Session 3: Longing in Grief and Loss

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Prepare:

Before we turn to Scripture today, let’s turn our hearts towards our inner movements: our thoughts, emotions, hopes, struggles... What joys and burdens do you carry with you this Lent? Be assured that God meets you in all of them, ready to listen as you open your heart, ready to rejoice with you, ready to grieve with you, wherever you might find yourself this day.

Take several deep breaths in and out, and as you inhale, pray, “God, I offer you my longings,” and as you exhale, “For I know that you meet me in every moment.”

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Introduction of Scripture:

Today’s Scripture invites us to journey along the road to Emmaus, where the disciples encounter the risen Christ along the way. It might seem a bit odd to hear a post-resurrection Scripture during Lent, but the disciples’ grief and longing after the crucifixion provide one of the best illustrations of the holy depth of our human emotion, and of how God tenderly accompanies us through it. Let’s listen together.

Scripture: Luke 24: 13-35

Now on that same day two of them were going to a village called Emmaus, about seven miles from Jerusalem, and talking with each other about all these things that had happened. While they were talking and discussing, Jesus himself came near and went with them, but their eyes were kept from recognizing him. And he said to them, ‘What are you discussing with each other while you walk along?’ They stood still, looking sad. Then one of them, whose name was Cleopas, answered him, ‘Are you the only stranger in Jerusalem who does not know the things that have taken place there in these days?’ He asked them, ‘What things?’ They replied, ‘The things about Jesus of Nazareth, who was a prophet mighty in deed and word before God and all the people, and how our chief priests and leaders handed him over to be condemned to death and crucified him. But we had hoped that he was the one to redeem Israel. Yes, and besides all this, it is now the third day since these things took place. Moreover, some women of our group astounded us. They were at the tomb early this morning, and when they did not find his body there, they came back and told us that they had indeed seen a vision of angels who said that he was alive. Some of those who were with us went to the tomb and found it just as the women had said; but they did not see him.’ Then he said to them, ‘Oh, how foolish you are, and how slow of heart to believe all that the prophets have declared! Was it not necessary that the Messiah should suffer these things and then enter into his glory?’ Then beginning with Moses and all the prophets, he interpreted to them the things about himself in all the scriptures.

As they came near the village to which they were going, he walked ahead as if he were going on. But they urged him strongly, saying, ‘Stay with us, because it is almost evening and the day is now nearly over.’ So he went in to stay with them. When he was at the table with them, he took bread, blessed and broke it, and gave it to them. Then their eyes were opened, and they recognized him; and he vanished from their sight. They said to each other, ‘Were not our hearts burning within us while he was talking to us on the road, while he was opening the scriptures to us?’ That same hour they got up and returned to Jerusalem; and they found the eleven and their companions gathered together. They were saying, ‘The Lord has risen indeed, and he has appeared to Simon!’ Then they told what had happened on the road, and how he had been made known to them in the breaking of the bread.

7:11

Pondering the Scripture:

Imagine yourself walking along this road with the disciples, sharing in their profound sense of loss, as they grieve not only the death of Christ, but also their dreams of what they imagined he would be. They are bereft, they are confused, and they do not know how to make sense of what has happened. Allow yourself to be immersed in this powerful sense of loss, calling to mind the parts of your life where you hear an echo of their grief.

Jesus, not yet revealing himself, asks the disciples to explain what has happened in Jerusalem. There is power and sometimes healing in speaking our stories aloud. Imagine, as you open the pages of your life, that you are telling your own story to God.

Can you imagine the meal that Jesus shared with the disciples? Place yourself at the table, amidst the food and wine and conversation. Taste the bread that assures you, once and for all, that death is not the end of the story. Taste the bread that assures you: you do not walk alone.

10:13

Talk to God:

Some of the most heartbreaking words in this Scripture are these: “But we had hoped.” What grief or loss would you like to share with God? Perhaps it is the loss of a loved one, a relationship, a job, or a hope for the path your life would take. Close your eyes and imagine that Jesus walks alongside you, even if you cannot always recognize him. There are many mysteries that lie beyond our understanding in this life, but the loving presence of the Trinity always calls to us in the midst of them, offering the gift of accompaniment.

Has there been a time in your life when you slowly became aware of the gentle presence of God amidst your suffering, as the disciples did? Call to mind a time when your heart burned within you, recognizing God’s tender embrace. Give thanks for this holy intimacy.

Before the disciples understand who this stranger on the road is, they make an invitation to him: “Stay with us.” Take a moment to think about how you might invite a member of the Trinity into the place where you find yourself this day.

The disciples came to understand Jesus’ presence with them in the breaking of the bread, an ordinary act made extraordinary by his love. Is there an ordinary way that you, too, might offer your loving presence to someone who is suffering or grieving today?

16:55

Closing Prayer:

You have given all to me

To you, Lord, I return it

Everything is Yours, do with what You will

Give me only Your love and Your grace

That is enough for me.

Amen.