by Elizabeth Crewes
The word comes from the old English word for lengthen. It is the time of year when Spring begins, and the sun warms the earth, and the trees and flowers start to show signs of growth.
It is also a time that is lent to us, a time to take note, to rest and breathe deeply the changes occurring around us. God lends us this time, like Jesus in the wilderness to take stock, to listen to God in the stillness, to ask for His direction in our lives.
We started the year with possible good intentions, but they fade as the world’s demands crowd in on us. So, this time that Lent gives us is a second chance to start again to put ourselves in the right place with God, to ground ourselves in the rich earth of our being and allow our roots to be nourished and to clear the deadness within us and allow God to grow in us.