A Concord Pastor Comments: Praying 10 Minutes A Day: Fifth Week/Wednesday

I drove by a local supermarket this morning where the sidewalk chalkboard included this announcement:

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Easter is April 8!

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It occurred to me that some folks driving by might be taken by surprise that Easter is just around the corner -- unless they've seen those little yellow guys (above) on shelves just about everywhere!

But if you're reading here, you've probably been getting ready for Easter for five weeks now. Yup! We're now five weeks out from Ash Wednesday. And we've only got about a week to go before Lent ends with the liturgy on Holy Thursday night (April 5).

For some of us, Lent has been a season of renewal and growing closer to the Lord through prayer, sacrifice and serving the poor. Some may have found this season challenging and difficult. Some of us have been faithful to the Lenten plan we set for ourselves on Ash Wednesday and others might be looking back, wondering what happened to our best intentions. And some of us might be thinking that Lent 2012 is a project yet begun!

If this has been a time of prayer and sacrifice, praise God for the grace that has supported you through season. If these weeks have been a struggle, thank God for helping you try again and again (and maybe again!) to live the life Lent offers us. And if you've not yet "started" Lent - know that it's not too late to do so!

In this season, we've been setting apart 10 minutes a day for prayer, to be still... to know that God is near...

As Holy Week approaches:

I can look back on Lent and thank God for the times I've been faithful to prayer, for the times I've been faithful to my personal Lenten pledges, for the times I've reached out to those in need...

I can look back on the ways I've faltered in living Lent and thank God for the times I "started over again...

I can look back on Lent and ask God's Spirit to help me see where God has been moving in my life in this season...

I can look back on Lent and ask God to help me see what this season has taught me about my relationship with the Lord, about my faith, about my prayer, about my willingness to serve the poor...

And if Lent has been rocky or hasn't even yet got off the ground, I can thank God that I have this final week of Lent ahead of me, that I can begin even now to pray, sacrifice and serve as my preparation for Easter...

If Lent is just beginning for me, I can remember that THIS is the day the Lord has made! That THIS is the time to be still... that THIS is the time to step aside from business as usual... that THIS is the time to sit, alone, with the Lord... that THIS is time to be still... and to know that God is near...

A prayer to begin my prayer...

Lord Jesus:
you are here now,
always
and only
because you want me
and want to be with me.

Lord Jesus:
I am here now,
again
and only
because I want you
and want to be with you.

Lord Jesus,
help me surrender
to your love,
your mercy
and your Holy Spirit...

Are you new to "Praying 10 Minutes a Day in Lent" - or are you having trouble getting started? The first installment offers some thoughts on getting started, as do the subsequent posts in the series. So take a look and join us!