I‘m right here.”

And just like that, there he was. I don’t know how. There was only one door in, and it was still closed and locked, but Jesus was standing in front of us.

“Sorry, I’m late. I wanted to stop in Nazareth first and let my family know.

It was weird. He looked the same but different. The marks and swelling from the beatings were gone. It was as if they had never been there. The holes from the spikes were still in his wrists and ankles, but they were healed. There was no blood, raw flesh. Weird, right? It looked like you could stick your finger right through.

Jesus saw me looking at the holes, “I know, weird. Soon they will be gone as well. But for now, you know it’s really me. That should be enough even for you, Thomas.”

We had so many questions, the biggest one being “what now?”

For the most part, our lives returned to normal. We returned to our homes, but instead of spending our days and nights at work, we spent them as a group.

Apparently, we didn’t have to worry about the religious leaders. They still thought he was dead, so they didn’t consider us a threat.

However, Jesus told us it wouldn’t be safe for us to travel with him, that he had places to go and people to see, and it was best if he went by himself.

There were other disciples scattered around the towns and villages, both here and in Jerusalem, and Jesus needed to visit them to let them know that he was alive.

When he was with us, the theme was always the same. He would soon leave us to return to his Father, but he wouldn’t be leaving us alone.

The more he explained what he meant by us not being alone, the more confused I got. It was as if he was saying that he’d be here, but he wouldn’t be here.

“Don’t worry about it, Peter. When it happens, then it will make sense. In the end, it will be better to experience it than to have me explain it.”

I just shook my head, “But why do you have to go?

“As long as I’m here, I’m limited by this,” He waved his hands over his body, “If I’m here with you, I can’t be anywhere else. I can’t be with John down the road or with James and Jude in Nazareth. But when the Spirit comes, he will be with all of you, wherever you are.”

“But when? You keep telling us we have to wait, but how long do we have to wait?”