“Keep fresh before me the moments of my High Resolve, that in fair weather or in foul, in good times or in tempests, in the days when the darkness and the foe are nameless or familiar, I may not forget that to which my life is committed.” ~ Rev. Dr. Howard Thurman

Carnival has passed. Mardi Gras is over for another year. We are now well into Lent.  In the coastal south, even faith communities that do not celebrate Lent, the time of reflection and repentance before the celebration of sacrifice and resurrection, become attuned to the lenten rituals their Christian neighbors.

In her article Lenten Disciplines, Rev. Melanie Morel-Ensminger wrote:

While Lent does not have the same meaning in a Unitarian Universalist setting that it does in an orthodox Christian context, it is not meaningless.  Each and everyone of us is called (by God, the Spirit, our Higher Power, our Better Nature) to be our very best self, a self we often fall short of, sometimes even intentionally.  “Giving up something for Lent” does not have to mean that we sacrifice something we love and enjoy (like chocolate, for example) but can be a healthy spiritual discipline leading to our betterment, to our reaching closer to that wholeness we all seek.

Whether or not you religiously observe the season of Lent, as Unitarian Universalists we are always called to a healthy spiritual discipline that heals the brokenness of our lives and our world.

In this time of contemplation, we are invited to re-center ourselves and our spiritual communities.  We are invited to ask:

What’s in our heart?

What’s our vision, our passion?

What brings us joy?

Where are our strongest relationships?

What promises do we keep?

How are we called to nurture and heal our world?

 “In the days when the darkness and the foe are nameless or familiar,” may we be mindful of our moments of High Resolve that we may not forget that to which our lives are committed.

Blessed be, beloveds.

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Rev. Deanna Vandiver

Deanna Vandiver is a community minister in New Orleans, LA, serving as the Executive Director for the Center for Ethical Living and Social Justice Renewal (http://www.celjsr.org).Since she accepted the call to ministry, she has not experienced one boring day.Good music, good food, and good friends have sustained her through heck and high water and she has a practice of gratitude for the wonders of this life.

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