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Tuesday, December 23, 2008
Settling in on Death's Necessities
The next day after the Sabbath day, Mary from Magdala,
Salome, and Mary the mother of James bought some
sweet-smelling spices. They wanted to put the spices on
Jesus' body.
-- Mark 16:1 (ERV)
KEY THOUGHT:
Death brings with it harsh realities. The physical absence of the
person who died and the decay of the physical body are two of the
harshest. The women are doing what was expected and what was necessary
when a loved one in Jesus' day died. They show their honor and respect
by preparing the dead body properly. When people we love die, there are
necessities that have to be handled. As difficult as these are, they
help reinforce that this person is gone from us. Our emotions settle in
on the absence of that person and all that it means. The toughest
reality about grief is that the only way past it is to go through it.
Though not ready to give up Jesus to death, these women do what is
necessary -- both for the dead body and for their aching spirits -- by
taking care of the body properly.
TODAY'S PRAYER:
O Father, to lose a loved one is so terribly difficult. Especially true
for those who have lost loved ones to death during this time of year,
please give your blessings and sustaining grace through this time. Help
us to take comfort and find hope that victory and reunion await those
who belong to Christ. Give them strength and courage to hold on to that
hope -- a hope that is ours because your Son came to earth as one of
us, died as one of us, and was raised as the first of us to permanently
defeat death. For this victory, I thank you. In Jesus' mighty name I
pray. Amen.
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>> The WJD! web page has related scriptures and the
>> full text of today's key passage. Read it at:
http://www.heartlight.org/wjd/mark/1223-wjd.html
>> For further study of today's passage, use our
>> online Bible study site: SearchGodsWord.org!
http://www.SearchGodsWord.org/desk/?query=Mark+16:1&sr=1&t=erv
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