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           A Good Friday Reflection for 2023

Elder Velma Garcia

Arms Wide Open - the welcome of God; the love of God

John 3:16 NIV

16 For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life.

Have you ever felt the need to open your arms wide open, when standing next to the ocean, or when standing in a vortex (swirling centers of energy that are conducive to healing, meditation and self-exploration) up in the mountains of Sedona, or even when you go to hug your family or friends? Isn’t that what we do? Why do we do it? 

I believe that we do it to experience joy, love, delight; To take in the expansiveness of God’s creation, To soak it all in as savory as we can, to breathe it in even deeper still, even if just for a moment. 

This Good Friday, at the foot of the cross we begin by imagining Jesus on the cross. His arms are opened wide towards us and our world. Try not to focus on the pain, the humiliation, the anguish he suffered but try to focus on the love that he represents, the love that refuses to keep distance from us no matter what.

To imagine love in this place of such dreadful suffering is not easy. The focus is more often placed on judgement, guilt, punishment; they are all part of this story. 

The cross is a place of painful truths but that is not where the story starts. What is original is divine love. “For God so loved the world, that God gave God’s begotten son.” 

When we begin with the negatives, focused on the problem, we never get out of the cycles of judgment and condemnation. No repentance is ever enough. No effort will make us acceptable.

It may be true that human shortcomings have made God’s embrace of us a work of redemption ... but it is love that holds God there. Love is reaching out to us no matter the cost.

God does not love us because we are good; God loves us because God is good. This is welcome news in any language.

The cross tells us that nothing we can do will ever separate us from God's eternal eagerness to love us. Divine love is made visible here - forever. So let us draw near to this love and accept the offered embrace unlike anything we have ever known. May we always choose love.

Prayer

O God, love that is revealed upon the cross through the open arms of Jesus. Your love is endless and Your reach boundless. Your embrace knows no separation. In wonder and gratitude, we turn to you and open our arms to receive your love and we thank you for loving us. A’ho, A’she, and Amen!