Reaching Destination.

Good Friday feels like a stop sign, a period, a dead end. Literally. We often encourage worship planners and leaders not to jump ahead to Easter too fast, to sit in the narrative of Good Friday, to observe the period at the end of the sentence before going to the next one. We put ourselves in the mindset of the disciples who had no way of knowing what would come a few days later. We take in not just the facts of the story, but also the feelings; not just the events, but the experience. I wonder, though, what happens if we think of Good Friday more like a comma that pauses but does not stop the flow of God’s story. What if telling the story year after year teaches us to draw on the promise of Easter, so we have the courage to face the reality of Good Friday? Each time we encounter the story of Christ crucified, we add nuance and richness to our experience and understanding of the crucifixion, but also, I think, to the depths of our encounter with God’s steadfast and saving love.

So, as you plan for Good Friday worship, tell the story. Sing the story. Enter the story through confession. Above all, receive the pardon as a community that comes face-to-face with Jesus on the cross. It is the confession with the pardon that gives us hope that Good Friday is not the end of our journey. Remember, too, that it is not our job as worship planners to control how people experience Good Friday. We certainly want to make sure our words, songs, and actions align with our theology. As United Methodists, we draw on many images and understandings of atonement, all of which point to God, who desires to be in relationship with humanity. While some congregants may experience shame or guilt as they encounter the story of Good Friday, it is not our job to force shame or guilt on anyone. As worship planners, our role on Good Friday is to present the story and theology with consistency and care, trusting the Spirit to do the rest.

Dr. Lisa Hancock, Director of Worship Arts Ministries, served as an organist and music minister in United Methodist congregations in the legacy Northwest Texas and North Texas Annual Conferences, as well as the New Day Amani/Upendo house churches in Dallas. After receiving her Master of Sacred Music and Master of Theological Studies from Perkins School of Theology, Lisa earned her PhD in Religious Studies from Southern Methodist University, where she researched and wrote on the doctrine of Christ, disability, and atonement.