Holy Humour 2018 - The resurrection is among us, whether we see it or not!
John 20:19-31
Let us continue our
celebrations of Easter with reminders of the joy God brings to us time and time
again with Voices United 624 Give
to Us Laughter (with fifth verse – Ha ha ha)
REFLECTION: The resurrection is among us, whether we see it or not.
A week ago today was April Fools day, but
seeing as it was Easter, the day was very shuffled around for my family.
However, my daughter Gillian was VERY disappointed that she didn’t get to play
any April Fools tricks on us, so she declared that this past Wednesday was the
new April Fools!
I was treated with a plate of suspicious
looking Oreo cookies, which were filled with toothpaste – though the thoughtful
kid she is, she also was prepared with a glass of water for me afterwards! Then
she handed me a Tupperware container with “a brownie” wrapped in a napkin
inside… it was a drawing of a brownie. And since she didn’t want to fun to end,
in a last-minute joke: Mom, what’s that under there? Oh, underwear? Ha ha Mom,
made you say underwear! April Fools!
Oh the fun of the unexpected! And the unexpected
is what Easter is really all about, isn’t it?
It is the 2nd Sunday in the season
of Easter and as we do every year, we journey through that first Easter day
with the disciples. First afraid that they will be killed as Jesus was, then confused
after hearing Mary Magdalene’s pronouncement that Jesus was alive, and then it
is utter shock at seeing Jesus Christ risen from the dead right in front of
their eyes! Thomas was not there and unfortunately for the rest of history he
will wear the shameful label of Thomas the Doubter!
Poor Thomas, forever ridiculed for simply
wanting what everyone else had already received: a personal visit with the
resurrected Christ!
Mary saw the resurrected Jesus Christ that
first morning: “I have seen the Lord” she declares; the disciples saw the risen
Jesus later that evening, “We have seen the Lord” the proclaim. Mary and then
the disciples have each had their own personal encounter with the risen Jesus
Christ, this is all that Thomas wants. Thomas says what so many of us struggle
to say: how difficult it is to believe in Jesus whom we have never encountered
for ourselves.
Except, I have encountered Jesus Christ, I have
seen God face to face. Like Thomas I
have not seen the mark of the nails in his hands, or put my finger in the mark
of the nails or my hand in his side, but I have seen the Lord! As we remember the story of Thomas, we are invited time
and time again to experience Jesus Christ Resurrected, invited to see that that
the risen Jesus Christ keeps showing up, over and over and over again! (based on Mary Hinkle Shore WorkingPreacher)
“Blessed are those who have not seen and yet
come to believe.” I always find that statement interesting, because it seems
every day I see God at work in the world. With all that I have seen, I can’t
imagine what faith without sight is like.
I once had a misunderstanding with a friend
that I was quite upset about. I didn’t want to talk about it over text or
email, so I tried calling her and couldn’t get through. Eventually I decided to
just go get groceries until I could try again, and who should I pop into going
into the grocery store at the same time as me, but my friend. We quickly resolved
the misunderstanding, and were better friends for it. I hadn’t planned on going
to the grocery store that day – I have seen the Lord! God alive in the world.
Or I remember very early on in ministry when
funds were beyond tight, and suddenly the car would break down leaving us
scrambling to figure out how to pay for it, when unexpectedly, a couple who I
was marrying later that summer decided to just pop by and give me a cheque to cover
all the fees, answering that prayer though they didn’t even know it – I have
seen the Lord! The resurrected God among us.
Or when after trying to have a child for a few
years, then being sent out west as a newly ordained minister, and put on a
waiting list for a fertility specialist out there. While still on that list, we
discovered that we wouldn’t be needing a fertility specialist for our miracle
child was on her way. And then confirming
my belief that she is a miracle, when she was born we discovered that she had
multiple knots in her cord, and it was wrapped a few times around her neck, but
other than being a bit smaller than normal, she was fine. I later found out a family
with a similar situation had lost their child in utero just weeks previously – I
have seen the Lord! the resurrected God alive in our world.
Or $ 2,676,014 Raised by 39,601 people in 1 day on a Gofund me webpage for the
families of the Humboldt Saskatchewan Broncos Junior A team and families. We
have seen the Lord!
These are just a few reminders that God is
resurrected and at work in our world today, I have seen the Lord! How have you experienced the resurrection of
Jesus Christ in your life? When have you
been able to say “I have seen the Lord!”
I know you have your
own stories of God alive at work in the world around you. As we celebrate the
joy of Easter, let’s continue to share our own resurrection sightings 2000
years later, because God never died! “The
resurrection is among us, whether we see it or not.” (Karoline Lewis Working Preacher)
I have seen the Lord!
He is Risen, He is risen Indeed! Hallelujah!
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