The season of Lent begins in a little over a week as Ash Wednesday is February 26. I looked back at how I have been practicing the season and what I have encouraged you to do in past Lenten Seasons. Now, is a good time think about how you will observe the season. Giving away 40 things in 40 days and not eating meat on Fridays have become customary practices for Lent in my household. This year I am also planning to return to my regular writing practice. Each week of Lent there will be a prayer posted to this blog to help all of us navigate this Lenten Season. I thank you for reading and praying with me as we once again follow Jesus through this important season in the church year. And I’d love to hear how you plan to observe the season of Lent.
The Boy, the mole, the fox, and the Horse Charlie Mackesy
My mother handed me this book and encouraged me to sit and read it immediately. What an uplifting, beautiful book. It is easily readable in a very short time, and yet it is a book that deserves to be savored. With statement like, “the truth is everyone is winging it” and “sometimes just getting up and carrying on is brave and magnificent”, this book made me smile and want to reread it.
Meet these four unlikely friends who discover their devotion to each other and ways they can uplift each other. With beautiful illustrations and sparse words on each page, this book can be enjoyed by people of almost any age.
So as my mother recommended this to me, I recommend it to you. You can check if out from your local library and read it daily until it must go back. You can buy it and read it repeatedly until you give it to a friend who needs a reminder that they are loved. I invite you to read this book and remember you are loved more than you know
What rituals and family activities are important in your life? When I was growing up, my paternal grandmother taught us to count down the time to important events with a sleep countdown. She would ask how many more sleeps until we come visit or you come to visit us. I have passed along the sleep countdown to the next generation and taught Grandma’s great grandchildren to count down how many more sleeps until the big event. It does my heart good to continue my Grandmother’s method of counting down and to share it with her legacies.
So, as I countdown to a visit with my niece and nephew, I am thankful that my memories of my Grandmother live on in me and in others who carry on her traditions. I’d love to hear about the rituals and family activities that frame your life.
Good and Gracious God, We are thankful for this Christmas season. We ask your blessing on our loved ones near and far and those who live with you. As we remember the baby born, we pray for the children of this world. May they all know they are loved and may they have enough to eat and somewhere safe to lay their heads. As we welcome the Prince of Peace, help us to be people who live in peace with each other. For those who are sad and lonely this season, open our eyes to see how we can be a friend. In a world filled with noise, we take a few moments now to simply be in the silence. (time of silence). God, for your constant presence in our lives, we give you thanks. In the name of Jesus born this night, we pray. Amen.
I have been reading this book for so long because I didn’t want to hurry through it and finish it. I was sad when I came to the last page because I loved the book so much that I wanted it to go on and on. (If you love this book like I do, please listen to her podcast, Everything Happens with Kate Bowler. And when searching for the exact name of her podcast, I learned there is a podcast called Everything Happens for a Riesling which I have not listened to although the name makes me laugh).
If you believe that everything happens for a reason and find comfort in that belief, then I am not here to change your mind. The author of this book would encourage you to not say those words outloud to others as they may not find them comforting. This book is what happened when one person learned that she had non-curable cancer and her whole world view needed to be reexamined.
In these pages, you be challenged in what you believe and how you support others who are suffering. You will laugh at the absurdity of life. You may cry as you remember that we were never told that life is fair even though we’d life for it to be.
“What if rich did not have to mean wealthy, and whole did not have to mean healed? What if being people of “the gospel” meant that we are simply people with good news? God is here. We are loved. It is enough” (21).This book is for people who read a sentence like this and want to hear more of the story.
“Everyone is trying to Easter the crap out of my Lent,” I say to my friends though gritted teeth and tears” (134). It is a book for people who love Easter and know real life contains so much Lent that doesn’t need to be rushed through.
I encourage you to read this book, and then we can talk more about it.
Each year on November 14, I light a candle on a piece of dessert. It isn’t my birthday, and yet I blow out the candle. I do this for my best friend. November 14 is her birthday and for the last seven years she has not been alive to celebrate her birthday. So, I celebrate it for her. I make or prepare a dessert. I light a candle. I remember her and give thanks for our friendship. Then, I blow out the candle and enjoy that dessert. I tell stories about her to anyone who will listen. I laugh and cry. I miss her and wish she was here to enjoy her birthday dessert with me.
