What can you do in one week?
Many people take week long vacations. Maybe you can hike part of the Appalachian trail. Some people move from one place to another in a week. Or perhaps you read a book in a week. I stand in awe knowing how one week in the life of Jesus dramatically changed the landscape of our world. One week He rides in as a king and the next week He is crucified as a common criminal.
A week is seven days which is not very long in the scheme of things. The days help us stay organized from beginning to end. All in all a week repeats over and over to make a month which then strings together to become a year. What if one week marked a period of time in which your life changed drastically? Would you do things differently if you knew what was coming and what would be your first reaction?
This week marks an ending and a beginning. Palm Sunday leads the way with rejoicing, the waving of palm branches and the glorious ride of a King. One week later the King undergoes a “trial” as a criminal and a guilty verdict follows. The week ends with death on a cross. A crowd gathered for both, but the time from Sunday to Sunday made way for a new beginning. This week is a time for us to reflect and gain a better understanding what we can do in one week when we follow Jesus.
In one week, Jesus moved from:
Death to resurrection. N.T. Wright tells us:
The message of Easter is that God’s new world has been unveiled in Jesus Christ and that you’re now invited to belong to it.
Carrying our sins to dying on the cross to wipe them clean.
He himself bore our sins in his body on the cross, so that we might die to sins and live for righteousness; “by his wounds you have been healed.” 1 Peter 2:24
Modeling how a life of desperation becomes one filled with hope.
Therefore, since we have been justified through faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ, through whom we have gained access by faith into this grace in which we now stand. And we boast in the hope of the glory of God. Romans 5:1-2
In one week Jesus promises us new life. He takes our fear and fills us with courage. Our past no longer has a hold on us and instead we look forward to a future with God. Any thoughts of unworthiness or feelings of not enough turn into more than enough. Jesus looks us in the eye and reminds us of our beauty and worth. When we believe only brokenness marks our lives, God sits with us in the heartache and gently makes us whole. We make mistakes along the way but God clears the slate with grace and provides us with His strength.
[Tweet “As we stand in the shadows of the cross, we look to Sunday knowing that the light of hope will dawn brightly.”]
Jesus chose death on a cross to redeem our sins. As we stand in the shadows of the cross on Friday, we look to Sunday knowing that the light of hope will dawn brightly.
Easter blessings to all!
You may find me hanging out at these lovely places today.
Beautiful Easter blessings to you Mary!
Happy Easter Mary! May God bless you and yours with his joy and presence! I know you’ll enjoy the day with your children, blessing the Lord with your strong faith, and trust in him.
Blessings,
Ceil
He is risen indeed!
Have a wonderful Easter celebration, Mary …
Wow, Mary! Thanks for the fresh perspective on one week, especially THIS week!
It’s so amazing what one week brought forth, Mary. I love your insight into this. I love all this, but this captured my heart – “When we believe only brokenness marks our lives, God sits with us in the heartache and gently makes us whole.” No one can empathize with heartache like Him. It’s mind-boggling how much heartache He has endured to make us whole. Thank you for this encouragement. I pray your heart will be filled with Easter joy! Love and hugs!
Hi Mary! This gives me so much hope for our world too. So much tension and terrible things happening, and yet Jesus can change anything, and in so little time.
May he come into all our souls this Easter, changing us to be the people he needs us to be. Our world needs us, and God needs us too.
Have a wonderful Easter celebration!
Ceil
I’m feeling quite inadequate for anything I’ve ever accomplished in a week’s time. ha. Nothing ever can or will compare to what Jesus did. I’m so grateful for that week in his life where he gave it all up for us! Thanks for your beautiful way of making this fresh, Mary.
What you and I have done in a week will never compare to what Jesus did but we know that isn’t the point. Jesus took that ride on Palm Sunday and walked to the cross on Good Friday just for us. Our lives have been redeemed and restored because of His great love. Easter blessings!
What a great way to look at it, Mary! Yes, just one week made all the difference for us through what Christ did in seven short days–or perhaps we could say, in just three! Thanks for inspiring us to rely on His power to do what we could never do in our own strength. Have a wonderful Easter, my friend!
What I consider a week from Palm Sunday to Easter really changed drastically in three days. I pray we all know that we can do all in God’s strength and that He sacrificed His son because of His amazing love for us. I hope you have a wonderful Easter too.
Ah. A beautiful reflection for the season. May you have a meaningful Holy Week!
Thank you! I’m grateful for your sweet words of encouragement. Easter blessings!
Mary- I feel like I don’t appreciate this week like I should. This week was a life-changer for us.
This line is beautiful, “When we believe only brokenness marks our lives, God sits with us in the heartache and gently makes us whole.”
