Lenten Reflections: The Fifth Sunday of Lent

“And Jesus wept.”

“Jesus told her, ‘I am the resurrection and the life;
whoever believes in me, even if he dies, will live,
and everyone who lives and believes in me will never die.’ ”

A week away from Holy Week!  What have we learned from this year’s Lenten journey?  Has our trust in God been strengthened? Unlike those men and women who lived in time of Jesus and witnessed his signs and miracles, we are a people of faith.

In Hebrew, the name Lazarus means, “God is my help.”  During these final days of Lent, do we trust God to free us from the darkness?  Are we living in a tomb constructed out of anxiety, depression, loneliness or addiction? Do we believe that Jesus feels our pain? John’s Gospel says simply, “And Jesus wept.” Tears of grief shed for the death of a loved one.

Jesus commanded that the stone of Lazarus’ tomb be removed. Will we let Jesus open our tomb? Proclaiming, “whoever believes in me, even if he dies, will live”, Jesus raised Lazarus from the dead.  Do we believe in HIM that we too shall live and never die?