Lent Devotional 6: Holy Week

Holy Week

As I write this, it is Palm Sunday. Jesus has humbly made his way into Jerusalem and we find ourselves here, yet again, in Holy Week. The season of Lent, the season of journeying to the cross and especially Holy Week are sacred times in the liturgical year. We are challenged to face our mortality and invited to rely on God through the Lenten journey but even more fully through the journey of our whole lives.

Holy Week, a week that is set apart; a week that invites us to sit in the darkness and to lean into the chaos, the unknown, and the grief alongside the disciples. It is a place most of us most likely do not want to be in and yet, we are called there, just as the disciples were.

One of my favorite scriptures is Mark 14:3-9, often entitled “The Anointing at Bethany.” In the Gospel of Mark, the woman is unnamed. A plot to kill Jesus has already been put in place, we find Jesus and his disciples at Simon the leper’s house and the unnamed woman breaks an alabaster jar of expensive ointment and anoints Jesus. She is scolded by the disciples for wasting this precious oil, that could have been sold. Yet Jesus defends her because he knows that she understands what is coming next, his death. The disciples so often miss what Jesus has been telling them all along and this unnamed woman honors Jesus with her knowledge and with her gift. The scripture reads, “She has done what she could; she has anointed my body beforehand for its burial” (Mark 14:8).

Friends, as we enter into this Holy Week, may we have the faith and courage of this woman. May we be bold enough and brave enough to accept the invitation to sit with our Lord as he moves towards the cross. To honor him on this journey by choosing to lean into the chaos, sit in the darkness, and do so with a hope that burns bright in our hearts and a love that leads us to break jars and pour out our gifts—for we know Sunday is truly coming.
Amen.

- Margaret Fleming

Lent Devotional 5: Loving What Is

Loving What Is

Many of us have heard the saying, “it’s easier said than done,” and we have probably said it a few time ourselves too. It’s one thing to say you are going to do something and it’s another to follow through and make the decision to take action.

When I first read this particular topic I felt a connection because handing over my worries to God and loving what is in the here and now is something I have always been working on. We tend to try and control every aspect of our lives days, weeks, and months in advance and we can forget about the present. We tend to forget that God can and will help us, but we have to continue to put our trust in him. And once we do that, God will handle all our worries and will give us the tools we need for everything. We have also heard people tell us what we need is right in front of us and I think that can be a reminder to take a pause and truly appreciate the present and what’s around us. We also need to fully immerse ourselves in particular moments to truly see all the beauty and blessings around us- to see all that God has given us- big, small and in between.

We have been programmed to think the future is what we have to live for when in actuality the most important is the present. God has created a beautiful world for us to enjoy for ourselves and with the people that mean the most to us. Soak up all the beauty and blessings surrounding you and trust that God will be right there to handle it.

- Michele Gray

Lent Devotional 4: When Words Fail

When Words Fail
Luke 19:28-42

Have you ever sent an email or a text message that someone read in a way you didn’t intend? Sometimes our words are ambiguous, or shrouded by double-meaning, or sometimes we project a tone that we don’t mean to convey. Other times, we just don’t have the words…

My words fail me most when I try to express my sympathies. Everyone has that day in their life when their world stood still; maybe it was the death of a loved one, the unexpected rejection of a loved one or a dream job, or maybe you got life-altering news from the doctor. Did anyone say anything to you to make that life-shattering moment better? Or instead, was there a friend who came over and brought some comfort food and a listening ear?

My wife loves home improvement; we’re always fixing things around the house. So on the day when we had our life-altering moment, my first instinct was to fix it. I offered solutions, I tried to find a reason for the tragedy, and I looked for something I could control, to keep it from happening again. When I saw how fruitless this was, my wife made it clear to me that she didn’t need any fixing or input. I just needed to listen.

