first week of Lent - Monday

Waking up this morning, I found myself overwhelmed with a sense of gratitude realizing that community is being formed – Cheri in Cascade, Jami in Jenison, Tara in Buffalo, Leah in Seattle are living out
I Thessalonians 5:11 for me, “Therefore encourage one another and build each other up, just as in fact you are doing.” The Little Black Book suggests this morning that Lent is “a time when we think long thoughts about the long haul.”
Borrowing a phrase from the Beatles, I dare say that during the long haul of Lent, I’ll get by with a little help from my friends. And then this quote from Henri Nouwen came to my INBOX: “When we persevere with the help of a gentle discipline, we slowly come to hear the still, small voice and to feel the delicate breeze, and so to come to know the presence of Love.”

So, today, I’m grateful for a growing sense of community.
For gentle disciplines and the encouragement of friends.
For waking up refreshed and sharing with another a feast with God in the early hours.
Might God be praised on this Monday of the first week of Lent.