“But God released Him
from the horrors of death and
raised Him back to life,
for death could not
keep Him in its grip.”
Acts 2:24 NLT
Their hearts heave with unshed tears and their heads hang with grief, but their feet trudge on with purpose. Their Master is dead. Their hopes and joys are shattered and buried with Him. But they will still remember the love this Man gave to them.
These women of courage head for the tomb. Their spices and their tears will mingle together to anoint the body, to slow down the decay of their precious Jesus, the one they thought would save them. But now? A dead one can’t deliver them from their enemies.
“Who will roll away the stone from the tomb?” they cry. The stone, like their despair, is far too heavy for these women to move. And besides, how will they ever get past the guards? Impossibilities loom ahead of them, but they can’t stop. The love of Jesus draws them on like bees to honey. Their hearts still cry out to Him in desperation.
Their heads bowed, they are intent on reaching the grave. Then they look up… What?!
“Looking up, they saw that
the stone had been rolled away,
although it was extremely large.”
Mark 16:4 NASB
The stone is already rolled away! And no guards. They enter the tomb and see a young man dressed in a sweeping robe as white as snow. Terror and confusion attack their already troubled hearts as they tremble at the sight of this angel whose appearance is like lightning.
“The angel said to the women,
‘Do not be afraid;
for I know that you are
looking for Jesus
who has been crucified.
He is not here,
for He has risen,
just as He said.
Come, see the place
where He was lying.’”
Matthew 28:5-6 NASB
Their eyes round with wonder, they remember the words Jesus had spoken – that He would be crucified but would rise again the third day. Afraid, yet filled with joy, they hurry to tell the disciples the best news anyone could ever tell. JESUS IS ALIVE!
Sometimes we believe this great news in our heads, but we can’t seem to grasp it fully in our hearts. It may feel like Jesus is still dead. Like our hopes and joys are still buried in that tomb. Like our hearts are so downcast that we cannot even see the stone is already rolled away.
Troubles may threaten to crush and smother us, but there is still hope. Why?
HE IS RISEN! He is still alive. Today. Forever. He was crucified, but He is glorified. For each of us. Our hopes and joys are not in that tomb but alive in Him. He conquered death and hell and left our sins in the tomb. Because He lives, sin’s power is broken. Because He lives, no enemy will triumph over us. Because He lives, nothing and no one can separate us from His love.
Precious Jesus,
Like these women
Your love draws us.
We cannot live without You.
Sometimes our hearts are so heavy;
We cannot feel You really are alive.
Please shed the blinding gloom from our eyes
That we may truly see
You have already removed the stone
And You truly are alive
Yesterday, today, and forever.
Death could not hold You.
Hell could not keep You.
The sins of this whole world
Could not destroy You.
O please, Lord,
Dispel the darkness in our hearts
With Your everlasting light.
Shatter the despair we are buried in
And fill us with the joy
You gave those women at the tomb.
Joy so full and free
That it spills out to others.
When depression saps the life from us,
Fill us with Your life.
May our hearts leap with joy
Because You are alive
And here with us
Always and forever.
No matter what we go through
You hold our hand.
Even when it’s dark
Even when we can’t feel You
You are alive
Beside us
Within us.
Because He Lives
I Can Face Tomorrow
Freed to Fly 
Oh, the joy of the empty tomb! May we all celebrate with joyful, thankful hearts this Easter.
Blessings, Trudy!
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Thank you, Martha. Blessings to you, too! May our hearts be filled with the joy of that empty tomb and that Jesus conquered sin and death for us!
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Trudy, I am so blessed by your posts! Today’s is flooding me with hope and joy, and I will be singing “Because He Lives” all week. I usually read your posts more than once, and listen to the music for sure.
How are you and Len doing? Are you getting outside to hear the birds 🎶?
We are just staying home, and not traveling for Easter, like we usually do. Also, our youngest daughter, Sarah is due to have their first baby at the end of this month. We have been able to hold all of our other 10 grandbabies soon after birth, and not being there for this one will be hard.
Very thankful for you, Trudy!
