Lent to Easter

Raise your hand if you went to church at Easter! I'm guessing if you're reading this you probably did but I'm not judging. But pssst Easter is more important than Christmas.

Lent has flown by for me. Before I took the plunge I thought giving up meat for 40 days would drag. However, as you can tell from my last post, I've had lots to keep me busy which has frankly buggered up my lent. It's meant to be a time of reflection an prayer but I had so much going on that this was interrupted. The first week of lent I went to morning prayer three times, morning worship on Sunday, and evening worship but since then it went a bit downhill. I had planned to spend more time reflecting on my faith, doing some bible study, doing the Pilgrim course, and giving up meat. Quite honestly I only fully succeeded in one of these endeavors, and I'm really disappointed. The success was giving up meat entirely which has changed my lifestyle but I don't feel that this has brought me closer to God. On the plus side it shows that I have the capacity for change and to give things up which is a discipline I can employ in my daily life regarding things that could hold a bearing on my relationship with Jesus.

On the plus side I did attend my uni diocese vocations day. Thumbs up to everyone involved. I had a great time listening to other people's experiences and attended specialised talks on ordained ministry and becoming a reader. Highlight of the day was a talk by Revd Dr Rosalyn Murphy. If you have an opportunity to hear her speak I really do recommend it. I was particularly inspired about her work in her community. This lady stopped a lap dancing club opening, people, listen up. This day was a time for me to reflect on my calling, and I'm definitely being called to do something. At the moment I believe it's ordained ministry but if I get knocked back by my DDO or a BAP then so be it, thy will be done.

Pilgrim has been enlightening and thoroughly recommend it. I will be continuing my series on it when I get back to my uni flat where my booklet it. I feel that sometimes I need direction for my reading which is something the course offers. Unfortunately I missed one of my sessions when the university senate meeting I was at overran, majorly. Although I was able to slide into the later sessions I feel like I missed out. From this point I felt a slight disconnect with my group which is a shame, and the university term finished and I had to gatecrash someone else's group.

So after all that kerfuffle Easter arrive. Poor student such as I am was working Good Friday which was a bit of a bummer but I was able to make it to the sunrise service. Anyone notice the clocks go forward? So I rose for the 6am service at 5am which was still 4am to my body, which was fun... It was a wee bit windy so our bonfire was a slight safety hazard but nobody died so it's all good. I was asked by our associate priest, and friend, to do the bible reading but the grumpy 5am me declined. Sorry Paul. I realise now that that was a wrong move and that it was a privilege to be asked. I welcomed in the dawn of the new day with a small group of others, and it felt different. It's the first time I've been able to attend as dearest M'ma always goes to the 10am and I can drive now. It felt like a new day. Easter has the symbolism of being a new day but It truly felt that way. We took communion as the sun was starting to stream through the windows. Although you can't feel like you were there, it kind of did. I know Jesus was there, as he is every day, but Easter is time put aside for us to celebrate his sacrifice. Eternal life? Yes please!

Lent Update #1

Genuine shapchat from Shrove Tuesday

Not a very inspiring title but I'm more of a 'get the job done' kind of person- sorry to disappoint. So, as you know lent started eleven days ago. Traditionally this is a time where people give something up until Easter, and then end up over-indulging when the day arrives, or is that just me? I've given up things for lent for about seven years now- small things that I wouldn't normally have or do anyway, which I know completely defeats the object. However, this year I've gone full throttle and given up meat. 'That's okay, you can still have fish' I hear you cry, but alas, I am not eating any animals; surf or turf. To be honest there's not a lot in my diet to give up: I don't smoke or drink, or have dairy, or sweets, or any of the usual things so meat was the prime candidate for eviction. Interestingly one of my friends has gone outside the realm of food and has given up makeup- her blog is : https://bexbaillie.wordpress.com/ and is well worth a read.

 Don't give up meat. It's been a lifestyle change for me completely. Gone are the days where you can just pull some meat out of the freezer, chuck it in a sauce and dinner is sorted. Going meat free takes planning. I don't know if my student fridge isn't doing it's job but vegetables don't keep so I'm now having to do more than just a weekly shop. I have to plan all my meals so I know what I need when and I now spend half my waking hours chopping vegetables. I have been to the 'health food' aisle of Tesco, a previously fabled land where thin AU athletes go to find exotic substances such as quinoa. Ive not yet slipped into the temptation of just doing my normal meals with Quorn instead but with coursework period coming up I might have to...

Luckily for me Lent has fallen around the time of my great revelation so for me this year it's not just doing without something for 40 days. As I am reminded by the notice sheets at church Lent is a time for taking things up too. I see it as more of a spiritual 'shape up' rather than just turning up to morning prayer a couple of times a week. And I have really turned this Lent into a proper spiritual shape up. I want to do another post about prayer so I'll be brief. I've found going to morning prayer has made me more reflective on my life and how I worship and I am now a lot more conscious of it. This thoughtfulness is induced by giving up and taking up. Each time I contemplate reaching for the tin of tuna I stop and think for five minutes and it's no longer about the fish. It's about learning to wait for Jesus and that part of our waiting requires small sacrifices to reap the benefits later on. It's about saying no to temptation and yes to something better. Now I've written it down I think I'm going to put it on a post-it on my cupboard 'no to meat, yes to Jesus'.