Lent: Day 39 (Good Friday)

Scripture: Mark 15

"And they crucified him, and divided his clothes among them, casting lots to decide what each should take. It was nine o'clock in the morning when they crucified him. The inscription of the charge against him read, 'The King of the Jews.' . . ."

Hymn: "Go to Dark Gethsemane," UMH 290
James Montgomery, 1820, 1825, alt.

". . . Calvary's mournful mountain climb;
There, adoring at his feet,
Mark that miracle of time,
God's own sacrifice complete.
'It is finished!' hear him cry;
Learn of Jesus Christ to die. . . ."

Prayer:

"Crucify him!" Oh, dying Jesus, the screams echo in my ears. My Lord, my Savior, my Teacher, the very Son of God, you do not deserve this--yet no one else can do what you do here before my grieving eyes.

It is for me, it is for us all, that you die alone and in pain. There is nothing I can do to ease your anguish. You do it all.

I think I could die of this sorrow, Lord. Yet I will live, and witness, and watch for the sign of your promises. For I know this cannot, will not, must not be the end.

Lent: Day 31

Scripture: Mark 5:21-43

". . . 'Daughter, you faith has made you well; go in peace, and be healed of your disease.' . . . 'Do not fear, only believe.' . . . And immediately the girl got up and began to walk about . . ."

Hymn: "When Jesus the Healer Passed through Galilee," UMH 263
Peter D. Smith, 1979

". . . The death of his daughter caused Jairus to weep;
'Heal us, heal us today!'
The Lord took her hand, and he raised her from sleep.
'Heal us, Lord Jesus!'"

Prayer:

Great Physician, I need your healing. Though the ailments of my body are annoying and irritating, my soul needs your healing far more than my body does. I fear there is wasting in places, and deadly growth in others. It is malnourished, unclean, and unhealthy.

Touch me, healing Lord. Give me the faith of Jairus and the desperate woman; let me look only to you, placing my faith entirely in your life-restoring hands.

Lent: Day 7

Scripture: Mark 12:28 - 34

". . . The second [commandment] is this, 'You shall love your neighbor as yourself.' There is no greater commandment than these."

Hymn: "Lord God, Your Love Has Called Us Here," UMH 579
Brian Wren, 1973

"Lord God, your love has called us here,
As we, by love, for love were made,
Your living likeness still we bear,
Though marred, dishonored, disobeyed;
We come, with all our heart and mind,
Your call to hear, your love to find. . . ."

Prayer:

Lord Jesus, your love amazes me. In loving neighbor as yourself, you bore our sins to the cross, and put them to death as you died. You, God-with-us, called me your neighbor! How then can I presume to love myself and despise my neighbor?

This commandment, Lord, cannot be kept with words. Though I may sai I love God, I have lied if I do not then love my neighbor sacrificially. I cannot love my neighbor with cheap words. You paid a high price to love me.

Bless me, dear Jesus, with your Spirit's gifts when I spend myself in love for my fellow human beings. When I do not do that, Lord, bless me with a heart full of sorrow for loving neither God nor neighbor.