Honesty

This coming Sunday we'll read Psalm 22 with its famous lament of abandonment, the ones echoed by Jesus from the cross.  "My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?" reflect a depth of despair and forlornness that is hard to comprehend, especially when coming from Jesus, who according to our Christian story knew God better than any other person in history.  What are we to do with such a cry?  Are we to surrender to the fear that if Jesus, Son of God, could feel that he was alone, then there is no hope for us?  That is one possibility.  But another path beckons.  The cry of the psalmist, and Jesus' appropriate of his words, speak to us about honesty as the basis for our relationship with God.  It is when things are dark, challenging, when we are frustrated, confused, angry, that we should not, cannot hold back in opening ourselves to God.  It is in precisely such moments that we need to let God know what is truly going on with us for in doing so we enable ourselves to experience God more fully, more powerfully, more surprisingly.  So in moments of distress and despair, be open, be honest with God.  He wants this because he loves us - so much he was willing to engage and defeat death for us.

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