Love, Wilma
Sent from my iPhone
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Oh Wilma, thank you so much for your loving and caring words! I’m so grateful and moved that you are blessed here.
Len and I are doing ok, other than our usual. Len has taken off of work during this time. At first he would still get groceries with a mask and gloves, but now he’s decided he’d better stay in. We’re kind of bummed that we can’t support Fareway now since they don’t have online ordering or delivery. We like supporting the smaller stores, but hopefully we’ll get back to them again.
Those bird songs can sure fill a heart with hope, can’t they? They sound so cheerful and remind us that even as God takes care of them, He will take care of us, too, no matter what happens!
I’m so sorry you and Charlie can’t be there to hold your new grandbaby. That’s such a precious time. My heart aches for you. May God give you and your family special strength, safety, and peace in this trying time!
May God dispel all the gloom in our hearts and lives with His love and faithfulness!
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Dear Trudy,
Oh, thank you for your beautiful words today! I was so touched by the thoughts of those women, so filled with despair, and yet love so compelled them that they could not stop continuing on to the tombl. And then the first stanza of your beautiful poem spoke to that very thought again:
“Precious Jesus,
Like these women
Your love draws us.
We cannot live without You.”
Oh, yes! He has made it so in our hearts. HIS love draws us. I am so very thankful for His grace that continues to draw me, even today. Thank you for sharing your heart with us, dear friend. May you be so blessed this Holy Week. Love and hugs and prayers for you! xoxo
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Isn’t it amazing how like these women are to us, Bettie? Despair can grip our hearts, and sometimes we wonder where our dear Jesus is, but His precious love keeps drawing us to Himself where our only HOPE can be found. We need Him so! We cannot live without Him! Thank you for your prayers, love, and hugs! I pray you may be specially blessed, too! May the hope and love of our Living Savior fill and drive out all the fears within our hearts!
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Hope.
Yes, please!
Thank you, Trudy, for putting that word right on the table this morning. And the perfect hymn for where we find ourselves in this season.
Bless you, friend!
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HOPE. We need it so, even more so in these times where there is so much suffering and death all over the world. It breaks our hearts, doesn’t it, Linda? Bless you, too! May we remember always that because Jesus lives, we can face tomorrow, whatever it may bring!
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It’s so amazing to imagine what it was like to be there!
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Yes, it truly is amazing, Rebecca. Their hearts must have been devastated. May hope fill our hearts that the tomb is empty for us, too, and Jesus lives!
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Trudy, this is so beautiful. I hadn’t ever thought about the fact that sometimes though my head knows Jesus is alive, my heart doesn’t live like this is true. When I allow circumstances to keep my eyes focused on them, it’s hard to remember that Jesus is Lord over even those. Thanks for the beautiful way you shared Jesus’ resurrection story from the eyes of the women.
What hope-filled thoughts to take us into the rest of Holy Week and to Easter.
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Yes, Jeanne, it truly is hard to remember Jesus is Lord over every circumstance in our lives. I’m glad you found hope here in Jesus’ resurrection story. May God give us to believe with all our hearts and to remember we serve a Risen Savior!
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“Because He lives, no enemy will triumph over us. Because He lives, nothing and no one can separate us from His love.” Amen! We always have reason to hope, regardless of what is going on around us. Our victory is assured, and we WILL live.
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It’s such a hope-filled truth, isn’t it, Lisa? The devil tries hard to pull us into despair, but He is never, ever going to triumph over us. I’m so grateful “our victory is assured, and we WILL live.” May God fill our hearts with His faithful love and dispel all the lies of the enemy!
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“Our hopes and joys are not in that tomb but alive in Him.” Amen! Yes! Happy Easter, Trudy. These women were courageous and so full of love for Jesus. And He honoured that love for them. I can only imagine what wonder and joy they must have felt when they realized He had risen!
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I can only imagine the wonder and joy they must have felt, too, Lynn. From deep despair to joy that He lives and truly is their Savior. May God give us grace to be so courageous and full of love for Jesus!
