Lent Journey - 2016Sample

HOLY SATURDAY DAILY THOUGHT: LAMENT It is not easy for us to grasp the anguish of Jesus’ followers and family the day after his crucifixion. Holy Saturday must have been for them a day of painful lament. Lament is the prayer-language of those who bring their suffering to God. Lament cries out to God, asks God difficult questions and protests against the unjust suffering around us. However, lament is never an end in itself. Because our faith is in the living God, we lament always in the knowledge that God hears our cries and will act with goodness and mercy. We know this because we have read the Psalms, learnt the history of the people of God and listened to the God-forsaken cry of the Crucified One who now lives beyond crucifixion. DAILY PRACTICE: Pray the daily prayer request. Learn today for yourself the prayer-language of lament. Read today two Psalms of lament: Psalms 38 and 88. Notice the raw language, the integrity of the Psalmist and how praise and lament often come together in the same Psalm. Find one or two lines from either of these Psalms, sentences that put into words how you sometimes feel in moments of anguish and grief, and speak these lines to God. You may want to follow this up by sharing with God the particular pain you are carrying in your heart right now.