Dear ABCNJ Family and Friends,

As we enter Holy Week, we do so with hope! In the midst of the hopelessness and despair that we may have encountered and experienced, especially throughout these past two years, we are assured of the hope in us by the resurrection of Christ! Our hope is not found in our strength, goodness, or abilities but the blessed hope of Christ. "Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus! In his great mercy he has given us new birth into a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead, and into an inheritance that can never perish, spoil or fade." 1 Peter 3:4 

As we walk through this Holy Week, I invite you to remember Jesus' journey - a journey filled with joy, courage, prayer, humility, forgiveness, and hope. 

Joy. Jesus' triumphant entrance to Jerusalem reminds us to draw near to him. Just as the crowd shouted, "Hosanna, Blessed is He who comes in the name of the Lord," we too are invited to love and praise Jesus. We are invited to joyfully draw near to Jesus and lay down our lives before Jesus. We are invited to proclaim, with joy, the mission of the One who comes in the name of the Lord. Where do you need to proclaim Jesus' mission joyfully?

Courage. While in Jerusalem, Jesus confronted those making a profit off of the people coming to worship, "My house will be called a house of prayer for all nations. But you have made it a 'den of robbers.'" (Mark 11:17). God's house of worship had become a place of extortion and a barrier to those who wanted to worship. Where is God calling you to be courageous and speak out against the practices that keep others from entering the house of prayer?

Prayer. Jesus' last week was filled with prayer. He prayed for his disciples to be filled with comfort and peace: "Peace I Ieave with you, my peace I give to you. I do not give to you as the world gives. Do not let your hearts be troubled and do not be afraid." (John 14:27) Jesus prayed for his disciples to be protected from the evil one, sanctified by the word of truth, and sent out on a mission to the world. Jesus prayed for all future believers. Jesus prayed that we might be one as He is one with God. He prayed for unity in their common purpose and mission. Through these prayers, Jesus encourages us to connect with God for the things that we will need to make it through the challenges ahead. Jesus' prayer was telling his disciples then, and his disciples now, that we are not alone. What space are you making to pray for disciples now and future disciples?

Humility. Jesus celebrated his final Passover with his disciples. "Eat, drink in remembrance of me." Knowing that his time with his disciples will soon end, he displays his love to them. "Having loved his own who were in the world, he loved them to the end." (John 13:1) Jesus washes his disciples' feet, including Judas's feet! Through the washing of his disciple's feet, Jesus models how we should serve each other. "Now that I, your Lord and Teacher, have washed your feet, you also should wash one another's feet." (13-14) The heart of Jesus' command is humility and helpfulness toward our sisters and brothers in Christ. Whose feet do you need to wash?

Forgiveness. Jesus is denied. Jesus is betrayed. Jesus is sentenced to death by crucifixion. Jesus is mocked and scourged. Jesus is nailed to the cross. But instead of condemnation, Jesus asks God - "Forgive them, for they know what they do." (Luke 23:34). In his darkest moment, Jesus speaks of love and redemption. With his last dying breath, Jesus says the words, "it is finished." (John 19:30) Then from an unlikely bystander, a lament comes from a Roman centurion: "Truly this was the Son of God." (Matthew 27:54) Love in action. Love on the cross. Love in forgiveness. It is not always easy to forgive. How do you begin to forgive? Where do you need to forgive? Who do you need to forgive?

Hope. Whether the disciples understood it or not, Jesus initiated a new path forward for all who would follow Him. Jesus offers a hope that shines brighter than any darkness may encounter. Life is hard. But because of Jesus, there is always hope for the future. Yes, there is still fear, pain, and the pain of sin, but there is always a light breaking through. 

As Christians, we profess our salvation in a God who became one of us, lived and taught among us, suffered and died, and defeated death by his resurrection. Today, Christ in us is renewing the face of the earth. Holy Week is a time to remember who we are and be renewed in the certain hope of Jesus' resurrection. As followers of Jesus, "you are a chosen people, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, God's special possession, that you may declare the praises of him who called you out of darkness into his wonderful light." (1 Peter 2:9). 

Christ is Risen! He has Risen Indeed! 

Rejoicing in the Resurrection of Christ, 
Rev. Miriam Méndez
Executive Minister and Senior Regional Pastor