LISTEN TO COME AND SEE! CHAPTER 25 – THE SABBATH AND THE STONE
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Welcome to this special Easter edition of Redeeming the Chaos with Laurie Christine!
A FAMILY DEVOTIONAL FOR EASTER
For 30 days leading up to Easter, I will be reading to you from my easter devotional book, Come and See! 30 Family Bible Stories for Easter.
Today, I am reading Come and See! Chapter 25 – THE SABBATH AND THE STONE.
Come and See! invites families of elementary-aged children to experience firsthand the anticipation, the sorrow, the tragedy, the fear, and the ultimate triumph of Jesus’ death and resurrection.
Through the eyes of six eye witnesses, you will be led on a journey through the busyness of the streets of Jerusalem, to the despair of Golgotha, and finally to the celebration of the empty grave.
This bookincludes 30 short devotional stories, each with accompanying Scripture references and questions for discussion and imagination.
We are going to be reading one story each day leading up to Easter. You’re welcome to grab the kids and listen together for your family Bible time. Or, if you would rather read to your kids on your own, you can DOWNLOAD A FREE COPY OF THE ENTIRE EBOOK HERE.
LISTEN TO COME AND SEE! CHAPTER 25 – THE SABBATH AND THE STONE
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READ COME AND SEE! CHAPTER 25 – THE SABBATH AND THE STONE
THE SABBATH AND THE STONE – Told by Mary Magdalene, a follower of Jesus
My eagerness to arrive at the tomb was suddenly dampened. What if we can’t get in? What if we can’t anoint Jesus’ body? What if I can’t say goodbye?
MARY MAGDALENE, FOLLOWER OF JESUS
We had left Joseph and Nicodemus late Friday afternoon and headed back into the city. We were hoping to purchase spices before the market closed at sundown. Unfortunately, by the time we reached the city, the daylight was gone and the Sabbath had already begun. There was no way we could purchase the spices now. No one is permitted to purchase anything or to do any work on the Sabbath. Jesus’ anointing would have to wait.
I anxiously paced around the house throughout the day on Saturday, finding it difficult to actually sit and rest. Had Joseph and Nicodemus placed Jesus’ body in the tomb? Had the body been wrapped properly? Had they even used any burial spices at all? My grief and sadness, coupled with the anxiety I was now feeling, made me want to curl up on my sleeping mat and cry for a month. Or two. Maybe even a year.
Finally, the Sabbath ended on Saturday evening. The other Mary and I, along with a few of the other women, went out to the marketplace to purchase the oils and spices. That night, I hardly slept at all.
Bright and early Sunday morning, I was awake before the sun had even risen. My friends and I, including the other Mary, Salome, and Joanna, collected our spices and set off for the tomb that Joseph had shown us. The cold morning air was damp and full of anticipation, as if it sensed our eagerness to anoint Jesus’ body and say our final farewells. As we walked along in the dim, predawn light, one of the other women wondered what we would do about the stone.
“What stone?” I asked.
“You know, the stone,” Joanna replied. “The huge boulder that is always rolled in front of the entrance of Jewish tombs to protect the dead body from wild animals or grave robbers.”
My heart sank. A giant boulder in front of the tomb? I had forgotten all about the stone. My pace slowed, and I lagged behind the group. My eagerness to arrive at the tomb was suddenly dampened. What if we can’t get in? What if we can’t anoint Jesus’ body? What if I can’t say goodbye? A sob caught in my throat, and I stumbled in the early morning darkness, my foot catching on a root that stuck up from the dirt road.
“Mary, are you okay?” Salome had turned just in time to see me lose my balance and land face first in a cloud of dust. Ugh. That was the last thing I needed today.
“Yeah, I’m fine,” I lied as I stood up, brushing the dirt off my face and dress. “Just a little worried about the stone, that’s all.”
As it turned out, there was no need for us to worry.
WANT TO GO DEEPER?
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