Be a Witness

You are witnesses of these things. – Luke 24:48

After the resurrection, Jesus reveals himself to people who are consumed in grief by his crucifixion. They are startled by him and believe they are seeing a ghost. It’s difficult for them to immediately reconcile the miracle of Jesus’s presence with the seeming finality and devastation of his death.

This is one of the first glimpses of the challenge of being a witness to the promise of Easter. The world can be seemingly falling apart, and we’re called to believe that salvation is still possible. Our loved ones die from diseases we can’t cure. World leaders start wars that never end. The greedy have plenty and many of us struggle to survive.

And yet we still believe that grace and mercy will keep saving us.

We’re still called to embody the grace and mercy of the One who did save us.

We find seas of hope in spiritual deserts.

We witness violence and death all around us and somehow know that Divine love hasn’t lost its power.

The Resurrection gives us permission to challenge the limits of permanence—even the apparent permanence of death.

And that is the call of being a witness.

The promises of God won’t fail us, and the miracle of Jesus is true. When disappointment surrounds us—even when we disappoint ourselves—we can keep going. When it feels as if we can’t go on, everlasting love and everlasting life will embrace and revive us. In a world of finite ends, “It is finished” gave us a holy beginning.

Prayer
Make my life a living testimony. Renew me and restore me so that I may be a witness to the power of your resurrection Amen.

About the Author
Marchaé Grair is a spiritual director, facilitator, and the Director of Public Relations and Outreach at the Unitarian Universalist Association. Follow her work at marchae.com.