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Trudy, you have excelled yourself here! I love the immediacy in your retelling of the story of the grieving women arriving at the tomb and how their great sadness was transformed into intense joy on hearing the news that Jesus was alive. May even a smidgen of that exhilaration fill our hearts this Easter! ‘Because He lives’ is not only a great song but a reason to stay in hope. And how we need such HOPE to fill and flood our souls! Just as your beautiful poem says:
“Shatter the despair we are buried in
And fill us with the joy
You gave those women at the tomb.
Joy so full and free
That it spills out to others.”
Amen! May our intense sadness, sorrow and grief be turned to joy in the days ahead when we remember that Jesus lives. He arose to give us newness of life and we have every reason to be full of hope despite the ever alarming statistics and newspaper headlines. May you and your loved ones rest in the holy HOPE that never ends and is always available to us. Happy Easter! Blessing, love and hugs! xo ❤
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Thank you for your kind encouragement and prayers, Joy, also in your ecards and emails. I appreciate it so much. Oh yes, “may even a smidgen of that exhilaration fill our hearts this Easter!” And yes, we have every reason to still be full of hope despite the alarming statistics. The positive cases keep growing in our city, worse than any county in the state. So scary. And my heart aches so for all those who are suffering and dying and losing loved ones all over the world. Remembering that JESUS IS ALIVE breathes such HOPE into our hearts, doesn’t it? May we all, as you pray here, “rest in the holy HOPE that never ends and is always available to us!” Love, hugs, and a Happy Easter to you, too!
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Trudy, I’m liking that you’re resting in that glorious hope, but I am sorry to hear just how scared and vulnerable you might be right now as positive cases of the coronavirus rise in your city. I expect it feels too close to home to easily relax. Keeping you in my thoughts and prayers. May God give you an extra measure of calm and comfort, increased resistance to disease of every kind, and greater resilience and strength as you look to Him to be your safe place, shelter, and all-sufficiency in this storm. xo 🙏🏻💙
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Thank you so much, Joy! ❤️🙏🏻
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Trudy, this is truly gorgeous. What beautiful images of the women as they made their way to the tomb and the way that their despair turned to indescribable joy when they found out He was alive! And we can have that indescribable joy for ourselves as we celebrate His resurrection. Amazing.
Continuing to pray for you and your husband. I pray that although Easter looks different for all of us this year than it has in the past, or different from what we would want it to be, that our JOY is not diminished! Amen!
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Oh yes, Liz, may our JOY not be diminished! Sadness can weigh so heavily on our hearts, can’t it? I think the story of these women’s despair turning to indescribable joy has hit home even more because of all the sorrow our world is experiencing. But JESUS IS ALIVE! That gives such hope. May our living Savior dispel the gloom in our hearts with the depths of His faithful love and may we trust He knows what He’s doing!
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Amen!!
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❤️🙏🏻
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Beautiful post Trudy!
He had Risen, indeed!
Bless you,
Jennifer
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Thank you, Jennifer. Bless you, too! I’m so grateful He died for us but also rose for us! May we hold this Truth in our hearts as this crisis grows!
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Trudy, for some reason, the enormity of the stone at the tomb is reminding me of Covid-19 right now. Impossible for humans to move, and yet, no match for God’s power. “Because He lives, we can face tomorrow” … whatever tomorrow holds. What a wonderful truth to remember this Easter season! Thank you for this hope-filled post, my friend!
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So true, Lois. This crisis is like an enormous stone weighing us down and crushing the energy out of us, isn’t it? “And yet, no match for God’s power.” Amen! I’m so glad you find hope in this truth. May God in His powerful love remove all the stones weighing down our hearts!
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Thank you for the hope-filled beauty! An empty tomb is the best gift I can imagine. Jesus is risen and victory has been secured. Happy Easter, Trudy!
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I’m so glad this filled you with hope, Mary. Yes, Jesus is risen indeed! May we truly live the truth that Jesus has already secured our victory! Happy Easter to you, too!
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Trudy,
Pray you had a hope and joy filled Easter. Appreciate you and your words 🙂
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Thank you, Dolly. I hope you did, too. Because He lives, we can face tomorrow, right? May we remember He is truly alive and with us today, tomorrow, and forever!
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