the Journey” - Matthew 4: 19-20.

Family Activity: Find some flat rocks and paint on them the good news of Easter. Put these resurrection stones around your neighborhood to share the good news.