I Wait

This photo of a cross shining in the midst of the destruction of Paris's Notre Dame Cathedral is symbolic of Holy Saturday, for today that's all there is: An empty cross shining in the darkness and destruction. It stands not only for what was, but also for what might be—a symbol of both despair and hope.

Finding myself here between the crucifixion and the empty tomb, I wait for God all day long. Devastated by the worst that can happen, I wonder what might become of me, and of the world around me that seems to be falling apart.

It's important to experience this day no less than I might mourn on Good Friday or rejoice on Easter Sunday. For Holy Saturday is a day of unknowing, when I might, on the one hand, be tempted to close my mind to the good that might yet happen, or, on the other, to make assumptions about what God will do next. Holy Week and Easter are all the proof Christians need that neither impulse is appropriate for followers of Jesus. Just as we need never despair, we must also avoid deciding in advance what form victory might take.

May I be open to God's leading, that the truth of the wholeness God is preparing might hit home—not as I imagine it, but in the unexpected glory of the reality of the resurrection.

Lead me in your truth, and teach me, for you are the God of my salvation; for you I wait all day long.

✙ Psalm 25:5 ✙

I ask this in the Name of the Crucified, who taught me to pray: Our Father...