In Luke 19, Jesus arrived in Jerusalem as a King in unorthodox form, on a colt with no saddle. Many were appalled by His apparent pride, especially the Pharisees, and they asked Jesus to rebuke those worshipping him like a god. But his reply was that of fact, not pride: “if they keep quiet, the stones will cry out.” Whether his enemies knew it or not, Jesus was God, and no words could alter this fact. He then wept for the city that wouldn’t listen to His words, that would choose to kill Him rather than receive Him.

Our world is full of distractions: Our phone buzzes every time someone calls, our watch vibrates when we’ve been sitting too long, our tablet dings when we get an email. These are indeed wonderful inventions that help us maintain connections with our friends and family, but how often does it help us listen to the Lord? If we make a sincere effort to listen in this season of Lent, we can receive Him in a new light. Maybe that means turning off the devices for a few minutes, or going to the beach for a walk, or sitting alone in a quiet place. When we can truly listen and receive the Lord, we’ll find comfort and rest when words fail.

- Dan Tenpas

Lent Devotional 3: Mediocrity for the Win

Mediocrity for the Win: Psalm 19

I’ll confess that I don’t even like the title for this devotional. I tried several times to come up with something else that wouldn’t make it look like I even knew how to think about or understood “mediocrity!” I’ll admit upfront that I’m competitive; I like to win. I like to do things right - the first time. I like for others to at least think that I know what I’m doing or good at what I do. 

I love to cook. I enjoy working in the kitchen with friends, preparing a wonderful meal, sharing stories and tasting as we add ingredients and spices. And the best part of all is serving up a meal for family, friends and strangers who sit at table together to enjoy a great meal! But don’t ask me for a recipe, because at best that’s where I started but it's nowhere close to where I end up. Afterall, if I followed the recipe, someone might see that I missed an ingredient or skipped a step in the process. They may expect it to taste one way and it end up very different! 

I love my woodworking. I am taken deep into my memories and cherish the thoughts of carrying on the craft that my father taught me years ago. When I smell the sawdust and fresh-cut wood in my shop, it is much like a balm to my soul and healing to my spirit. When someone asks me to make them a piece of furniture, I tell them that if they can find me a picture of something they like and give me the dimensions of what they want that I should be able to make them a nice piece. But you would be hard-pressed to find a plan with measurements, markings, instructions for how to build a cabinet, table or shelf just like the one in the picture. I’ve tried to make something “just like that” and it has never worked for me. So don’t send me a detailed plan - because I’d not want to disappoint you and make something that didn’t measure up to the plan or to what you really wanted from me. 

But tell me what you might like in the kitchen and then get out of the way and let me look and smell my way through the spice cabinet to come up with something that I’m pretty sure you’d enjoy. Tell me what kind of furniture or piece you’d like from my woodshop, step out of the way and let me be creative and work with the wood that is in front of me. Either way, kitchen or woodshop, when I trust in my own creativity; when I work with what I have available to me and use the gifts I have, I trust it will result in something pretty amazing - even if it might not measure up to the world’s standards. 

My challenge is to embrace and use the gifts entrusted to me by the Spirit. Your challenge is to do the same. And if indeed we use our gifts to add to God’s wonderful creation, then it will most certainly be “Mediocrity for the Win!” 

- William M Jewell

Lent Devotional 2: When Good Things Become Burdens

When Good Things Become Burdens

In the past several months, I have been working from this idea of pursuing practices that simply fit in order to create a life that fits me just right, like Goldie Locks. How beautiful to think that God wants to help us create a life, filled with practices that simply fit us like the perfect glove. Kate Bowler and Jessica Richie in Good Enough remind us that when we invite God into our lives, God can help us create the kind of life that fits. They write, “The little habits we create with God’s guidance will actually be made to fit us. Fit me. Fit you. The particular you, in this particular moment” (Bowler and Richie, p. 47).

The Lenten practice of giving something up or putting something on is designed, not to make us feel guilty if/when we do not accomplish it 100%, it is instead an intentional act of creating space to rely on God. This season of Lent, I chose to put on a practice that fit neatly into my life and is reminding me to rely on God.

