 The two congregations worship at Lakewood on Sundays at 10:30 a.m. All are welcome!  Lent Devotion 20 It’s the middle of Lent. Maybe you have been setting aside time for prayer and contemplation. Maybe you have been trying to be open and malleable. Maybe you have been trying to be patient. Maybe you have been trying to cultivate a creative relationship with waiting. Maybe you have been focussing on more forgiveness in your life. Maybe you have been trying to move closer to your heart center. Maybe you have been trying to tap into the flow of love. Maybe you have been trying to disentangle yourself from negative messages. Maybe you have been trying to deprogram attitudes and assumptions that are harmful to you and others. Maybe you have been trying to disempower memories that cause pain. And by now, maybe you are wondering if anything is ‘happening’? Is it working? Are you getting more ‘holy’? I mean, we like measurable results. In his book, Meditations on the Sand, Alesandro Pronzato addresses the situation where it doesn’t seem like much is going on in our prayer life despite our best intentions. He writes: “In the desert I came to know this Arab saying: ‘There is always water at the bottom of a deep well. Unlucky is the man [person] whose rope is not long enough.’” We are told of Jesus spending 40 days in the wilderness maybe testing the length of his rope. And finding what he needed. Getting to the water. Whatever the length of our rope, we affirm a God that is seeking to make sure that we have access to water, even to living water, to Jesus. We are in relationship with a God, however we may imagine God, that seeks our highest good. Maybe we need a longer rope. We’re only half way through Lent. It will be provided. Water awaits. Note: The Lenten meditations for 2024 are written by Kim Wells and inspired by themes in the book Meditations on the Sand by Alesandro Pronzato written in 1981. |
Lakewood United Church of Christ 