Lent Day 31: Hello and goodbye

Do you ever get attached to something, only to have it move on or change? Maybe you've had:

• friendships that nurtured you become broken or diminished by a move, a change of life-season, or other reasons.
• a child with aspirations and dreams, except they were born with (or acquired) limitations that throw normal life out the window.
• a job that was a perfect fit ... until it wasn't.
• a financial plan that somehow turned into financial chaos.
• a church that used to be home and became toxic for you or the family.
• a trusted mentor who ended the relationship and told you to go elsewhere.
• Or ?

From Real Simple Daily Thought

Life swarms with changes. Some of them are so wonderful that we remember them with a smile, embellishing them in memories until they take on epic status. Some changes are so devastating that our scars hurt for years.

"Hello"s and "Goodbye"s share our dreams, our hopes, and our fears. There's no perfect year. Maybe not even a perfect month or week.

Let's focus on the day that is, regardless of the past or future! How?

1. Be grateful for THIS time and place. I keep repeating the "gratitude" mantra, because it resets our complain button to acknowledge that God loves us. Here. Now. This way. THIS IS the day He made; we shall rejoice and be glad IN IT.
2. Take time to evaluate what needs doing and what can be left alone. When life is in motion, I don't have to follow unnecessary rituals. You don't have to tie yourself to every routine.
3. Which resources do you need to negotiate the hello or goodbye? A flowsheet? A mindmap? A trusted adviser? A new car?
4. Look at what you have at hand. Can you partner with friends who are experts in what you don't know? Can you borrow or rent a tool or vehicle? Can you make do with what you have stored?
5. Move through the day. Some days it's enough to put one foot in front of the other. Other days I'll have to swim a deep stream. You'll have to climb a mountain. Or we'll only have enough strength to drop on our knees to beg for wisdom. Show up, whatever your motion!
6. Celebrate the hellos and mourn the goodbyes. No new beginning is perfect. No ending is without its grief. 
7. How mindful can you be? Notice the food you eat, the way your body cooperates, and the feast of possibilities. 

Wishing you a wonderful day in which you live and move and have your being in the Father's love.

Read more:
*You saw how the Lord your God carried you, just as one carries a child, all the way that you traveled. Deuteronomy 1:31 NLT

*He was cut off from the land of the living, stricken for the transgression of my people. Isaiah 53:8 NLT

*Your light will break forth like the dawn, and your healing will quickly appear; then your righteousness will go before you, and the glory of the Lord will be your rear guard. Then you will call, and the Lord will answer; you will cry for help, and he will say: Here am I. Isaiah 58:8-9 NIV

*Was it not necessary that the Messiah should suffer these things and then enter into his glory? Luke 24:26 NLT

*So we have known and believe the love that God has for us. 1 John 4:16

Moravian Prayer: Jesus, our Brother, in your suffering we see the extent to which love can go. You invite us to walk the path of servant love with you. We hesitate, but you promise that we will not be alone as we bring your healing love to a hurting world.

Carry us today, O God, as a loving parent. Encircle us in your arms so we may feel a child-like trust and joy in knowing that we are fully and freely loved and that nothing will ever separate us from you. Amen.