Dear friends of Lewinsville,
Making room for God can be difficult for many of us to do in our lives today. We can be very busy, we can be in a rush, we can be worried about many things, and before you know it, we no longer have space or room for God in our lives. When that happens, we will tend to be exhausted, harried, and can fall into anxiety, resentment, and burnout.
The theme of this year’s Lenten devotional series is “Living Simply: Making Room for God.” This theme comes from this awareness that life in our contemporary world can easily become busy, crowded, and overwhelmed. We can rush from one thing to another, arriving breathless at home at the end of the day, where we drop into bed, and then wake up the next day to do it all over again. In the process, we squeeze space out of our lives, and we can drop our deep connection with God, with others, and with ourselves. This year’s theme teaches us that our lives can be simplified in a variety of ways, which will create more room for God.
How might we simplify our lives during this Lenten season? What are some activities or engagements that we have said “yes” to, which are not really necessary for us? Are our schedules, homes, or wallets clogged up with too many things? How can we simplify and create more space, greater margins in our lives, so that we can have more room for God? Because the kingdom of God can create great things with “mustard seeds,” we may imagine that God will do really significant things in our lives, even if we only give God a little bit more attention and space!
It is our joy to offer you this Lenten devotional booklet, organized around the theme of “Living Simply: Making Room for God,” written by participants in the Lewinsville congregation. The variety of views expressed herein are the views of the writers, and we hope that they will nourish your life and faith during this season. We invite you to use these readings as part of your daily spiritual practice during Lent. Our prayer is that they will help you to simplify your life, and to make more room and space for God.
We offer our deep gratitude to all who have contributed their time, energy, love, and faith to the production of this devotional – the writers, coordinators, and editors.
Lenten blessings,
Pastor Scott