Lenten Devotion 2023

REFLECTION:

Jesus has gone from the cool waters of the Jordan to the dry lands of the wilderness. From large crowds to utter solitude.

From the voice of “This is my son, whom I love; with him I am well pleased,” to the whisper of the tempter.

The Spirit once rested like a dove, now driven into the wilderness.
Once cool waters of baptism to now the fire of temptation.

Hungry, thirsty, weak, vulnerable. A door opens, a way for a drink, a way to use the power that is in the presence and name of Jesus.

Jesus remains. He stays steadfast on the love of God, certain of the will of God, the plan that has gone before, the way that has already been made. We see Jesus encounter suffering, for my sake and yours, we learn a way in the midst of suffering. We learn a deep trust, a call to surrender, and to submit to “every word that comes from the mouth of God.” He can be trusted.

RESPOND:

1. What’s your posture in the midst of suffering?
2. How can you lead a life of prayerful submission to God?

PRAYER:

“Lord, grant that I may always allow myself to be guided by You,
always follow Your plans,
and perfectly accomplish Your Holy Will.
Grant that in all things, great and small,
today and all the days of my life,
I may do whatever You require of me.
Help me respond to the slightest prompting of Your Grace,
so that I may be Your trustworthy instrument for Your honor.
May Your Will be done in time and in eternity by me,
in me, and through me. Amen.”
St. Teresa of Avila

Sanctuary Lent 2023 Spotify Playlist

“Yet not as I will, but as You will”

RESPOND:

1. How does this image evoke the suffering of Jesus?
2. Rest in the comfort of the presence of our Suffering Servant.

Sanctuary Lent 2023 Spotify Playlist

REFLECT AND PRAY:
PSALM 57

¹ Have mercy on me, my God, have mercy on me,
for in you I take refuge.
I will take refuge in the shadow of your wings
until the disaster has passed.
² I cry out to God Most High,
to God, who vindicates me.
³ He sends from heaven and saves me,
rebuking those who hotly pursue me—
God sends forth his love and his faithfulness.
⁴ I am in the midst of lions;
I am forced to dwell among ravenous beasts—
men whose teeth are spears and arrows,
whose tongues are sharp swords.
⁵ Be exalted, O God, above the heavens;
let your glory be over all the earth.
⁶ They spread a net for my feet—
I was bowed down in distress.
They dug a pit in my path—
but they have fallen into it themselves.
⁷ My heart, O God, is steadfast,
my heart is steadfast;
I will sing and make music.
⁸ Awake, my soul!
Awake, harp and lyre!
I will awaken the dawn.
⁹ I will praise you, Lord, among the nations;
I will sing of you among the peoples.
¹⁰ For great is your love, reaching to the heavens;
your faithfulness reaches to the skies.
¹¹ Be exalted, O God, above the heavens;
let your glory be over all the earth.

Sanctuary Lent 2023 Spotify Playlist

SUFFERING:

³⁶ Then Jesus went with his disciples to a place called Gethsemane, and he said to them, “Sit here while I go over there and pray.” ³⁷ He took Peter and the two sons of Zebedee along with him, and he began to be sorrowful and troubled. ³⁸ Then he said to them, “My soul is overwhelmed with sorrow to the point of death. Stay here and keep watch with me.”

³⁹ Going a little farther, he fell with his face to the ground and prayed, “My Father, if it is possible, may this cup be taken from me. Yet not as I will, but as you will.” Matthew 26: 36-39.

REFLECTION:

As we walked from dinner, I was reminded of one of my first lessons as an apprentice. I was to become familiar with the story of the righteous man, Job. For it is in this story where I was to first become acquainted with suffering.

It has been said by the ancients that Job’s story was the first story to be transposed into the written word. Suffering is so universal, and thus, seeing God’s presence in the midst of suffering would be imperative to any child of God.

Our ancestors suffered greatly at the hands of Pharaoh. And then our neighbors, the Midianites, Edomites, the Philistines, and on and on.

We’ve suffered at the hands of each other.

Soon my lessons shifted toward the coming Messiah, the “Suffering Servant”, as my Teacher would call Him. We would read aloud the writings of the prophet Isaiah:

“Surely he took up our pain
and bore our suffering,
yet we considered him punished by God,
stricken by him, and afflicted.
But he was pierced for our transgressions,
he was crushed for our iniquities;
the punishment that brought us peace was on him,
and by his wounds we are healed.
We all, like sheep, have gone astray,
each of us has turned to our own way;
and the Lord has laid on him
the iniquity of us all.” Isaiah 53:4-6

I’ve been with Jesus of Nazareth for three years. I’ve seen Him provide for the multitudes, relieve the suffering of the sick, sit with the lonely, welcome the outcast, and give rest to the possessed. He’s healed so many of so much. He’s healed me.

But I’ve never seen Him like this.

He’s been tired for so long. After dinner tonight, even His eyes looked weary. His walk has slowed.

As we approach the Kidron Valley, He pauses and leans up against a tree, looking heavenward. He scans the skies, looking back above the Holy City. He sees nothing.

He rubs His face. A heavy sigh follows. He looks toward the Garden and waves us up the hill.

We walk through the gates in silence. He motions toward a few of us and we follow Him deeper into the Garden.

I want to help, to do something, anything. He looks heavenward again, searching the skies.

He finally speaks, “My soul is overwhelmed with sorrow to the point of death . . . stay here and pray.”

 As He moves further into the darkness, He stumbles and then collapses. His face now fully covered by His robe. Agonizing cries fill the mountainside. He lets out an excruciating wail.

I can’t sit still. I get up and move closer.

He pulls Himself to His knees and looks again into the heavens. Sweat seeps out of Him, a sweat so thick it is mixed with blood.

“Jesus,” I whisper. “Pray,” He mumbles.

He slowly falls again, now to His hands. His body begins to tremble. He wipes His face and then lies prostrate. Moments pass, minutes, an hour maybe, and I hear Him, “My Father, if it is possible, may this cup be taken from me. Yet not as I will, but as you will.”

 I watch Him and listen. Tears streaming down my face. Soon I am weeping uncontrollably. Where is God’s presence in the midst of this? All that He has faced. And all He is facing now . . .

I close my eyes as tightly as I can, praying David’s Shepherd Psalm over and over again.

RESPOND:

• 1. Where do you find yourself in the Garden?
  2. How might you partner with Jesus in inviting others to bring their cares to the Suffering Servant?

PRAYER:

I don’t want to know the depth of your suffering, Jesus.
I don’t want to know the weight you carried.
I don’t want to know the pain.

I know I couldn’t handle it.

I want to know.
I want to know you.

The God who carried it all.
The God who carried all of me, all of us, all of this.
The God who refuses to allow sin to prevail, who goes to any length, every length, to redeem, reconcile, and give rest.

Thank you for knowing me, just as I am, right where I am, and for your ever-present love.

I give you praise. I give you praise.

Sanctuary Lent 2023 Spotify Playlist