By Lois Hewitt

Good Friday.  What can happen in a nine-hour period?  A lot, especially if you are Jesus of Nazareth.

The day started early, in the wee hours.  The morning was full of unlawful mock trials. Trials that ultimately brought down a sentence of crixifiction for Jesus.

Scattered throughout those morning hours were random and planned attacks on Jesus. He was mocked, spit on, cut deeply by a crown of thorns, stabbed and beaten. I have read accounts that He was so brutally beaten, His own mother did not recognize Him at first.

After He was sentenced to death, the humiliation continued as He was paraded out in the crowds of people cursing Him.  As He carried His own cross, His body grew weaker.

Unfortunately the worst was not over.  There are many accurate writings describing what happens to the body when crucified. If you have never read one, I suggest you do just to get an idea of the absolute pain and devastation that comes from such a punishment.

Now it was time for the Roman solders to take those huge nails and tear the flesh as they were driven into His hands and feet.

He languished for hours along with the two criminals that joined Him that day each on a wooden cross.  At approximately 3 pm He uttered these words:

Father, forgive them, for they do not know what they are doing.” (Luke 23:34, NIV).  

And His last words were, “Father, into your hands I commit my spirit.” (Luke 23:46, NIV).  And it was done.

The sky drew dark and, I imagine, the winds swirled around.  It must have looked like the worst storm you have ever seen. 

Earlier that day, Judas, the one who betrayed Jesus for a few silver coins, took His own life for the grief of his actions was too much for him to bear.

By 6 p.m. Friday evening, Nicodemus and Joseph of Arimathea took Jesus’ body down from the cross and lay it in a tomb. 

Nine long and excruciating hours. Hours filled with the most cruelty human-unkind could muster.

Good Friday was anything but good.  You must look, however, at the bigger picture in order to appreciate the sacrifice.

Because of all Jesus gave, it allowed everyone the opportunity to know salvation and to know redemption.  Jesus has a love for us so complete, our wildest imagination cannot comprehend it.  We are not able to experience it all now.  But in the future, all will be revealed.

But the good that came out of that Friday, literally changed every life thereafter.
He changed life for believers and non-believers alike.  His love is so profound, nothing was the same as it before.

Just remember the story does not end here.

Friday’s events are recorded in Matthew 27:1-62, Mark 15:1-47, Luke 22:63-23:56, and John 18:28-19:37.

By Lois Hewitt

Maundy Thursday.  This day marks the beginning of the end of Jesus’ time on earth as a man.  Things got real, to coin a modern phrase.

Jesus sent Peter and John ahead of the group to prepare the Upper Room for the Passover Feast.  Little did the guests (the Disciples) know that very soon their Rabbi, teacher and their friend would be gone from their lives in physical form.

After sunset, Jesus washed the feet of His disciples.  This was a very poignant sign of His service to others and a shining example of how we are all to act in regard to others.

Jesus did not come to this world to have statues made of Him or to make grand gestures as a way to look more pious as many religious leaders did and some still do.

His ministry was about loving one another.  About being in service to each other.  He cared not about things, awards or accolades.  He came to show us all a different way to live. 

It was at this feast that Communion became an integral part of our remembrance of the ultimate sacrifice Jesus gave to all people…the opportunity of forgiveness and redemption for those who believe in Him as well as the gift of eternal life.

He broke bread (representative of His body) with His cherished friends. He drank wine (representative of His blood) with His disciples.  He washed their feet (representative of His service to other).  So much happened that evening.

But the night was not over.  Judas had yet to kiss his Teacher.  A kiss that would seal a horrendous deal that would cause the One True Light in the world to be tortured and left for dead on an old wooden tree shaped like a cross.

Judas delivered that kiss and Jesus accepted it as this was His Father’s will.  Once the kiss happened Jesus was arrested and stood trial early the next morning.

During the night, those who swore their alliances forever to Jesus, denied knowing Him.  Oh, how His heart must have broken. Oh, how their hearts broke also with anguish and regret.

The light of the next day would bring with it sorrow unimaginable.  A loss that would ripple through time for each generation to come.  Why did this have to happen?

Simply, to save us from the sins in our lives. Those things we are too weak to fight alone.  To save us from the bad choices we have made.  To purify us so that we may spend an eternity in Heaven with God, the Father and His Son, who humbly came to earth to change the way people lived.

This was a most horrific event in human history. There have been many horrific events in history, humans are the cruelest and most ruthless of species.

But the events of Jesus did not end after that dinner or after His human death.  He was triumphant over the darkness. Over evil.  Over death.  He rose again and His life did change the world!  Never will we be the same because He walked this earth.

