Holy Saturday, the day that Jesus was in the tomb after being crucified on Good Friday, was devastating for Christ's followers who might have lost hope and held doubt before the resurrection.
Between COVID-19 disrupting and destroying lives around the globe, Breonna Taylor and George Floyd's murders causing a racial reckoning and upheaval throughout the country, and the political environment being as polarizing as it is today, 2020 and going on into 2021 has been a devastating period of time for most people.
During this Lent season, we want to lean into that feeling of loss and pain in an attempt to turn it to hope and promise for the now and future, by inviting you to write declarations. Declaring ways you have been harmed from this past year and ways you have harmed others, and declaring hopes that you are holding onto, and dreams for renewal for the future.
While submissions will be kept confidential, please be mindful that this is a community space and submissions will be vetted before posting.
I lament the changes in my friendships as a result of COVID restrictions. Though, I am holding onto the memories of adventures I experienced with my friends.
I confess that I have not loved my neighbor (all my neighbors) well enough. I have not loved my homosexual neighbors well enough. I have not loved my BIPOC neighbors well enough. I have not loved my unhoused neighbors well enough. I have not loved by white (dominant culture) neighbors well enough. I have not loved by conservative/christian neighbors well enough. I have not loved my neighbors of other faiths well enough. I have not loved my unconfessing (non-faith or agnostic or atheist) neighbors well enough. I have not loved my neighbor as myself. I have not loved them with Your Love. I repent Lord! Fill me with Your power to love my neighbors the way You do! I am weak, but You are strong. All praise and glory be to the Name above all names Jesus! You are good and Your mercies endure FOREVER.
I lament the ways that I am holding onto a lot of things right now, and I can't much solution right now. I am holding onto the confidence in knowing that God is with me always and that He is with me even in this season
I created a challenging, new, uncomfortable season in my life. And while I think it will ultimately help me grow more into who I am meant to be, it is so painful now. It is consuming and distracting, making it unbearably hard to focus or accomplish even small tasks. Compounded with the state of the world, this season just feels like too much at times and I hurt someone else in the midst of all of it. I'm grateful for a God who is big enough to hold everything with me and who allows me to feel and process all of the complexities of life.
I lament that i have not always or frequently lived into the truth that God has for me. i have hidden away from the harsh reality that is the world to protect myself, while also leaving others alone out there. I lament that i have not loved my neighbor as well as i can. I lament that i have held balled fists for too long, holding onto anxiety and an illusion of control in my life rather than giving it to LOVE, the One God. God, our Liberator, freeing us from and refreshing us in our daily journey. I trust that i can trust in God, and so, with hope, i slowly extend my fingers and release what is not mine.