Thankfully Thoughtful Thursday

It's a bit of a dreary day here in the neighborhood. The wind has been blowing my new flowers (and my attempt at a good hair day) around and the sky looks like it could unleash a downpour at any moment. Never-the-less, it seems calm and uneventful. Very few cars have driven by. My phone has been eerily silent today and my son is napping like the little angel he is.

My heart has been heavy and my mind stirred. Seems like my allergies aren't the only things this wind is rousing up. But I must say, it has been a great day for thoughtful reflection. With gray skies, the house is darker. I collected some of my favorite candles for meditation and lit them, allowing the fragrance to fill the room. I then proceeded to enjoy a very calm yet intense Pilate's workout. Now that I had centered my body, it was time to center my mind.

One thing I've started doing more lately is meditation. I find a great sense of peace and stress relief when I do it. The music, especially when I listen to Tibetan singing bowls and traditional Indian flute, whisk me away into beautiful zen. Though both the Japanese and the Sanskrit languages have words and definitions for zen, I enjoy that the Chinese refer to zen as "quietude". This sort of plays off of where I was going on my last post. This fundamental concept of simply being still.

Stillness is nearly impossible in a world of ringing phones, screaming children and endless stress. But when I am able to truly center myself physically and mentally, I find that my ability to center myself spiritually is heightened. When I'm truly "quite", I can sense the Holy Spirit deeper and I can meditate on the Word of God.

These days, in this time of lent, when we are approaching the heart wrenching realization of Good Friday, I believe we are called to be quite. Jesus, on the night in the Garden of Gethsemane, sought the quiet, the stillness in order to truly communicate with God. I think about how Christ must have felt those last days. How he knew of betrayal, but loved anyway. How Jesus knelt before God and prayed like we pray, even to the point of asking for pardon. But in the midst of this garden, in the knowing of what was to come, Christ had confidence in God's will. In a similar position, or even in the trials we are facing today, do we have the same confidence? Are we quiet enough, often enough and good enough to hear God? To pray for God's will to be done?

Good Friday is also a day when we remember the sins we've committed that we know we shouldn't have. We recall the pain we've caused Jesus with our transgressions.

Whatever you need to do to be quiet, do it for yourself, as an Easter gift. Give yourself the time to be thoughtful and reflective on what this season really means. Also, take this time to be naked (in the spiritual sense) before God asking for forgiveness for that which you need to repent of. Lastly, be thankful. Thankful for the sacrifice of God, the suffering of Christ and the forgiveness of your sins. I'm a firm believer that unless you take the time to truly reflect on that which happened on Good Friday, you will never fully appreciate the gift that is Easter. Do yourself this favor. I promise, it will have a renewing and transforming affect.

Be Blessed!