The Rhythm of Life — Holy Week Invites You to Experience it All

“And the rhythm of life is a powerful beat,

Puts a tingle in your fingers and a tingle in your feet, Rhythm in your bedroom, rhythm in the street, Yes, the rhythm of life is a powerful beat.” from the musical Sweet Charity

I remember singing these lyrics in a small ensemble group in junior high school. It's high energy and peppy. Despite its upbeat nature, it can be a way to think about the invitation to Holy Week. To experience the fullness of our journey to Easter means inviting all the highs and lows, the varied emotions from, "Hosanna," to "Crucify Him." We need to pay attention to the rhythms of our lives. Holy Week asks us to slow down and fully experience the rhythm from death to life.

What are the rhythms of your life? Do you go to the grocery store on the same day each week? Do you park in the same spot? Do you have a rhythm of exercise and leisure? How do you mark the days of the week?

I hope your rhythm of life includes worship. Our community life is more than just worshipping together, but it is the rhythm of life that is underneath all our encounters with one another in other locales. No place is this more obvious to me than in our Holy Week liturgies. Consenting to walk the full journey of Holy Week — from Palm Sunday, Maundy Thursday, Good Friday, Holy Saturday, and finally to the fire of the Easter Vigil where we proclaim the joy of our Risen Lord — is to say yes to the many places we encounter on our earthly pilgrimage. Life includes moments of deep joy alongside deep sorrow. Moments of community and understanding and moments of isolation and loneliness. Times of transition when we see the cross in our rearview mirror, and yet the dawn of morning is yet to lighten our spirits.

To fully claim our hope as Christians, found in the resurrection, means we must be present to it all. We have to honor the powerful beat of human life. Our Alleluias are all the sweeter when we take the time to realize that even our deepest sorrows are also embraced within that Easter proclamation of joy. If you've not taken the time and space to fully enter this week, imagine how you might say yes this year. Maybe it's just adding one extra service.

Join us as we walk this holy path!

Peace, Beth +