Lenten Thoughts

Our chaplain sends out a Lenten thought every day. Here are two I would like to pass on to you. My thoughts are in italics.


Holy Jesus,Your forgiving love saves and disturbs me.
Without it, I am lost.
Yet, if I receive it, I must practice it.
By your mercy, make me merciful;
By your forgiveness,
help me to forgive as I have been forgiven.

Amen.--

Peter Storey (from a book entitled Listening at Golgotha: Jesus' Words from the Cross)

I think of how easily I accept God's forgiveness and how reluctant I am sometimes to pass it on!
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The circumstances of our lives are another medium of God’s communication with us.
God opens some doors and closes others....
Through the wisdom of our bodies, God tells us to slow down or reorder our priorities.
The happy coincidences and frustrating impasses of daily life are laden with messages.
Patient listening and the grace of the Spirit are the decoding devices of prayer.
It is a good habit to ask,
"What is God saying to me in this situation?"

Listening to our lives is part of prayer.

- Marjorie J. Thompson
Soul Feast

"The...frustrating impasses of daily life are laden with messages..." For many years now, God has been teaching me that interruptions and annoyances can become so much more if I listen to what He is saying to me through each situation. Often the point is obvious and could be life-changing...but am I willing to follow through?

For example - a human interruption of my 'important' duties and schedule is a lesson to be less goal-oriented and to notice those whom God puts in my path. Sometimes I wonder if I'll ever get it, but I can tell He's going to keep trying until I do!