As I write this two of my dear friends are facing life-threatening cancer. It was sobering to travel to their home cities so that for just an hour or so we could be in each other’s presence, share meaningful words and embraces and experience the comfort of God’s presence and Word together. One of the passages I shared with both of these men and their spouses was Proverbs 21:21 ““He who pursues righteousness and loyalty finds life, righteousness and honor.” (NAS)

“The weak can never forgive. Forgiveness is an attribute of the strong”, a great man once said. Jesus first word from the cross is recorded in this passage and it is a word of forgiveness (34).Forgiveness must be the first word for us as well in that we need to receive it and we need to extend it. We need to receive it because we cannot begin our spiritual journey without embracing the promise of Christ.

We all keep secrets. What secrets do you keep and when will you choose to reveal them?

Joseph of Arimathea had two: He was eager for the kingdom to come and he loved Jesus Christ, whose death had been instigated by the Sanhedrin Council (of which he was a prominent member).

How do you wait when the promise of hope and healing you’d nurtured for months and years has died?

The women who had cared – literally – for Jesus had seen him die. They’d watched Joseph and Nicodemus take his battered body down, wrap it in fine cloth, gently place it in Joseph’s tomb.

Many of us can think back to a special vacation that involves moving through some spectacular scenery, perhaps accompanied by some good friends. These experiences are planted in our minds for years to come and we continue to go back and cherish these memories. In the passage for today, we find a couple travelling on the road to their home in the tiny village of Emmaus and an unknown traveller comes and walks along with them.

I love the unrestrained thrill of roller-coasters with their gut-wrenching twists and turns, their surprising lurches and flips. I am game to strap myself into the wildest of rides, tamping down the fear that always insists on coming along.

Had I been present with the disciples on this day described by Luke, I think I would have met my match in roller-coaster living.

The opening “Praise the Lord” is actually the Hebrew Hallelu Yah – or Hallelujah as we would write it – which identifies this as a hymn of Praise.

This hymn is a circular movement – from praise to reverence to wisdom and back to praise. The expression of praise flows from a heart of gratitude for God’s mighty acts. This leads to reverence (fear of the Lord) which leads to wisdom which leads back to praise.