Good Friday.

We went to the Community Good Friday Service today. That's where the different congregations of the community gather to acknowledge what Jesus did for us. (We also have a Community Thanksgiving Service just before Thanksgiving.)

The location changes from year to year depending on what pastors show up for the planning meeting. This year it was the Methodist Church, the Nazarene Church, the Church of Christ, and the Church of God. And depending on where they decide to hold the service, the order of the service and the liturgy changes. Today we went to the Methodist Church and we had a pretty good turn out.

Sometimes the service is pretty dull and formal - I guess that's from a pentcostal/charismatic standpoint, and sometimes it's pretty meaningful. There is usually some responsive reading. Today there was a lot. And today most of the hymns that were sung were sung to tunes that I was not familiar with.

Then the sermon. Sometimes it is very irrelevant to the subject and sometimes even un-spiritual. Today the new pastor at the Nazarene Church preached and I was impressed. He didn't water it down or beat around the bush. He told it like it is, that Jesus came to save us from sin and what the compensation for sin is, and that Jesus has to be the center of our lives. I even heard a few quiet amens, especially from the Nazarene crowd that sat right behind me. I nodded my head a lot and added my quiet agreement. All in all we were pretty pleased with the service. 

The traditions, and methods, and habits of different churches and church members differ so widely, that sometimes you wonder if they preach salvation and if they live it and believe it. Or is attending church just something you do just beacause you've done it all your life or just beacause you're supposed to? I hope that the message got through today and that it's real and alive in every heart and life.

Yes, today was Good Friday. It was a good day back then because of what God did for us (even if it wasn't on a Friday). It was a sad day because of how it happened and what had to be done. Looking at the suffering and the sadness, the death and the burial, the loneliness and the hopelessness, just remember this: Sunday is coming!