It’s just been a tough couple of weeks..certainly don’t want to compare myself to Job, but at my lowest moments, that’s where I’m going. Why is it that at times the struggles seem to come from every direction? No matter what I plan for my ‘lenten sacrifices/promises,’ God always has other plans. And so, in the midst of all of this ‘garbage’ which I’m dealing with now, God is there. And so, my next questions must become, “What am I to learn from this…..how can I grow from this?”
And, as I oscillate between wallowing in self-pity and holding out for the sunrise, I catch a glimpse of my daffodil bulbs poking through the winter ground. In the midst of the snow and cold, the dead leaves and twigs, the promise of spring bursts through. The fresh green of new life reaching up to the heavens…..now that is LENTEN HOPE!
Reflections on the Journey 
I too find that Godde has other plans for me for Lent. She asks me to give up things that I had not intended to, or even thought couldn’t be given up, but in fact can be — like, in my case, ‘time.’ It is not so much that it is tough, but disorienting…
I recognize the ‘wallowing’ as well.
With you, I celebrate the Lenten Hope and send you my love and blessings.
Thank you Claire. Yes, God can be quite ‘disorienting’ – great word
Andie, that is a very comforting post. We need to gain strength for our journey from the hope of spring which is a reflection of the Lenten hope. Let us all pray that our Church will feel Lenten hope and the Holy Spirit will be very present with the entire Church during this time of disorientation.
God bless.
Yes Lynda…I think we need to pray for the Church now, I join you in that prayer.
I recognise the feeling when everything seems to go wrong and get worse. Through gritted teeth I pray over and again “Praise you Lord”.
I am not Praising Him because things are going wrong; but because He is still in charge.
I am praying for you Andie; right now.
God bless.
Thank you Victor, I rely on those prayers! We do need to remember that He is still in charge, although I fight him for that job too often!
It was nice of you to visit my blog and leave a comment for me. I do hope you will visit again sometime. I can relate to your troubles coming from every direction . This time I go to the Lord and put into action on howhe has shown me how to handle the problems …..by givng to them and not to worry. So far I am calm even though the storm blows all around me. Blessings Dee
Thanks Dee, I will surely return! Calm through the storms, I will let those words bring me peace.
These past two years have been very difficult for me, where I feel God is leading me through a painful growth period. Why I can’t say that I know how I feel, I do know how it feels to be in between self-pity and trying to hold on to hope.
Keep up the good work!
Jose Daniel Pinell
Thanks for sharing that Jose. It’s so beautiful that you recognize those painful periods as growth periods. Let us pray for each other.