It was on Friday when:

. Jesus prayed in Gethsemane.

. Was betrayed by Judas.

. Jewish officials conspired to arrest Jesus under the cover of
darkness.

. He was abandoned by his disciples.

. He was denied by Peter.

. When he was mocked beaten, stripped of his clothing, and crucified.

. He was buried in a borrowed tomb.

If one were to stop there, he could conclude defeat. But Friday wasn’t the end of the story. Sunday came. And on Sunday.

. Jesus rose from the dead.

. Appeared to his disciples.

. There was great joy.

But that was Sunday. I can understand the great joy the disciples must have felt. Utter amazement to be standing in his presence once again. What could possibly stop them?

But now, here’s my question. What did those disciples do when they woke up on Monday? The answer is they pursued the kingdom agenda with reckless abandon. They sold their possessions, the spoke of Jesus in the marketplace, and they willingly laid down their lives for him.

Friends, we live in “Monday.” Friday and Sunday have come and gone, and here we are in Monday. Will we allow the events of “Friday” and “Sunday” to shape our “Monday?” Will we with the same reckless abandon serve the Lord
at any cost? The hope the resurrection gives us today is the same hope it gave those early disciples, so should we not live our “Monday” with the same excitement and jubilance as did they? Give it some thought.

Steve Higginbotham