I don’t know about you, but this moment we are living in doesn’t always feel like the Easter season.  There are moments where the joy and hope of the Resurrection pop in and appear.  There are moments I feel like this is one long Holy Saturday, where I am aware life as we once knew it ended, but I am not quite sure what new life looks like.

It reminds me of the moment where the disciples were huddled in the locked room as we read in the Gospel of John.  They knew life as they understood it was over, but they did not quite sure what was coming.  They had no idea to expect the Resurrection (even though Jesus had told them otherwise).  Here are the words from John’s Gospel (Jn 20: 19-23):

On the evening of that first day of the week, when the doors were locked, where the disciples were, for fear of the Jews, Jesus came and stood in their midst and said to them, “Peace be with you.” 

When he had said this, he showed them his hands and his side.  The disciples rejoiced when they saw the Lord.  [Jesus] said to them again, “Peace be with you. As the Father has sent me, so I send you.” 

And when he had said this, he breathed on them and said to them, “Receive the holy Spirit. 

Friday afternoon, members of the launch team gathered for our weekly virtual prayer meet-up, and we read and prayed with this Gospel.  Then we shared on two questions:  

Where do we feel like we are in the locked room?
Where did we experience a moment of the Risen Christ entering our lives this week?  

I found deep comfort in knowing I am not alone in what I am feeling right now; that others also feel the both/and of this moment.  Parts of our lives feeling like Holy Saturday still, and yet we continue to get glimpses of what the Resurrection might look like.   

I know, too, from leading people through the Spiritual Exercises of St. Ignatius of Loyola that moving from the sorrow of the third week of the Exercises (which is focused on Jesus’ passion)  into the joy of the fourth week (which focuses on the Resurrection) does not happen in one fell swoop. It takes time for the Easter joy to seep into the person moving into the fourth week.

It takes time for us to move out of a Good Friday “loss” into the waiting of Holy Saturday. It takes time to enter into Easter.  The joy of the Easter season can build in us though. I invite us to be gentle with ourselves right now; to let the ebb and flow of our emotions and feelings during the pandemic to be what they are, and to know no matter what we are feeling, the Risen Christ is with us.

May we remember, we are not alone.  

Go Deeper?  

• Scriptures to pray with: Resurrection gospels 
  • Matthew
    
  • Mark
    
  • Luke
    
  • John 
• Prayer Tool Tuesday – Each Tuesday at 4:30 pm Central via Zoom – Gather with my dear friend Stephanie Clouatre Davis and I this week, April 21, in learning a new prayer tool. Follow my Facebook page for details.
• Wanting a directed retreat? Wanting more prayer support during this time? The retreat directors from the Online Busy Person’s Retreat are happy to extend the invitation of an online busy person’s retreat on your schedule – meeting online with a spiritual director for one hour a day for four-days. If interested, email info@beckyeldredge.com with the four days and timeframe you have available and we will work to match you with a director.
• Visit my Spiritual Support webpage with more resources during this unprecedented time of COVID-19 and follow me on Facebook & Instagram for daily scripture inspiration and for the latest resources.

The Inner Chapel: My New Book!

• My new book, The Inner Chapel: Embracing the Promises of God is now available! As a sincere “Thank You!” to all of you for your support, my publisher has extended a 30% off code for orders and preorders through August 13. Simply go to Loyolapress.com/innerchapel and use promo code 5207. You can also pre-order from Barnes and Noble and from Amazon for Kindle and paperback.
• SHARE WITH US: We would LOVE to see a picture of your reading The Inner Chapel. Please post a picture of you enjoying the book on your social media and tag my Becky Eldredge page on facebook or @beldredge98 on Instagram or Twitter.
• Read this great Q&A from Stacy at My Little Catholic Home.
• Read an excerpt from The Inner Chapel: My chapter called Suffering Makes us Compassionate is perfect for all that is going on in the world currently.