Monday, March 16, 2009

Lent 17: Time to think

It’s a blustery day for a bike ride, and the weather forecast predicts 55% chance of rain during my commute. I take a chance on the 45% and have a cold but pleasurable ride to work. I feel the wind on my cheeks, tugging at the fairing and the saddlebag that holds my rain gear. Overhead the clouds blow from ocean to mountains.

Some years ago, the city of Kirkland rerouted a main street. The paving is twice as long as the original straight shot road … and keeps cars in the protected area in lakeside wetlands longer. Because the street winds, the commuter cars stop and start up to the traffic light.

I take the old route along the shore this morning. No one else is in sight. A swampy woodland runs between the cars and me. Broken posts etch the footings where lake steamers used to dock before taking passengers across to Seattle. Last week herons and ducks perched above the calm surface of the water. Today waves slap against empty wood.

I wonder how often Jesus took side roads. Just because. Stepping out when it would have been easier to stay put. Though I didn’t meet anyone along the way, I had time to pray, to think, to thank God for the beautiful world in my neighborhood. Time to reflect on Lent, the season when Jesus was preparing for the road to the cross by teaching, healing, and visiting those he loved.

--God's peace to you today!

*The godly are showered with blessings; the words of the wicked conceal violent intentions. …The words of the godly are a life-giving fountain; the words of the wicked conceal violent intentions. Proverbs 10:6, 11 NLT

*Do you see a man who is wise in his own eyes? There is more hope for a fool than for him. Proverbs 26:12 NLT

*We do, however, speak a message of wisdom among the mature, but not the wisdom of this age or of the rulers of this age, who are coming to nothing.

No, we speak of God's secret wisdom, a wisdom that has been hidden and that God destined for our glory before time began. None of the rulers of this age understood it, for if they had, they would not have crucified the Lord of glory. However, as it is written: "No eye has seen, no ear has heard, no mind has conceived what God has prepared for those who love him" but God has revealed it to us by his Spirit. 1 Corinthians 2:6-10 NIV

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