The first week of Lent: Blessed Connections
Reflections for the labyrinth journey
In the focus story for the first week of Lent, God’s promise to Noah and his family is set out amongst the clouds – distant, elusive, beautiful, fleeting but also reliable and regularly present in the right conditions. It is the rainbow, of course, and Noah and his family look to it as sign and symbol of a binding connection forged by God. It is God’s own personal reminder, to them and to God, that the ties between them will not be broken. Picture a sticky note in the sky, “Note to self, do not destroy ties that bind!”
Where are the sticky notes in your world, outside signs and symbols that re-mind you of essential connections? As you travel the pathway of the lab-yrinth, think about the external supports that help you maintain the ties that bind you to self, God, and others. For example, keeping a birthday calendar of people you love and care for reminds you to mark their special days. The daily sunset reminds you that evening is coming when you can relax and re-flect on your day. A quilt made by your great-grandmother hangs in the liv-ing room to remind you of your responsibilities to generations past and future. The signs and symbols can be natural, manufactured, multi-sensory, regular or sporadic, very personal or universal. What cues in your environ--ment help you maintain respect for and delight in the interdependencies of life?
At the center of the labyrinth, give thanks for these signs and symbols, and for the connections to which they relate. As you move out of the labyrinth, re-flect on your most important relationships. What new signs and symbols would you like to carry with you as supports to those connections? For ex-ample, putting it into your calendar to Internet chat with a far-away friend once a month.
Reflections for your daily routine
During the course of your normal day, pay attention to the signs and symbols of your primary connections to self, others, and God. How does your en-vironment help you attend to these links? What else can you add to your environment to support these connections? Keep a journal throughout the day as you note various signs and symbols, or write about your reflections at the end of the day.
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Second Week of Lent: Living Legacy
Reflections for the labyrinth journey
The promise of God comes out of the rainbow-filled clouds and drops right into the lives of Sarah and
Abraham. Unexpected, difficult to believe, and beyond their deepest imaginings, but also right at the
heart of their longing. Promises come into our lives in all shapes and sizes, all forms and means. Some
are as firm as rungs on a ladder, leading up to new perspectives. Some are whispers and shadows and
gossamer wings. We strain to hear, to see, to believe, to trust. The promise to Abraham and Sarah was
one of legacy, to be passed on from generation to generation. We hold that same promise, whether
through children and grandchildren or through our life’s work or passionate pursuits. On this journey into
the labyrinth, reflect on your own personal legacy. Allow some thoughts
about what you would like to pass on to others to emerge.
~What do you need in order to bring that legacy to life? When you reach the centre of the
labyrinth, pray for what you need.
~As you follow the path leading out of the labyrinth, let some ideas
bubble up about what you can do to be that living legacy right now.
~What are you already doing, and what will you start doing, to pass it on right now?
Reflections for your daily routine
During a break in your day, reflect on the promises that are actively shaping your life today: a promise
you’ve made to yourself about something you will do differently; a promise you feel you’ve received from
God that gives your life meaning and purpose; a promise you have made to another person that you pay
attention to and work on every day. If you have time, write a prayer that expresses your feelings about
these promises – what you’re thankful for and what you need help with. Find a special place to keep the
prayer and return to it when you need to remember that your life is full of promise.
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The third week of Lent: The laws of God are perfect
Reflections for the labyrinth journey
“The law of the Lord is perfect” declares the poet in Psalm 19, verse 7.
What is the law of God? Where can it be found? Is it the 10
commandments, spelled out in our reading from Exodus 20:1–17? Or is it
something at the heart of these rules, something more foundational?
Psalm 19 also makes reference to statutes and precepts, which are rules
to live by but perhaps they are expressions of the law rather than the
law itself. So, what is that law then? Perhaps love? Choose a small rock
that is easy to carry into the labyrinth with you. Consider the
bedrock of your own values as you carry this rock and follow the path.
What makes up the solid core of who you are and what you believe? What
would it mean for you to claim God as your rock, echoing the poet in
Psalm 19:14?Place your rock on the floor or ground in the centre of the
labyrinth. Imagine that you have come into the heart of the law of God,
which is love. Pick up your rock and make the outward journey. How will
you live in the law of God more fully? As you complete your journey,
pray with the words of Psalm 19:“May the words of my mouth and the
meditations of my heart be pleasing in your sight, O Lord, my Rock and
my Redeemer” (Psalm 19:14 New Testament and Psalms: An Inclusive
Version).
Reflections for your daily routine
Carry a small rock with you through your day. Each time your attention
is drawn to it, contemplate the law of love. Imagine that the law of
love rules your every interaction during the day. What new ways of being
are possible because of the law of love?
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The fourth week of Lent: Rich in love
Reflections for the labyrinth journey
Begin the labyrinth by reflecting on times in your life when you have
made a journey towards healing and wholeness – from ill health, broken
relationships, or disappointments. Remember those people and resources
who helped you make the journey. What do you remember about your faith
during that time? Was it a time of renewal or doubt or new directions?
When you reach the centre of the labyrinth, bring those people who were
most helpful to you into your mind in prayers of gratitude. On the
outward journey, reflect on the healing journeys of others you know
personally, or of groups or communities you’re aware of. Where are they
on the journey towards wholeness? What role would you like to play in
their journey, and what do you need to ask for in prayer to help you
play that role?
Reflections for your daily routine
~ At various times during the day, stop and give thanks for all the times of healing and wholeness along the way.
~ When you awake, give thanks for safe passage through the night.
~ When you are eating, give thanks for sustaining nourishment.
~ When you are engaged in something necessary or required of you, give
thanks for the ways your talents and gifts are drawn upon.
~ When you are doing something you love, give thanks for the renewing joy and pleasure of it.
~ When you are together with loved ones, give thanks for sustaining connections.
~ When you are worried or concerned, give thanks for guidance and support.
~ When you go to bed, give thanks for safe passage through the day.
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The fifth week of Lent: Heart Promises
Reflections for the labyrinth journey
This is the final week before Holy Week and the stories for the season are becoming more inwardly focused. The prophet Jeremiah talks about the law of God being written on the people’s hearts (Jeremiah 31:31–34) and the psalmist desires a “clean heart” (Psalm 51). Take into the labyrinth with you a sense of internal preparations. The stories of Easter to come are right at the heart of the mystery of our faith. How will you prepare to hear them anew, with a clean heart? When you reach the centre of the labyrinth, breathe into your heart and let it feel full, open, clear, and strong. By contrast, some of the stories for this week have a decidedly external focus. For example, in John 12:20–33, we read about a festival where there are “some Greeks” who want to see Jesus. A crowd gathers and voice “from heaven” is heard – some say it is thunder, others an angel. People are looking for external confirmation of the holy. What signs will you be looking for during the upcoming Easter season? On the outward journey around the labyrinth, reflect on the ways you seek confirmation of the holy – through relationships, nature, moving experiences in worship, art, or in some other ways.
Reflections for your daily routine
Each time you shower, bathe, wash your hands, or wash clothes or dishes today consider the theme of Psalm 51 about a “clean heart.” Make a connection between these external practices and the practice of clearing your mind and heart in order to be fully present to God. As you wash, use the psalmist’s prayer as a mantra. “Create in me a clean heart, O God, and put a new and right spirit within me.” (Psalm 51:10)