Letting God do the Heavy Lifting

Scripture passages that caught my attention today: Mark 15:1 As soon as it was morning, the chief priests held a consultation with the elders and scribes and the whole council. They bound Jesus, led him away, and handed him over to Pilate.
AND
Mark 16:1-2 When the sabbath was over, Mary Magdalene, and Mary the mother of James, and Salome bought spices, so that they might go and anoint him. 2 And very early on the first day of the week, when the sun had risen, they went to the tomb.
AND
Mark 16:3-4 They had been saying to one another, “Who will roll away the stone for us from the entrance to the tomb?” 4 When they looked up, they saw that the stone, which was very large, had already been rolled back.

Observation: Mark 15 begins with people starting their day intending to harm. Mark 16 begins with people starting their day intending to do good. And in the process, doors (in this case a tomb) open for them.

Application: How shall we begin our days? Shall we do so endeavoring to build people up or endeavoring to tear them down? Shall our efforts be in the direction of offering comfort and encouragement, or in the direction of rebuke and scorn? Please note: it takes effort to do either. So it’s not necessarily a case of less work or more, but of what kind of work would we really like to do. What kind of work will make for a feeling of thanksgiving and satisfaction at the close of the day?

A couple of things come to mind. It occurs to me that people intending to do good will still encounter concerns. The women in 16:3 were wondering who might be able to open up the tomb for them. They knew they were going to start out their day trying to do something good, but they also knew that it might not be easy. There could well be obstacles. In fact, they were expecting them. Such concerns did not stop them from pressing forward.

To their surprise, of course, the stone was already rolled away from the tomb and the particular good that they intended to do was no longer needed. Now what?

Well, in Mark’s version of the story it’s a little unclear because most scholars believe that the original manuscript of the Gospel of Mark ended at Mark 16:8 which records that the women said nothing to anyone because they were afraid. But from the other gospels we learn that the women did, in fact, tell others the good news. So instead of merely attempting to do good they began to tell of what was truly good—Jesus is alive!

We can’t always (if ever!) know how our day is going to turn out. Mine, for instance, began on a slightly (but not overly) sour note. But if the news that Jesus is alive holds any relevance at all, then there is certainly plenty of reason to carry on with the day with intent of doing or sharing something good. And who knows, perhaps whatever obstacles that seem to be in the way of our efforts might somehow be given the heave-ho before we even arrive!

Prayer: Lord, help us to begin our days offering the best of ourselves for the betterment of the world and yet to also trust that you will always be the one to do the heavy lifting. In Jesus’ name. Amen.

(Readings today included: Job 26-27 and Mark 15-16)