Welcome to Lent,
The opening of week five.
These meditations are an opportunity for us to stay connected to the Lenten season,
Not just Sundays,
But all week,
And to think about Lent in the context of our everyday lives.
My name is Jess and I have engaged Lent in everything from giving up physical things like sugar or alcohol,
To giving up character issues like sarcasm or negativity,
To some years not engaging Lent much at all.
So these times are meant to take our focus off the transaction of giving something up for religious duty,
But engaging the season as a time for spiritual growth and renewal.
We have an opening and closing meditation for each week of Lent.
To start,
Let's take five big breaths together.
The science behind mindfulness practice is really quite fascinating.
We are training our brain to be better reacting to stress and to recover from stress when we experience it.
Over time,
It sharpens focus,
Makes us more compassionate,
Has positive impacts on relationships and mental health.
This is good practice for slowing down whenever we feel the need,
And especially in preparing for prayer.
Really,
The potential is to be more mindful in every aspect of our lives.
So to begin,
Just feel yourself breathe for one minute.
Try to find a peaceful place in your mind,
But particularly feel how your body breathes.
I hope that was calming to your body.
I hope you felt connected to your breath.
If your mind went to other places just now or happens throughout this time,
That's okay.
It's natural.
You're still here,
So let's move on.
Let's take one moment and identify where has God been today?
Think about just the last 24 hours in being alone,
In being in community,
In joy,
Or in struggle.
Where has God been?
In week five,
I want to center two poems from Howard Thurman.
Thurman lived from 1899 to 1981.
He was an African-American minister,
Philosopher,
Theologian,
Educator,
Civil rights leader,
And poet.
His books entitled The Inward Journey and Meditations of the Heart are must-haves for any Christian meditative pilgrim.
If you're able to,
Extend your arms out and turn your palms up or rest your palms on your lap as a posture of receiving this brilliant work from Howard Thurman.
Let's take a moment and prayerfully reflect on Thurman's words.
I'll read this poem three times,
And as I do,
Try to prompt different prayers.
Thurman writes,
Listen to the long stillness.
New life is stirring.
New dreams on the wing.
New hopes are being readied.
Humankind is fashioning a new heart.
Humankind is forging a new mind.
God is at work.
This is the season of promise.
As I read this short poem one more time,
What stirs in you?
Listen to the long stillness.
New life is stirring.
New dreams on the wing.
New hopes are being readied.
Humankind is fashioning a new heart.
Humankind is forging a new mind.
God is at work.
This is the season of promise.
As I read it a third and final time,
Pray about what God wants for you from it.
Listen to the long stillness.
New life is stirring.
New dreams are on the wing.
New hopes are being readied.
Humankind is fashioning a new heart.
Humankind is forging a new mind.
God is at work.
This is the season of promise.
In Jesus's Lenten journey,
He released his cares to the Creator.
He released his friends to the Holy Spirit,
And ultimately his life to God's will.
In this Lenten season,
We focus on the scars on Jesus's hands.
God,
We place into those hands our very lives.
God,
We accept the long stillness of this season and the new life that is fashioning in our hearts.
Build in us these values that allow us to be of our truest selves,
Living our truest purpose in harmony with the Creator of our souls and our love for our neighbor.
The great spiritual writers in the Christian tradition often maintained that prayer's role is to change us from the inside as preparation for active lives lived in the world.
Our final time of silence is to spend a moment deciding on steps for living into Lent this week.
What from Thurman's poem is still in you and needs a commitment to activity?
Spend a final time of silence before the sacrificed Christ in a posture of commitment about this one week ahead and what new life in this season may be being birthed within you.
Amen.
We invite you back for more meditations as we journey through this Lenten season.