So many “Amens” to it!
Have a blessed Easter!
I know that it takes intentionality on my part to let this week be what it is supposed to be. I can hardly wrap my brain around how much Jesus loves us. His sacrifice is beyond words. I pray you have a blessed Easter too.
That quote from NT Wright is so so good! It’s amazing what happens in a week. In fact, we can’t get to Easter without first experiencing Maundy Thursday, Good Friday, etc. Have a blessed Holy Week!
I love N.T. Wright. My son, Daniel, got me hooked on him. I pray you have relished this week and have walked forward knowing you are a redeemed daughter of Christ. Easter blessings!
This statement is so full of truth: “As we stand in the shadows of the cross, we look to Sunday knowing that the light of hope will dawn…” What a Blessed Hope we have. Thanks for sharing such beautiful thoughts this week–what a week!
Amen! Our hope lies in Jesus and He loved us so much to sacrifice himself for all of us. The act leaves me humbled and grateful. I pray your week has been one leading you closer to remembering the loving God we have and the glory of HIs resurrection. Easter blessings!
Mary,
I can’t even fathom the range of emotions Jesus must have gone through in that one week that would change the course of eternity?! I think of Him riding in triumphantly to the cheers of the people, knowing full well that in less than a week they would have been shouting crucify him. But, yet he showed love anyway. He could have called them all hypocrites but he didn’t. What love….thank you for reminding of the hope of that one week.
Blessings sweet friend,
Bev xx
I know the range of emotions I go through sometimes daily, but my life looks nothing like His did. In one week, everything you can imagine occurred and changed our world. Jesus suffered but knew that in doing so He was saving us. That is humbling. I pray you feel the hope of Jesus this week as we move toward Easter Sunday. Blessings!
Wow, Mary. This post. That question. I rarely take the time to see how much one week can change things. I can think of one time in my life when we came to the end of that seven day period with a huge change. It’s amazing to think about all Jesus did in one week that changed everything. His sacrifice was our salvation. Amazing.
Thank you for centering my mind on Jesus this week, friend!
I would love to know what you think you can do in one week. It is a question I have not really answered for myself but one that I need to take time to dig into deeper. I pray you have a blessed Easter with your family. May the Risen Christ fill you with His peace.
I love your approach to this topic, this truth, Mary. You have a way of drawing me into a story with a purpose. Glad I was your neighbor at #TellHisStory. I am in awe of Jesus everyday…can’t wait to see him face to face.
Your encouragement is such a sweet gift today. I’m blessed to even be writing. God is so good to allow me to do this. I love that Jesus is part of both of our lives and I know that when I meet Him it will be amazing. Easter blessings!
I’m loving this week of remembering Jesus’ final days in a human body on this broken ground. I’m always overwhelmed by the chaos of it all, but so thankful that it was all part of God’s plan of redemption. God is always at work behind the scenes — and it’s good for me to remember this, especially when I can’t see the outcome from where I stand.
This week is truly holy and taking the time to remember is my way of reminding myself of my redemption through Jesus’ death on the cross. The extreme chaos turned into beautiful peace and hope in a matter of days. I pray you see redemption throughout this week as we move toward Easter. Praying you experience God’s hope and have a wonderful Easter.
Do you remember an old BBC tv show called “That Was The Week That Was?” Holy Week is the week that changed everything. The impossible, rigid keeping of The Law was over and in its place … GRACE.
I just spent some time catching up over here – pinned and tweeted your April posts. I miss you joining the Survivor thread…
Have a blessed Resurrection celebration. He is risen indeed!
I do not remember that show. The title sounds intriguing. I love how you describe the change from the Law to grace. Yes and amen! Thank you for being a faithful reader. I always love when you stop by. Easter blessings to you and your family.
This is so beautifully written, Mary, and so full of hope. It is amazing how so much happened in one week for Jesus, and how that so dramatically changed everything for ever. Hope you have a wonderful Easter!
I hold onto the hope that Jesus brought through His death and resurrection. One week the world changed and we have not been the same since. I pray you have a wonderful Easter too.
Amen!!
Agreed! I pray this week takes you on a journey closer to God. Easter blessings!
Lovely! Easter blessings to you as well Mary!
Thank you Lynn! I pray this week is more than you can imagine and that God shows you His hope and peace. Blessings!
Mary! I love this title because it suggests so much possibility. 🙂 And yes, in just THREE DAYS, Jesus went from condemned, to dead, to resurrected. We have a sure hope indeed.
Oh the possibility! Doesn’t it get you giddy with excitement. If one week changed our world so dramatically, we know how powerful God is and we can rest in that. And yes three days Jesus went through life changes that we can only imagine. Here’s to hope and a blessed Easter.