John 18-19

God of Determination,

Was it inevitable?  Did you see it coming even as the angels sang their alleluias over Bethlehem?  Were you prepared for the lanterns, the torches, and the weapons?

All the tools of torture and the words of shame display the power of human determination.  We must end that which we cannot understand and cannot control.  Our primal instincts sharpen the tools as we point them in your direction.

Just as unyielding in purpose, you step forward to receive the punishment and accept defeat by our hands.  You seem determined to let us act out our determination. Why did you not stop our shortsighted efforts?  Why did you enable our determination to run its course?

How do I trust that which I cannot understand and cannot control?
How do I recognize that my determination might be my own downfall?
How do I follow the One whose determination to care for humanity is unfazed by sharpened swords and shame-filled rants?

Did ever such love and sorrow meet?

In the name of the One who gave not answers but himself,

Amen