Too often we look at Lent as a time to work at becoming better, holier, more faithful people.
At best, that's only half true.
What we need to be busy about are those things that serve to render us more docile to the Lord's Word, attuned to his voice, malleable in his hand, ready for his forgiving, healing touch.
Lenten prayer, fasting and works of mercy are meant to deepen our relationship, our friendship with the Lord. Most of all in Lent we need to make time to simply be with the Lord, to sit quietly in his presence, to render ourselves open to him and to whatever it might be that he wants to do in our lives in this holy season.
Lent is a time to be honest with God: a time to put all the pieces on the table and to look at them with the Lord's help. Thus, the truth of the sign above: God wants to mend our broken hearts, to strengthen our weak hearts, to refresh our discouraged hearts, to relieve our worried hearts...
But to do this, he needs all the pieces to work with - even the ones we'd rather hide from (our ourselves), the pieces we've tried to forget or ignore, the pieces that embarrass and shame us.
One of the most foolish things we do is to try to hide our hearts from the Lord. There's not a speck of my heart that's hidden from God. God knows every secret of our hearts: nothing escapes his loving, forgiving attention.
Lent is a time to bare our hearts before the Lord, trusting that he will be gentle with whatever is revealed.
God accepts our broken, sinful, contrite hearts with the desire to mend, forgive and heal them.
Let us open our hearts to the Lord who opened his heart for us...
Subscribe to A Concord Pastor Comments
lent2010
Thanks for these Lenten meditations. Whether I start or end the day with them, or stop everything during the day for a moment to think, they are just what I need.
ReplyDeleteRuthie
Wise words indeed and I pray that I can fulfil it (even for a microsecond!!)
ReplyDeletePhil