Yesterday was Ash Wednesday, and so I've had cause to think a little bit about life, Lent, and all of the sorts of things we tend to reflect on when the Mardi Gras beads all lie broken on the sidewalk and it's time to face the music.
A big theme for me this year (as is reflected in my Ash Wednesday sermon, which I'll link to at the end of this entry) has been finding constructive alternatives to the usual Lenten temptation of wallowing in grief and self-pity about how bad we are. Nothing against feeling some conviction from time to time, but I don't think it amounts to very much if it doesn't lead to some constructive action.
The image that has been coming to me, over and over again, in consideration of the Lenten journey is that of spring cleaning...something which, at least physically, desperately needs to be done around here. As I think about it, some spiritual spring cleaning isn't such a bad move, either. Take stock of some of the junk. Open up the windows and begin airing things out. Come up with some concrete plans to turn this house back into a home, and then put them into action. These big cleaning projects always result in some surprises, not always pleasant - "oh, crap, I thought I had washed all the plates...that explains why one was missing, and why this room smelled so godawful." On the other hand, sometimes those surprises turn out to be nice, like the time I found my guitar capo after it had been AWOL for six months, stuffed in a random bag instead of in my guitar case (where it should have been).
And so it goes in Lent. We look into the cobwebbed corners and dark closets that we generally try to ignore. Sometimes, we find horrible messes in desperate need of attention, but sometimes...we find Christ, waiting there in the places we ignore, looking to give us the forgiveness and healing we need. Time to get ashed up and see where Christ is present in the midst of mess.
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