What's so good about Good Friday?

This morning when I woke up my 1st thought was, "Today is a sad day" when I realized that this is the day that Jesus died. My 1st thoughts were about his suffering. The hours of torture that he went through. How he was beat nearly to death by vicious and hateful roman soldiers, which makes me ill just thinking of it. His feelings of abandonment. He was an innocent man with a kind heart, a man filled with compassion who went about doing good, loving people who didn't deserve it, healing people, taking care of people, and preaching good news. For that, he was killed.
And even today, millions of people hear this news and reject him--even openly mock him, tell jokes about him, and make fun of Christians.
What is so good about all that?
Romans 5:6-8
“You see, at just the right time, when we were still powerless, Christ died for the ungodly. Very rarely will anyone die for a righteous man, though for a good man someone might possibly dare to die. But God demonstrates his own love for us in this: While we were still sinners, Christ died for us.”
This is what's good, I think.
Jesus did this for me. For you.
Jesus went through Friday knowing he had a purpose: to save us. Knowing that taking the punishment for us was the only way to free those he loved. He had a plan. It was a tough one. A very big price to pay: his life. But it was the only way. And he loved us so much that he was willing to do it. Do you know anyone else that would love you so much that he would be willing to pay such a price? I have a hard time some days being nice to people I LIKE. Can you imagine dying for people that DESPISE you? Dying for people that are the very ones beating you? Man, that's love. That's goodness. Jesus also knew that if he could just get through Friday, Sunday was coming.
Good Friday is always a quiet, contemplative day for me. This year moreso than others. I am in our Good Friday play at church. Hopefully it will be a big blessing to everyone who comes. Good Friday always seems like a dark day. A day of suffering, painfulness. Has your life every felt like it was made up of a bunch of Good Fridays? Mine has. But even in the darkness, there is still goodness there. Because God has a plan, just like Jesus did. And Sunday is coming.