Bobbi Salkeld

It’s the third week of Lent. We journey toward Easter together. Here's what I've been thinking about this Lent. 

Lent is a pilgrimage to Easter that begins with ashes. Strangely, ashes symbolize the end, so it’s a funny place to start. By placing ashes on our foreheads at the beginning of Lent, we acknowledge a reality of Lent – that even at the beginning, the end is present. 

Life is composed of cycles. Light burns away and becomes dark, but darkness never lasts forever. Winter gives way to spring – even after the latest heavy snowfall, we know the ground can’t stay snow-covered for much longer. And still, winter will come again. Pain momentarily finds relief, but relief is not something we enjoy forever. 

Midway through the Gospel of Mark, Jesus calls the crowd to him and tells them that the way of the cross is his way (Mark 8). In the next paragraph, Jesus is up on a mountaintop, giving his disciples one of the most ecstatic experiences of their lives: the transfiguration (Mark 9). The cycles of relief and sorrow carry on to the end. Flip through the last chapters, and you will see it too. 

Some cycles rip through us with destruction, like the end of a life or the fierceness of war. Some cycles lift our hearts with awe, like the face of a newborn or a springtime sunrise. In Lent, we pay special attention to the season’s emotional companions: stubborn sorrow, spring’s new life, and Easter’s bright joy. 

You aren’t doing anything wrong if you feel all of that, some of that, or none of it. It’s a cycle – Lent can be empty or full this year, next year, or the year after. 

And still, I invite you into Lent's rhythms with a meditation for your body at this midpoint in the season. 

Draw your attention to the Lenten themes of beginnings and endings as you connect to your experience of being in your body right now. 
 

A Lent Meditation for Our Bodies

Begin with your breath. 
Noticing the cycle of inhaling and exhaling. 
The way our chest rises and falls. 
Rises and falls. 
Spirit, inspire in my body
silent reflection for care. 

Look down at your arms and hands. 
Notice the opening and closing cycle. 
Your hands can be open to receive, and your hands can clench to resist. 
Receive and resist. 
Spirit, inspire in my body  
steady service for others.  

Pay attention to your stomach.
Notice how wisdom churns in your gut.
And when you listen to unease and pleasure within, 
you find divine knowing. 
Spirit, inspire in my body 
trust for what is good. 

Sense your feet on the floor.
Notice that you are grounded. 
And still, the pilgrimage of Lent asks you to move 
and make sacrifices for love.
Spirit, inspire in my body 
movement toward new life. 
Amen.

Holy Week was incredible together!
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