Lent is coming. It’s always been a special time for me, as though the season itself provided me the courage to address those dark areas where God’s light was dimmed and grace was not completely at home. Those six weeks are better for aligning myself with grace than any New Year’s resolutions. As for what it is I do (or don’t), I’ve given up giving up candy a long time ago. Giving up is only one part of getting back in touch with the God who loves so completely. There is also the side of enjoying, appreciating, being grateful. A friend once gave up her favorite break from work, a cup of tea. The twinge of denial helped remind her of God’s loving presence whenever she thought about it having a cup. The next year, however, she decided not to give up tea, but to savor it, to think about how it came to be in her cup, where it was grown, how much work of human hands had been a part of its gift. It was for her a way to not only be aware of God’s presence but to offer her thanks for the wonders of creation. That intention opened her to so many other ways God was manifest to her in creation. So this year, I’ll try to identify something to delight in and something to let go of so that I might be more aware of the presence of God’s redeeming love in both savoring and in denial.
– Blog entry by a Sister of the Precious Blood