Lent Garden of Refreshment

 

This Lent season, I am aiming to be much more purposeful about the 40 days that are Lent. I always want to reflect more in this season, and it somehow escapes much of my daily practice.

Lent is meant to be a time of simplicity, reflection, and withholding. But that does not mean it needs to feel dry or lacking in beauty. So, I am keeping a few pages in my journal blank and listing each day of Lent. Each day, I note something that is beautiful or inspiring. It could just be a note about the crisp, chilly morning that I delight in so much. Or, the beauty of tulips even past their prime somehow still showcase a loveliness surpassed by no other flower I think.  

I am simply building a garden of refreshment in my Lent pages. It's nothing big. No pressure to do much. Sometimes my days feel so overwhelmed I don't have space to do much. This is a way to just note the blessing present in that day. At the end I will see the whole season with notes of goodness in the everyday. It is all about rearranging your thoughts to look at the good, the beautiful, and the gift of each new day. 

Do you do anything different for Lent? I am finding that changing a few things makes the season more meaningful. I have never given up things for Lent before, but this year I decided that giving up candy/cookies/chocolate/etc would be a good reminder each time I crave something sweet like that, to be turning my heart to God instead for the feeling of sweetness in His blessings. It is going well so far. 

Another thing I do every year is read through a poetry book that takes me through the whole season. My book of choice is Word in the Wilderness by Malcolm Guite. It is a book with a poem each day and a short reflection by Malcolm. It is a wonderful book I turn to every year.  

"...a gospel paradox takes us deep into the mystery of time. The paradox is about losing to find, giving away to gain, giving everything up only to find it given back in a new and more beautiful form."