Thoughts for the Month

APRIL

We are halfway through Lent – Mothering Sunday was the last Sunday in March and now, we are moving towards Holy Week and Easter.

I wonder what ‘Lent’ means to you? We’re told that it is a time of preparation; a time to think of the final weeks and days of Jesus’ life; a time for us to contemplate our lives. Many folk ‘give up’ something for Lent – chocolate, wine, something they enjoy… a way of denying temptation; others, choose to ‘give’ something each day – a smile, a bar of chocolate, a kind word. It matters not what you choose to do so long as you spend a little time each day thinking of the journey that Jesus trod and how it affects you.

Lent is certainly a time for ‘thinking’ about so many things. For me, this year, I will be going back to my ‘Thoughts for January’ – why? Well, I said I wasn’t making any resolutions because, with the best of intentions, I never keep them. Instead, I had thoughts – Janus… looking forward and looking back. Nearly a third of the way through the year, I need to look back to see how I have fared so far this year. Is my ‘better’ of last year, ‘good’ this year or have I slipped back?

Our lives are so busy – it is so difficult to find time to do all the things we want or need to do. I get up early and if I do not set aside some time then to read my Bible and talk or just listen to God I know it will be night time and I’ll be too tired and I’ll go to bed thinking …I should have… When is the best time for you?

Taking time to contemplate is good for us all. Setting aside a quiet time, whether it be first thing in the morning or last thing at night gives us an opportunity to spend time with our Lord. A time, not only talking to Him but also being absolutely quiet, trying to empty our minds of every day busy-ness and allowing Him to talk to us. We don’t have to ‘chatter’ to Him all the time – He knows our innermost thoughts so we don’t have to verbalise every thought – He knows it. We do have to ‘be quiet’ and ‘listen’ or we might end up missing something vitally important.

Towards the end of the month we will enter Holy Week, the most traumatic week of the Christian year - a time we should walk with our Lord accompanying Him along that so difficult path to Calvary.

In 1960 my parents went to Oberammergau to see the Passion Play. As it reached the climax of the Crucifixion there was an amazing thunder storm with huge claps of thunder and great flashes of lightning – it so moved my father, who had a strong faith, that he had great difficulty even speaking about it.  

And so to EASTER – when we will all have something to celebrate.

May we live our lives as our Lord would wish us to and in true thanks for all that He suffered for us.

 ‘…Jesus, aware of their inner thoughts…’  (Luke Ch.9 v 47)