"Jesus, if you had been here..."

Martha then said to Jesus, "Lord, if You had been here, my brother would not have died." John 11:21

"Jesus, if you had been here..."

This has undoubtedly been a year filled with grief that has left us crying out to Jesus, "If you had been here." Like Martha, we have had far to much pain to be polite with God so instead we must be honest with God.

Jesus, if you had been in a Louisville apartment just minutes past midnight on March 13th, a young woman named Breonna would never have been murdered in her sleep. Jesus, if you had run with Ahmaud on February 23rd the way so many did in the wake of his lynching, he would still be alive. Jesus, if you had been in the decision rooms of our government as a deadly pandemic was beginning then perhaps 281,000 of our loved ones would still be here. Jesus, if you had been there for those eight minutes and forty six seconds. Selah.

Now imagine Jesus weeping with us, and weeping with you as you lament your own personal losses. Jesus is personally affected by our grief, and still powerfully anointed over the grave. This Advent, we weep with Jesus and await his resurrection and life in this earth.
(@adventseason)

Grace and peace,

Anita Sorenson
Pastor for Spiritual Formation