Fr. Chris’ Guided Meditation for this weekend, the 5th Sunday of Lent – “A” Cycle - John 11:1-45 or                                           11:3-7, 17, 20-27, 33b-45- Lazarus is raised from the dead.

Intro: I’m using a guided meditation form popularized by St. Ignatius Loyola, founder of the Jesuits. .

As we focus on today’s Gospel, we want to encounter Christ more deeply.

I invite you to clear your laps, place your hands unfolded comfortably in your laps, sit up straight and,                            
if your feet can touch the floor, put them there. Let’s take a few breaths in, and out x3, & keep going..

As we enter our meditation, you are standing with Jesus at the tomb of Lazarus, with Martha &Mary. All are crying. You know how you feel when a loved one dies: you feel all kinds of feelings:                           
sad, scared, lost, even mad. Martha misses her brother Lazarus; she tells Jesus she’s mad at Him,                     
because Jesus wasn’t there to keep Lazarus from dying. 

Jesus continues to love Martha, who keeps crying about Lazarus being dead.

Hearing Martha tell Jesus how she really feels about Him gives YOU courage: all of a sudden,

you remember that YOU at times are impatient or annoyed with God, who does not always do things soon enough, or improve the condition of someone/something you were concerned about.

Tell Jesus of a time you remember being annoyed with Him! or with God! even if for a minute,                                                               mad for what happened or didn’t happen, or for what didn’t happen quickly enough for you. [pause].

You stay close to esus, as He speaks to God in prayer: you want Jesus to bring Lazarus back.              
Then you hear Jesus say, “Lazarus, come out,” and you look over at the tomb.                                                  
For a second, nothing happens. Then, he’s there: you see Lazarus for the first time, and you gasp! 

You wanted it to happen, yet it’s shocking: Lazarus is alive, he’s breathing, and he’s moving.

Everyone’s in shock: Lazarus is hopping out of the tomb; he hops ‘cause he’s tied up & can’t walk. 

Jesus has to remind everyone who is there: “untie Lazarus, & let him go free.”

You look at Lazarus: you know that feeling Lazarus has, being tied up, unable to move: it’s tough!

tell Jesus right now what you feel is keeping you tied up in life: is a bad habit? Is it a relationship that robs you of your freedom? Or is it someone/something that makes you feel alone or trapped?

Tell Jesus EXACTLY what/who you need to be freed from, & how much you want to be free. [pause]

Then you see Lazarus untied: he’s SO happy to be alive again. And Martha & Mary have tears of joy.

You tell Jesus how GLAD you are that He raised up Lazarus from the dead.

And now: you can SEE that Lazarus is FILLED with life, and joy, and the power to love others.

You WANT to feel what Lazarus feels. And as you tell that to Jesus, he nods his head toward you.                                         Jesus truly understands what this desire for freedom means to you: 

he knows that feeling tied up or lacking freedom is hard, like being a slave to someone or something.

And when you’re not feeling free, it hurts, & robs you of chances to be of service and help others.

Tell Jesus WHO you’ll be helping/serving this week, and HOW you’ll need His help to do it well. [p]

As we come to the end of our meditation, we feel our feet press against floor; we feel our body relax;
we slowly open our eyes & adjust to the light. We know that just as Jesus’ face was filled with joy,                                                                he calls us to be that joyful presence as we love others. We know we can ALWAYS depend on Jesus.