Only God can turn darkness to light. Only God can take a cross meant for death and turn it into a symbol of hope.
I have never seen the Cathedral of Notre Dame. I probably never will. My travels have never taken me to Europe. The cost of raising four children restricts placing money into my travel fund. But I am a lover of history. I am a lover of symbols. I am a lover of beauty. I am a lover of majestic structures that withstand war and revolution in the midst of a broken city in a broken world.
I don’t believe in coincidences. For whatever reason this fire was ignited, God will use it. It’s the reason he gave us the Holy Spirit when he took his Son back to heaven. He started a Holy fire in Jesus followers and believers for generations to come. In some, that fire has been extinguished. Life does that sometimes, dampens out what we once held close to our hearts.
There is always a glimmer, a dim spark within each of us that can be re-ignited into something greater. In my own life, I have felt like the remains of an ancient structure engulfed by flames. I have also seen the glowing cross of God before me, lighting my way. If the fire at Notre Dame had occurred in daylight, the cross would not have stood out, not worthy of a photograph. In darkness the cross glows brighter.
This Easter week, our Holy of Holy weeks, we reflect on a time where darkness overtook the land in the middle of the day, yet the cross glowed for all to see. A cross, not of destruction, but of hope. In the midst of pain and brokenness, we have a cross of hope. Just as the people of France promise to rebuild their sacred church, I pray we can all reflect on the hope of the cross and rebuild our lives within its glow.
Leah Lively 