SIMPLE: Returning to the Essence of Easterਨਮੂਨਾ

When We Encounter Jesus

“He is not here; He has risen, just as He said!” (Matthew 28:6)

I remember the moment that marked my life. Years ago, when my daughter Geizi was born, after months of waiting and the uncertainty caused by my wife’s delicate health during pregnancy, we were worried. But finally, seeing my baby changed everything. Joy flooded my heart. But I also felt something strange—that what I had longed for was now reality. I was a father. Everything had changed, practically in an instant, with this life-filled moment.

An even more powerful experience occurred for the women in this story. They had served alongside Jesus during His ministry. In the final stages of His life, they heard Him say He would die and rise again, and they had placed all their hope in Him as the one who would establish the kingdom. But with His death, all hope seemed lost. They came only to honor His body and observe tradition.

They were in a somber place, where hope seemed to have been uprooted. But in that extraordinary moment, everything changed—hope came alive. Their minds and hearts may not have fully comprehended what was happening because it was so unique. The Master had risen, the tomb was empty, and with that news, hope began to awaken again.

When we encounter Jesus amid our despair, worries, and uncertainties, everything changes dramatically. Everything revives. Hope is reborn. What Jesus said will be fulfilled for His glory, and we have the blessing of experiencing His power and being His witnesses. When we find Jesus, we find the meaning of our lives, because we discover His mission—to be messengers of hope and good news.

Perhaps due to recent life events, many of your dreams and plans have vanished. But when we draw near to the Giver of Life—the One who makes even the dead live—everything can change. Yet God wants you to go beyond material desires; He wants to meet with you to give you a true hope—a hope of eternal life.

Written by Eudilio Guardia (M.Div. Class of 2021)