The Lenten season arrives before spring, just as old man winter begins his few remaining sweeps over the frigid landscape. Many of us enter this season with a heightened sense of our own internal barrenness. We pursue prayer and fasting as we prepare our hearts for the spiritual renewal that will unfold on Good Friday and Easter Sunday.
Once again, we are made to wait.
We do well to remember the story of Lazarus, who died while his sisters, Mary and Martha, wondered why Jesus had waited until it was too late to heal him. It is not until we hear Jesus’ words to Martha—“I am the resurrection and the life”—that we get an inkling of Jesus’ purpose for their waiting. Lazarus would live again, but it was necessary that he die for Jesus to demonstrate his power over life and death.
Is this not the hope we embrace as we enter the Easter season?
This is my hope for you as you immerse yourself in these timely devotionals—that even if you end another day feeling numb to the lingering effects of winter, you may remember that waiting through the night is the only way to experience the ever-approaching dawn. And not just any dawn. A past and future dawn that will make every dark night worth enduring for the hope that will be revealed in the face of Jesus Christ.
Ronnie Martin is Director of Leader Care & Renewal for Harbor Network, and Pastor-In-Residence at Redeemer Community Church in Bloomington, IN. He has written several books, including In the Morning You Hear My Voice (B&H, 2025), and co-hosts The Heart of Pastoring podcast with Jared C. Wilson.
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