Selfie for Lent

O Lord, you have searched me and known me…

Psalm 139 was written for me. Even though it would be several millennia before I would be around to read it, the psalmist wrote its powerful words of examination with me in mind. As I read again, its powerful words of trust in God; words that acknowledge God’s presence in my life, I cannot help but consider them a mirror reflecting back my faith story.

Praying twice

Come, let’s sing out loud to the Lord!

Let’s raise a joyful sound to the rock of our salvation

Let’s come before him with thanks!

Let’s shout songs of joy to him!
Psalm 95:1 (Common English Bible)

My first theological conversations were shared in song. My first theology textbook was a hymnal. My earliest awareness of God in relationship with me was expressed by the singing voice.

Seeing God face to face and yet…

“I have seen God face to face and yet my life is preserved.”
Genesis 32:30

The words I often use to describe my faith/life journey begins,
“I cannot remember a time in my life when I have not been aware that I am a child of God and a member of a community of faith.”

“Remember”: the most significant word of Lent

There are occasions in the work of ministry when a pastor is invited into the sacred places of individual lives. The days following a death is one of those occasions. A family gathers and the act of remembering begins. It’s an act that includes stories and fact as the surviving family members attempt to move into a different reality. Weddings are also a time when the pastor is invited into a sacred family space.

While these occasions are important times, I’ve discovered that, at least for me, the most sacred moment in ministry takes place in the brief encounter on Ash Wednesday.

Remember

Lent is a period of penitence and preparation that begins with the word “repent.”  The liturgy of Ash Wednesday worship calls believers to repentance through a confession of sin.