All of us have been there, or will be there someday – where Mary and Martha are in the story of the death of Lazarus. Having prayed as hard as we can for the recovery of someone we love, we find ourselves grieving their loss, wondering what we will do without them. Or we will find ourselves wondering where Jesus is, trying to comfort a sorrowing family member or friend, wondering what in the world we could possibly do or say to take away some of the pain this loss is causing them, to make their sorrow somehow easier to bear. This is a common human experience, one we have all had to face many times. And so it was inevitable that, sooner or later, Jesus would face it also. What would he do? Would his method of handling the situation be any different than yours or mine?

The raising of Lazaru…