Mañana de Pascua (Easter Morning) by Caspar David Friedrich c. 1828-1835
Caspar David Friedrich often sought communion with nature as a means of expressing his feelings, ideas, hopes and yearnings, much like many of us do today. I was struck by his painting as I stood before it in Madrid, Spain, at the Museo Nacional Thyssen-Bornemisza.
This painting is permeated with a rich religious symbolism that seeks to carry his message to the viewer. Everything in it has meaning: the moon and the dawn are symbolic of death and the hope of eternal life, and the season chosen—late winter giving way to early spring—is linked to the Resurrection.
It is Easter morning. The women in the picture are walking slowly to the tomb. They don’t know that Jesus is alive. They are focused on death, but as they go, they walk under trees where new leaves have begun burst from their buds.
Soon these same women will run the other way. “He is alive!” will be heard for the first time, now repeated billions of times over the centuries since that day. New life springs eternal, as it did for these women, as it did for Casper David Friedrich, and as it does for us today, this day after Easter morning.
The congregation in Antioch was blessed with a number of prophet-preachers and teachers: Barnabas, Simon, nicknamed Niger, Lucius the Cyrenian, Manaen, an advisor to the ruler Herod, Saul. One day as they were worshiping God—they were also fasting as they waited for guidance—the Holy Spirit spoke: “Take Barnabas and Saul and commission them for the work I have called them to do.” So they commissioned them. In that circle of intensity and obedience, of fasting and praying, they laid hands on their heads and sent them off (Acts 13:1-3, The Message).
The Holy Spirit is integral to the work of missions. More to the point, the Holy Spirit is integral to any successful work of missions. We see from Acts 1:8 that the Holy Spirit brings power. In Acts 2, the Holy Spirit in-dwelt the believers in dramatic fashion and launched a new missionary age.
The Holy Spirit is the source of power for those who go; power abundant and never ending. This is an incredible promise. Let this soak in for a minute. God the Father, God the Son, God the Holy Spirit. Three in one. God dwells in you and God goes with you. Afraid of what might lie ahead? That’s natural. But the all-powerful God dwells in you as you go. Intimidated by the people you meet? God, who knit each of those people together in their mother’s womb, who knows every hair on their head, greets them with you. Worried about visiting a land where nobody appears to follow Jesus? Remember that the “earth is the Lord’s and all it contains” (Psalm 24:1). The rightful owner, the Master, the King of all lands and countries and seas and presidents and emirs and dictators and kings and queens is traveling with you. Of course, none of these places are new to the Lord. He’s been there all along. People have just lost him along the way, and you’re there to help them rediscover him.
Through every bit of this discovery process the Holy Spirit is involved. When you ask someone to become a disciple of Jesus, you are asking them to change their entire reason for living. This decision will change their life, their family, their future. One decision changes everything. We cannot change a person in this way. But the Holy Spirit can and the Holy Spirit does all the time. As we go, our success does not depend on us, but on our reliance on the person and work of the Holy Spirit.
Have you every experienced the Holy Spirit clearly at work in your life? Take a minute and pray and ask God to fill you with his Holy Spirit.
Are you willing to follow wherever the Holy Spirit leads? Will you trust your fears and your future to the care of the Holy Spirt? As you pray, continue to pray for the courage to follow wherever the Lord may lead.
After this the Lord appointed seventy-two others and sent them on ahead of him, two by two, into every town and place where he himself was about to go. And he said to them, “The harvest is plentiful, but the laborers are few. Therefore pray earnestly to the Lord of the harvest to send out laborers into his harvest (Luke 10:1-2, English Standard Version).
Jesus sent out his followers in pairs to prepare the way for his teaching and healing tour. Then he gave this interesting directive, to ask the Lord of the harvest for more workers. Jesus told them, and tells us, to pray to God for more missionaries. Why? Because people are ready to respond! Today there are plenty of people ready to follow Jesus. The lack is not money, or expertise or messaging; it’s people willing to go.
Most of the world is open to missions, maybe not every single place, but open it is. We have technology to help us get there, we have the ability to share our message, and while we often lack funding, that’s still not the primary issue. The main obstacle is that there remains a need for laborers for the harvest, just like when Jesus shared this request with his disciples so long ago.
Pray for committed men and women who will carry the gospel to the ends of the earth. As you pray, consider the radical idea that you might just be the answer to your own prayer. Maybe you’re the one missing from the labor pool. Is Jesus calling you to work in His harvest field?
As you ponder this proposition, pray for courage to follow wherever the Lord may lead.
I’ve been thinking a lot lately about the importance of the Scriptures in our lives as followers of Jesus. The world we live in does not lead to stability in any form. Cultural changes assault us daily. Those who mock and denigrate the Christian faith do so from a variety of public platforms. Scandals among those who claim to represent Christ, like the Catholic priests sex debacle, only lend credence to those voices claiming that our faith is repressive and harmful. However, we know that the world has it all wrong, that there is great value and hope in the Christian faith. How did we become unmoored?
I’m not sure how to cure the ills of our culture, but I do know that as a follower of Jesus, there is one place where I go to find solid ground, truth and hope. That’s the Bible. Without a firm foundation, how do we stand against any force that opposes us? I try to open my Bible daily, to read something, even a couple of verses. Because, what else do I have in life to counter the often oppressive nature of the world in which we live?
Eat This Book, by Eugene Peterson, pushes us to remember that the scriptures are the primary text for Christian spirituality. We set aside the holy scriptures and replace them with our experience or the world’s seeming knowledge at our peril. God speaks to us through the Bible, and Peterson teaches us to read this Bible in ways that help us better hear what God is trying to tell us.
This is a book to be read a bit at a time. Like all the other books I’ve read by Eugene Peterson (he translated The Message, if you’re wondering why his name is familiar), it takes time to roll through his thoughts. But it’s worth it. I recommend this book to anyone interested in getting more out of your Bible and learning to go deeper in your faith journey.
Join me in reading the Bible cover to cover in 2026. If you spend 30 minutes a day on social media, you can read through the Bible in a year. Download the 5 Day Bible Reading Plan, grab your Bible and join in. You’ll be glad you spent this year with the men and women of Scripture.
Seers, Sayers, Schemers & Saints
Stories to encourage you with the leadership experiences of overlooked men and women of the Bible. Their lives will inform your story, and move you to step out and lead.
GO: Following Jesus to the Ends of the Earth
This book contains reflections on the Lordship of Christ, the Great Commission, and a life of adventure and eternal significance. Read this book and you won't be able to sit still!
