Luke 24:17b-19a: They stood still, looking sad. Then one of them, whose name was Cleopas, answered him, “Are you the only stranger in Jerusalem who does not know the things that have taken place there in these days?” He asked them, “What things?”
They stood still, looking sad.
Have you ever wondered why some of the saddest words in our language begin with the letter "d"? Disappointment, doubt, depression, discouragement, despair, despondency, and death all being with "d". Woody Allen once said, "Our civilization stands at the crossroads. Down one path is despondency and despair. Down the other road is total annihilation. I hope we'll take the right road." Woddy Allen was making an attempt to be humorous, but there are some people who think he's right.
Jesus had asked the two disciples what they were discussing on the way. After they wondered if he was the only clueless one in Jerusalem who didn't know the things that had taken place, Jesus asked them, “What things?”
And so they begin to tell him about Jesus who was a prophet, how he was condemned and crucified, how they had hoped that he would be the one to redeem Israel. As they told him what things had taken place, it’s all in the past tense. They were living in the past. They were living in an “if only” world.
And to be honest, that’s so easy to do. If only things had turned out different in my life. If only I had a better paying job, or a better education. If only I hadn’t been raised the way I was. If only I didn’t have the looks and body that I have. If only…then my life would be different.
At times like that, when we’re like the two disciples on the road to Emmaus, it’s important to ask ourselves, “Am I cursing the darkness, and I’m stuck, going nowhere, and controlled by my past negative experiences? Or am I looking to God for the strength to move on with my life, and to ask Jesus to walk with me?”
Here’s something important to remember. Just as Jesus walked with the two disciples on the road to Emmaus, so also he walks with us on our Emmaus roads. He walks with us in the present, and not just in the past. On our tough patches of the road between Jerusalem and Emmaus he is always with us, even though we don’t always recognize him. We are never alone. Never. And that means that we can face anything that comes in the path of our journey because we know that Jesus promises he will always be with us.
Questions to Ponder:
- · Do you feel your faith is lived in the past tense? Or the present tense?
- · Have you started asking yourself empowering questions on this journey through Lent? If you have, what kind of difference is it making?
Prayer for Today: Lord Jesus, walk with us. All along our pilgrim ways, walk with us. In our sorrows and in our troubles and through our trials, walk with us. In the living name of Jesus, amen.
In the midst of our doubts, disappointments, and despair, it's important to remember that there IS an Unfailing Love.
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