If you’ve ever had to say goodbye to someone, you treasure the last words spoken. You remember what was said. You hold on to those final words. For Lent in 2021, we are focusing on the last words of Jesus from the cross. What did he say? What does it mean for us? How do those words change us? Today we focus on the word “trust.” Jesus called from the cross, “Father, into your hands I commit my spirit” (Lk. 23:46). What does it mean to trust someone? Why do we often hold back? How do we know God’s hands are trustworthy?
Invitation Prayer
O Lord, your scars are your trophies, proof of your unfailing love for me. You have earned my trust. I come to you in faith. I cease my worry and mistrust. I set aside all fears and faltering. I place my life into your hands. Receive me. Amen.
Confession
It is hard to trust someone with the most vulnerable parts of our lives. We hesitate to share our secrets, sins, and shame. David gives us a model to follow. He said in Psalm 31:14, “But in you I trust, O LORD; I say, ‘You are my God.’” We can trust the One who sees our sin and still stays. So we approach God in faith: Father, I confess all my sins and failings to you. I am haunted by the guilt of my past, the sins of my present, and my fear of the future. Forgive me, God. I trust you. Amen.
Word
“When I am afraid, I put my trust in you.” (Ps. 56:3)
Meditation
Fear is never a good advisor. Still, we are often guided by our monstrous anxieties. We fear financial injury, loneliness, rejection, sickness, job loss, death, public speaking, and the list goes on . . . Our decisions are too often reactions to fear.
Psalm 56 points us in a different direction. It acknowledges the reality of fear – “When I am afraid . . .” Don’t deny its pull. There are real things that can really damage us. But instead of submitting to fear’s power, our gaze is lifted higher. “I put my trust in you.”
There is a refrain throughout the Bible: “fear not.” John wrote, “Perfect love casts out fear” (I John 4:18). The love of God defies all fear and the cross of Christ is our banner. Therefore, we put our trust in him. What are you most afraid of right now? Name your fears, and then cast them on the Lord.
O God, take this list of fears and overrule them. Speak in the face of my anxiety, “FEAR NOT!” Amen.
Sending Prayer
Into your hands, O Lord. We place our fears and failures.
Into your hands, O Lord. We place our present and future.
Into your hands, O Lord. We commit our bodies, souls, and all we have. In the name of the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. Amen.
*Today’s devotion is taken from It Is Finished by Jeff Cloeter, published by CTA – Christ to All at ctainc.com