Good Friday

"But this is your hour—when darkness reigns."
Luke 22:53

Forgive me
For every sin I added on that day
For every weight my error brought
Forgive me

You did not turn from duty
You did not shrink from pain
You bravely set in motion
The day the world would change.

You gave your life as ransom
You paid the final debt
You bore the Hero's burden
Even until death.

Consider this
O' Earth, as the sun puts out its light
Until the morning dawns
Consider this.

Holy Week- Wednesday

"Be careful, or your hearts will be weighed down with the dissipation, drunkenness, and the anxieties of life, and that day will close on you unexpectedly like a trap. For it will come upon all those who live on the face of the whole earth. Be always on the watch, and pray that you may be able to escape all that is about to happen, and that you may be able to stand before the Son of Man."
Luke 21:34-36

Today seems so real
The things that are
And the things that are not
So weighty.

And yet a day is coming with more weight
Then any since this Holy week, we remember
When all our lists, our errands, and our work
Will come to a screeching halt.

And we will stand wide-eyed
Before an ever dawning
New Day.

Father, please guard and guide us in your care
And may we be able to stand before the One
Who stood for us so many years ago.

Photo by Kristen

Holy Week- Tuesday

"He is not the God of the dead, but of the living, for to him all are alive."  
Luke 20:38

A seeming contradiction
The senses do not find
When phone numbers are silenced
And yet, He calls alive.

We do not clearly see that age
That He makes us worthy of
But let us hope with confidence
He will see us safely home.

For time is not His master
Death bows to His will
And if He calls them living
Then living they are still.

Photo by Francesco Gallarotti on Unsplash

A Prayer for Paris

The sun rises today, as it has for so many years.  There is beauty in the morning, beauty in the breeze, but heartbreak in the world.

Will you join me in praying for Paris?

Father,

We don't understand what causes humans to choose the path displayed in horror last night.   Their goal, their thought process.  But we are saddened by the consequences of their choice.
We ask that you be close to those that are mourning, those who didn't know they had hugged loved ones, sent texts, commented on FB posts, for the last time.
Please be with the survivors, those in pain, those in the hospitals, those struggling to process what happened around them.
Please be with the doctors, the nurses, the nurse techs, the environmental service members, the hospital administration who are caring for the victims.  Give them wisdom and kindness, patience and skill.
And please be with France's president Francois Holland and his team as they wrestle with their response to these terrible attacks.  May they choose the right reaction, and may their allies hear your guidance as they seek to support a friend in need.

Thank-you for providing us rescue from this world through Jesus.  Thank-you that we have eternal hope far beyond anything darkness could ever touch.

Amen