From Erine: 

I decided to attend the "Seven Last Words" Good Friday Service, but I didn't realize it would run almost four hours. The "seven last words" of Jesus had seven worship leaders. Each covered some part of the message of Jesus, and their farewell to being human and their becoming spiritual. The overall message was of hope, and hope for us. 

The Rev. Valerie Barnes spoke of Forgiveness and Crime. She stated that the number of young people who have lost their lives to violence is bigger than the number of those lost to wars. She addressed crime and the criminal and Jesus's understanding of man. One criminal at the cross understood that Jesus did not belong there, but Jesus knew why he was there. He followed Jesus in the afterlife. The other died alone in spirit.

The Rev. Stephen A. Tillet I spoke of Promise. He retold the story of John Newton and the song "Amazing Grace." This man was a slave trader and he attended a service with the lead speaker of his opposite. He worked against what was once his way of making a living when he understood that freedom is important to people. He found his way. 

The Rev. Dr. Andrea Middleton King focused on Adoption. She broke down what Jesus owned. The cold and yet the famous relationship of Jesus to four Roman Guards. They divided his belongings which included a prayer shawl, sandals, waist band, over-
garment (outer-garment), and a one-piece tunic. They had all his belongings except for the tunic, but they refused to piece that out. It got me that Jesus himself had nothing physical left, yet it didn't matter, these men fought over the last piece...

The Rev. Ryan Sirmons focused on Desperation. We all know desperation and we all know how it feels. The example of "the rent check is due and you have no job and have been looking for 2 months" hit like glass shattering on the floor, except in my story it was the electric bill. The people that came in the beginning could not be present when Jesus needed them the most. He was broken, but the women stayed and kept the promise. 

The Rev. Monica Johnson spoke of Human Need. She talked about thirst and what thirst is and isn't. To most of us thirst is water, but in this case thirst is so much greater. Thirst is physical, spiritual, and otherwise. She repeatedly asked, "What are you thirsty for?" She also asked, "How can that thirst be quenched?" Her story about being thirsty for spiritual need reminded me of how my community quenches my thirst even when I'm not in their presence.

The Elder Michele Irby addressed Triumph. She defined "quit", which is "to throw in the towel." People quit over the smallest things, like when that project didn't work out or love/marriage will never happen, yet Jesus had many opportunities to quit on us. Only one of the ten that were healed even thanked him for healing. We need to finish what needs to be finished. What I got from this is that when your work is finished, you will know it. You know when it's finished and so does God, or, Our Creator. 

The Rev. Dr. Lewis M. Anthony addressed Trust. He broke down "commit" and what the real meaning of it is.  He stated that to "commit is to deposit" and that was a new way of thinking of committing to someone or something. Jesus committed his spirit to us, and when you deposit you withdraw. His commitment or deposit saved us from two deaths. The physical death is a given, as each living thing is born, has a life cycle, and returns home. But the second death is of the spirit, and that was his deposit. 

An interesting fact from this service was about first names. In the South, it was common to be addressed by the first name by the children.  I understood why my mother wanted us to call her "Patty." Thinking back, I recalled my ex, Mike, telling me that in North Carolina people would say "Mr. ___ or Ms. ___.   Referring to a person as "Woman" is interesting, as I have heard people say they never understood why this was done.  It was explained that Jesus said it to Mary, his earthly mother, as a sign of respect or "she gets/got her business done." The praise dancing I enjoyed, and the explanations about the prayer positions were educational. On the floor or against the wall was a prayer position...again...out of respect for God/Our Creator. This made me think about other beliefs that use prayer positions for the same reasons. 

For me, this long, long service was a lightning rod, as I came in with "Concrete is in my Heart" (Americah) and left with a "It is Well With my Soul" feeling.  I changed my view of what mattered and I need to view the world with the gifts and love God/Our Creator gave me. The moment I want to quit...I need to thirst and know my suffering will be freeing.  I have a deposit made in my name and I need to commit to doing it for others, when I know Jesus and God/Our Creator did it for me.