Because He Lives: You Are Not Abandoned

When Jesus says Mary's name, he's he's not just getting her attention. You see, he's reminding her, you are not alone. No one is alone. Resurrection means that you were not abandoned, and her name was the proof. The song, you see, says in music and in lyric what God says in a name. And this story of Mary Magdalene shows us how God makes that happen, abstract ideas, not through argument, not through answers, easy or hard, but through presence, through relationship, through a voice that calls us by name. [00:32:09] (51 seconds)  #CalledByName

Over these past few weeks, we've watched different people carry different kinds of aloneness. The disciples locked themselves away in fear. The travelers on the road to Emmaus walked away in hope from hope. Thomas stood alone in missing the experience everyone else seemed to have. But Mary Magdalene, Mary's aloneness is different. Mary is alone because she stayed. Some people leave when things fall apart. Some people stay. John tells us that after the crucifixion, after all that confusion, after the fear, the disciples say go home. But Mary, she stays. [00:21:22] (67 seconds)  #SheStayed

And if we're honest with ourselves, we all know what that feels like To show up in a place where something ended, to carry love into a space where there's nothing left to hold on to, to keep on showing up even when it hurts. And Mary's one of those people. The others locked the doors. The others walked away along the road to Emmaus. The some of them returned home, but Mary lingers. And maybe that's what makes this story so powerful. Mary is alone in this moment not because she ran away, but because she remained. [00:23:35] (54 seconds)  #StayedThroughSorrow

She stayed close to the place where love had broken her heart, and she stands there weeping, thinking of what had been, of who should have been there, looking into the tomb. Angels are there, but she barely pauses. They ask her why she's crying. She hardly notices because grief has a way of narrowing our vision. All she knows is they've taken my Lord, and I don't know where to find him. She turns, and Jesus is standing there right in front of her alive, but she doesn't recognize him. [00:24:29] (48 seconds)  #WeepingAtTheTomb