Ready or not, it’s February!

The older I get (and I know I am not that old), the more speedily time seems to move.  This Friday, February 2nd, marks 40 days after Christmas, which seems like it was less than a week ago.  And this year, due to the timing of Easter, the season of Lent starts in just 2 weeks.  It feels too soon!  I want more time to celebrate the light, more time to enjoy the reality of Jesus’s incarnation. I don’t want to think about his death just yet – he was just born!

Indeed, there is never a good time to think about unpleasant truths nor to escape the reality that time goes on at the same pace it always had; our awareness just changes.  The impatience of childhood gives way to the responsibilities of adulthood, which can feel overly burdensome if we let it. We can give into the model of scarcity – that there is never enough of anything – or we can seek another way.

Thank God there is another way! We can receive the present as a present.   That is, we can accept the gift of “right now” with joyful abandon.  There will never be another “right now.”  It is a unique and special event, even if it feels rather mundane, or it is painful or sad.  The present will be over soon, just a memory, as all must, and while some should be forgotten, others can offer transformation.

If we wait to “find time” or “make time” to do something, it may never happen. It takes commitment to experience time in a different way.  Rather than moving through it, we can move with it, using time to our greatest advantage by acknowledging the greatness of each moment. Granted, we cannot do this all the time, or we would never sleep, but setting aside 10 to 20 minutes a day to be in the present may greatly impact all aspects of your life. 

It can be as simple as taking a few minutes at the end of the day to review what happened, what you are you thankful for and offering thanks to God; seeing where you need God’s guidance and asking for that help; offering prayers for all manners of health for yourself and others.  This practice is a simplified version of the St. Ignatian Examen model.  It is a great way to be present to God and yourself.

Not only does such a practice feel like you are slowing down the rapid pace we live life, it also nurtures our relationship with God.  I feel the presence of the Holy Spirit more powerfully when I take a moment to breath deeply and connect to the Spirit that lives in me.  While the Spirit is always present to me, I am not always present to the Spirit.  When I am, I feel more connected to God and the spiritual resources that allow me to live well.  This is especially true in moments of crisis or difficultly.  When such a practice is accessible – feeling connected to God when all seems to be in chaos – it is a tremendous gift.

Even though Lent is still a couple of weeks away, I invite all of us to consider how best we can enter into this blessed season as humble pilgrims seeking to be closer to God.  This and other spiritual practices allow us those opportunities and make our time here on Earth even better.  We will all have the opportunity to explore these more deeply with our Lenten Program starting on February 21st (more details to come).

February is the shortest month and I am sure it will feel like it is over before it even began.  However, let us do what we can to savor those precious moments when we accept the present of the present through the presence of Jesus Christ in our lives and give thanks for all that we have been given.

In Christ,

Rev. Valerie+

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