I am looking for joy in my everyday ordinary life, letting it unveil the Divine in my midst, I then write about it. This practice did not require me to fundamentally alter anything in my life, it simply requires a little shift of perspective and the intention of sitting down and documenting it. God knew I needed a practice that would fit into my life, fit me by providing me with joyful opportunities to rely even more fully on God’s provision. It doesn’t feel like a burden, in fact it has been incredibly life-giving. Just like our authors assured me a practice co-designed with God would. And it is, by the grace of God, good enough.

- Margaret Fleming

You can keep up with Margaret’s Lenten practice on her blog at theversatilegirl.com/lent2022.

These weekly Lenten emails are reflections based on a selection of Kate Bowler's Good Enough devotions. 

A devotional reflection will be published each Monday during Lent. If you would like to receive devotionals and weekly updates please make sure you sign up for our email list. Join a "Good Enough" Lent devotion small group for discussion of these themes and other group devotions.

•      Midweek: 

Wednesday discussion group on Zoom at 8:00 p.m.

•      Sundays at 9:30 a.m.: 

Adults in the downstairs classroom with Sue & Aled

Youth "donuts and devotions" up in the conference room with Jordyn

Lent Devotional 1: Regula

Lent is the time leading up to Easter, a season where many of us tend to welcome tradition and the spiritual formation associated with ritual. Or maybe we acquiesce or even bristle at the notion of practicing Lent.

I have come to really appreciate the rhythms of church calendar, these built-in reminders to contemplate, celebrate and remember together, but the truth is I'm an "ordinary time" person. All the traditions can feel burdensome and I perpetually tend toward the contemplative so I find it more fulfilling to focus on the "why" and less on the to dos that can often feel like "shoulds" and "oughts", which feel suffocating to me. Let's cut to the chase and let go of all the frills.

Kate Bowler's framing of Lent as a time the Church comes together to all tell the truth, starting with the raw honesty of Ash Wednesday, feels so freeing and honest. Her "good enough" approach to Lent is my kind of approach to a season because I gave up on perfection long ago. I remember a specific time in middle school. And again when I became a parent. And definitely when I had twins, and then again last week, and probably again before I see you on Sunday. The truth, as Bowler puts it, is that "the world is beautiful, meaningful, difficult, and challenging." Life is hard- for all of us and we need each other for it.

Bowler reminds us that "our spiritual selves need encourage­ment. We need community. We need a hot minute alone. And we need a regula." Amen. Amen. Amen. Amen... wait, what? A regula, a rule of life, "is simply a regular pattern of activities that becomes more valuable over time because its structure creates a space for good things." Whether you are fueled by these ritual seasons or find them burdensome, I hope you'll find the "good enough" in it. Recognize the urge to change something, or begin a practice, or open your eyes to the joy and good around you. Find quiet or sit in prayer, be present in your relationships or simply commit to paying attention. Spiritual practices may not be a guarantee of spiritual growth, “but somehow and sometimes, God shows up." We open ourselves up to that mystery when we practice what scripture offers us and is found in Church tradition... when we do church together.

With or without a 40-day practice, the "why" of the season reminds us to leave room in our daily life for God to show up. Joy may be abundant or joy may sustain us, but joy is always available to us. What joy there is just in the knowledge that there is good to be found if we simply open our eyes to it. God is here with us when joy is abundant, and God is here with us in our suffering, pain, grief and despair. May the joy find and sustain you this week.

-Jordyn Pritchard

These weekly Lenten emails are reflections based on a selection of Kate Bowler's Good Enough devotions. 

A devotional reflection will be published each Monday during Lent. If you would like to receive devotionals and weekly updates please make sure you sign up for our email list. Join a "Good Enough" Lent devotion small group for discussion of these themes and other group devotions.

•      Midweek: 

Wednesday discussion group on Zoom at 8:00 p.m.

•      Sundays at 9:30 a.m.: 

Adults in the downstairs classroom with Sue & Aled

Youth "donuts and devotions" up in the conference room with Jordyn