God of Complicated Hope

On the first day of the week, very early in the morning, the women took the spices they had prepared and went to the tomb. - Luke 24:1

The Easter story certainly does not start with hope. It starts with love, loyalty and service. The women held Jesus dear and they went to the tomb looking for a dead man to wrap in burial spices. They were not looking for resurrection. And yet their love and service paved the way to hope.

For many of us, hope has been beaten out of us. Statistically because of screens, we see more violence in a single day that those 100 years ago saw in a lifetime - no wonder we’ve become numb to it, discouraged, and disappointed. And that’s not to mention the pain of our own lives and those around us.

Today as we seek to find hope, let’s spend time praying this thoughtful prayer that Brenna read over us yesterday in the service:

God of complicated hope, we confess that we have made for ourselves a dainty hope. It is difficult to accept the hope of inspirational quotes, when we see the traumas of this world clear and constant. Many of us have had language of “hoping in God” wielded against us as a way to keep us from the lament and anger and justice we were meant for. Protect our hope from toxic positivity, that we could name the truth of our deepest longings and face a waiting marked by pain and want. We believe, forgive our unbelief that what is will not always be. Help us learn to allow our dreaming to be a deep guttural groan, a promise that we can recline into, a place where we can catch our breath. - Cole Arthur Riley, @BlackLiturgies