"My God, My God Why Have You Forsaken Me?"

"My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?"
Bearing the weight of his scourged Body with only nails in his hands and feet to hold him up, our sins were pressing down upon him. Each breath he took and each word he spoke was another offering of love - giving himself completely to his beloved as the simple act of breathing became more and more painful. As our sins bore down upon him, he cried out in utter abandonment, "My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?"

The feeling of being forsaken can often bring a deep ache. Having a desire to be accepted and loved is a core desire of the human heart. The heart needs love like the lungs need air. But while the wound of feeling forsaken is painful, God is faithful and promises healing to the brokenhearted. When we completely abandon ourselves to the love and mercy of God, 'forsaken' does not have the last word. 

The words Jesus spoke on the cross, though they were a cry of feeling forsaken, were also a cry of hope. Psalm 22 begins, "My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?" and goes on to describe the affliction of the psalmist. But the majority of Psalm 22 are words of trust, praise, prayer, hope and victory. "For he has not despised or abhorred the affliction of the afflicted; and he has not hid his face from him, but has heard, when he cried to him." - Psalm 22: 24

Do not allow yourself to get bogged down in despair!  God has great things in store for you! Abandon yourself to his love!  Trust him - he will bring resurrection!  You are so completely loved by Love itself!  Always remember: you are loved. You are loved. "...and hope does not disappoint us, because God's love has been poured into our hearts through the Holy Spirit who has been given to us." - Romans 5:5

"...I have seen enough evidence to be unshakably convinced that no difficulty, no fear is so great that it can completely suffocate the hope that springs eternal in the hearts of the young...Do not let that hope die! Stake your lives on it!  We are not the sum of our weaknesses and failures; we are the sum of the Father's love for us and our real capacity to become the image of his Son." - Pope John Paul the Great

Holy Spirit, pour over me that, like Jesus, I may totally abandon myself to the love of the Father. May I not despair when I feel forsaken but trust that you will fill me with your unfailing love and hope.