I am often an impatient person and like many, I have thought of Lent merely as a time of waiting; waiting for Easter, waiting for warm weather, or in some years waiting for chocolate to be part of my life again. But when I stopped to think about it, I realized that Lent does mean more to me than I had thought, as I try to slow down and be more reflective and introspective.
I pay more attention to the words we hear each Sunday. The liturgy is so familiar that sometimes I don’t really hear it unless I make a point of concentrating, of truly listening to specific moments of the service. The Book of Common Prayer is a beautiful work of prayer and of literature and during this season I have come to appreciat that more than ever.
I appreciate the fact that during Lent we have the opportunity to say Compline, a service that speaks to me deeply. Maybe because we are so used to being in church in the morning, the mere fact of being there in the evening is somehow more dramatic. Compline’s prayers for evening often deal with protecting us through the dark of the night, both literally and metaphorically. In sorrowful times, that sense of watchful protection has special resonance.
When our son Andrew was in first grade he attended a school run by the Church of the New Jerusalem (the Swedenborg church). Even before they could read, all children had to memorize a different bible verse each week for daily assembly. The first verse Andrew learned, which is often read during Compline, was Matthew 11:28-30:
Come to me, all who labor and are heavy-laden, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you, and learn from me; for I am gentle and lowly in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy, and my burden is light.
One of the Collects in the Compline service is
Be present, O merciful God, and protect us through the hours of this nights, so that we who are wearied by the changes and chances of this life may rest in your eternal changelessness.
And words that never fail to comfort, and stir my soul, even while provoking tears:
Keep watch, dear Lord, with those who work, or watch, or weep this night, and give your angels charge over those who sleep. Tend the sick, Lord Christ; give rest to the weary, bless the dying, soothe the suffering, pity the afflicted, shield the joyous; and all for your loves’ sake.
Guide us waking, O Lord, and guard us sleeping; that awake we may watch with Christ, and asleep we may rest in peace.
In Lent we come to realize again our vulnerabilities. With that comes the need to feel the protection and support of our loving God.
ashes2easter 