Good Friday

What good?

Good Friday

A Poem

Good Friday

Good? What good?
The pain?
The sorrow and grief?
The blood and death?

Good? What good?
A love so great,
Completely devalued,
Reviled,
And brutally despised.

Good? What good?
Blood flowing,
Blood sprinkling,
The Worthy—silent,
Spotless Lamb,
Slain.

Good? What good?
A crushed seed,
The perfect guilt offering,
Accomplishing the ultimate
Sacrifice.

Good? What good?
The Righteous Servant
Carried our iniquities
On His body
To set us free.

Good! Oh, blessed good!
The willing Substitute
Bore our sin on our behalf—
Unmerited grace.

Because He is good!
So good!
We are made alive in Him.
Oh, Good!
Blessed Good!

-Daisy Fuentes Dronen

A Prayer

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‘And Jesus answered them, “The hour has come for the Son of Man to be glorified. Truly, truly, I say to you, unless a grain of wheat falls into the earth and dies, it remains alone; but if it dies, it bears much fruit. Whoever loves his life loses it, and whoever hates his life in this world will keep it for eternal life. ‘

John 12:23-25

'Jesús les respondió diciendo: Ha llegado la hora para que el Hijo del Hombre sea glorificado. De cierto, de cierto os digo, que si el grano de trigo no cae en la tierra y muere, queda solo; pero si muere, lleva mucho fruto. El que ama su vida, la perderá; y el que aborrece su vida en este mundo, para vida eterna la guardará. Si alguno me sirve, sígame; y donde yo estuviere, allí también estará mi servidor. Si alguno me sirviere, mi Padre le honrará. '

S. Juan 12:23-26

In the Gospel of Matthew, he describes Good Friday from morning until sundown. Jesus suffers every hour, carrying the sin of us all until death. It reminds me of the verses in Isaiah 53:3–5:

“He was despised and rejected by men, a man of sorrows and acquainted with grief; and as one from whom men hide their faces, he was despised, and we esteemed him not. Surely he has borne our griefs and carried our sorrows; yet we esteemed him stricken, smitten by God, and afflicted. But he was pierced for our transgressions; he was crushed for our iniquities; upon him was the chastisement that brought us peace, and with his wounds we are healed.”

Every suffering He endures is impregnated with hope; everything He suffers is with a purpose—to provide a way back to Him. This Holy Friday, as we read about these events, we are transported and invited to enter into His suffering with Jesus. We lament the injustice and every torture inflicted on the One who was sinless, yet we also give thanks for His blood poured out—through which we are redeemed. He gave His life for the sake of ours.

Jesus, thank You for Your sacrifice, because through it I can have salvation—and even more, I can be Your friend. A disciple whose life will bear much fruit.

La descripción del Viernes Santo en el libro de San Mateo nos lleva desde la mañana hasta la puesta del sol. Jesús ha sufrido cada hora, cargando el pecado de todos nosotros. Me recuerda los versos de Isaías 53:3-5:

“Será despreciado y desechado por la humanidad entera. Será el hombre más sufrido, el más experimentado en el sufrimiento. ¡Y nosotros no le daremos la cara! ¡Será menospreciado! ¡No lo apreciaremos! Con todo, él llevará sobre sí nuestros males, y sufrirá nuestros dolores, mientras nosotros creeremos que Dios lo ha azotado, lo ha herido y humillado. Pero él será herido por nuestros pecados; ¡molido por nuestras rebeliones! Sobre él vendrá el castigo de nuestra paz, y por su llaga seremos sanados.”

¡Cuánta esperanza aún impregna cada minuto de este sufrimiento! Todo lo que Él padece tiene el propósito de proveer un camino para llegar a Él. Este Viernes Santo, al leer el relato, nos transportamos y sufrimos con Jesús; lamentamos su dolor, pero también damos gracias, porque por su sangre somos redimidos.

Jesús, gracias por tu sacrificio. Porque por tu gracia y misericordia puedo tener salvación, y aún más, puedo ser tu amigo.

Breath Prayer:

Breath prayer is prayer that is like the breathing of our soul. As we practice breath prayer we inhale and exhale the Spirit of God with one phrase to pray.

Now we offer up our hearts in prayer:

Inhale: Jesus, perfect Seed,

Exhale: your death sets me free

Oración de Respiración

La oración de respiración es una oración que se convierte en la respiración de nuestra alma. En ella, inhalamos y exhalamos el Espíritu de Dios usando una frase para orar.

Inhala: Cordero perfecto

Exhala: Gracias por tu sangre que redime

He has drawn near and we are never the same again.

Gracefully,

Daisy