A Prayer for Good Friday

Lord of love,

This is not a good day. It is a terrible day. A violent day. A tragic day.

You came to seek and save and serve, and we betrayed you, we convicted you, and we made you a cross.

But on this day, you showed the full extent of your love for us. A love that abounds far beyond our guilt and shame. A love that breaks the curse of sin and death. A love that shows us the way to the Father. A love that loved us to the very end. A love that conquers all.

But before we rush ahead, let us be willing to linger here a while longer under the intersecting shadows. Let us feel the cries of the mockers resonate in our throats, the impact of each hammer blow in our palms, the futile resistance of your flesh against the spear’s tip. We need to remember what happened, we need to place ourselves there.

We are like children, caught in the act of wrongdoing, frozen, only beginning to comprehend the weight of what we’ve done. Teach us what it means to be truly sorry. As we are stricken by the horror of your death, let our muscles be freed from the paralysis of fear, so that as we remember your death, we can follow you in life. Let us be wholeheartedly willing to pray the words of the hymnwriter:

May I be willing, Lord, to bear
Daily my cross for thee,
Even thy cup of grief to share-
Thou hast borne all for me.

Holy One, you could have avoided the pain and agony, but you willingly took on the ultimate experience of human suffering. With one breath, you cried out in pain and lament. With another, your forgave your assailants. In the silence, let us hear your final cry, “It is finished.” Let it echo across time and space, and into our lives this very day.

It is finished.

For those who are trapped in Friday’s darkness: hear the good news:
It is finished!

For those crumbling beneath the weight of sin and guilt:
It is finished!

For those struggling to break free from addiction:
It is finished!

For those grieving loss:
It is finished!

For those who are in the perpetual night of mental illness, anxiety, and depression:
It is finished!

For those of us who live in apathy:
It is finished!

For those who suffer want:
It is finished!

For those that are abused and neglected:
It is finished!

For those who mourn broken relationships:
It is finished!

For those haunted by the past:
It is finished!

For those who are persecuted by evil regimes :
It is finished!

And though our sins and sicknesses and pains and guilt and injustices may persist for now, their end has been secured. Love has won.

Yes, it is finished, and because it’s finished, this is a good day.

It is finished. And yet, it’s only just begun.

It’s only Friday…

These things we pray in the name of the crucified, Jesus the Christ, who taught us to pray:

Our Father, who art in heaven,
hallowed be thy name.
Thy kingdom come,
thy will be done on earth as it is in heaven.
Give us this day our daily bread.
And forgive us our trespasses,
as we forgive those who trespass against us.
And lead us not into temptation,
but deliver us from evil.
For thine is the kingdom, and the power, and the glory,
forever. Amen.

Photo:
Flickr, Rob Deutscher, creative commons 2.0