A Resurrection of a Different Kind
Dear Jeremy, Tate, and Katelyn-
You were young bystanders to your dad’s recovery efforts from a head-on collision that left him with a traumatic brain injury and in a coma for months. Emerging from his coma was painstakingly slow. He gradually became aware of his multiple physical losses including paralysis in all his limbs and his mental state - short-term memory loss, diminished processing skills, and inability to control his emotions. This realization left him in deep despair for months. Later, anger and frustration reared their ugly heads. Why would they not? But, after two years of rehab an amazing thing happened. His signature sense of humor and gratitude reappeared, along with a peace and acceptance of his condition. It was a remarkable resurrection.
-Mom
Inside Out Lectionary Letters
Year A - 2nd Sunday of Easter (Texts, Art, Hymns)
Readings for Sunday, April 12, 2026
Acts 2:14a, 22-32 / Psalm 16 / 1 Peter 1:3-9 / John 20:19-31
Summary of Psalm 16
Psalms 16 is traditionally attributed to King David and is called a Miktam or a “golden” prayer. Perhaps it’s special because it speaks to all of us and our human condition. David is a victorious and popular king but also a man who had his share of suffering. He’s proclaiming to us that despite the hardships in the world that we all encounter there is a place of refuge and safety to be found. Not on the outside, but on the inside as we turn to the Divine that is welcoming all of us. David is foreshadowing a coming Messiah who will overcome the worst the world has to throw at us.
Scripture as a Mirror of the Soul
We live in a time when we have 24 hour access to the horrors taking place in our world - whether in the Middle East or Minneapolis. It may seem naive or even foolish to think we can find a refuge from all that surrounds us. It’s obvious we need protection from things outside ourselves, but what about things within? Our fears, our worries, our depth of sadness, our sense of unworthiness, our resentments, our anger. These enemies of our souls have been our companions since childhood. Some we battle on a daily, hourly basis. Others only occasionally when something or someone launches an assault.
Where do we turn when these inner attacks occur? Do we look outward for our help? Do we get busy with accomplishment? Or distract ourselves with entertainment? These impulses offer temporary relief but in the end may only “multiply our sorrows.” Or, do we seek shelter in the loving Presence that invites us in to take refuge? That invites us to sit, be still, and experience our own new life.
Julian of Norwich was an English mystic in the 1300’s. She is known for her famous line,
“All shall be well, and all shall be well, and all manner of things shall be well.”
To us, that may sound like a fairy tale and we’d be fools to believe. But like David, Julian wasn’t saying this through rose-colored glasses - she lived through serious illnesses, years of the plague, and economic hardships. That’s why her ideas still resonate: she’s not denying suffering—she’s saying it doesn’t have the final word. Even when life feels chaotic or painful, everything is ultimately held within a greater goodness.
An illuminated object lesson unfolded right in front of me as I watched my late husband Steve with his injured brain and body find peace and live out “all is well” from the inside out. Very little changed for him on the outside. What physical and mental progress he made was slow, painful, and incomplete. Yet everything changed on the inside. Like David, I saw in Steve a person whose heart became glad, a soul at peace, and a body that rested secure in the love of God. If it could be true for him, I have to believe it can be true for us.