All of us face difficult seasons. They are a part of life. Yet, when they come, they can come so unexpectedly and with such fierceness that they can leave us feeling disoriented and in a state of hopelessness, not knowing which way is up. Have you been there? Maybe you are in one of those storms right now.

This is what happened with the disciples on what we now call Good Friday. Before this life-changing event that altered history took place, the disciples and many followers of Christ felt that Jesus had come to rule with power and authority and take control from the oppressive Roman government. It was an exciting time in the history of God’s people. Many sick and oppressed were being healed and restored by God’s miraculous, divine power working through this chosen vessel Jesus Christ. And Jesus spoke with such authority and wisdom, too. People held on to every word He said. The prophets of old even spoke about Him. It was a glorious time. But…then “Good Friday” happened. A better word the disciples would have used would have been “Disastrous Friday.” Jesus was met by a mob in the Garden of Gethsemanes and marched away. He was beaten, mocked, ridiculed and then crucified!

I could only have imagined Jesus’ followers thinking to themselves, What happened to Jesus taking over the Romans? He was a King, wasn’t He? The disciples disserted Jesus and scattered. Everything they thought was going to happen came crashing down on that epic day. Their Messiah had just been killed. He was no more. For three days they hid in an upper room confused, disillusioned, defeated and scared. Everything they had invested in, gave their lives up for was all of a sudden gone. All gone.
Have you been there? I have.

In the 2008/ 2009 economy collapse, I lost everything, literally everything – my job, my house, my car and all my belongings. And then I had to declare bankruptcy. I had always been good with managing my money, but this situation was the perfect storm so to speak. Now I had all these labels placed on me. It was embarrassing and confusing to say the least. In addition, I had critics. I had a good friend of mine call me up during this season and say, “You must be in sin or doing something wrong. Why would all this stuff befall you?” When it rains, it pours.
Maybe you’ve had a failed marriage, a moral failure, a business collapse, a loved one pass away, a devastating sickness or a nagging doubt about the goodness of God because life just doesn’t seem fair. The disciples were there too. It was “Disastrous Friday” and there was no end in sight. Hopeless and helpless they remained hidden in a dark fog and a cloud of depression. Yet that wasn’t the end of the story! The resurrection was coming!

According to Matthew’s gospel account, Mary Magdalene and Mary, Jesus’ mother, went to visit the tomb early Sunday morning. All of a sudden, an angel of the Lord appeared to them.

Matthew 28:5-10 NLT
“Then the angel spoke to the women. “Don’t be afraid!” he said. “I know you are looking for Jesus, who was crucified. He isn’t here! He is risen from the dead, just as he said would happen. Come, see where his body was lying. And now, go quickly and tell his disciples that he has risen from the dead, and he is going ahead of you to Galilee. You will see him there. Remember what I have told you.”
The women ran quickly from the tomb. They were very frightened but also filled with great joy, and they rushed to give the disciples the angel’s message. And as they went, Jesus met them and greeted them. And they ran to him, grasped his feet, and worshiped him. Then Jesus said to them, ’Don’t be afraid! Go tell my brothers to leave for Galilee, and they will see me there.’”

The women were terrified and filled with an unexplainable joy and excitement. They ran to tell the disciples what had happened. In the hours and days to follow, Jesus appeared to disciples as well. Jesus began to explain to them through the Holy Scriptures that He had to die at the expense of the religious leaders and governing authorities. They finally understood that Christ came to die for the sins of the world. He took the penalty of sin upon Himself, so that whoever would place their faith and trust in Him would live forever with God in Heaven. It was no longer “Disastrous Friday.” It was now “Good Friday.” The resurrection changed everything. It caused their hopelessness to turn to great joy. They went from being scaredy-cats to courageous apostles filled with the Holy Spirit. They now were filled with power and a deep conviction that Christ was alive and God loves people! They would go on to transform the world through this simple message of the gospel.

What happened? Their perspective changed as they saw and experienced God’s goodness and His faithfulness. They realized that God was in complete control the whole time. Nothing was hidden from Him. The mistreatment of Jesus wasn’t hidden from God. It was planned! The betrayal of Judas wasn’t an oversight by God. It was planned. Everything was being played out by God’s divine guidance and orchestration. Everything.
The same was true for me too. What I thought was a life-ending situation ended up being one of the best things that ever happened to me. I had to search for a new career, yes. But, I discovered through the pressure of the situation that I had giftings inside of me I didn’t know I possessed. I had a hidden talent to write. This situation forced me to look for a new career path. I began writing for a Christian newspaper company and through this opportunity came across the work of Destiny Rescue, an international Christian-based nonprofit organization that is dedicated to rescuing and restoring children enslaved in sexual slavery. Long story short. I was so moved by what they were doing that I went on a trip overseas to visit their work. At that exact moment, they were looking for a writer with my skill set. I stepped out in faith and began writing for them. Looking back, my financial collapse actually taught me empathy and compassion for struggling families that were having to make difficult decisions to send their children out looking for work to help their familys’ survive. Instead of having a critical judgmental attitude toward impoverished families, I now had an understanding heart because I had felt the pain of financial duress. This was a necessary trial God allowed me to walk through to prepare me for my divine destiny. Today, I’m a voice for millions of children trapped in sexual slavery around the world who are at-risk because of poverty. My resurrection came to pass.

And the same is true in your life. God is not absent from your present set of circumstances. He is ever present with you in your mess. He is watching carefully over your life and is with you. You might be in your Disastrous Friday at the moment, but hold on. Your resurrection is coming! God will turn your sorrows into great joy. He will use this trial to strengthen you and mature you as He did with His disciples and followers and as He has done with me. Don’t give up; your resurrection is coming. People may have given up on you and cast you aside saying, “Your best days are behind you.” Maybe your business has seen better days, or worse, it’s a complete failure. Hold on. Your resurrection is coming. It may look different than you had anticipated or expected. That’s what happened with the disciples. They thought Jesus was coming to establish an earthly kingdom. They were wrong. God was establishing an eternal kingdom that would last forever. Don’t get discouraged and quit on God because life looks differently than you had expected. God has a good plan. Now is the time to trust Him. His ways are higher than our ways. He sees the big picture. Nothing is too hard for Him. If you will continue to trust God despite the facts on the ground and what the experts are saying, God will bring to pass every dream He has promised you. Trust Him to do it His way. Your resurrection is coming.