Thought for the week
MARY’S LAMENT
At the foot of a cross,
In the place of a skull,
She stared down,
Searching for strength to look up once more,
Into those gentle, pain ridden eyes At that broken body racked by silent cries.
What more could she give Him after all this time?
He’d shared every chapter, written every line Since that meeting with the angel so many years ago,
She’d never quite understood Him, Never been in control.
She’d watched Him as He’d grown up, Struggling to know Himself
Until that day in the Temple when at last she knew so well
That His other Father’s business outweighed all her cares
And that one day He would leave behind the family life they shared
When from Nazareth He’d shook the dust, Pursued by taunts and cries of
“He’s only Joseph’s lad!”
Deep down, she’d known, they lied She’d wondered at his rejection, Pushed down all her fears
But now only three years later,
Again she’d heard those jeers
Surely the Angel had told her
He was God’s only Son
Yet she couldn’t understand
While on that cross He hung.
As a mother, her spirit reached up to him Longing to give Him peace,
But her secret kept safe inside her
Pressed her to her knees
At that moment the gulf grew wider
As for Jesus it was nearly done
“John behold your mother, woman behold your son.”
Feeling hurt, she finally glanced up Wondering at what she might see
And His love poured down supporting her
As He hung there on that tree.
The clouds grew dark, the thunder rolled
And she groped for an answer, why? She’d been chosen as the mother
Of a man who had to die
Again, she thought of Bethlehem Of the joy that had come from pain And once more she knew inside her That it would happen yet again.