40ish Days of Lent: Days 17-18

As we head into the weekend i have combined today and tomorrow into one post. Please use accordingly.

They say ‘Familiarity breeds contempt’ although i would say sometimes that ‘Familiarity breeds familiarity’ which means that sometimes things that are completely profound, can lose some of their depth and meaning [for us] simply because we see them so many times that we get used to them and possibly skim over them and in one way take them for granted.

Task: The task for this weekend is simply to take a Psalm you probably know really well and read it slowly, more purposefully and a few times through, meditating on each line and trying to see it with fresh eyes. Read it out loud and the let the words speak to you and remind you of the promises of God to you.

DAY 17

1 The Lord is my shepherd, I lack nothing.
2     He makes me lie down in green pastures,
he leads me beside quiet waters,
3     he refreshes my soul.
He guides me along the right paths
    for his name’s sake.
4 Even though I walk
    through the darkest valley,
I will fear no evil,
    for you are with me;
your rod and your staff,
    they comfort me.

5 You prepare a table before me
    in the presence of my enemies.
You anoint my head with oil;
    my cup overflows.
6 Surely your goodness and love will follow me
    all the days of my life,
and I will dwell in the house of the Lord
    forever.

DAY 18

Task: The task for today is simply to take a Psalm you probably know really well and read it slowly, more purposefully and a few times through, meditating on each line and trying to see it with fresh eyes. Read it out loud and the let the words speak to you and remind you of the promises of God to you.

1 I lift up my eyes to the mountains—
    where does my help come from?
2 My help comes from the Lord,
    the Maker of heaven and earth.

3 He will not let your foot slip—
    he who watches over you will not slumber;
4 indeed, he who watches over Israel
    will neither slumber nor sleep.

5 The Lord watches over you—
    the Lord is your shade at your right hand;
6 the sun will not harm you by day,
    nor the moon by night.

7 The Lord will keep you from all harm—
    he will watch over your life;
8 the Lord will watch over your coming and going
    both now and forevermore.

[For the next post looking at day 19ish, click here]

40ish Days of Lent: Day 16ish

DAY 16ish

On day 1 of this Lent observance the task was to pray for your enemies and i imagine some people would have been all, ‘But i don’t have any enemies’ and others might have been tempted to send out a generic, ‘God please bless all my enemies’ prayer to cover them all.

Well, if you really don’t have anyone who you don’t like or who doesn’t like you [whether you would specifically call them ‘enemy’ or not] then use today to pray for a friend you know who does. I imagine for the most part though, each of us will have at least one person we can think of who is not our biggest fan or who irritates us immensely.

Task: Pick an enemy. Just one. Preferably someone who you don’t particularly like and if that person doesn’t exist [because you’re a much better person than i am] then someone who has something against you. Let that person [and just pick one] be the focus of your prayers and positive thoughts and maybe even actions today.

Mattew 5.44 But I tell you, love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you

So picture that person and actively spend some time praying for them. Not that they will become nicer or more friendly to you or a better person or anything like that, but ask God to reveal Himself to them and ask God to really fill their life with goodness.

Then take some time on this passage from Romans 12, keeping that person in mind. Start with the idea that ‘Love must be sincere’ and finish with the hope of ‘Do not be overcome by evil, but overcome evil with good.’

9 Love must be sincere. Hate what is evil; cling to what is good. 10 Be devoted to one another in love. Honor one another above yourselves. 11 Never be lacking in zeal, but keep your spiritual fervor, serving the Lord. 12 Be joyful in hope, patient in affliction, faithful in prayer. 13 Share with the Lord’s people who are in need. Practice hospitality.

14 Bless those who persecute you; bless and do not curse. 15 Rejoice with those who rejoice; mourn with those who mourn. 16 Live in harmony with one another. Do not be proud, but be willing to associate with people of low position.Do not be conceited.

17 Do not repay anyone evil for evil. Be careful to do what is right in the eyes of everyone. 18 If it is possible, as far as it depends on you, live at peace with everyone. 19 Do not take revenge, my dear friends, but leave room for God’s wrath, for it is written: “It is mine to avenge; I will repay,” says the Lord. 20 On the contrary:

“If your enemy is hungry, feed him;
    if he is thirsty, give him something to drink.
In doing this, you will heap burning coals on his head.”

21 Do not be overcome by evil, but overcome evil with good.

Now, if there is some action that is brought to your mind. Maybe dropping them a message of encouragement or something else that comes to mind. Dream of the possibility of that person who has been a source of pain to you, becoming a friend one day. Invite God to work that miracle.

[For days 17 and 18 Lent observance, click here]

40ish Days of Lent: Day 15ish

DAY 15ish

received this in an email from someone i don’t really know so well on the book of faces and figured it was a good reflection to have on this day:

Task: Join with me in praying this Lent Prayer “Lord, open my lips, and my mouth shall declare your praise.”

JOHN 11 Jesus then said, “I am the one who raises the dead to life! Everyone who has faith in me will live, even if they die. And everyone who lives because of faith in me will never really die. Do you believe this?”

Let us Pray: O God, who delights in innocence and restores it, direct the hearts of your servants to yourself, that, caught up in the fire of your Spirit, we may be found steadfast in faith and effective in works. Through our Lord Jesus Christ, your Son, who lives and reigns with you in the unity of the Holy Spirit, one God, forever and ever. AMEN

[For the next post – day 16ish – of Lent observance, click here]

40ish Days of Lent: Day 14ish

DAY 14ish

Task: Today is a simple but profound one. Intentionally show gratitude to someone for something you tend to take for granted.

I know we have looked at Gratitude already in this series, but i really want to take it a step deeper and for us to really look for someone in our day who does something for us and probably does not get thanked or appreciated or maybe even noticed.