These things we do, do in remembrance of the One who came to save the world through love, peace and servitude to others.

I fall short of His example every single day, sometimes I even forget about the sacrifice, and once or twice I denied Him.  Oh, how my soul mourns those transgressions. Peace could never be mine, except for Him.

Today, I remember what Jesus gave to this world.  No longer afraid to proclaim Him.  He is my Savior and I am blessed beyond comprehension because of His sacrifice on that old tree shaped like a cross.

“Thursday’s events are recorded in Matthew 26:17–75, Mark 14:12-72, Luke 22:7-62, and John 13:1-38.”

By Lois Hewitt

Holy Wednesday!  The countdown continues. Many historical accounts elude to the fact that this was a fairly quiet day for Jesus. He probably rested and took time with His disciples.

He knew what the next two days would bring, so He rested with the ones He loved.

What a beautiful example for us to live by.  Even in the midst of choas, sometimes we need to push back and breathe for a moment.

Others may not like that you do that.  But you need to take care of yourself.  Chaos has a way of always existing.  Chaos doesn’t worry that it might be extinguished. We live in a world that thrives on chaos, it is up to our own selves to stop the bus, as it where, and get off the ride.

I have discussed the fact a few times that Jesus was often going off alone to pray and rest.  The crowds never went away but He did.

Going away did not mean that He didn’t care or that He was being selfish.  Quite the contrary, it’s because He rested and prayed that He was better able to meet the needs of those around Him.

So when your life seems like an out-of-control circus, give yourself permission to stop, pray and breathe.  It will change everything. 

And do not forget to take time with those you love.  Jesus knew He would be leaving very soon and wanted to spend just a little more time with this most special to Him.

Jesus is the example we, as His followers, should follow.  He was never afraid to show up and do the work.  But He also knew the importance of a space in time that was quiet and nurturing.

On this Holy Wednesday, just days before the resurrection, take a moment or two (or more) to quiet your mind, calm your body, allow oxygen into and out of your longs and say a prayer of thanksgiving.  This act alone may just fortify you to keep hanging in there.

Peace be with you this Holy day and always, my friend.

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”!

By Lois Hewitt

Holy Monday!  This is my first year of even beginning to know this. Holy Monday, obviously, follows Palm Sunday in Holy Week leading up to Easter and the resurrection of Jesus.

A few things happened on that Monday, many years ago.  Jesus was back in Jerusalem and He walked by a fig tree that bore no fruit. He cursed the tree and it withered overnight.

I have read an observation that the tree represents the spiritual life of believers. The tree looked like a healthy fig tree but upon closer examination, one could tell something was wrong. It bore no fruit.

A fruit tree has basically one job and that is to produce fruit. It can do other things like make shade, convert carbon dioxide and other things trees in general do. But a fig tree is ultimately designed to produce figs.

I was a lot like that tree.  I looked okay at first glance. Productive even but if you would have looked for fruit of the Spirit, none would be found. For many years, I was basically withering away on the inside. I bore no fruit.

The fig tree that Jesus cursed, proved itself to be unfruitful.  Much like I had done for years.

Jesus also visited the Temple that day. What He saw greatly disturbed Him.

Moneychangers in His Father’s House, conducting business on sacred ground.  He flipped the tables over and rebuked all those who were participating.

He felt that many of the religious people of the time, were withered spiritually, like the fig tree.

I used to do Bible studies and prayed but many times those acts were simply items on my daily to-do list.  I did learn some things, but my heart was hard with bitterness and anger.  My sense of compassion and mercy was hibernating awaiting a time when I was better.

It’s so easy to look a certain way outwardly but to look another way on the inside.  Jesus wants us all to produce fruit in our lives. He wants us blessed and, in return, to be a blessing to others.

That’s hard to do when your heart is hardened. Life has a way of kicking us all.  Beating us up.  That can lead to many issues that leave us empty inside. We look fine on the outside, maybe we even say we are fine but the reality is much different.

My prayer this Holy Monday is that your heart heals from the pain you have experienced. That your heart breaks through the wall you built around it to protect it.  I pray that you allow Jesus to replace the hurt with His perfect love.

This process took me a very long time and I still struggle at times but I yearn to produce fruit in my life.  I want to live an authentic spiritual life and I pray the same for you.

As we all walk through this Holy Week, let us remember that true spirituality shines from the inside naturally, organically.  It is not a mask we wear, but the essence of our commitment to the One who suffered and died on a wooden cross for our sins.  Then rose from the dead to give us all the opportunity for eternal life with Him. 

