March 16, 2026

We weren’t going to bed anytime soon.

I glanced at the clock on the wall, which said 1:30 AM. The church sanctuary was absolutely packed, and no one around me seemed to share my desire for a good night’s sleep. When I’d agreed to come on this trip to Argentina, I was aware that many people here tended to stay up late, but I hadn’t realized how common it was for the Christian conference meetings to go on into the early hours of the morning. We’d just wrapped up an hour and a half of fervent prayer and worship and now a man was climbing on the stage with a big smile on his face, and he was welcoming a visiting Pastor as the next speaker. I stifled a yawn and wished for some more of the wonderful espresso I’d tried that afternoon with my host family. Nevertheless, I knew that looking back I would cherish these moments spent seeking God with my new friends.

The visiting Pastor rose and walked to the stage, a note-stuffed Bible cradled under his arm. He was a tall, big-boned man with an aggressive way of gesturing to punctuate his words. He faced the audience, and then boomed out in Spanish: “Turn to John 16.”

He read the passages out loud as the audience read along, and his voice grew in volume and excitement as he progressed through the chapter. The atmosphere in the room grew more and more electric, and when he got to the passage about the Holy Spirit people shouted “amen” and clapped their hands. The Pastor paused, and then got to verse 16:

“Jesus went on to say, ‘In a little while you will see me no more, and then after a little while you will see me.’”

He looked out over the room and repeated “In a little while you will see me no more…”

And the crowd, who apparently knew this passage by heart, responded “And then after a little while you will see me!”

The Pastor’s eyes shone as he contemplated those words foreshadowing Jesus’ resurrection. “Sorrow turning to joy, death into life! What could be more extraordinary! Our God is amazing!” he cried. Once more, he repeated “In a little while you will see me no more-”. As he spoke, he raised his arms to the heavens, jumped up with excitement, and after a moment in midair — crash! His tall frame fell back to earth and disappeared through the flimsy wooden stage, as though he’d been swallowed by the floor!

For a moment afterwards, there was an unearthly silence where everyone sat frozen in place, with nothing but the rustling of the paper programs to be heard. A deacon in the back corner was the first to leap to his feet like a runner hearing the starting gun, and he ran to the stage, crying “The baptismal, the baptismal!” That had the effect of waking the rest of the congregation to action, and we all rushed to the stage together. I was one of the first to reach the stage, and all at once I saw what the deacon was talking about: apparently, this portable stage was built of flimsy wooden planks, which had been weakening after many years of being dragged out in all weathers for events. A hole in the wooden stage with splintered edges was left where the Pastor had stood, and through the hole in the stage, we saw a large baptismal was hidden, out of which the dripping wet but miraculously unhurt Pastor was now crawling. Dozens of people reached out their hands to him, jostling each other and probably doing more to prevent the Pastor climbing out of the hole than helping him.

The Pastor eventually got out and stood on the stage. His clothes were dripping and torn, his hair was  plastered against his forehead in the front and sticking up in the back. For a moment, he looked over the congregation with wild eyes, trying to catch his breath. No one knew quite what to say. All of a sudden, he threw out his arms and cried: “And now you see me again!”

It was about twenty minutes before we were able to recommence the service, because most of the congregation couldn’t stop laughing and the now smiling Pastor had to go and change his clothes. Nevertheless, I’ll always remember that night as a very encouraging time.

Something that memory reminds me of is the miracle of the resurrection. For three days, the disciples had no visible reason to hope: Jesus, their leader, their friend, and the symbol of all they had hoped and prayed for, was dead and buried. They had dedicated years of their lives to following Jesus, and many had made great sacrifices to do so. And what good was there to show for it? Nothing that they could see. Life must have seemed very bleak to them in those days.

But three days later…

Jesus came back, and not only did he rise again, he rose victoriously! Through the pain and through the hopelessness of that time, God was moving. Sin and death were defeated, and the world would never be the same!

If you’re in a time of your life where you can’t see anything visible to pin your hope on, take courage! Even when we cannot see it, God is doing greater things than we could ever imagine, and even if we think that He isn’t near, God is always with us. Today, let’s put our faith and trust in God for all things!