One Heart and Mind: Lent Daybook 4
Welcome to a Lent daybook for these 40 days of prayerful repentance.
Is this your first time to practice Lent? Here's a simple introduction.
Look: Thousands watch as lynchers prepare to torture Henry Smith on a ten-foot-high platform at the county fairgrounds, Library of Congress/Getty Images. Source: Lynching in America: Confronting the Legacy of Racial Terror, EJI
Listen*: The Passion, Ms. Lauryn Hill - Lyrics | Spotify | YouTube
Read**: Psalm 30, 32; Ezekiel. 39:21-29; Philippians 4:10-20; John 17:20-26
Excerpts:
"I called out to you, God;
I laid my case before you:
“Can you sell me for a profit when I’m dead?
auction me off at a cemetery yard sale?
When I’m ‘dust to dust’ my songs
and stories of you won’t sell.
So listen! and be kind!
Help me out of this!”
*
"Let me give you some good advice;
I’m looking you in the eye
and giving it to you straight:
'Don’t be ornery like a horse or mule
that needs bit and bridle
to stay on track.'
God-defiers are always in trouble;
God-affirmers find themselves loved
every time they turn around.
Celebrate God.
Sing together—everyone!
All you honest hearts, raise the roof!"
*
"I’ll put my glory on display among the nations and they’ll all see the judgment I execute, see me at work handing out judgment. From that day on, Israel will realize that I am their God. And the nations will get the message that it was because of their sins that Israel went into exile. They were disloyal to me and I turned away from them. I turned them over to their enemies and they were all killed. I treated them as their polluted and sin-sated lives deserved. I turned away from them, refused to look at them. ...
After I’ve poured my Spirit on Israel, filled them with my life, I’ll no longer turn away. I’ll look them full in the face. Decree of God, the Master."
*
"And now I have it all—and keep getting more! The gifts you sent with Epaphroditus were more than enough, like a sweet-smelling sacrifice roasting on the altar, filling the air with fragrance, pleasing God no end. You can be sure that God will take care of everything you need, his generosity exceeding even yours in the glory that pours from Jesus. Our God and Father abounds in glory that just pours out into eternity. Yes."
*
"I’m praying not only for them
But also for those who will believe in me
Because of them and their witness about me.
The goal is for all of them to become one heart and mind—
Just as you, Father, are in me and I in you,
So they might be one heart and mind with us.
Then the world might believe that you, in fact, sent me.
The same glory you gave me, I gave them,
So they’ll be as unified and together as we are—
I in them and you in me.
Then they’ll be mature in this oneness,
And give the godless world evidence
That you’ve sent me and loved them
In the same way you’ve loved me."
- Psalm 30:8-10 * Psalm 32:8-11 * Ezekiel 39:21-24, 29 * Philippians 4:18-20 * John 17:20-23 (MSG)
Pray & Do:
Each week during Lent, we will devote Saturdays to connecting with An American Lent from The Repentance Project. It's God's kindness that leads us to repentance, and in His kindness and provision for reconciliation, He invites us to make confession and ask for forgiveness on behalf of not only ourselves but our forefathers and mothers. We carry a heavy load of guilt and grief in our nation as a result of centuries of grievous sin and unrelenting injustice against African Americans.
Go here to download a PDF or subscribe to receive daily reflections from An American Lent.
Begin with prayer:
Come, Holy Spirit. I invite you to turn the attention of my heart toward you. Thank you for every good and perfect gift that comes from you. Today, I receive the gift of godly grief that produces repentance within me. I confess my need for you. Make me attentive to your Spirit and the work that you desire to do within me. I am yours, Lord. Amen.
— An American Lent, Week 1
Spend time today reading through the reflections for Week 1. Pay special attention to Thursday’s reflection on lament from Rev. Dr. Aaron Graham. Consider writing your own psalm of lament using the outline Dr. Graham provides.
Begin with a complaint.
Turn to a request.
End with an expression of trust.
For additional help, I’ve appreciated the wisdom of my friend Dr. W. David O. Taylor on this subject: Writing a Psalm of Lament.
Additional recommendations for your weekend:
Watch 12 Years A Slave, directed by Steve McQueen and based on the true story by Solomon Northup
For families with children, watch The Breathtaking Courage of Harriet Tubman by Janell Hobson via TED-Ed. [H/T]
You might also enjoy: Mockingbird History Lessons for Adults on Patreon
* Listen to my entire playlist on Spotify: Lent: Worship & Prayer 2020. Add it to your account by clicking ‘Save to my library'.
** Sunday Scripture readings are taken from the Revised Common Lectionary (Year A). Daily Scripture readings are taken from the Book of Common Prayer (Year 2).