¶ Welcome to Solace
Thank you for watching . Welcome to this week's episode of Solace , soul Plus Grief . I'm Candee Lucas . We're glad you're here .
The death of a loved one is a very difficult life transition and we hope we can answer some of your questions , help you find where God is moving in your life as you continue your grief journey , and remind you of the power of your faith and love for God . You're always welcome in our circle of healing , love and care . As
¶ Lenten Prayer for the Broken
we enter the Lenten season , I am reminded that as we contemplate this period of Jesus' life in the desert , it calls to mind the desolation of our grief . It calls to mind the desolation of our grief , and so I offer this prayer Jesus , we are broken , so many of us , just broken by life .
We seemed we thought we knew what was best , what would make our life okay . Invariably it didn't . We reached out to each other but were met with fear and indifference that was practically institutional in scope . Why ? Why , jesus ? We need you Every day and every night . We so need you . We need your arms around us 24-7 . We need you that much .
We cannot take a step without you , a breath without you . Hold us up . We need you to do that for us While you are holding us up . Who is holding you ? Who ? We followed you into the desert because you asked us to what we saw and witnessed there . We cannot say now we went for burnishment there . We cannot say now we went for burnishment .
We came back with the retinas of our eyes burned out and shadowed into their reverse colors and shapes , blinded to the love and the need around us . And how equal they are two sides of one coin that you cannot see through but is invisible . That is how your love is solid , so solid .
Yet when I hold it in my hand it disappears like a dandelion angel in a very pale breeze . Love us , we need you too . Amen .
¶ Grief During the Lenten Season
The experience of grief during Lent can be a profound one . The church itself is on a 40-day retreat , as it were , examining its conscience , its choices , its relationship with God . It is a retreat along with our daily lives , and I should find it all that much harder to grieve during this period , but we should remember that it is during this period .
But we should remember that it is during this period that Jesus contemplates his place on earth , his mission , his goals , his own dreams and the realization that his life on earth is limited . He is probably experiencing what Buddhists call the bardo , which is an in-between place , something between life and death , something between now and then , something between hope
¶ The Bardo: Between Life and Death
and desperation . He comes face to face with his aloneness , the solitary path that he must walk . Experiences the love of his fathers for him , yet knows the path will be a difficult one .
¶ Ecclesiastes: God's Constant Love
Ecclesiastes reminds us of the constancy of God's love . One generation goes , another comes , but the earth remains the same forever . The sun rises , the sun sets and glides back to where it rises , southward blowing , turning northward , ever turning , blows the wind On its rounds . The wind returns .
All streams flow into the sea , yet the sea is never full To the place from which they flow . The streams flow back again . No man can ever state them . The eye never has enough of seeing , nor the ear enough of hearing . Only that shall happen , which has happened , only that occur , which has occurred . There is nothing new beneath the sun .
So , while we may feel far removed from God's love , it is there , if we stop , if we are still , if we listen with our heart , if we breathe with him . So , as you accompany Jesus into the desert , strive to be his constant companion , as he strives to be your constant companion . Let your grief wash over the two of you .
¶ Companions in the Desert Journey
Let him help you carry that burden as you help him carry his . Revere the mutuality of this journey , and may you come out the other side burnished .
¶ Episode Closing and Contact Information
That concludes another episode of Solace . A new one drops every Friday . Please subscribe to us on Apple Podcasts , Spotify or Amazon . I'm Candee Lucas , your host , chaplain and spiritual director . Please contact us If you have questions or seek spiritual direction . Our contact information is in the show notes . Be gentle with yourselves . Travel with God . Vaya con Dios .