Dear Friends,

The sacred season of Lent opens before us. Ash Wednesday is the first step in our journey with Jesus into the mystery of the Cross and the glory of the Resurrection.

Lent is an annual journey that most of us have taken for many years. We are familiar with the readings and rituals which lead us through these forty days. They are rich, complex, and profound – to the point that sometimes we may get lost in their complexity.

For the Lavish Mercy blog this year, I would like to simplify each day’s reflection by choosing only one word from the readings as the focus of each day’s prayer and meditation. My hope is that we receive that word in whatever manner it speaks to us in our particular circumstances.

You will notice that each day’s picture of the chosen word is overlaid on a repeated template:

The Word of God takes flesh in the person of Jesus and in our own lives. The purpose of our prayer is to become more and more one with that Word which comes to us in many forms each day – scripture, nature, relationships, events, the fruit of prayer, the gifts of silence….

I hope our Lenten reflections, and the single word they offer, will inspire us as we accompany Jesus through the dark and light journey to Easter morning.