In the Bleak Mid-Winter – by Pastor Kimby
It seems to have been a long hard winter this year. It feels darker and colder. The snow days seem to drag on and on. Spring has seemed far far away. Lent is late this year, because Easter is late this year – one day short of the latest it can be. But as we turn the calendar into March and the strong winds blow, the signs of Spring begin to emerge – and we hold on to those signs of life. The promise of life begins to break through the ice, offering renewal and hope. Ash Wednesday, March 6 this year, the first Wednesday of March, will mark the beginning of our forty day journey toward resurrection. On Ash Wednesday we will examine and experience the signs of God’s love in Lent. The worship service will be structured around seven signs of grace – Dust and Ashes; Oil and Anointing; Head, Hands and Heart; Cross and Reconciliation; Water and Spirit; Bread and Body; Wine and Blood.
During the forty days of Lent, we count off the signs of God’s love all around us, we count down the days to new life, we count on the promises of God’s grace freely given. We wait. We hope. We believe. We work toward a world made new. This Lent during worship we will be exploring a few of the parables of Jesus – the stories Jesus told about how faith grows. Each day of Lent you are encouraged to think about your faith, to consider how you might grow in your faith and grow closer to God, or how you might help someone else to more fully know God’s love.
Each day of Lent, as the days grow longer, the sun shines brighter and the world seems warmer, we remember God’s promises of renewal and hope. We remember that just as God promises to stand with us through the bleak mid-winter and the darkening storms, so God moves with us into the brightening day. We remember that God promises that seasons come and seasons go, and always new life is a gift of a loving creative God. We remember that God promises hope for tomorrow and good possibilities ever before us. We remember that God can move mountains and that God promises to move among us with the very breath of life – the very Spirit of Creation.
So, although it may still be bleak mid-winter, the calendar page is turning and the promises of God are true. Hold on to that grace. And look for the signs of God all around you. The signs are there. Everywhere. Wherever you look. Pay attention. Behold. God is with us!