Greetings dear friends,
I began my journal today in my sleepy early morning stupor and wrote, "It is God Friday." Only when I read back over it a few minutes later did I realize that I had meant to write, "It is Good Friday." However, I chose not to correct my mistake... if in fact it was a mistake at all. Sometimes God's nudges come in interesting ways, such as an "error" in what I was trying to write.
It is Friday of Holy Week. We call it Good Friday, but I kind of like the idea of calling it God Friday because even though we may feel forsaken, lost or abandoned, God is always... yes always... with us.
Both Jesus and Jonah may have felt forsaken as they spent three days and three nights in the belly of darkness. In fact, we have a record of Jonah's prayer in the "belly of the whale" where even though he felt that he would be separated from God forever, God was with him and heard his honest cries of distress.
On this "God Friday," I invite you to cry out honestly to God. Be assured that God hears your prayer and that your cries of lamentation will be transformed into a voice of thanksgiving.
Below you will find a paraphrase of Jonah's prayer in the "belly of the whale" based on my own cries of lamentation and voice of thanksgiving during this pandemic. I hope you will find it to be a meaningful companion as you continue to journey through the fullness of Holy Week toward Easter morning.
Be encouraged
,
Sharon
Sharon Seyfarth Garner
Director, Belly of the Whale Ministries
