Reflection

Suffering and pain, and yes, even feeling abandoned by God, are part of the human condition. Here, the psalmist expresses the depths of that sense of abandonment. These are the words that our Lord Jesus would cry out in his dying agony as he too felt forsaken by his father.

God does not offer guarantees that we will not feel abandoned. Even the only blameless human being in history also felt far from the Father. But that is not the end of the story. The Father will not abandon his children, just as he did not abandon his one and only son. The psalmist knows this too, finishing the psalm with an affirmation of trust in God. And just so, our Lord on the cross must also have known that this psalm, which begins in painful lament, finishes affirming the Father’s loving care.

Prayer

My God, our God, strengthen us in the times when you seem so distant. Give us faith to cling to you as we know you cling to us. And give us loving care for those around us who are not confident of your love for them. We pray in the name of the one who experienced the pain and sense of abandonment on the cross.