Day 40 of Lent: April 19, 2025

Ashes to Alleluia – Holy Saturday Devotion

Scripture: Matthew 27:57–66; John 19:38–42

“So they went and made the tomb secure by sealing the stone and setting a guard.” – Matthew 27:66

Devotion:

Holy Saturday is the day no one talks about. The noise of Good Friday has faded. The cries of “Crucify him!” have been silenced. The weeping of the women, the shouts of the soldiers, and even Jesus’ final words—“It is finished”—are now memories echoing in the stillness. Saturday is quiet. Too quiet.

It is the day of waiting.

It is the day after death but before resurrection. The day when hope feels buried and darkness seems to have won. Jesus lies in a borrowed tomb. The stone is sealed. The guards stand watch. And all the world holds its breath.

For the disciples, it must have felt like defeat. They didn’t know Easter was coming. All they saw was loss. All they felt was fear. All they heard was silence.

Holy Saturday reminds us that sometimes God is quiet—but not absent. In the silence of the tomb, the work of redemption was still unfolding. Even when no one could see it, God was making a way where there seemed to be none.

Walter Brueggemann once reflected that “the silence of God is not the absence of God. It is the deep pause before new creation.” Like the pause between Good Friday and Easter morning, there are seasons in our lives where we sit in grief, confusion, or despair. But these are the ashes from which Alleluia will rise.

Jesus’ body lay lifeless, yes—but the promise had not died. The seed had been buried, but the harvest was on the way.

So we wait.

Not as people without hope, but as people who know the story is not over.

Prayer:

God of the in-between,

We sit in the silence of this day, aching for resurrection, yearning for hope.

When we cannot see the way forward, when it feels like all is lost,

Remind us that your love never ceases, even in the grave.

Give us courage to trust in your promises and to wait with holy expectation.

Prepare our hearts, Lord—for morning is coming, and with it, new life.

Amen.