last lenten thoughts...

don't know if i'll post tomorrow or not, so here are some final lenten thoughts before holy week begins...

i think the lent thing is so interesting. discipline is something that is so easily overdone or underdone; finding balance in the 'giving up/adding in' without being too hard on yourself when you don't follow through. is the point of the adding/subtracting simply to see if you can do it? is it a focus thing? i love the idea that by being disciplined in an area of life, we are making a conscious effort to draw closer to the source of our life and breath. but i know that my personal thing didn't really do that as intended...so was it a failure? or a missing of the intended mark? maybe that's the point -- to remind me that no matter how hard i try, i can't do (give up/add in) anything that will ulitmately get me closer to my God. reminder that i need Him to do the heavy lifting, i gotta be present, aware, and ready to move when it's time.

soup -- i've had a lot of soup over lent. not in conjuction with it, just as a part of the lunchtime routine. i really like soup. went to a church that had lenten soup dinners before church -- i like that soup is a simple thing -- meat, veggies, tasty broth stuff...lent is kinda about simplicity. our services were simple. songs were simple. soup is simple. lent is about making our lives more simple by focusing on Him a bit more. good idea.

prayers -- there is a kid who has prayed during our lenten services. the prayers are from the heart; up front, i get the privilege of hearing them as they come out. i am moved way down deep each time these prayers are offered up. so beautiful, so real, so heartfelt and passionate...i wish i could pray more like that...and how cool that a kid has the courage to talk to God out loud in a room full of people...during a service no less!

spring -- we are close to easter, close to consistent temps above 50, and i'm loving it! saw a whole bunch of daffodils up and in bloom this morning -- can't wait to drive down urbandale ave. in a few weeks and see the colors and smell the smells. easter = new life for us; spring = new life for the earth. coincidence? i think not...

holy week -- the best and worst week of the church year. so much joy at the end, so much sad in the middle. but to get to the good, we gotta go thru the yuck. kinda like life sometimes, eh?

that's about it folks! have a happy last few days of lent in prep for holy week!