Lent... and then some.

Lent is approaching, and quickly, might I add. I'm looking forward to it. Lent is my favorite liturgical season. It probably started off that way because its color is purple :] However, I have learned that is it is my favorite for more than that. It is more of a depressing season. Which suitably fits my life on occasion. But this year, I have renewed hope. Hope for what is to come. Hope for what will be accomplished during Lent. Hope for what Lent will finish with. Of course, it finishes with Jesus resurrecting, leaving us in anticipation for the day He comes back. (Personally, I think it's a tricky ploy for all the conservatives to rally the troops, only to find themselves disappointed. But that's just me:])

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Lent starts with Ash Wednesday. A day when we are reminded to repent our sins, for they will be wiped from our slate so we may be refreshed and renewed by the Spirit for the season of Lent.

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Speaking of sins, I don't know if this is one, but it is something I do quite frequently and if I quit, or eased up a bit, I think my life would be SO much better. Anyway, it's this campaign called "A Complaint Free World." (Acomplaintfreeworld.org) and you wear a wristband (like the ones that say Darfur and LIVESTRONG) and then if you complain you switch it to the other wrist. However, if you can go without complaining for 21 days, they say your life will be happier. Maybe it will turn into a habit. The point of this, is that it is what I will be doing during Lent. It will be really hard with school and golf and such, but it will be a really good experience for me and I'm very excited.

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Here is the last stanza of a VERY long poem of T.S. Eliot entitled Ash Wednesday is as follows:

Blessèd sister, holy mother, spirit of the fountain, spirit of the garden,

Suffer us not to mock ourselves with falsehood

Teach us to care and not to care

Teach us to sit still

Even among these rocks,

Our peace in His will

And even among these rocks

Sister, mother

And spirit of the river, spirit of the sea,

Suffer me not to be separated

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And let my cry come unto Thee.

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I think it is beautiful and could easily be said as a prayer. My favorite line is "Teach us to sit still even among these rocks, our peace in His will..." How powerful is that? That's what it is like to be at peace with yourself and with God, when you can sit still amongst rocks and take in the nature by which you are surrounded. I long for that day.

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A last note. I was reading the monthly newsletter from my home church today. I was reading the section by our associate pastor and it reminded me of something I talked about with her once. She said in her article,

"When I was a teenager, this symbol and these words took on new meaning, as I began to experience mounting pressures and stress like never before. Now, that simple phrase turned into an assurance, “Leah, you are merely dust, and someday, you’ll be dust again.” It was a welcomed reprieve in the very real drama all teenagers live through.Now, as an adult, stress and pressure has a new tone, with weightier responsibilities. Every year, I look forward to Ash Wednesday and the invitation it brings to slow down, pare back, get real about my humanity, my mortality, and the fragile nature of life. Doing so makes the sheer brilliance and scandal
of Easter all the better, all the more tangible, all the more real. I pray that Lent and its culmination in the Easter festival will have a life changing effect on you this year. I pray that we will embrace the richness of this season."

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We are made of dust, and shall return to dust again. God even said it in Genesis 3:19. Isn't that just the most relieving thing you've ever heard? DUST. That's is ALL we are made of! And one day, we will return to that again. So, with all the pressures of school, work, friends, and relationships, doesn't it just seem silly to stress over all of it when you remember that you are simply made of dust?

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What joy there is to find in this.

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Ok, one last thing. Psalm 51 is the main reading on Ash Wednesday. I encourage you to read it. Especially vv. 10-12. Do a Lectio Divina on this passage as you enter the Lenten season. (This entry is getting too long, so I urge you to go to http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lectio_Divina if you don't know what Lectio Divina is.) Just try it and see how your life changes.

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Shalom to you in this new season!