“At the end of the Sabbath, as it began to dawn toward the first day of the week, came Mary Magdalene and the other Mary to see the sepulchre. And the angel answered and said unto the women, “Fear not, for I know that ye seek Jesus, which was crucified. He is not here: for He is risen…”’ Matthew 28:1, 5-6a”
Friday morning greeted me with thundershowers, heavy rain and a cold heaviness that smothered you as you trudged through the day. My shoes stayed full of water; my hair stayed wilted and lifeless; my mood matched my hair. The power was on and off all day.
It was Easter weekend. Good Friday service at the church was dark and chilly. The power went out during service, but we decided that we would listen, pray and worship in the dark. (Why not? God could hear us just as well in the dark.) In reality, the darkness added to the service. It was more reverent, even fitting, for the crucifixion story.
When the service ended, the storm was still pounding the city and the power was still out. Our usual group of Youth leaders, there were 8 of us, stood in the foyer trying to decide if there was a single restaurant in the area that still had power. We always went out to dinner after service. We also had to discuss Easter Sunday’s Youth sunrise service in the pavilion at the lake. We decided that we had planned enough, said our goodbyes and went our separate ways.
Saturday wasn’t any better. The weather had gotten worse; hail pelted windows and water ran in river-like formation down city streets. Several streets had been closed due to flooding and many businesses had to close. The store I managed in the mall, however, remained open. I spent my day trying to help last minute Easter shoppers find the perfect dress for the one Sunday a year they made their way into church. People grumbled, children whined, my staff did their best to stay cheerful and helpful. I had to work from open to close that day, 14 hours, in wet shoes. I couldn’t get home soon enough.
Easter morning was the same. Our Youth Pastor called. We had a quick meeting at the church at 5 AM. We decided to move forward with the Sunrise Service, despite the pouring rain and thunder in the distance. If the lightening started again, we would have to get the group of 60 teenagers back to the church.
The drive to the lake wasn’t as bad as we had expected. The rain still came down in buckets and the damp air clung tightly to your skin.
Gerry brought his guitar for the worship part of the service. So, we started worship on the bus. That seemed to help everyone’s spirits. The closer we got to the lake, the lighter the rain seemed to become.
The group made their way to the pavilion that overlooked the lake. The rain was little more than a drizzle now. We crammed ourselves into the pavilion, sang songs of praise, and John opened with prayer. By the time he had finished prayer the rain had stopped.
When everyone opened their eyes, the sun was coming above the trees and shooting gorgeous rays of light across the lake. The beams of light streaked across the lake, creating small rainbows above the water, seemingly toward us. We stood in awe.
Quietly, Pastor spoke. “The grave has been opened, death and darkness have been defeated. His Life for ours. Our salvation has come, Christ our Lord is risen, His Light covers the earth. Give praise to our Risen Lord.”
