Thursday after Ash Wednesday
In today’s Deuteronomy reading, Moses says to the people, “Today I have set before you life and prosperity, death and doom.”
In Luke, Jesus says, “What profit does he show who gains the whole world and destroys himself in the process?”
In both readings, we’re given the paradox of life: abundance and death. Both are present all the time, and yet we humans prefer the blind flight into abundance and are shocked by the sudden stop when our flight is blocked.
It’s hard to keep life and death in our consciousness at the same time. That’s why Lent is so valuable: for a short period of time, we force ourselves into conscious behavior when we abstain from something, whether that something is food or drink or a behavior.
What paradox are you facing today? Maybe it’s as simple as knowing a springtime day promises while still feeling the chill of winter at your fingertips or toes; maybe it’s a longing for that usual mid-morning coffee you have decided to forego; maybe you are looking at your tendency to worry and choosing not to.
Name the paradox; look at it. Where is your balance point in living them both, today?
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janetsunderland.com 
i walked away from lent along time age, i think it was when wally gave up watermelon for lent, but i can see how it’s a useful exercise for the determined life.
that giving up watermelon will do it every time… or worry. How ’bout you could give up worry??? (just for six weeks, my dear, not forever)