VICAR

Dear Readers of Country Squire Magazine, I trust that You are well and healthy. It is already the fifth Sunday of Lent. The year is passing quickly.

The Scriptures for this Sunday remind us that the God who created all things can release us from anything that keeps us in bondage. The raising of Lazarus from the grave invites us to put our faith in Jesus, our resurrection and our life.

This story of Lazarus, Mary, and Martha gives us a glimpse into our own struggles with life and death. The statement, “Lord, if you were here my brother would never have died,” is often our question when facing the reality of death and suffering in our lives. We often question the silence or absence of God when we face any difficulties. Jesus comforts and even weeps with Martha and Mary as he does with each of us.

When we look at Jesus’ works through eyes of faith, we experience the glory of God in our midst. Martha professes that she knows that her brother will rise from the dead at the words of Jesus, the resurrection and the life.

Jesus at the tomb of Lazarus shows that God’s love is greater than death. He cries out to the grave to untie Lazarus and let him go free. Jesus cries out on our behalf as well to be released from all those things that want to keep us in the graves of doubt, unbelief, and the pains of our lives.

As with Lazarus, we will die again. The new life that Jesus gives us in baptism, allows us to approach life in a new and more profound manner. Jesus the resurrection and the life calls us to live in God’s love in this life and into eternal life.

God Bless You All. Have a successful and illuminating week ahead.

My loving Lord,
it’s so hard to love the world sometimes
and to love it the way Jesus did seems impossible.
Help me to be inspired by his love and
guided by his example.
Most of all, I want to accept that I can’t do it alone,
and that trying is an arrogance of self-centeredness.
I need you, dear God, to give me support in this journey.
Show me how to unlock my heart
so that I am less selfish.
Let me be less fearful of the pain and darkness
that will be transformed by you into Easter joy.

Amen