Spring Promises
II Corinthians 5:17
This means that anyone who belongs to Christ has become a new person. The old life is gone; a new life has begun!
In the spring of 2010, Easter came early. It was one of those years where you wondered if you would need winter boots with your pretty new Easter frock, or if the spring sun would break through the crisp air just enough to keep you comfortable. I honestly can’t remember much about the weather, but what I do remember is that this Easter was one where I found myself clinging to the promise of new life like never before. That’s because it was the Easter we buried my dad. After 2.5 years of fighting, lung cancer won, and we laid him to rest at a family cemetery, surrounded with budding daffodils, birds singing, and all the promises of spring. Most of the day was a blur–the service, the handshakes and hugs–it all blended together, the details muted by the weight of grief. But among all the fuzzy details, one thing stood out– the significance of Easter, and the promise of resurrection.
My usual Easter post is found in the choir loft here at Maryville 1st UMC. That year, I attended almost every rehearsal, knowing there was no guarantee I would make it to the service, given my dad’s condition. But music is a refuge for me, and little did I know that it would bring me such comfort in the face of loss. That Holy Saturday, as I stood by my father’s grave, holding my mama’s hand, I noticed my mind kept coming back to the first phrase of the anthem we were preparing for Easter Sunday, “When the world gave the tomb, the tomb gave new life.”
Through my sadness, I held on to that promise. I still do. My dad’s bones may rest on that beautiful WV hillside, but one day, I will see him again.
“When the world gave the tomb, the tomb gave new life,”; many years later, I still find that I have those words etched on my soul, It is a phrase that means so much more to me now than just the promise of heaven when I die. It is a promise that I can claim in the here and now! At a personal level, I get lost sometimes–focused on things that don’t really matter–life’s little dead ends of pettiness and resentment. At a greater level, I find myself feeling burdened by all the sadness and pain in the world.. Metaphorically and literally, there is death and gloom all around. At every angle and turn, the world keeps giving us the tomb! But, the promise of resurrection reminds me to place my hope in spring. In new life. In daffodils that sprout out of the frozen ground. In baby birds that chirp in the trees of a graveyard. In the empty tomb that keeps fulfilling its promise.
This devotion was written by Edha Brown-Meadows.
Grace for All is a daily devotional podcast produced by the members of the congregation of First United Methodist Church in Maryville, Tennessee. With these devotionals, we want to remind listeners on a daily basis of the love and grace that God extends to all human beings, no matter their location, status, or condition in life.
If you would like to respond to these devotionals in any way, we would enjoy hearing from you. Our email address is: podcasts@1stchurch.org.
First United Methodist Church is a lively, spirit-filled congregation whose goal is to spread the message of love and grace into our community and throughout the world. We are located on the web at https://1stchurch.org/.
