Where Do You Find Jesus?

For me one of the most compelling characters of the Easter story is Mary Magdalene.  I have always been drawn to the Easter morning story which recounts her discovery that Jesus’ body is missing. 

Even though there are not a lot of details that tell us what she is thinking or feeling as she searches the empty tomb and runs off to tell the disciples, “They have taken the Lord from the tomb, and we don’t know where they put him,” I can imagine her fear and her heartbreak.   Jesus, to whom she has been dedicated and in whom she has come to believe, was killed and now she does not even have his body to honor. 

Then there is that great turn around, the surprises of all surprises, the wonder that never ends:  Jesus appears to Mary and calls her name.  Can you imagine?  The rush of emotions, the confusion of thought and the joy of her heart must have been overwhelming.  What enlightenment must have overcome her as she came to comprehend that her discredited Lord no longer lay in shame!  He had been proved true by God who had raised him from the dead. With his lifeless body in the tomb, confusing doubts had come. But now, everything he had said and taught burst into new meaning.

As people who live on this side of the story we continue to search for the Risen Lord.  We know Jesus is alive, active, and among us.   Because we love him and want to be part of the victory, we search and search for Him.  We want to see glimpses of his glory to assure us that the story is still true and that our belief is not in vain.

Like Mary, who finds Jesus when she thinks she is speaking to the gardener, we have to recognize Jesus in places, people, and situations that might surprise us.  I think that is the great gift of being a person of faith; someone who is in a relationship with Jesus.  He comes to us in many and varied ways – ways that are special and personal to us.  In fact, just the other day I found Jesus in a Twins win in New York!   Who would have thought!

And so I ask you….WHERE DO YOU FIND JESUS?

Sister Lisa Maurer Sister Lisa Maurer was born and raised in Sleepy Eye, Minnesota. Before entering the Monastery, Sister Lisa taught and coached in Catholic Schools within the New Ulm Diocese.  Sister Lisa made her first Monastic Profession in August 2009.  Her first ministry was working at the parishes of St. Lawrence and St. Joseph in Duluth.  Currently she is the Mission Integration Manager of the Benedictine Health System.        See all of Sister Lisa’s posts.

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