Begin to Hope

Today I read about the wonderful resurrection of Christ in Mark 16. The chapter opens with Mary and Mary visiting Christ's tomb, only to find the entrance unblocked and angel in the place of the body they came to see. Seeing their shock and fear, the angel tells them both,

"Be not affrighted [DO NOT GIVE IN TO FEAR!]: Ye seek Jesus of Nazareth, which was crucified: he is risen; he is not here" 

This experience is incredible. Of course those women were afraid. They had been through the most traumatic experience of their lives. Three days earlier, one of their dearest loved ones, Jesus Christ, had been brutally and unjustly tried and murdered. They had every right to be afraid at the sight of his missing body, afraid that someone had taken it, with no idea what to expect next.  They had no way of knowing the beautiful miracle they were about to witness: the resurrection of Christ. The angel lets them know that he is alive and that they are to see him again. And even though they are afraid, they willingly believe the words of the angel and run to tell Christ's disciples the amazing news of his life.
But even though the disciples are told of Christ's return by Mary, an eyewitness, as well as the two others who spoke with Christ, they would not believe he was back:

"And they, when they had heard that he was alive, and had been seen of [Mary], believed not. After that he appeared in another form unto two of them...And they went and told it unto the residue: neither believed they them. Afterward he appeared unto the eleven as they sat at meat, and upbraided them with their unbelief and hardness of heart, because they believed not them which had seen him after he was risen."

Why did they refuse to believe he was back? Why was it easier for some of the people he came in contact with to believe in his return, while others refused to accept he lived again? I think a lot of it goes back to fear. Imagine the intense pain, loss, grief, and anger they must have felt at having just watching Christ be murdered. Think of how painful it was for them to see one of his own disciples betray him to the pharisees, while another denied him, and the rest were helpless to prevent his death. 
They may have felt that if they chose to believe Christ was back, only to find out they were wrong, they would never recover. They were afraid to hope.

There will be times where we too experience the worst of the worst. The men and women closest to Christ must have felt the most painful of heartache, anger, confusion, and loss when he died. But what enabled those few to believe that Christ was risen? Why did they choose to have hope?
From what I saw, they didn't let the pain of the past overshadow the joy of today. The women who saw the angel were promised that "he is risen; he is not here." They allowed themselves to believe that this promise was true. That although they had seen Christ die, it was possible through God that he was alive. How did they come to that belief? They'd seen him raise Lazarus from the dead, not to mention countless other miracles during the course of his ministry. 

Remember to allow past miracles room in your heart when things seem hopeless and dark. Remember the importance of choosing faith and hope over fear (check out Moroni 7:40-41, one of my favorites). 

I love you so much!
Emily