What a gift to receive! What fruit to bear!

“Monday’s events are recorded in Matthew 21:12–22, Mark 11:15–19, Luke 19:45-48, and John 2:13-17.”

By Lois Hewitt

Oh, what a week it was!  Full of stress and my ineptitude ever showing.  Sometimes I just feel like I’m in over my head!  That was this week.

So after work I scurried home quite quickly fighting the badly parked cars on my road along with a few errant garbage cans.  I parked and ran down the steps to my basement apartment.

There is a huge advantage to living in a basement apartment that faces the back yard rather than the road…it’s so quiet you tend to forget the other lives outside the door.

My personal life policy, for the most part, is that I will partake in a normal life during the week, but go into full-on hermit mode on the weekends.

I am easily overwhelmed with small talk, answering the phone and other human-to-human contacts. I like people, I really do, but my personality only allows for a certain amount of interactions before I experience stress.

So yesterday, I scampered down the stairs to my apartment, quickly changed into my sleeping outfit and jumped into bed and covered my head for an hour or two as a way to decompress.

I eventually gathered the strength to get up, do a few chores and make dinner. 

Dinner was almost ready and we usually have a cup of coffee with dinner on Friday night.  It is us being wild and throwing caution to the wind.

The sun had set by this time, there was a glorious yellow-orange glow emanating from behind the mountains. As I walked out onto our deck, to drop the old coffee grounds off the edge, I stood longer than usual.

The only artificial light in the backyard is our Christmas tree lights (yes it stays up all year) and the warm glow of lights from the neighbors
windows. 

We live on a quiet street but are close to the highway. I could hear traffic zooming along the highway off in the distance.  We are also close to a train track and occasionally we are serenaded by the ryhthmic sounds of a passing locomotive.

As I stood outside, I realized that there is an entire world that is in continuos motion that has absolutely nothing to do with me.

I thought about the people going to work overnight or those people who were on a date. I thought about friends meeting for dinner and drinks. I thought about the people on their way to visit family or friends. And I thought about the people who were lonely and struggling.

I like to lock myself away on the weekends. Curtains drawn. Door locked.  An island unto myself as I do my cooking and cleaning. I sometimes, if only momentarily, forget about the world that is pressing on all around me.

When my parents and sister passed away, I was reminded that the world waits for no one.  It keeps moving always in perpetual motion.  So even when I get off the roller coaster of life, even if only for a day or two, the ride continues.

I am not sure why those thoughts appeared in my consciousness last night but I felt they arrived for a reason.

Jesus knew the importance of time away from the crowds. He knew His battery needed time to recharge in order for Him to function at full capacity but He never forgot the needs that were all around Him.  His life on this earth, albeit a relatively short time, is a good example to follow.

It is good practice to take care of yourself, to set boundaries (even if those around you may not like it), and to get away in the quiet to pray or take care of your needs.  We are called to that.

We are also called to take part in the world around us.  To see a view more than just ourselves. 

My visit to the back deck last night was a reminder that I should take care of myself but not to the exclusion of the needs that surround me.

We are called to be the Light in a dark world. That’s a big ask, but it is necessary as the culture encompasses more darkness. Just like the majestic light from behind the mountains transforms the night sky, so must we shed light on the world around us.

Just remember it is necessary to hide away at times to recharge and reinvigorate.  It is a balancing act, and one I am still trying to maneuver.  It’s not necessarily easy but, then again, the easy path is not always the desired path.

By Lois Hewitt

Doom scrolling…it is my newest bad habit.  I scroll social media for hours totally unaware of the time as it passes.  My goal since January was to scroll less but I have not been able to put the phone down.

Until today.  My hope is that today is the final straw. I have been praying for strength to stop.  I find myself scrolling without even realizing when I started.

This morning started out as all my days off do.  Breakfast, dishes, goodbye to Mike and the promise of only looking at social media for a short time.

Two hours later, I realized something so obvious. This activity is very bad for my mental health.

Just today I saw several videos of glorifying bad behavior. Apparently being rude is acceptable as long as it’s funny and gets views.

Lots of videos of people talking about other people, spoken in some unfamiliar code that I have no understanding of.  But I know it’s not good they are saying.

I cannot stand one more video of someone just yelling the same phrase over and over again to some end I don’t know.

Stop trying to “influence” and seduce me into thinking a bigger house or more stuff will make me happy. No one lives like they portray, it’s all a lie meant to make us feel less.

More and more videos show people preaching about Jesus. After watching a few, I felt a pit in my stomach. The words, at first, sounded sweet but then it did not add up.  Contradictions with God’s word were carefully veiled so as to sound Biblical but were, in fact, not. This is the scariest of all.

