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So we have finished the Christmas season and I hope it was as good as you and your family hoped it to be. For some of us, this may not have been the case for various reasons and trust and pray that with each day there might be a step towards a different time and more positive experience.
At this stage the Church's calendar is focused on a time called Lent beginning on Ash Wednesday (I used to think it was about smoking!). This year on the 5th March. Easter is a moveable festival that is much later this year and for about 6 weeks from Ash Wednesday to what is known as Holy Week starting with Palm Sunday. The colour purple is put into play like the time before Christmas (Advent) both seasons of examining and waiting for something special and hopeful that can transform us as individuals even as a community.
Ash Wednesday does have a connection to smoking in the sense that it is part of giving up or getting into a better, healthier way of living. Usually it is about chocolate! So giving up smoking or any other form of addiction, might be a good time to go through a process. In some ways if January did not work for new years resolutions then this another good time in the calendar that we can reset. So a little about Lent.
This Lent we are encouraged to put down deep roots of hope by connecting with God who is with us at all times.
The Church of England’s Lent theme for 2025 is Living Hope. This is from the Church of England website and really helpful in understanding
'In Lent we journey with Jesus on the difficult and thorny road that leads all the way to the cross on Good Friday – and beyond, to the transformation of Easter Day.
God invites us to bring to him our own journey through everyday life. In the disappointment of daily setbacks and the pain of deeper hurts, we discover that God is present with us. And God promises a future where all things are healed and made new.
Living Hope offers us the opportunity to deepen our hope in God and be part of what God is doing to bring hope in the world.
The readings and reflections explore how we can have hope in times of frustration or uncertainty; the hope found in joining with others; the invitation to notice signs of hope around us; the courage to face reality and pursue a hopeful future; and the ways God transforms death into life at Easter.'
This church is going on a journey this Lent asking the question
'What are you taking up/what are you laying down?'
This question can be for us as individuals or as a community. My encouragement is taking up things that are positive not only for health and well-being but also our inner 'spiritual' lives, taking up better habits. Moving towards Easter is a goal towards transformation.
I would like to encourage us all to think about this question and engage this, developing a story about how we are getting on each week and hopefully getting support in achieving your aim. What is it that may be physically, emotionally and spiritually challenging even harmful to your well being that needs to change.
I pray we will have the courage to travel on this journey and perhaps be surprised by the outcome and not same old!
Rev Dean
Lent, 2025