By Lois Hewitt

Holy Tuesday!  The days must have grown darker for Jesus as He counted down to the crucifixion.  By this point in His story, the religious leaders were plotting ways to exit Jesus from the picture.  Permanently.

One account I read, said it is believed that this was the day Judas stuck his deal to betray Jesus.  A deal he soon regretted.

I know when I have an unpleasant thing to do, the feeling of dread envelopes me for days. If it is particularly unpleasant, doom can start weeks in advance.

I cannot imagine how Jesus felt knowing how His time on this earth would end. He always knew but I imagine as the time got closer, it was more and more difficult.

Jesus knew what was to unfold.  He knew the pain He would experience, the humiliation and the betrayal.  Yet He forged ahead knowing this is the work He was called to do.  To save mankind from sin.

When we face hard things, our minds tend to race around the “what ifs” and the “could bes”.  We tend to dread the worst possible scenario.

Jesus knew how it would play out. He knew about Friday, He knew He would experience pain beyond comprehension.  He knew He would sweat blood.  He knew His earthly body would expire from the torture.

But He also knew about Sunday!  Sunday would come with all its glory!  Sunday came with a new resurrected body and a seat at the right hand of God.

Sunday came with the knowledge that the world had changed. That sinners now had a way to be cleansed through His blood.  He knew that in order to experience Sunday, He had to experience Friday.

How many “Friday” experiences have you lived through in order to celebrate on “Sunday”?

My life for many years was a “Friday”, not like Jesus experienced, but was fraught with my own version of pain and anguish.  My pain mostly was self chosen, but painful nonetheless.

One “Friday” I dropped to my knees and screamed for it all to stop.  I reached a point where I felt I could not go on.  I prayed for cleansing and I prayed for redemption.

Then my “Sunday”came. I saw the glory of Jesus and my life forever changed. The exciting part is that this is only part of the story.  There is more to come in the glory of Heaven.  Things unimaginable.

So today, a day of betrayal for Jesus, it was a necessary evil to bring about the glory.

Your pain may feel unbearable, and it is.  But there is hope in the recovery from the pain.  Jesus lived through physical pain, to save us all.  He experienced the pain so that He could save us from sin.

There is hope in the “Friday” that because of it “Sunday” will come. Have faith and hope in His eternal gift to His children. 

I stand on the mountain and glorify Jesus for my “Sunday”!