I share this with you because this yearly ritual is healing and helpful for me as I continue to grieve my friend. I encourage you to remember those you love who have died and find meaningful rituals to help you mark important days. If you have a special way you remember a loved one, I’d love to hear about it.
Loving God, When our hearts are breaking and we miss our loved ones, you are here. When another special day comes and our loved one isn’t here to celebrate, you are here. Be with us as we remember and give thanks. Be with us as we cry and ask why? However we honor those we love, be present with us, Gracious God. Amen.
Recently, I was asked to pray at a local service for veterans. These are the prayers that I shared for that gathering.
Holy One, We are thankful to call this country home. Today we gather to honor and remember those brave individuals who kept and continue to keep this country free. Most of us will never be able to understand the challenges faced by those who serve. Open our ears to hear the stories of those in our armed services when and if they want to tell their stories. Open our eyes to notice the needs of our veterans. Open our hearts to welcome the veterans back to this country we all love. Be present with us in this time, Holy One, as you are present with our veterans and those currently serving. Amen.
Eternal One, we are grateful for this time today to be able to remember and give thanks for all of our veterans. Remind us to be thankful for our veterans everyday not just on special days like today. Send your blessings and love on our veterans and their families as we continue to acknowledge the gifts that they shared for our country. Thank you, Eternal One, for your love for all your beloved children and may we share that love and compassion with each other. Amen.
Today I am celebrating 15 years of ordained ministry.
On this day 15 years ago, I was surrounded by family and friends and colleagues in ministry in one of the churches that raised me. After years of hard work, education, and training, we gathered together to worship and give thanks to God for my call to ministry. While I planned the service (including music and Scripture I love), the service was a time of worship with a focus on God.
In the fifteen years since that day, I have served three churches in three different states and now am serving as a hospice chaplain. I have led confirmation retreats, stayed up too late during youth lock-ins, laughed with children, preached countless sermons, served communion while reminding each person present that each one is welcome at the table and a beloved child of God, taught many Sunday School and youth group lessons, listened to so many stories and kept confidences, been invited into people’s homes where I was treated like family, and also participated in more than a few meetings. How do you sum up 15 years? I have been privileged to watch children grow into youth and now into adults. I have cried with you when loved ones have died. I have baptized children and youth and officiated wedding and funerals. I have been inspired by the faith I have witnessed in people of faith of all ages.
And despite that long list, so many things and events went unmentioned. I could talk for hours about mission trips or games of sardines or most memorable memorial services. Instead, I will thank you for whatever part you have played in this journey I have been on for these past fifteen years. Thank you!
God, I am grateful for my call to ordained ministry. It has been a challenge and a joy to serve so many different people over these past fifteen years. Thank you for the strength to continue on and to follow where you lead. Thank you for the surprises that meet me each day. Continue to be with those you love who have been part of my journey. With gratitude for all that has happened that has made me who I am today, I look forward to the next fifteen years knowing you, Gracious God, will be sustaining and equipping me. Amen.
For as long as I can remember, I have been a great sleeper. Not just good, a great sleeper. I would fall asleep quickly when the lights went out and sleep until morning. I could take a nap on the weekend and still sleep at night. I could sleep in the car, on a train, or an airplane. Sleeping came easy to me. Now I find myself in a season of life where this is not the norm for me anymore. I am up in the middle of the night most nights lately. Sometimes only for a short while and other nights for hours. While I hope this is a passing phase, I am missing my identity as a great sleeper.
In the middle of the night while I am awake, I alternate between trying to go back to sleep and attempting to be productive. I read. I write. I pray. I worry about things outside my control. I ponder how to fix major and minor problems. I get up for a drink of water or cup of tea. And I hope for the time when a full night of sleep will become a regular occurrence again.
God of all hours, you hear our prayers no matter what time they come to you. Bring precious sleep to all in need of it. Soothe our worries and calm our fears. Fill us with the peace that passes all understanding. Hold us in the palm of your hand until rest returns and when morning comes may we wake feeling refreshed and ready for the new day. Amen.