Imagine if we could turn sad cashier [top] into happy cashier [slightly less top] simply by stopping for a second, addressing her by name, giving her thanks for the work she does and speaking a promise into her life. If you can take a moment right now to plan this intentional act and add a layer to it, even better.

Maybe it is writing a thank-you card and taking it on a shopping trip [even if you don’t need to go shopping] or baking some treat for your mailman or the guy who puts petrol in your car [if there is a guy who puts petrol in your car]. Perhaps it is a note for a teacher at school [maybe even the one you like the least] or a colleague or even your boss at work or secretary. The woman standing behind the snacks counter at the movies or the waitress who serves you your coffee. I’m not talking about simply saying , “Thank-you!” because i hope that’s a given – i am talking eye contact and name mention and a smile.

and salt, and light, and just being the bride or the body of Christ…

maybe even how we observe Lent today will help us fashion a positive habit of being like this on a more regular basis.

your little intentional moment might just make someone’s day. let’s let someone know they mean something good today. 

[for the next day’s observance of Lent, click here]

40ish Days of Lent: Day 13ish

There have still been people joining us in this Lent Observance and so a quick shout out to you. Glad to have you with us…

My apologies for the break in Lent Observance transmissions, but we were away this weekend at Yosemite. Tough break huh? Anyways, will be on track again from today and have revised the series name to 40ish Days of Lent – let’s see just how far we get.

DAY 13

So on Day 4 of this observance we took a look at something beautiful outside of our window that we may not have noticed before. Having just done the Yosemite park visit, I decided that we had to do something related.

Task: Find a piece of nature to take joy in.

Now, maybe all of us don’t have the opportunity to go and actually sit in it, but if you do then i want to encourage you to do that – walk to a nearby park, sit in you garden, go spend an hour at the beach, visit the botanical gardens in your city. Whatever it is, if you can do it live, then go do it live.

But if you are not able to physically get into nature, try and find a picture of you in nature or a photograph you took of some natural phenomenon – some time you were in it at least, and spend some time meditating on that.

Not everyone draws closer to God in nature, but i know a lot of people who do. If you are one of these people, this exercise and observance might come easily for you. But if you are not, then i encourage you to do it anyways as it will push you outside of your comfort zones which is not the worst of things.

Take some time to look at creation and be reminded of the Creator. That is today’s observance.

no words, just awe

approaching the rock tunne;

water falling

power of water over stone

Then share it with someone – take a photo and stick it on your facebook wall or add it to your instagram account or come and add a link in the comments section below. Write a poem or song inspired by your time in nature and send it to someone you know and love to encourage them and just show them some love. Find at least one person to specifically share today’s encounter with.

[For day 14ish of Lent, click here]

40 Days of Lent: Days 10-12

DAY 10-12

It is the weekend, and tbV and Aaron and Sarah and myself are having to Yosemite for the weekend to stay in a Yurt [look it up!], and it might be partially enforced for us, but I want to encourage you to try this for a couple of hours, or a day, or if you’re really feeling brave, the whole weekend.

Task: unplug yourself from the screens…

Turn off the television, step away from the computer screen, leave your phone completely off. Create a space this weekend to head outdoors for a long period of time, maybe with other people. Go for a walk or head to the nearest park of have a decently long drive.

Bake something and go and share it with a friend of drop it off with someone you know who may be going through a tough time at the moment. Grab some bats and head to the beach for a game. Invite some friends round for an evening’s worth of board games. Grab some instruments and have a worship jam.

I would love to hear what you get up to. Take time this weekend to consider how much space and time you give to the screens in your life and whether that it a good thing or not, or whether there might be some people who you would be better off giving face time to.

[For the next Observance day of Lent, click here]

40 Days of Lent: Day 9

DAY 9

Task: Read through and pray this prayer of humility

[taking time on each line to let it sink in and really mean it as you speak it,and if possible i would suggest that you find a space where you can speak it out loud so you can hear the words as you say them]

O Jesus! meek and humble of heart, Hear me.

From the desire of being esteemed, Deliver me, Jesus.

From the desire of being loved, Deliver me, Jesus.

From the desire of being extolled, Deliver me, Jesus.

From the desire of being honored, Deliver me, Jesus.

From the desire of being praised, Deliver me, Jesus.

From the desire of being preferred to others, Deliver me, Jesus.

From the desire of being consulted, Deliver me, Jesus.

From the desire of being approved, Deliver me, Jesus.

From the fear of being humiliated, Deliver me, Jesus.

From the fear of being despised, Deliver me, Jesus.

From the fear of suffering rebukes, Deliver me, Jesus.

From the fear of being calumniated [have false and defamatory statements made about me], Deliver me, Jesus.

From the fear of being forgotten, Deliver me, Jesus.

From the fear of being ridiculed, Deliver me, Jesus.

From the fear of being wronged, Deliver me, Jesus.

From the fear of being suspected, Deliver me, Jesus.

That others may be loved more than I, Jesus, grant me the grace to desire it.

That others may be esteemed more than I, Jesus, grant me the grace to desire it.

That, in the opinion of the world, others may increase and I may decrease, Jesus, grant me the grace to desire it.

That others may be chosen and I set aside, Jesus, grant me the grace to desire it.

That others may be praised and I unnoticed, Jesus, grant me the grace to desire it.

That others may be preferred to me in everything, Jesus, grant me the grace to desire it.

That others may become holier than I, provided that I may become as holy as I should, Jesus, grant me the grace to desire it.

[composed by Rafael Cardinal Merry del Val]

[For the next post inviting you to a weekend of Lenting, click here]