Welcome back to our Online Holy Week Retreat!
Note: If you haven’t done yesterday’s module
and would like to go through the Holy Thursday retreat,
click HERE.
Before we begin,
take a moment to recall
one or two graces that you received
from going through yesterday’s retreat.
It may be a strong spiritual experience or
an insight into the Lord Jesus
or your own life.
Or perhaps just an intense feeling of gratitude
or love.
Whatever it is, recall it–
and take a moment to savor it.
Play this short instrumental music
as you thank the Lord for this gift.
If you’re up to it,
feel free to write a short description of the grace
you are most grateful for
in the COMMENTS section below.
Whenever you are ready,
move on by clicking on NEXT below.
image from E. Escandor SJ, psychologies.co.uk
music from Arnel Aquino SJ, “Hide Not Your Face”
58 replies on “WELCOME TO GOOD FRIDAY”
Salamat Ginoo! Salamat sa Imong kaayu!
Thank you Lord for the grace to rest in You despite the disenchantments and for the grace to acknowledge Your presence even in such difficult times! Amen.
The thought of looking for God hidden in the things around me makes me feel anxious that I might not find You, Lord. Tha I might not be attentive enough. But I am reminded that it is by your grace O Lord that I will be able to see. This comforts me and inspires me to keep on looking.
Thank, my God.
I thank God for reminding me how much He loves me, in spite of myself. whether I am devout or tepid, humble and generous or proud and selfish, He loves me just the same. I should never give up on Him. He is the One constant friend I have.
Most of us might have heard dozens of inspiring quotes before, like God give his toughest battle to his bravest soldiers but if you’re in a difficult situation all of this is just a cliché. Questions will struck you like thunders whipping one after another and you will begin to question God. I Chose to follow God regardless if this questions were not given answers, I chose to hold on to him but 2 years after, doubt begins to grow inside me, I begin to ask myself am I not following blindly. You see when your life is challenge by a very ugly tragedy it will test your faith. That is why your blog became one of the greatest gift I stumble upon this Lenten. Originally my spirit craves for this days of paid retreat 25 km away but for moms like me who don’t live near her relatives and whose husband is an ocean away It is simply difficult to attend a getaway retreat without worrying about the kids you left home. Fast forward Friday night I realized that despite my love for God , I have thrown devastating angry words to 3 relatives since January , I realized I’m throwing so much garbage of hatred inside me and I begin to wonder WHY AM I SO ANGRY?” typing this question into the google search engine led me to this online Lenten retreat. In times when people use the internet to advance their evil cost, spread lies and hate 10×faster . God can also use and inspire his angels on earth to use it to reach out to others.. Thank you. May the Lord continue to fuel you with inspiration and love.
I was struck by the realization that Jesus himself needed the fellowship of his disciples to get him through his passion. just as we need our friends to get through life’s struggles. Also, how much their betrayal and abandonment must have been painful to him. Praise to you, O Lord Jesus Christ.
I know i still have very much to learn to practice the Christian virtues.
I am thankful for the renewed sensw of gratitude from last nights message. It seema tbat God is always visible in hhe invisible.
I would like to thank for giving me a chance everyday to wake up and see the beautiful morning. For the chances he given to me everyday. For giving a chance to help other people who is suffering from sickness. For my family complete and friends who always support me in times i dont have a courage. And specially for always being there for me whenever I go.
Yesterday’s session prepared me for today’s Veneration of the Cross. It was today when I received the grace of gratitude.
The grace of being able to read scriptures that hits my heart, the grace of consolation from God – that He sent Jesus to always be with me.
The grace to visit the Blessed Sacrament and do the Way of the Cross with my son who willingly accompanied me despite the heat .
Im grateful for the gift of friends and family. Throughout my life, I have been blessed with Godly, Inspiring, kind, generous people with beautiful hearts.
Life is so much better when you have good relationships. Boy, am I blessed to have good people in my life
1. The grace that God is truly one with us, that He always hears us and is sensitive towards us.
2. The grace that God knows our heart’s desires.
The two graces that I am most grateful for from yesterday’s retreat are:
1. the grace of acknowledging my disenchantment. For years I’ve been wondering why I’ve been so bitter and sad all the time, and I realized that it’s because I’ve lost hope in things ever turning around. But by the grace of God, I saw what I’ve been doing and I am made better by it.
2. The grace of patience. All good things come according to his timing. 🙂
I am most grateful for my Father and Mother, my wife and my children and my capabilities and the blessing for me to be loved and the capability to love others. To love, I learn more from Jesus and from those Jesus has touched profoundly.
I would like to thank the Lord for recent blessings. First of all, for my promotion, and most recently, for the benign results of a biopsy for suspected cancer. You Lord have blessed me so much, even when I thought everything was crumbling in my world.
