Dawn Seekers Found Faith's Deepest Mystery

The story of Mary going to the tomb has a truly miraculous, world changing ending, but I am struck as I read it by Mary’s deep love for Jesus. She did not know that the tomb would be empty or that he had risen from the dead. She fully expected to find his dead body. She did not come to the tomb to see a miracle, but instead she came to serve Christ. She went because of the great love and gratitude that she had for Jesus. The Bible tells us that Jesus saved Mary from multiple demons. He met her in the darkest place, and now she was going to see him in His darkest place too. While she did not expect anything from Him that morning, because she showed up to serve God, she was the first witness to the greatest miracle in history!

I am going to be honest for a second, even as someone who is passionate about serving and missions. Going to clean someone’s dead body is not necessarily on my bucket list. Not to be rude here, but dead bodies, especially if they have been in a cave for three days, are gross. My husband and I have a long-standing agreement that he will do all the gross stuff around the house. He jokes that it is one of his “unspoken wedding vows.” If there is a clogged toilet, or the dog throws up, or any number of yucky messes happen, he grabs a towel and some cleaning supplies and gets to work! He does it all while whistling and smiling, because he loves us.

Just the other day, or actually the middle of the night, we awakened to the sound every parent dreads hearing–the sound of retching and the splatter of liquid from our daughter’s bedroom. My daughter had a stomach bug. Thus, began a very long and very messy night for all of us. My husband hopped right out of bed and rushed to help our daughter. He helped her in the shower and got to work on the mess. A few minutes later he had her back in bed with a bowl and new sheets, only to repeat the process several times throughout the night. Though it was a long night for all of us, my husband did not complain. He did it all with patience and kindness, because he loves his daughter. He would do anything for her, including the yucky stuff. So would I–but I was glad he was home!

It is this kind of love that Mary had for Jesus. Sometimes loving others is messy. Most of us probably won’t have to clean someone’s body after they have been dead for three days, but loving others and following Jesus sometimes takes us to uncomfortable places or into situations that are hard. It might be smelly and gross, but it can be just as hard if it’s emotional or difficult. I pray that when God calls me to do things that are hard, I will be like Mary, who did not think of the grossness of the task at hand, but only of her love for God. It is in these places that we often see the greatest miracles and deepest expressions of love!