My Dear Sisters and Brothers at Christ Church,
Every Lent I marvel at the contrast between the lengthening days, warming weather, and budding greenery in my backyard, with the call to ashes and atonement during this season. I feel like Mother Nature herself is conspiring to upset my piety. To make Lent more meaningful I have to be intentional about my spiritual practices. As always, I continue to read the Bible on a daily basis -just a couple of chapters. Right now I'm deep into the Book of Job, which feels appropriate for this season.
Adding to that, for Lent Holly and I are trying to be more intentional about how much alcohol we drink. Like so many people during the long nights of the pandemic, we fell into the habit of drinking more than we had before. Beer for me, something ridiculous and fruity for Holly. Now that we're into an easier chapter of the pandemic, the gym is open, Lent is upon us, and I can get out on my bicycle more, I'm trying to treat my body more respectfully. Neither Holly nor I are good at extremes, so we're simply trying to be moderate. That means drinking alcohol only on social occasions, rather than bored-while-stuck-at-home occasions. So, we've committed to only drinking alcohol when we're out at an event, or when we have folks over, and we're limiting ourselves to just two servings. We're doing this until Easter, but I hope the habit sticks beyond that. With some luck and prayer, we'll learn this Lent to treat our own bodies more compassionately, and work on being more present to each other and to our children. This doesn't equal Jesus' 40 days in the desert struggling with evil personified, but it's a step in the right direction in my relationship with my family and our God.
As we travel together through this Lenten valley of shadows, I hope that you too, find a way to challenge yourself spiritually. God bless you.