Chardon United Methodist Church

What would it be for you, the greatest moment of your life?? - graduation day, your wedding day, the birth of your first child??  Whatever it is, if it is past you let it be past.  As much as you treasured it, you let go of it, keeping the memory and celebrating the joy, holding the event in a special place in your mind and heart - - but not holding on to it.  It has to be this way, else you can never be open to any other events.  You will live only in the past and be dead to future possibilities.  So it is that family therapist Clayton Barbeau was right when he said, “All living is learning to say good-bye”.  It is because if we don’t learn how to say good-bye and let go, we can never say, “Hello!” to what is new and rich and fresh.  So it is for families, for individuals - - yes, and for pastors and churches : successes - - and disappointments, moments of joy - - and sadness, hurts and hurtful moments - - as well as healings, all of it needs to be released, set in the past, so new possibilities can emerge.

The ‘letting go’ in order to seize the future is a resurrection story.  In John’s Gospel the first person to meet the Risen Christ is Mary Magdalene.  With sorrow turned to joy she rushes to embrace the Risen One, only to have Jesus’ words stop her : “Do not hold me, but go and say …” (John 20.17)

Jesus’ words startle us!  To hold the Risen Christ - - and not let go - - is to hold unfulfilled the resurrection promise : Easter is not only about a Risen Christ, but it is also about a resurrected church, a resurrected church with a message worth taking and proclaiming.  It is the ‘going’ and ‘saying’ that is the living challenge of the Living Lord, not the staying and holding.

Mary’s response of obedience models well God’s intention for us, people of the resurrection that we are.  It is great to be resurrected; it is great to know the power of God which turns deadness to pulsating life.  These are moments and times worth our keeping and celebrating.  It is greater still to “Go and Say” that the power of the Cross turns deadness to life.  In these post-Easter weeks which follow, can we hold on to this?

Easter Joy, Henry