00:00:00 (five minutes to write) GO

Empty.

So often empty precedes want, need, heartache, sorrow, barrenness, vacant, futility.

A hungry child holds an empty plate.
The milk jug is empty. The flour canister is empty.
The cupboards are empty, bare. The gas tank is empty.
There are bills to pay but the account is empty.
Minds tire of empty words, pointless utterances.
Hearts are crushed by empty promises, hollow lies.
Empty faces, expressionless, without hope.
Empty eyes, blank and unseeing.
Sometimes life seems empty—meaningless, worthless, barren.
And such emptiness gives no reason to rejoice, to celebrate.

However . . .
On this Easter weekend, I think of an emptiness that I do celebrate — the emptiness of Jesus’ tomb!

On the first day of the week, He arose from the dead. The earth shook. The angels rolled back the stone. The guards fell to the ground as dead men. And Jesus walked out of the tomb. The women and disciples came and saw that it was empty.

Because Jesus left behind an empty tomb, my needs are met.
Because His tomb is empty, my heart is filled with love.
Because His tomb is empty, I am forgiven and can forgive.
Because His tomb is empty, I know truth that frees.
Because His tomb is empty, life is worth living.
Because His tomb is empty, death has been conquered.

There is much more …
Like because His tomb is empty, I can be emptied of self…
but my five minutes are up!

So, because Jesus’ tomb is EMPTY …
I rejoice! *

00:05:00  STOP

______________________

“It’s Empty” is about my Sunday School class retelling the Easter story with plastic eggs.

*Rejoice is my OLW for 2017.

______________________

I read Tara’s post on the word empty, and a “found poem” dance off the pages.

God’s Love

Betrayed, denied, stretched
On a cross, hands and feet nailed
Crown of thorns, blood dripping
Shed for all

Down from the cross
Wrapped, placed in a tomb
Stone rolled in front
Three days

God’s power
Life not death
Light not darkness
Have final word

Today, come to the tomb
Find it empty
Christ is risen
Promise of God’s love

I copied Tara’s words and marked the text to reveal the words of the poem as they were found. Thank you, Tara!

Thank you Kate Motaung for choosing empty
for this week’s one word prompt and for hosting the link up.

Read more about Five Minute Friday

* * * * *

I’m also linking up with Ruth Ayres

where bloggers share something
they are celebrating from this week.
Thank you Ruth for #Celebratelu.