FROM THE DESK OF
OUR SEMINARIAN CAROLINE
The season of Lent is my favorite times of the year. There is something about the walk, the journey with Christ…Reflection and repentance…Holy Week and Easter. New life. Reborn.
The season of spring coincides with all of this. Everything starts to grow and turns green. Days are longer and the weather is warmer. I long for the days I can wear sandals again, not having to worry about cleaning the snow off my car at 4 a.m., so I can make it to work on time.
Now, I have never been a fan of winter. I’m still not, but someone recently pointed out to me that we need the season of winter in order for things to grow again.
Quiet seasons seem to drag on longer than others. Why is “being still” such a hard thing to accomplish? Why do we feel like we’re not accomplishing anything when we “are still?”
“Be still and know that I am God”. The words of Psalm 46:10 ring out to me in these days. God is with us; sometimes I wonder, “Are we with God?”
I appreciate our Lenten series on prayer. Prayer is such a vital part of our spiritual lives. How often do we do the talking to God but not take the time to listen? Sometimes the noisiness of life can drown out what God is saying if we’re not intentionally listening.
When we deepen and grow in our relationship with God, not only do we draw closer to God, but if each one of us is doing that, we’ll grow closer to each other. In our fellowship, we love one another, encourage one another, listen to one another, pray for and with one another.
It is my prayer as we journey with Christ towards Easter that each of our relationships with God grows and deepens. With that, I would like to close with one of my favorite prayers from Saint Francis of Assisi:
“Lord, make me an instrument of your peace.
Where there is hatred…let me sow love.
Where there is injury…pardon.
Where there is discord…unity.
Where there is doubt…faith.
Where there is error…truth.
Where there is despair…hope.
Where there is sadness…joy.
Where there is darkness…light.
O Divine Master, grant that I may not so much seek.
To be consoled…as to console.
To be understood…as to understand.
To be loved…as to love.
For it is in giving…that we receive.
It is in pardoning…that we are pardoned.
It is in dying…that we are born to eternal life. Amen.”
Peace and Blessings to You, Caroline
You will show me the path of life. Psalm 16:11