I started scrolling to watch cat videos and get cooking ideas. I have learned about natural ways to heal, but now that is getting excessively radical.

You look at the plethora of content and so much of it is subversive.  Little lies here and there.  Half truths that spread like an infection.  Outright lies that cause confusion and anxiety.

I got my answer to prayer today.  I realized that if I am to heal, I cannot keep feeding my mind unhealthy things. If only I could only see cat videos, but that’s not how this works.

The more I would hide videos, the more of those types I would see. Even the shortest glimpse of the lies can make a place in one’s brain and fester.

My focus must turn to the places I trust and look for those things that are enriching and fortifying. It’s too easy to jump down a rabbit hole and see things that can’t be unseen or hear something that could get a foothold.

God saw I was really struggling not only with the time wasted but the quality, or lack there of, things I was allowing myself to see.

I must remember there are no qualifications necessary to make a video.  I could make any number about weird things I already think. So me applying value to the words and actions of someone who I do not know, seems completely wrong.

Sharing ideas is a good thing, but I am not sure that is the objective of some. Creating chaos is so much more fun for some people. There’s enough going on in the world today, I don’t need to look for more depression.

My point, in a very long way around, is that truly because someone looks like they know something, it’s not necessarily so.

Pray for discernment. That’s my advice. There are lots of agendas in play and your best interest may not be one of them.  Take care of your mind and your heart.

Be careful what you believe. Heck, you don’t have to even believe me, I’m nobody.  I just want us all to watch what we put in our lives.  Bad begets bad but, luckily, good begets good.

Stay safe out there!

By Lois Hewitt

A wedding ring.  A cross of gold.  A sorority pin. A badge.  These are all examples of things that show we belong somewhere or with a particular group. Outward symbols.

Being a young and impressionable woman in the 1980s, “things” were status symbols.  White high-top Reeboks.  A Liz Claiborne bag.  Leg warmers and headbands.
Outward symbols.

In my youth, the outside mattered so much more than the inside.  I never was that attractive so I wore lots of make up and had lots of clothes. I had an impressive bookshelf full of books I’d never read.  All the extras in my bedroom and bath matched.  Outward symbols.

I became so obsessed with culture and what famous people were doing that I tried to emulate them.  Piles of celebrity magazines filled my tables.  E! always on the tv. The land of shiny and sparkly had its grip on me.

Lifestyles of the Rich and Famous was my primer.  All, of course, on a less than grand budget.

Over time, I became less and less enamoured with the symbols. The constant running from thing to thing, looking for that one piece that would finally make me feel better, grew old and cumbersome.

I would look around at the outward symbols, while in the mirror all I saw was a shell, empty and pathetic.

Slowly, I redirected my attention to what was really happening on the inside. What I needed to feel better and to be better.

So much had to change and continues to change today. The process never ends.

So since I don’t wear a wedding ring, does that mean I’m not devoted to my husband?  Not at all.  I decided that for me, outward adornments were gone forever. Including my ring.  My heart is devoted to my husband as is my life, no outward symbol necessary.

Only a small cross on my lapel, but no other symbols. Does that mean I’m not devoted to God? Absolutely not.  I am a Christian before all other things. Not a perfect one, but with the perfect desire to love Him the best I can in this humanly form.

Do I have fancy bags or intellectual looking books?  No.  Celebrity mags or matching anything?  No.  Drawers of make up or lots of clothes?  No.  The only thing I feel that I can possess is what is in my heart.  This is what works for me, and only me.

I’m not saying ditch the stuff or ditch the symbols.  I would never advocate that. But if you are feeling out of sorts, feeling like something is missing, a trip to the mall or Amazon isn’t what you need (I know this from experience).

Sometimes the best place to look is the last place you want to.  Inside. For me, I had to radically purge all the things I was clinging to.  All the things I identified with. 

I’m obsessive by nature, so I could not possibly just do this halfway.  Just like I used to think I could just have one beer…that just did not work.

I like simple.  I have lived with stress from over-buying, over-thinking, over-indulging and basically over doing.  Now I am over being over. 

I do carry my wedding ring in my wallet.  I do have lots of books on my Kindle.  I have no make up and only two outfits.  It may not look like much but it is everything and so much more.

Inward symbols that only I can see are my mandate. It reminds me that we should never judge on a person’s outward appearance because the really important stuff is on the inside.

By Lois Hewitt

Writing on a phone just isn’t the same as paper and pen or the feel of an old typewriter.  I write all my posts on my phone, hence all the autocorrect misused words (that’s my story anyway!) but somehow it’s just not the same.

