We call this Friday good.
What does “good” even mean?
It’s a word so over- and misused as to be almost meaningless.
We sometimes say, “Naw, I’m good”
even when we’re dying on the inside.
We sometimes say, “It’s good”
when we really mean it’s barely good enough.
We sometimes say, “Ok, good.”
when we’re actually filled to the brim with delight.
And in the case of Crucifixion Day,
“good” doesn’t fall into any of these uses.
Jesus doesn’t pretend to be ok with his wrongful conviction and torture,
and neither do his followers.
Jesus’ suffering isn’t an “Eh, whatever.”
Jesus’ brutal death doesn’t prompt celebration,
at least not for those who loved and love him.
No, today’s good is about a greater Good.
A Good that nudges us to be real and vulnerable.
A Good that prevents us from settling for anything less than abundance.
A Good that wants unmistakable joy for all God’s children.
When Jesus exposed the world’s messed-up priorities on that
terrible, fantastic Friday,
he put all that Goodness within reach.
Oh God, help us always to notice the Good,
to live it in our bodies and our relationships,
and in so doing, honor the great love of Jesus Christ,
a love he lived even unto death. Amen.
Laura Stephens-Reed is a clergy and congregational coach working with ministers and churches across the ecumenical spectrum. Having served in a variety of pastoral roles and denominations, she is primarily affiliated with the Alliance of Baptists and the Cooperative Baptist Fellowship and has ministerial standing in the Christian Church (Disciples of Christ). Based in northwest Alabama (United States), Laura is married to a United Methodist pastor, and they have a eight-year-old son. She blogs weekly at laurastephensreed.com.
RevGalBlogPals encourages you to share our blog posts via email or social media. We do not grant permission to cut-and-paste prayers and articles without a link back to the specific post. For permission to use material in paper publications, please email revgalblogpals at gmail dot com.
RevGalBlogPals 