Sunrise Service

Yesterday, I was chatting with the birthday girl and she asked me, “are they doing anything special for you guys tomorrow?” I had no idea what she was talking about. She said, “Dad, for EASTER….are they doing anything special for you for Easter?” I’m so ashamed. I had no clue.

Here, we seldom know what day it is. The week starts on Saturday and ends on Friday. And, we don’t have the normal markers like weekends. There are no weekends, no hump days. So, I’m sailing along with no clue that it was Saturday, the day after Good Friday, and the day before Easter. And, because this is an Islamic country, there’s nothing plastered on walls to remind us. No Easter Bunny, eggs or flowers. And I lost track. And, I knew my guys had lost track too, because none of them had mentioned it.

So, this morning, we headed north at 5:30 am for PT (physical training) with our students. After PT, I asked them all to meet me in our little office on the second floor of the HQ building. When we all assembled, I read to them the Gospel of Luke, chapter 24, verses 1-6. This was very hard for me because I know these guys know me. They know I ain’t no Chaplain. “Gentlemen, this is the good news: He is not here, but is risen. In this land that is as empty of Jesus as Joseph’s tomb, our hope is a risen Saviour.”

We took some time to reflect. We prayed, and we went to work. But for just a few precious minutes this morning, it was Easter. Jesus was very close to us because we sought Him here, among the dead.

awe