In my youth I had notebooks of long diatribes emoting all my teenage angst. Page upon page of handwritten sadness and longing. Then I got a used typewriter.

On the typewriter I created my greatest (and only) piece of fiction…my resume. At 20, I had nothing to put on a resume yet I had a whole page. Definitely fiction.

Then came my first computer which I could never get to work properly. I was computer illerate even in my youth.

Now I write on a phone.  Who would have thunk it!  I appreciate the ease in which to write. Plus the fact it gets published. My old writings never another eye saw.  They ended up in a huge bonfire, never to exist again.

I hate technology but I appreciate the few things I can do. I can carry my entire library and album collection in my purse.  All my photos are also carried with me. My recipes, movies and more are in my hand right now.  How amazing is that?

There is one thing I won’t trade for electronically. My Bible. I do have an electronic version on my phone but alas it is not the same.

The way pen takes to paper can never be duplicated with any electronic. The feel, the smell, and the emotion that is tied to actual writing is a feeling unto itself.

The same with my Bible.  It’s old, so it has a unique odor.  The pages are thin and worn.  The cover has tape on the spine to keep it from tearing anymore.  Some of the writing I have done in the margins has bled through. It is a mess, but oh how I love it.

A while back I bought a new one.  It was pretty and fresh. But it had no humanity.  My old Bible is an actual part of me. Tear stained, it is.  Full of angst, fear and, most of all, hope.

I can write okay on my phone, but it’s not the same as with pen and paper.  I can read God’s word on my phone, but it’s not the same when I read the Word with my old, worn friend.

Times change.  Things get easier (or so they say).  It seems some of the convenience we have today is a little soulless. Missed are the days of stained recipe cards.  The smell of an old book.  The feel of a magnificent pen in hand. 

I embrace this new technology but only to a point. I often think if I had to hit the road  and live in a cave (things my mind thinks) my old Bible would be my only comfort.

Technology is cool. But the old things are still even better!

By Lois Hewitt

What’s your background?  What makes you qualified to write the things you do?  I have been asked this, and it’s a good question. So let’s clear the air, shall we.

I have absolutely no qualifications. None whatsoever.  Unless you count that I was (still am) a sinner who desperately desired redemption and salvation.  Theoretically, my sole qualification is my sin nature.

I did not grow up in the church. My parents did not care for any type of organized religion. Anytime the subject came up, they deferred to the argument that it’s my decision when I get old enough to decide.  Blessed that they both became believers later in life.

Luckily, I had a friend who was a Christian from a strong Christian family. So I got to see glimpses of what that meant. Accepted Jesus as my Savior at 16 years old and then went right on living my sinful life.

My main influences came from Moody radio (WCRF) in Cleveland. I listened to sermons by Charles Stanley and Charles Swindoll.  I read books by James Dobson.  But the one person who changed my life then and still to this day is Tony Evans. I cannot imagine where I would be without his teachings.

To this day, I am either reading one of his books, listening to a sermon series, doing an online study or all of the above. 

I went to a couple good churches in my day but my anxiety has kept me mostly away. Today I have two wonderful teachers at the church I work at, but Sunday service is still difficult for me.

Since I knew the majority of my Christian teachings were not going to be in-person, I was very selective. I followed a few people that after some time, I thought better of it and cut ties.  There are a lot of false or misguided teachers out there, so I stuck to the ones I trusted.

Earlier I said that I kept sinning, we all do, but I meant I was drinking and acting a fool a lot of the time.  Truth be told though, I had long stretches of time where I studied the Bible intently.  I did many studies and readings.  These times gave me a strong foundation in my faith.

Today, I am way blessed to have a life that is full of Jesus. I try to work on my understanding every day.  Do I succeed?  No!  A resounding no.  But I try to make it a priority. I work on my prayer life, my knowledge of the Bible and putting it together into a life that is worth living.

So…Am I qualified to write the things I do?  Probably not. But I hope my life serves as not only a cautionary tale (the sinning part) but a tale of someone who wants to know the Lord and did it in different terms than most.

Can you learn to be an engineer without going to school?  No, but you can learn concepts and basic skills. Can you learn to be a minister without Theology training? No, but you can learn and apply God’s perfect teachings to your life and work to be better. 

When it all comes down to it, that’s all I want. A close relationship with the One that brought me from a world of sin and to be a better person.  That desire comes from within, no book or sermon can teach that. 

Be true, be discerning and be open and you can be better and in turn make the world better. It is a rough road at times, but oh so worth it!

Those are my qualifications.