Today, Lord, I am thankful for you giving me respite and strength. I am glad you allowed me a moment’s peace to reflect and remember–not only for your sacrifice and love, but also to remember why I do the things I do, professionally and personally. I am thankful you never allow me to forget what is important, what is real, and what is true. I am thankful you give me enough will to soldier on despite the miseries of everybody–that I may be able to share life with them and–if you will it–bail them out.
Going over yesterday’s points brought me back to the time when i felt so alone. My boyfriend and i just had an argument yet i couldn’t turn to anyone for advise. I couldn’t turn to my parents (loving and supportive as they are, i couldn’t risk leaving a negative impression about my boyfriend whom i wasn’t sure if I’d end up marrying then), i was never close to my siblings to disclose such matters and worse, my friends didn’t really like my boyfriend for me in the first place! But no matter how “alone” i felt, i thank God for being ever present in my life. Be it the upbringing of my or the teaching of the school, i trust Him. I know He won’t give me anything i can’t handle. Evem if the situation may be daunting, i trust that He will send Angels/helpers to see me through.
Thank you Lord for loving me (all of us) the way that You do! We definitely have not done anything to deserve such love… help me reciprocate more and more eah day the love that You give Lord.
I am very grateful for my parents. They are so wonderful. I can clearly see God’s loving presence through them. I consider them as the greatest angels who cheer me up.
There are many times we feel God is not present in our lives. We ask, Why does He allow this to happen?
It is easy to be angry with God or even forget Him. Yesterday’s relfection helped me understand that Jesus too felt this same dispair – especially when He needed Him the most, It is FAITH that keeps us strong. FAITH that God will take care of us because He loves us. We canot let go our of faith when things go wrong. Life isn’t perfect. But when things go wrong, it is a chance for us to become better and get closer to God. We learn – not for the happy times – but the challenging ones. We learn to get back up again and become stronger, more understamding and more peaceful.
The gift of life, family, friends and health give me the strength to continue my journey towards my vocation and profession. Overcoming the disappointments in my life as well as moving on and looking forward to the future is one of the graces also I receieved from him. Thank you for the grace…
I feel like the dark night of my soul has been extended — mula 2011, akala ko tapos na, kaso may sumunod na kabanata pala.
Help me realize this is a blessing Lord. Already I am seeing so many things I need to change in me, even as I go through disenchantkent.
When I went through moments of desolation, loneliness, and of being disillusioned with my married and family life, I felt I was totally abandoned on my own, that the Lord was just watching me from afar. I forgot that He too (and He first) suffered, yet He prayed hard on that night. I realized that as I share the Lord’s suffering and sorrow in this earth, He also made me feel that I also share His strength and courage, in standing firm in trust and faith.
As I write, I continue to be in solitude but deep inside me is divine peace. I walked in the shoreline this afternoon, and as I tread on the sand and waters warming my feet, I asked the Lord “Are you with me?” I didn’t get my answer or hear any voice but just went on. When I went back to my room and opened my inbox, the first email I saw bore the message “I am with you wherever you are. Nothing can separate you from My Presence!” – by Sarah Young, Jesus Calling. My heart once again found peace.
I hardly recall anything serious that happened with my life that i questioned my faith with God. Nonetheless, it was an assurance that no matter where or what life may lead o bring me, i am never alone.
Yesterdays reflection it hit me that Jesus had momenfs jusf like us, while he was going through the passion. It is consoling to know that He is with us every step of the way in our little struggles. I feel overwhelming gratitude and love for our Lord these moments.
I received the assurance from God that there is no other way to go through the disenchantment than by trusting him. I am also reminded that there are times when I am too focused on the outcomes that I want when the Lord only wants me to be spiritually ready first of all.He is teaching me that right now, to strip myself off the the non-essentials and look more inward to get the clarity that I need.
The grace I received is an affirmation of my reaction to a situation where I chose to withdraw and move on. Even with my prayer unanswered, I chose to move on and trust that God knows what’s best for me.
I am grateful for the reminder of my vulnerability and my dependence. That I am truly, absolutely, God’s own.
i am grateful for the grace of waiting and for God who is ever-present in my life, who has never left me, never abandoned me. I am thankful, always thankful to him that he did not heed my begging in the past for he knows and has my best interest at heart. i am thankful for teaching me to trust him
I am just grateful for the gift of the Holy Trinity. How majestic God is and yet He keeps on reaching out to us and blessing us and here we are choosing to separate ourselves and falling back into sin. We truly need the grace of God. We need to accept Jesus and heed the gospel. Let’s not waste all the blessings and instead choose joy over sin. God is so good. We must open our eyes and set ourselves free.
