Committed Urgency in the Race

Reflections from John 20

As the spring season approaches, I welcome the promise of new life that is witnessed all around. God’s creation breaks forth anew and presents a magnificent palette to behold. With all my senses filling up, hope roots itself more firmly in my soul.

Holy Week has always been a very cherished time for me, but even more so during this universal COVID-19 crisis. Could this perhaps be because of the separateness we are pressed into and the abundance of quiet time to reflect?

Yesterday we read through John 20. Reliving the committed urgency of some of Jesus’ followers challenged me to press on.

Mary rose very early, “while it was still dark”, to go to the place they had laid Jesus. Sold-out sacrificial commitment. I’ve experienced emotional exhaustion nowhere near Mary’s, but was I – am I – prepared to press on in and through it to be with my Lord? Emotional urgency.

Reading on in John, as was pointed out, lots of running takes place after Mary’s initial discovery; clearly committed physical urgency.

Finally, the intellectual urgency: seeing. It seems that the level of “how” we see is directly related to our level of commitment. Mary saw the stone had been removed and ran to get the disciples without first looking in. Peter and John ran to the tomb, but John stopped short of going in, leaving his seeing incomplete. Peter went in to the tomb and experienced what he saw. After the disciples left, Mary lingered to look in. She saw the angels, but fell short of fully understanding what she saw. But, her commitment kept her at the tomb until she “heard” Jesus call her by name. Seeing and hearing.

I pray for that same urgent, committed race this side of heaven for all of us; eagerly awaiting HIM calling out our new name in eternity.

Hallelujah, Sunday came! Our resurrected Savior and Lord, Jesus Christ, lives!

– Bethany W. (written 4/13/2020)