STUCK IN SATURDAY BY PETE WILSON
44 / RELEVANT_MAR/APR 11
RELEVANTMAGAZINE.COM
HE OTHER DAY I stood in an unusually slow line at my local coffee house. As I stood waiting, I watched the people in line with me—hands on hips, pursed lips, rolling eyes, a too-frequent glance at the watch—their body language said it all. We live in a day of fast everything, where waiting for anything seems like a major inconvenience. I don’t want to stand in line for my favorite cup of coffee, or endlessly flip though magazines at the doctor’s office or sit parked in traffic. And if I can just be honest with you, I don’t want to wait on God either. Renowned theologian Lewis Smedes described waiting like this: “Waiting is our destiny. As creatures who cannot
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by themselves bring about what they nothing is happening. In reality, it’s hope for, we wait in the darkness for a day full of questioning, doubting, a flame we cannot light. We wait in wondering and definitely waiting. It’s fear for a happy ending that we cannot a day when we wonder if God is asleep write. We wait for a ‘not yet’ that feels at the wheel or simply powerless to do like a ‘not ever.’” anything about our current problems. This is what we often see in the anatWhile we don’t spend a lot of time omy of hope. An event takes place that talking about Saturday, so much of sucks the life out of you: a relationship our life here on this earth is lived out ends, a job dissipates, a dream dies. feeling trapped in “Saturday.” I’m tryYou’re left there standing, waiting, ing to get to a place in my life where I paralyzed by hopelessness. You start can embrace “Saturday.” I’m trying to to wonder if God forgot His prom- get to a place where I can view the wait ises. If God knows what you’re going as a type of preparation for what God through. If God even cares. might be doing in my life. In chapter 23, Luke describes You may currently be in the midst the scene of Jesus’ death. The land of a horrible, out-of-control situation. became dark, the temple tore in two You might feel as if God is not there, and an army officer praised God, say- that nothing can be done. ing, “Surely this was a good man!” But here is the message of the Throughout, His followers watched. Gospel for you while you’re stuck in Luke 23:48-49 says: “When all the your helpless Saturday-life: God does people who had gathered there to His best work in hopeless situations. watch saw what happened, they We worship a God who specialreturned home, beating their chests izes in resurrections. He specializes because they were so sad. But those in hopeless situations. After all, at who were close friends of Jesus, Easter, we celebrate that He conquered including the women who had fol- death—the ultimate hopeless situalowed him from Galilee, stood at a tion—so you could have life. distance and watched” (NCV). Jesus’ followers were dejected and Have you ever been so hopeless you dismal—then Jesus rose from the couldn’t do a thing? You couldn’t get dead. God did the impossible and mad, or fight or even cry? I believe this in a matter of hours the disciples is the emotional state of Jesus’ follow- journeyed from hopeless to hopeers. Nothing seems to be happening. filled; from powerless to powerful. They feel hopeless. They feel com- Everything changed when they saw pletely alone. Him risen. The story of our salvation We know the end of this story. We was born out of extraordinary uncerknow God was doing His best work tainty. But that’s the way hope works. yet. But there was a waiting period. And no, that doesn’t take away your Jesus was crucified on Friday. But mom’s cancer. That doesn’t erase the the paralyzing hopelessness the dis- bankruptcy you’re in the midst of. ciples experienced continued to inten- That doesn’t heal your broken relasify as they lived into Saturday. tionship. That doesn’t replace your We don’t typically talk a lot about shattered dream. Saturday in church. We spend plenty But it can remind you that while of time on Good Friday, which of life is uncertain, God is not. While course we should. Friday is the day your power is limited, God is limitless. redemption happened While your hope is fragthrough the shedding of ile, God Himself is hope. Christ’s blood. Friday is a Your world may very important day. feel chaotic, especially Nobody would argue when you’re stuck in that we shouldn’t celebrate a Saturday, struggling PETE WILSON Easter Sunday. Jesus conhopelessly and waiting is the author of quered death so we can desperately. Plan B (Thomas have life. It doesn’t get any But no doubt about Nelson) and the accompanying better than Easter Sunday. it, God is still in control. study guide. But what about Saturday? And one way or another, Follow him on Twitter @pwilson. It seems like a day when Sunday will dawn.
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DEEPER WALK Words for the Soul