March 6 Sunday-Ps.32 is one of the classic penitential psalms perfect for this season.In our time, this may be a bit of a forced feeling, as few of us have a deep sense of sin. the core is v.4-5, and it is part of 12 step programs on dealing with addictions, no? That allows v. 7 to see the divine eye as a safe place, not one to hide from.What sins do you feel the most compulsion to keep hidden?
Monday-Clouds of witnesses surround us like mists rising early before the day settles in. Clouds of witnesses break from fields of stubble like black birds on the wing. And God is in the clouds.
Tuesday-God liberates from this exhaustion, commanding that they take rest each week. We essentially live in this self-made, insatiable Pharaoh-system again. So weary are we, so burdened by consumer debt, working long hours with very little time off. So many take pride in wearing the badge of “busy.” So many are stretched thin to the very edges of their resources.When we practice Sabbath, we are making a visible statement that our lives are not defined by this perpetual anxiety. At the heart of this relationship is a God who celebrates the gift of rest. Brueggemann says we are so beholden to “accomplishing and achieving and possessing” that we refuse the gift given to us.
Wednesday-Have you ever been unable to praise God? Have there been periods of your life where love for God seems distant and far away, like a fading memory? Perhaps you have dealt with depression and wondered where God really was. From time to time the psalmist's words capture this feeling so well: "My soul thirsts for you...as in a dry and weary land where there is no water." The psalmist has been there. Yet, like a light in the distance, the psalmist also sees hope, and this hope draws ever closer and overwhelms the psalmist to the point of praise. Joy seems to overwhelm the psalmist when he or she feels the need for God's presence so greatly and deeply. In the depths of thirst and longing the psalmist is able to find solace in knowing God is present. (God Pause)
Thursday-Henri Nouwen wrote that “to give a blessing is to affirm, to say ‘yes’ to a person’s Belovedness.” In Lent, may each of us know how dearly beloved we are, even as we feel the weight of our suffering. May we flee the promises of gimmicky gratitude and walk as best we can toward the truth of God’s love for us, which marks us and holds us, no matter where we find ourselves. May we know what blessing is, and may we feel it, believing.(From Duke’s leadership blog)
Friday- A coracle was a boat without a rudder to guide it on rivers.It sits on the water more than in the water and is moved by current or wind, but it is unstable.
Saturday-“What is ritual? Ritual may be any pattern of behavior that involves repetition, including brushing one’s teeth or loading the dishwasher. Ritual is the menu at Thanksgiving or decorating the tree at Christmas. The virtue of a repeated pattern is that after the first or first few times we become free of the need to think about the details required in executing it. Someone has said that we’re not dancing until we don’t need to count the steps. Once the dance is internalized, we lose ourselves (or find ourselves) in the dance itself, freed from having to think through every move. Ritual is like the dance. It is something to be realized in the doing, not in thinking about it.” Byars
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