Loss & Purpose Mixed with Hope & Love

(Purpose…Here I am on that topic again.)

As I reflect on this “in between day”…the day between the crucifixion and the resurrection, I ponder the meaning of all of this and the feelings that the followers of Jesus might have felt.

Have you ever grieved the loss of a close friend or family member? I have: grandparents, cousin in her 30s, colleague in her 40s, teenagers and even infants/young children.

Some deaths make more “sense” than others. Grandparents – yeah, I get it – still hurts, but I understand. Young people – not so much! Babies – oh, those are heart-breakers.

Have you felt that pain? Have you asked that question: Why, Why, Why?! I used to photograph babies lost at a young age through this organization: http://www.nilmdts.org/. Why was a common question.

I think there are two obvious lessons that relate to the cross:
1. Loss
2. Purpose

The day after a death of a friend of family member you wake up and wonder how your world has changed. You know it has changed but can’t yet figure out exactly what the loss means. You know but you don’t understand. There is loss; emptiness; thoughts that don’t even all make sense.

I can’t imagine what the believers of Jesus thought the morning after they’d seen him hang on a cross and die. Gone was the man they’d learned about as little children (religious training), grown close to as friends and had loved and trusted to be the savior of the world. Gone. Dead and in a tomb. Their hope – gone.

They must have felt loss.

They must have wondered why. What was His purpose? Their purpose?


God made us to be in relationship with Him. He made the rules and we broke them. He loved us so much, He found a way to restore our broken relationship. How? He sent His son to pay the price (penalty, ransom) for our poor behavior. If we believe, we can be in a relationship with God – forever and ever! The cross didn’t happen to Jesus. Jesus’ purpose was fulfilled through the cross.

On this day between the crucifixion and the resurrection (Easter), I’d encourage you to think back to that loss of your friend or family member. To think of the emptiness it brought to you. Then, think of the loss the followers of Christ likely felt the day after His death. Then, imagine this world had He just been a man. A dead man. That would = no hope for us.

Instead, we get to dance and celebrate tomorrow. Why? We have a Savior who brought hope to all people. The man who enables us to have a restored relationship with God the Father fulfilled His purpose and we benefit from it! The man who loved us so much, He died and ROSE so that we may have eternal life in heaven…if we only believe and trust that Jesus was the Savior of the lost world!

Through His example we can also be reminded that we each have a purpose. Are you living out your purpose? Are you nurturing your children so that they will pursue and fulfill their purposes (vs. yours or their self desires).

Final thoughts:
a. May you diligently pursue your purpose.
(Jesus' purpose = Save the World; Your purpose = tell the world about the Savior)
b. May you comprehend the loss that today represents and the hope that tomorrow brings: restoration that a living Savior provides to all who believe.

As the Chris Tomlin songs says:
There's a peace I've come to know…
Jesus has overcome…
And I will rise when He calls my name
No more sorrow, no more pain
I will rise on eagles' wings

A love that:
- surpasses all comprehension
- is filled with hope for a peace with our God
- fills that empty space when we’ve suffered a loss

The only love that can meet all of our needs. Jesus.