Christ is Risen!

Sometime soon, I'll be back with an update and some pictures of life here at Stanford. Meanwhile:

This weekend we celebrated the heart of our faith.

On Thursday we remembered Jesus’ command to love one another, and his demonstration of that love by washing the dusty feet of his disciples.

On Friday, we remembered Jesus trial and crucifixion: the world’s rejection of its Redeemer and Christ’s unending commitment to his message. And we saw the pinnacle of Jesus’ revelation: a God who loves us to the end (no greater love is there than this, but that one lay down one’s life).

On Saturday, we gathered to hear the stories of our people’s redemption. If you listened closely, you could imagine people sitting around telling these stories to their family . . . “This is our God who loves us so much that God saved us from the waters of flood, from slavery in Egypt, from the Red Sea, from the valley of dry bones, from the belly of a whale, from the fiery furnace.”

And then, the culmination: Resurrection! John’s declaration that the power of death was no match for the power of life; that the revelation of God could not be held be the grave; that the Jesus-way is death defying to the point that the Disciples encountered Jesus even after his crucifixion.

As we move into the 7 weeks of Easter (a week of weeks: the liturgical way of giving honor to the resurrection), I invite you to take note of Resurrection life around you: forgiveness, birth, opportunity, grace, a second, third, fourth chance, the kindness of a stranger or a friend, kindness to a stranger or friend. How will the resurrection show up in your life today? How is Christ risen in you?

Peace to you in Christ who was raised for us, and who is Risen in us.