CREDIT: Tom Magliery on Flickr
Dear Children of God,
Most of us like a good party – time to gather friends to celebrate birthdays, anniversaries, and special holidays. It’s not hard to attend parties, but it can be hard to invite people to attend. Why? We often need to limit invitations because of space available or expenses. So, we make our list and then pare it down to a number we can handle. These can be hard choices though.
It wasn’t a party with balloons and decorations, but Jesus’ Transfiguration (Mark 9:2-9) is a celebration with a very select guest list. Jesus took His inner circle of disciples – Peter and the brothers James and John – to a mountaintop. There Jesus was joined by the great prophets Elijah and Moses while He was transfigured – His clothes became whiter than pure snow and He became radiant! It was a coming out party for Jesus. For a moment, His true glory was revealed to Peter, James, and John. And then the Guest of guests arrived saying, “This is my beloved Son; listen to Him.” (Mark 9:7) God the Father revealed, without question, Jesus is His Son – God in the flesh. What an event! What a celebration! Except …
Jesus told them to keep the incredible news, the amazing sights to themselves until He’d risen from the dead. It wasn’t a time for celebrating – at least not yet. It was time to prepare others in the valleys and towns below for the Kingdom of God.
Lent, starting this week on Ash Wednesday, is not a time of celebrating either. It’s a time to prepare – ourselves and others – for Jesus’ resurrection on Easter! And a good way for us to prepare is by remembering Jesus’ sacrifice for us through sacrificing some of our comforts as part of Lent – sacrificing things we crave or our time to help others. We can also prepare by spending extra time in prayer and God’s Word – pick up a Be Gracious to Me Lenten devotional to help you. Lenten ideas like these can help you experience our Easter celebration more fully.
In Christ’s Love,
Pastor Jim