I cannot find the words myself, so I will just use Fr. J’s, that I was overwhelmed yesterday with “an intense feeling of gratitude and love.” All that accompanied by God’s gift of abundant tears.
No matter how disenchanted I am with God, , I realize that I can never turn my back on Him or become indifferent towards Him. At the very least, He listens to my rants. He is a great sounding board.
This comment made me smile, Regina. I feel the same way and I just found it amusing that the comment set realistic expectations of God’s ‘interference’ (as defined in yesterday’s module) in our lives. No matter what, He is a good Listener.
Yesterday was hard for me, Lord. I’m back in a situation where I don’t want to be. All I want to do is be elsewhere: away from the demands and pressures, away from the people that disappoint me, the seemingly endless task of caring for someone whose body is winding down. It’s exhausting to be what everyone and everything want me to be. I ask myself, was your life here on earth ever like that?
Last night, I wrote in my journal and poured out my soul to you. I thank you for the small pleasures you gave to comfort me and assure me of your presence: the breeze that blew around me, my pets rubbing against me and staying by my side. It’s not how I envisioned my Holy Week, but you asked me if I trust you. I will trust you, Lord.
Last night, I lay down on the cool marble floor of our terrace and tried to imagine how the apostles felt when you asked them to wait for you as you prayed. Up to now, I ask myself, how could they have failed to stay awake for you? Did you pretend to be brave for them that they did not know how you truly felt? Were they that dense, were they just tired, or they knew but just did not have the answers? Or were they just blind because they were thinking of their concerns back home?
If I were your disciple that night, I would imagine I would fail you because I was tired, I was distracted by my concerns and I didn’t know what I should do. I am so sorry to give back so little in return for your love.
Please give me the grace to journey out of my world, into yours.
The retreat yesterday reminded me of a certain situation I experienced in my life. When I was in doubt of myself and full of fear to take that responsibility. I was disappointed of myself for disappointing the people around me especially my loved ones that I forgot that I have a big big God who is just there waiting for me to surrender all my worries and fears. I wanted to escape that situation and praying desperately that it will not happen. But God has his ways and plans for me, He always knows what’s the best for us and sometimes we forgot that and rely on our own self and understanding. Yesterday, reminded me of God’s biggest miracle in my life and that is choosing me to be a mother to a beautiful baby. I will forever be grateful for our Lord that He helped me to accept the situation wholeheartedly and walking with me as I went through that difficult part of my life. Until now, He is always there for me giving me strength and courage to face each day as I raise my child on my own.
My heart is grateful to the Holy Trinity for the experience of His life.
The graces from yesterday’s retreat in the Disenchantment are many. Here are a few that stands out: God’s constant presence and abiding mercy for me and my family is more than I can thank Him for. His Kenosis in the incarnation and paschal mysteries bring out a deeper desire to closely follow my Lord Jesus. This desire caused me to turn to the Blessed Mother, whose heart contains the mysteries of her Son; my Mother who brings me closer to Him who is my life eternal.
Thank you Jesuit Fathers and SDs for your valuable service!
I appreciate the life our Lord has given me through my family especially my daughter. Thank you Lord for allowing me to be reminded of my nothingness will only be filled by you.
The divine non-interference is the most dominant reality that struck me. How we as human beings have always been so preoccupied with our world’s noise and have really failed to listen the meaning of the Lord’s silence. Thank you Lord for just being there even if we continue to be indifferent of your presence most of the time.
The messages I got confirmed earlier messages. But the no.1 grace I got was that intense feeling that people I loved and served love me too. Thank you dear Father for this grace! Thank you Jesus for being with me and showing me the way!
“Thy will be done, Lord, Thy will be done!” ….human that I am, to be “denied” by God something I was so earnestly praying for was like being “punished” for something I must have done that had displeased my Lord. Up until yesterday, I believed I did not merit God’s favor. I thought I was probably not praying the right way or that I was not even worth asking the Lord for that special favor……but after going through the retreat yesterday, I was given the grace to open the eyes of my heart and soul – and to be affirmed once again of that great and perfect love that God has for me, not of what I have been or what I am, but because HIS LOVE KNOWS NO CONDITIONS; HIS LOVE IS THE VERY REASON I AM ALIVE for it is this very love that created my being, that sustains me and that sees me through every moment of my life!
I know now that everything truly happens for a reason in His perfect time and in His perfect way!
thank you…
Praise & thank You, Lord for the gift of life & love. Thank you for your grace that keeps me going through it all.
Praise God for this retreat. Thank you God for your daily provision, your grace, your blessings. Thank you for giving me life.
Through every storm
My soul will sing
Jesus is here
To God be the glory
Thank you Lord for assuring me that though You may be silent, You were never absent. I am never alone. Amen.
