February 27/First Saturday of Lent Happy are those who keep his decrees, who seek him with their whole heart. ~ Ps 119.2 How many of us can honestly say that we seek God with our whole hearts? Do we make a sincere effort to set time aside each day for prayer and reflection? Do we follow our parish services online…
Song 9: Rough Waters
February 26/First Friday of Lent Out of the depths I cry to you, O LORD; LORD, hear my voice!. ~ Ps 130.1-2 The only time I have truly felt myself to be in peril on the sea was years ago when, on a solo outing in the family Sunfish off the beach, I capsized. As the sail filled with water…
Song 8: Giving a Hand
February 25/First Thursday of Lent Your right hand saves me. Your kindness, O Lord, endures forever; forsake not the work of your hands. ~ Psalm 138.7-8 Years ago, at a fraught time in my life, a sympathetic friend noticed at dinner one night that I had tucked my thumbs firmly into my clenched hands, and gently asked why I was…
Song 8: Giving a Hand
February 25/First Thursday of Lent Your right hand saves me. Your kindness, O Lord, endures forever; forsake not the work of your hands. ~ Psalm 138.7-8 Years ago, at a fraught time in my life, a sympathetic friend noticed at dinner one night that I had tucked my thumbs firmly into my clenched hands, and gently asked why I was…
Song 7: Cleaning Up
February 24/First Wednesday of Lent A clean heart create for me, O God, and a steadfast spirit renew within me. ~ Ps 51.10 I first met this verse — which has served as a touchstone for me throughout my life — as a young Episcopalian choir girl. Our redoubtable choir director, Mrs. D, never missed an opportunity to teach us…
Song 6: Near, and Dear
February 23/First Tuesday of Lent Near is the LORD to the brokenhearted, and the crushed in spirit he saves. ~ Ps 34.19 We soldier on amid confinement and deprivation and isolation, waiting for a better day. Then — an unexpected death, a sudden job loss, a betrayal, and we are brought to our knees in shock and sorrow. The Hebrew conveys…
Song 5: The Peace That Passes Understanding
February 22/First Monday of LentFeast of the Chair of Saint Peter, Apostle The Lord is my shepherd; I shall not want.He makes me lie down in green pastures; he leads me beside still waters;he restores my soul. ~ Ps 23.1-3a Before COVID-19, it was our frantic pace and hectic schedules that kept us from attaining the green pastures and still…
Song 4: Dependents
February 20/Saturday after Ash Wednesday Incline your ear, O LORD, and answer me, for I am poor and needy. Preserve my life, for I am devoted to you; save your servant who trusts in you. ~ Ps. 86.1-2 It isn’t easy to come right out and call ourselves poor and needy, is it? We have been trained by our culture to…
Song 3: My Bad
February 19/Friday after Ash Wednesday For I acknowledge my offense, and my sin is before me always: “Against you only have I sinned, and done what is evil in your sight.” ~ Ps 51.5-6 Not long ago, after a botched ice-maker repair by a local company, I fumed to my husband, “The worst thing is that they didn’t even apologize!” Reluctance…
Song 2: The Company We Keep
February 18/Thursday after Ash Wednesday Happy are those who do not follow the advice of the wicked, or take the path that sinners tread, or sit in the seat of scoffers; but their delight is in the law of the Lord, and on his law they meditate day and night. ~ Ps 1.1-2 If there is one thing we have learned as…