Friday, April 18, 2025 — Finished, But Not Forgotten
Week’s Theme (April 14–18, 2025): The Softness of Strength
They thought it was over—
because the sky went dark.
Because the earth shook.
Because the body hung limp.
But love doesn’t end with the last breath.
Love finishes…
and then waits to rise.
Words of Light
“When he had received the drink, Jesus said, ‘It is finished.’ With that, he bowed his head and gave up his spirit.”
—John 19:30 (NIV)
Reflection
“It is finished.”
Not defeated.
Not abandoned.
Not over.
Finished.
There is strength in knowing when the work has been done.
There is softness in surrendering the final breath.
And there is sacredness in every silent moment that follows.
Good Friday teaches us that endings don’t always look victorious.
Sometimes, they look like loss.
Like stillness.
Like silence so thick it feels like absence.
But even then—
God is working.
Even in the tomb,
the promise is alive.
You may be in a space where it looks like something is ending.
A relationship, a season, a dream.
But don’t let the stillness fool you.
The burial is not the end.
It’s the beginning of a different kind of bloom.
The softness of strength is knowing when to lay it down,
and trust that what’s been planted in love
will rise again.
What are you being asked to release or lay down right now?
How might “finishing” be an act of faith, not failure?
Affirmation
I embrace the softness of endings.
Even in the stillness, I trust that something sacred is unfolding.
With Trust,
Rita
Rita Lynn Berry, EdS, LCMHC
Therapist | Poet | Author | Creator of Journey to Me™
© 2025 Rita Lynn Berry. All rights reserved.