Jesus, what were You thinking?

Dear Jesus,

What were You thinking?  You came to this earth to be with us and save us from our sins.  You were already here!  Why did You have to leave us?  I know You have the power to wipe sin and Satan from the earth.  Some days I wish You would have just done it that way.  It seems like it would have been much simpler and then You would still be here with us.  Even this past weekend I was reading about how the disciples were left wondering if You truly were the Savior.  You allowed them to arrest You and then You died on the cross.  I can’t imagine what they must have thought after seeing You die and then having to wait a few days for You to rise out of the grave.  I know You must have told them many times that You had to die on earth.  And I have read about the many miracles they witnessed You perform, so they had to believe that You were their Savior.  Yet they still had to rely on their faith in You to get them through those few worrisome days after You were crucified.  Thankfully for me and my family we came to know You after Your resurrection.  It is probably easier for us to have waited in anticipation all weekend long to celebrate Your resurrection.  But come on man, isn’t there another way we could do this?

I fully believe You are the Son of God.  I fully believe You lived a sinless life and were crucified for me and my family and my friends.  I fully believe You conquered Satan, rose from the dead, and ascended into Heaven.  Thank You Jesus for all of that!  But seriously, what were You thinking?  Yes, You left us the Holy Spirit behind to guide us.  But, Lord, most days I would really like it if we could sit down face to face.  I have many questions about why things are they way there are here, and it would be much easier if You could answer them over a cup of coffee.  You do like coffee, don’t You?  I know we can keep in touch through prayer and the Bible helps me out a ton when I take the time to read it.  I just think some days it would be easier for me if I could see Your face.  And Jesus, if I’m being totally honest (I don’t know why I say that because You already know my heart), some days I could use a hug from You.  Some days I could use a shoulder to cry on.  Here on earth we have this crazy notion that men need to be strong and shouldn’t cry.  I am strong Lord but sometimes it is hard to be a son, husband, father, and man all on the same day without needing help along the way.  That’s why I say to You again “What were You thinking” in leaving us.

Jesus, I know it was hard for You to take on all our sins that day on the cross.  You sacrificed Yourself for me, my family, and every other person here on earth until the day You come back.  I hope I can be that brave someday if I am ever asked to lay down my life.  I must admit as well that as I look back on this letter, I’ve been a little selfish.  I keep saying You left us, but You didn’t.  Your physical body may not be here, but Your Spirit is.  You have always been here with us.  It would be easier for us to see You face to face.  We are humans and just need a face to see or a hand to hold sometimes.  But You are more than that!  You live in my heart all the time.  You live the hearts of those around me.  So really when I need a hand or a hug all I must do is find another one of Your children and get Your hug from them!  I see it now Lord!  You have told me this before but now I get it.  We were made in YOUR image.  You really are here!  You may not look they way I imagined but once again it’s not about me.  It’s about You and Your unending love for us.

Thank You for listening to me today!  You must get thousands of prayers each day and, even as selfish as I can be at times, You still stop and listen to me.  I still wish there was another way You could have done this whole conquering death and sin thing, but I trust You.  You said it had to be done that way.  You also said You’d be back someday for us.  I can’t wait for that day to come!  I’ll be back for more questions soon as You already know.  Until then, thanks again Jesus.  It was good talking with You!