Life Without "Good Fridays"?

As I celebrate Good Friday, today, I am spending a lot of time reflecting on my understanding of what it means for someone to be "saved." I think that it's important for the people of God to constantly reflect upon and remember what, exactly, we are offering the world when we proclaim our Faith as "good news". What are we offering that will make their lives different? Why should they listen to our message?

For most of my ministry, I have believed and taught that to be "saved" means to be made whole, to be delivered from the consequences, power, and even influence of sin. I have believed and taught that to be "saved" means to attain the life that provides us protection from much of the pain, struggle, and trouble faced by others who are "outside" of the family of God. In fact, I have often believed and taught that to be "saved" means, in some sense, that we will experience fewer and fewer "good fridays" - days during which are lives are characterized by pain, disappointment, suffering, and struggle.

Today, my thoughts are different... refreshingly so. As horrible as Jesus' Good Friday was, some wonderful and powerful things were happening that have changed the course of history. On Good Friday, God died, and in dying, He was giving the highest and greatest expression of His love for us. On Good Friday, Jesus was canceling our debts and giving us an eternal opportunity for jubilee - a fresh start without debt! On Good Friday, God demonstrated that our worst days are often handy tools for the display of God's magnificent love and power (a setup for Resurrection!)! Good Friday was indeed a good day because in the midst of, in spite of, and I would add, because of the suffering of that day, God reclaimed all of creation and gave us the decisive victory over sin and death!

I believe that God wants to do the same with our own "good Fridays". I believe that our most dreadful days, our most challenging days, our most difficult days, are days when God does His best work in our lives and in the lives of people around us.

To be "saved" cannot mean, then, that we gain exemption from "good fridays", rather, to be "saved" means that we are placed into our uniquely designed role to live a life through which God accomplishes His Will and is glorified. To be "saved" means to be live a life of purpose regardless of whether you're having one of your best days or one of your worst. To be "saved" means to be forgiven, set free to live without the bondage of the past. To be "saved" means to be given the "fullness" of God Spirit so that in spite of of our "good fridays" we can live with the joy of the Resurrection!