Sunday: day of surprises

Resurrection Sunday is the punchline to the biggest joke the world will ever see.

I had a "discussion" with my dad and grandmother on Friday about the meaning of "Good Friday." I'm convinced that churches should hold candlelight vigils and mourning services on Friday and Saturday: those are days of death, of dying, of our Lord on a cross and in a tomb.
My point is not that Christians should be morbid. Rather, I think that we should be more appreciative of the wonder of the resurrection.
The betrayal was heartbreaking, the passion was brutal, but worst of all was the end. If we don't recognize the reality of death, the gut-wrenching finality of it, we'll never truly appreciate what Sunday means. The disciples knew that Jesus was dead; they weren't waiting just outside his tomb for the moment when the angel came. Jesus was dead for three days. Dead people are gone; we mourn them. When the Psalmists sang about fear of the grave, they didn't have heaven in mind.
Jesus changed everything.

I'm blessed with a short memory for plot details: if I haven't seen a film in a couple of years I might even forget the important details of the surprise ending. (Perhaps this has something to do with my enjoyment of film and literature...)
Hindsight is 20/20, but I think we all have moments of amnesia when we listen to great stories. We all know the punchlines of our favourite jokes, but just for a moment there's always a moment of doubt: did they forget the punchline? Are they going to change the end? Is this a new version of the joke I've not heard before? Comedy is 10% writing and 90% delivery.

We all know that Jesus Christ was resurrected three days after his death, but shouldn't there be a taste of real sorrow on every Good Friday? Shouldn't we smell the aroma of real doubt every Holy Saturday?
There are times in our lives when it does seem that all hope is lost, when it does seem that God has left us. In those moments, we should remember that all things work together for good, and that God has a plan for us that is more wonderful than we can imagine; we should remember the Resurrection.
Rejoice, for he has overcome the world!