Ever been “stuck” and you aren’t sure why? It doesn’t happen to me often but when it does I am often surprised and perplexed. This month I was “stuck” in my thoughts about Lent. To be totally honest I really wanted to skip over Ash Wednesday and land on another L holiday, Valentine’s Day! I couldn’t quite do that though because I kept coming back to the ‘why’ question why do I need Ash Wednesday and a Lenten Intention in my life. I took my thoughts to the mat and simply gave them to God, not as a confession but as an offering of who and where I am with in thoughts. My prayer was that a Lent Intention that wasn’t about me but about Jesus would be revealed.
The first thing that happened when I got quiet was that I had to acknowledge and let go of my historical understanding of Lent practices. Which I discovered were all about me and my ability to abstain from things as trite as chocolate or shopping. Somehow, growing up, I missed the reason to give something up for Lent, to refocus my attention on Jesus, his mission and the journey he was on. It made sense to me as I grew in faith to give up something that could be redirected to a better purpose, something Jesus would ‘approve’ of i.e. quit buying Starbucks and give what you save to a charitable cause. Better, but really not that much of a sacrifice because, Starbucks isn’t a necessity, is easy for me to go without and my contribution didn’t really change anybody’s life, significantly. I mean it is easier to give money, maybe even time than it is to actually enter into someone else’s reality and love them.
The Ah ~ Ha moment! Lent is about Love! Whatever practice we choose for our Lent journey, whatever intention we set, if the outcome is saying yes to love, we will find ourselves faithful to the intention and message of Jesus. Jesus message was love, a message that cost him his life. A Lent practices that says yes to love, is a yes not so much about us but about being a follower of Jesus.
There is just one problem, why would we stop when Lent is over? Could we, do we, establish Lent practices that we continue after Lent? For many people, like New Years Eve resolutions, when Easter is over we let go of Lent Intentions. Wouldn’t it be beautiful if whatever we set as our Lent Intention and/or practice was something we could come back to regularly? Wouldn’t it BE lovely to practice saying yes to love as a regular faith and yoga practice?
That is my Lent Intention, to say yes to love when my inclination is to say no or to be indifferent. What is your Lent Intention? Practice? Share with us at Yogadevotion.com, our Yogadevotion Facebook page or Instagram #lentintent
Peace,
Pastor Cindy
