Soul Sister Time

Lent, the color of purple and church prayers invite us to ponder our sins in a way we normally avoid.   At least that is what happens for me.   I try to remember to repent.   I really do; it’s just so easy to overlook my own sins.   I have too many other things to think about.   Even in prayer, I forget my sins and get on with what is on my heart,--what I want God to do for me.   During a Lenten silent retreat I forced myself to focus on sins.   It was a slow and surprising effort.   I always begin silent retreats with a period of confession.   It just seems the place to start.   But then I move on.   I want to have adventures with God.   During my silence, I want to be loved, make a connection, and find out what God wants me to do with my life during my silence.   Rather than quickly cover confession I fully surrendered and even challenged myself to name as many sins as possible.   I needed God’s help in this ...

                On Good Friday I want to take extra time to meditate on Psalm 88.   I had no idea that I would discover harsher realities about Jesus’ journey to the cross than I already knew from the Bible.   On my recent trip to Jerusalem, when we were retracing the steps of Jesus, we walked into a place I had never heard of before.   It is not described in any of the Gospels.   I walked into a cistern that served as a holding cell in Jesus’ time.   Since it was right by Caiaphas’ home and there were crosses etched in the walls, it is believed that Jesus may have been held in this place in the dark of night while they waited for morning to bring Him before Pilate.                   My experience in the cistern prison was a sacred moment.   I didn’t fully comprehend where I was going as we walked down t...

            Spring brings with it accumulating light.   The light reaches its maximum stay by midsummer.   After a long dark winter, light is a welcome friend.   It changes moods and brings on anticipation for something better.   Have you experienced more contentment as the light has lingered during the day?             Light and confessing sin don’t seem to mix.   Yet, they definitely go hand in hand.   Without the cleansing from confession, the light would be shaded.   Confession of our sin is what brings us into the light of Christ.   His light shines brightest through us when we are most aware of His presence.   Confession increases the light that is visible to the people who live in our world.   The less of our sins and the more of God they see in us sheds light on God and gives Him more glory.     ...

I took a weekend Silent Lenten Retreat and learned how special the season of Lent (which means Spring) really is.   Being in the lovely setting where winter-spring becomes its own season, I discovered that the transformation from winter to spring reveals the transformation of our souls in Lent.   We had an absolutely gorgeous weekend to enjoy solitude with God.   Lent is a perfect season to see in nature what God is drawing out of us through the spiritual disciplines we focus on through penitence and preparation for Easter. It is the in-between season that shows us a lot about what we are doing spiritually through our focus on confession.    From a distance winter can seem stark and ugly.   I feel the same way about confession.   But if you take the time to see the winter (previous devotional) you can see that the winter season reveals realities that get masked over by the growth of summer.   In winter you become aware of what needs to be cleare...

            The Lenten Season invites believers to take part in a corporate fast.   The purpose of a fast is to become more aware of your powerlessness and to help you focus on God.   I think of my fasts from food as a way I show myself and God that I am really serious about the focus of prayer.   Of course as soon as the church gave a spiritual focus for fasting during Lent, we fallen humans found a way to focus on the food rather than the spiritual purpose.   Thus most people know more about Fat Tuesday and Mardi Gras that focus on anything but spiritual intimacy.               I first practiced fasting as a teenager with my youth group.   I didn’t realize what a gift this was to learn to fast for a day or two combined with prayer.   I connected this discipline with major decisions, and I often fasted before making major decisions for my life...

            In some religious Jewish communities, there is nothing more spiritually significant for a Jewish person than to Make Aliyah to Israel .   Transliterated aliyah means stepping up, going up, or assent.   It is considered moving up spiritually when you move to Israel from another country.   The only reason you would make such a dramatic move is for your soul.   It is a spiritual change for your soul.             Lent is a season of soul transformation.   It is an opportunity to move up spiritually.   This season is about perfecting your soul by working on character development.   The church fathers prescribed specific fasts and religious meetings during this season.   When fasts become legalistic, they lose their spiritual power and purpose.   I don’t practice Lent out of cultural conditioning but because the Holy Spirit dra...