Now there was a man named Joseph, a member of the Council, a good and upright man, who had not consented to their decision and action. He came from the Judean town of Arimathea, and he himself was waiting for the kingdom of God. Going to Pilate, he asked for Jesus’ body. Then he took it down, wrapped it in linen cloth and placed it in a tomb cut in the rock, one in which no one had yet been laid. It was Preparation Day, and the Sabbath was about to begin.
The work is done. Jesus is taken off the cross and put in the tomb. He came to be the light of the world and to proclaim peace to those ensnared by evil. But the light has gone out and the voice had been silenced. Evil, it appeared, had the victory.
The tomb represents the “in-between,” where Christ has been laid to rest and has not yet risen. We might find ourselves in the “in-between,” where prayers have been lifted up, but not yet answered; hopes clung to, that haven’t yet materialized.
Even though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil, for you are with me; your rod and your staff, they protect me.
Take courage that Christ goes with you and does not abandon you. Christ is with you in the “in-between.”
Light a candle for the hope you have in Christ and remember that Christ is present with you.
Pray: Loving God, I believe that Jesus is the resurrection and the life. Give me courage when I am in the in-between. Help me to trust in You and to hold to the hope that You offer. I ask this through Christ my Lord. Amen.
