“Early on Sunday morning, as the new day was dawning, Mary Magdalene and the other Mary went out to the tomb. Suddenly there was a great earthquake; for an angel of the Lord came down from heaven and rolled aside the stone and sat on it. His face shone like lightning and his clothing was a brilliant white. The guards shook with fear when they saw him, and fell into a dead faint. Then the angel spoke to the women. “Don’t be frightened!” he said. “I know you are looking for Jesus, who was crucified…” (Matthew 28:1-5 The Living Bible)
Let’s start your “Monday Short” meditation with a question on this new day that you have been blessed to see: “What Are you looking for?” Sunday is over and perhaps you showed up for worship, as well you should have. You left God-conscious, Christ-centered, and certainly Spirit filled. But now it’s Monday. Yesterday, you looked for just a little more Jesus, but now it’s Monday. What are you looking for this week?
Are you like Mary Magdalene and Mary, described in the opening passage? Are you looking for Jesus? Are you seeking Him early like those two women? That’s great, excellent, outstanding, if your answer was “Yes!” For you see, the earlier you seek Him, the better off you will be in the days ahead. The earlier you seek Him, the better you will be prepared to handle any troubles that come your way. You do know that Jesus can fix it, don’t you? You do know He can make everything alright, don’t you?
Start your week off right! Look for Jesus to show up and take control of all your decision making, all your discussions, and all the directions that you choose to go when faced with choices or options.
I hope I am right, thinking that you will not be among the multitude of people that will not start the week not looking for the Master! I hope you are not making it a priority to look for other things and by doing so, you stop looking for Jesus until next Sunday. You know the people I am talking about, people looking for a good time, a good woman or a good man, freedom, fun, cell phone numbers to add to their contacts, or similar things without thinking about Jesus.
Such folks have forgotten that a good time is any time of the day when Jesus, the Good Shepherd, keeps you in the right place. Such folks have overlooked that a good man or a good woman is one who also knows the Lord. They have neglected to see how Jesus can make the man or woman you do have already, all that much better, when you are looking for the Jesus. Those looking for freedom from this or freedom from that have forgotten that Jesus speaks of the truth that sets one free. People looking for fun are actually looking for happiness that is dependent on the happenings. They should be looking for Jesus who will give you joy! Yes, that joy that the world did not give to you and the world cannot take it away! Those looking for new phone numbers to add to their contact list often overlook getting on their needs, picking up the mainline, and contacting Jesus!
At the risk of posing an unnecessary question, let me close by asking you again, “What are you going to be looking for this week?” I know, this was not as short as you expected, but that’s alright, because if it keeps you on the right track and in the right state of mind this week, it was worth it! Love you! By the way, stop thinking about the Super Bowl game and the star-studded halftime show and the clever commercials. Start your week now, looking for Jesus! Be blessed!
Still committed to the climb,
Mark L. King