I thank the Lord for all the blessings we received and even for the trials we encounter for everything we received are all graces from God. Either ways, it may give us what we need/want, it give us lessons in life and most of all it strengthen our Faith and Trust to Him. Thank you so much Lord Jesus Christ! My family and I loves you so much!
I’m grateful for the Lord’s ever present help and grace especially in my darkest moments. Reflecting on how Jesus felt abandoned and foresaken and how He continued to cling to God through it all, blessed me.
In the midst of what could have been despair and disillusionment He found prayer and courage and strength to face something seemingly impossible. I have witnessed His hand move in my life when I was weakest and am grateful to have a God who understands just how I feel.
Thank you Jesus for choosing love. Thank you for choosing us.
Yesterday, at the Lord’s Supper liturgy, the priest said that God is telling us Ï love you everyday in small and grand ways. Also in every sacrament. For example, baptism is Ï love you, my child; confirmation is I strengthen you with my Spirit, and so on. He also, of course, deepened it by saying that it is also true in every moment of the Eucharistic celebration. For instance, the moment of gathering together, greeting of peace, the readings which remind us of God’s abiding Word, the offertory, the consecration, the communion, prayer after communion and even the sending off. He also said that the time after communion has to be savored because it is the moment when Jesus is closest with us as we become part of his body. I asked myself, when was the last time I heard God or Jesus saying I love you to me? In response, I tried to do a quick examen of my life. After the communion, it hit me! A new acquaintance who was making me recall special moments in my life and is pushing me to grow more in God’s ministry is named with Christ’s name and his surname has the word heart in it. Somehow, i felt God smiling at me and telling me: yes, through all those hardships, I loved you all along. Never did I leave you. Not one moment.
I am strengthened and encouraged to persist in my prayers no matter how God responds. Yes, even when He does not answer. If Jesus suffered, and was no stranger to the silence of God, who am I to protest or complain? Always, always, God has a reason for His response, or lack thereof, to our prayers. And He asks us to trust Him and His plans for us.
Knowing this, I will pray even more. Trust in God always. His plan for my life is the best thing that could ever happen to me.
Grateful for everything… strive to pray even in moments of disenchantment because He will always be there … not to interfere with the laws of nature… Not as I will but as You will Father will be my prayer everyday..
I was in a consultancy engagement and i was sick. I am very grateful that I had a partner consultant in that engagement. To get that consultancy engagement was a challenge because it took weeks to have the contract finalized and there were questions about having two consultants. We thought it would not materialize but it did. And on the flight I lost my voice. I was feeling very sick during the whole workshop. But god is good. There was a reason why I had a partner consultant. I survived the ordeal and now I am on the road to recovery. It is taking awhile but I thank God for the support and people who support me including the doctors, and household members….
Jesus is always with me. Even when I think I’m alone, He is there. He has always been there! He doesn’t give up on us. Given our free-will He doesn’t impose Himself on us. He’s always there. We just have to open ourselves to Him.
I realized how blessed i am. God has heard my prayers maube not exactly as i prayed for but He has been really listening to me. I am so amazed and awed with God’s love and showering me and my family with his Love and overflowing generosity.
Feel so blessed and grateful for this great experience. Glad I was able to share it with so many friends…
Thank You Lord for the gift of Family and friends who are always there in good times and bad. Though imperfect in our own ways. They help me become a better person.
Thank You Lord for the gift of life. Allowing me to become a better person through various challenges in my journey on Earth. Enabling me to learn new things and unlearn the bad things i picked up along the way.
Thank you Lord, most of all, for Your Love, Blessings and Mercy
Been blessed yesterday to have been able to attend the Last Supper Mass and be with Jesus at the tabernacle for a while. Blessed too that I was able to have with me my sister, brother in law and house help. Am spiritually strengthened and reassured that God answers our prayers in His own ways and time.
yesterday as i stayed with jesus in the garden of gethsemane and in prison, i saw a very human jesus: lonely and abandoned and filled with anguish and fear over what was to happen. i was deeply consoled that as i go through these same moments of uncertainty and fear and the seeming indifference of god, i can always come to jesus, who knows and understands what i am going through. i am never alone.
Disenchanted no more. At the end of the day, I realized that all the challenges and the brokenness I experienced are all blessings in disguise which healed and strengthened my relationships with loved ones and especially with God. I feel more love and grateful. ???
The realization that Jesus’s own prayer was denied by God made such a strong impression on me. Too often I’ve prayed for specific things to happen in my life & when they don’t happen I feel disappointed in God. I need to remember that God has his own plan for me & I need to have faith in His plan because it can only be good for me & my loved ones.