Making Lent Linger - contemplating the next preparation...

Our lenten season was full of pressing in closer to the Lord, and what He desired for us to receive...

I was determined to speak only kind words to sweet tweener, even in the midst of any "tweener storms", and I think she was really trying to give up "arguing" or "talking back" (tho' she believes she is simply sharing her heart when it happens - smiling) - she didn't tell me so, but I heard and saw her check herself on more than one occasion, and she alluded to something "she was giving up" for lent...

one of those things a mother ponders in her heart!

I didn't want to pry; I wanted her to enjoy her personal interaction with the Lord - so I still don't know...but there weren't any tweener storms, just little spurts of being irritated at what the other said or done - no doubt bouts of carnality in each of our hearts;

the very reason we each desperately need the Lord  -

we counted the days with a stalk of wheat around the Lenten calendar that we ordered and Caleb Voskamp made -


...but I'm not quite ready to let go of this marking of time;

I'm not quite ready to even examine if the Lord accomplished a work in my heart;

I just want to still be in this contemplative place...

And so we are still counting...

We started with the day that First Fruits was celebrated - we know that day by the name of "Easter" -

Yes, Easter is the celebration of the Lord's Resurrection, but it is also First Fruits - a separate feast from Passover yet connected intimately to it, appointed by the LORD, and celebrated faithfully by observant Jews - and I didn't even know about it for so many years...

Another time of joy that points to Jesus as our Messiah...and the beginning of another count - one of 50 days.  Perhaps an invitation to practice Resurrection into new life?  Not just to celebrate His, but to begin the journey of making it our own; that every day of our life in Him is a little resurrection in and of itself? 

We are into day 4 of the count...would you like to join us?  And contemplate along with us?

This is what we are doing:

1) We have made a "count down" calendar...

Click here to download the plain "Word" version...

Click here to download a jpg image of the calendar...

2) Each day there is a reading from the Scripture

3) When we have finished the reading, we mark the calendar and place another stalk of wheat in a vase...we began with the stalk of wheat that traveled around the Lenten Calendar with us...

Our vase today...

The first readings are from Psalm 119 - one letter of the alphabet each day -

There's plenty of time to...

         Join us!?

Sharing with Walk with Him Wednesdays                                 And Imperfect Prose here