Friday: Day 39

Mark 15:34: At three o’clock Jesus cried out with a loud voice, “Eloi, Eloi, lema sabachthani?” which means, “My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?”



 It’s the “cry of dereliction.” It’s the cry of abandonment. Of utter aloneness. It’s the cry of Jesus from the cross, “My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?”



King David originally wrote those words in Psalm 22. David knew those feelings because he felt that God had abandoned him in all of the personal tragedies of his life. Job also experienced many personal tragedies; he lost his farms, animals, his children, and his wife. Both David and Job felt that God has forsaken and abandoned them.



Maybe you’ve felt those feelings, too. As a pastor, I’ve met with many people during an experience of the loss of a loved one, the loss of a marriage, or the loss of a job when they felt that God abandoned them. And I often say that feeling the pain and sadness, and feeling abandoned by God is “normal.” God created us to feel passionately about things. After all, Jesus felt abandoned by God.



 But when we feel like Jesus did, then we should do what Jesus did. Charles Spurgeon, one of the greatest preachers of all time, preached a sermon in 1872 where he said that in Jesus darkest hour, with darkness all around him and within him, Jesus still clung to God with both hands. “His left hand said, ‘My God.’ His right hand said, ‘My God.’…Jesus was clinging to God with the might of both his hands during the darkest hour of his life.”

 It’s easy to believe in God when life is bringing smiles your way. But it is much more difficult to believe in God when life frowns on you. Life can, at times, be terribly difficult. And at those deep and dark times of our lives, it’s important to remember that Jesus clung to God with the might of both of his hands. Both hands. Clinging to God.

  

We are invited to do the same. Because we know, in the end, Easter always trumps Good Friday.

 

Questions to Ponder

• Are there times in your life when you’ve felt abandoned by God? What was it like? What helped you through that time?
• Easter trumps Good Friday. Life triumphs over death. Good conquers evil. If those statements are true, why are they sometimes so difficult to believe?

Prayer for Today: Dear loving God; sometimes I feel so lost and alone. Sometimes I feel forsaken and abandoned. During those times, help me to cling to you with both hands. Help me grasp your promises with both hands, and with all my might. Help me remember that Easter trumps Good Friday, and that life triumphs over death. In Jesus’ name. Amen.

  

Sandi Patti:  She's still got it. 

Listen all the way through and be touched by her witness.