This year, I have not really been observing Lent. I am very aware that this is the “biggest Christian holiday of the year!” and “Anyone who call themselves Christians need to observe Holy Week”, but this year has been a busy one. If getting caught up in one’s own world could count for a Lenten practice, I would score full points.
However, God has a way of reaching out to us when we least expect it. On tough days when I am dealing with a lot of stress due to different ongoing things in life, for some reason my spirit notices small love notes from God all over the place – sparrows perched in the trees having morning conversations over breakfast, spouses exchanging hugs before seeing one another off on the city buses, kids reading with their parents on the train. These small things grab my attention and draw my spirit away from worrying about what’s next on my agenda to focus instead on the present moment and the tiny miracles that happen everyday around me. It’s not that they don’t exist when I’m in a great or rough mood, but I think that I just don’t notice things like this enough and appreciate them for the beauty and love they bring to my life.
Here is a song I heard on CBC Radio 2 several weeks ago that made me literally stop my work, sit up and take notice to do nothing but listen. Tom Allen, our loyal host, told his audience that this music has existed for over a thousand years, and still even now it is being sung. It amazed me that an expression of beauty and praise for God is capable of living that long and still remaining so awe-some, and I still can’t help but sit back and focus all my energy on listening to the lilt of the music even now.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=taanHO13WXE&list=PL4930590D1C95AE87&index=148
Ainsley
stbedeschapel 