Romans 13:8-12 NIV
[8] Let no debt remain outstanding, except the continuing debt to love one another, for whoever loves others has fulfilled the law. [9] The commandments, “You shall not commit adultery,” “You shall not murder,” “You shall not steal,” “You shall not covet,” and whatever other command there may be, are summed up in this one command: “Love your neighbor as yourself.” [10] Love does no harm to a neighbor. Therefore love is the fulfillment of the law. [11] And do this, understanding the present time: The hour has already come for you to wake up from your slumber, because our salvation is nearer now than when we first believed. [12] The night is nearly over; the day is almost here. So let us put aside the deeds of darkness and put on the armor of light.

When I was young and pretty we became foster parents. We met children for short and long times. Some stayed for years and some I wished had stayed longer.

Veronica was the baby we loved so much and were forced to relinquish. We offered to adopt all of her siblings. Destiny was her older sister, a beautiful little girl who had been through a lot by the time I met her.

Her mom died a few years ago and she contacted me, angry that I had written about her mom without really knowing her faults.

I knew some of her faults, but still cared about her and mourned when she died.

Destiny died the same way her mom did on Easter Sunday.

She was a beautiful young woman like her mother and her sisters.

What can I say? What can I do?

We all live flawed lives, but we still matter. We leave holes in the world for what was and what could have been.

The argument simmered under the surface for years. The paternity of the little girl was questioned by her (alleged) paternal grandmother.

I don’t know how many times she made the argument, but when I talked to her all her sons were still living. She said the girl was the child of the identical twin brother.

Which either way woulda made her the grandma…

Never mind

She is my little girl now

I don’t like what happened to her mom in either life or death.

But I am grateful she is here with me

Spitfire pixie

Matthew 21:37-40 KJV

[37] But last of all he sent unto them his son, saying, They will reverence my son. [38] But when the husbandmen saw the son, they said among themselves, This is the heir; come, let us kill him, and let us seize on his inheritance. [39] And they caught him, and cast him out of the vineyard, and slew him. [40] When the lord therefore of the vineyard cometh, what will he do unto those husbandmen?

I think about his robe, his beautiful, seamless robe. Like the Cross, its molecular integrity is gone by now–not in a cathedral somewhere, not in a tomb. They cast lots for it, so as not to destroy its value,

A thrift store God–

Giving us

A seamless robe

he paid full price

I have been some sort of follower of Jesus my whole life and I never looked up the meaning of “lent” until this morning.

It means to elongate or lengthen and it refers to the passage of days in spring into summer. It means the spring season.

Ironically, this makes me feel better about all the years my arbitrary Lenten prohibitions have been less than fulfilled to the letter of the law.

Lent is grace.

I remember teaching at a community college in Maryland and looking at the sky in early March. I could see how the light lasted a little longer each day before the evening classes for adult learners.

I had a Russian student who had or feigned a crush on me. I see him holding roses with the evening sun behind him. For almost thirty years I have thought of that acknowledgment of lent in the days when winter starts to lose its sway and light stretches forth.

What does Jesus want from lent? What does he want from us?

He wants our full passion and attention. He wants us to walk in the light.

Psalm 9:8-11 KJV

[8] And he shall judge the world in righteousness, he shall minister judgment to the people in uprightness. [9] The Lord also will be a refuge for the oppressed, a refuge in times of trouble. [10] And they that know thy name will put their trust in thee: for thou, Lord, hast not forsaken them that seek thee. [11] Sing praises to the Lord, which dwelleth in Zion: declare among the people his doings.

Psalm 104:2-6 KJV

[2] Who coverest thyself with light as with a garment: who stretchest out the heavens like a curtain: [3] Who layeth the beams of his chambers in the waters: who maketh the clouds his chariot: who walketh upon the wings of the wind: [4] Who maketh his angels spirits; his ministers a flaming fire: [5] Who laid the foundations of the earth, that it should not be removed for ever. [6] Thou coveredst it with the deep as with a garment: the waters stood above the mountains.