Holy Adventure--Introduction, Part Two

So, today is FAT TUESDAY, the day before Ash Wednesday.  In the Middle Ages, this was the day to use up all the fat you had stored in your house because all through Lent you were not going to be able to cook any cakes or biscuits or sweets of any kind.  This custom continued until the early 1900s mainly in adherents to the Roman Catholic faith.  People would give up a certain food for the Lenten period to show their devotion and dedication to the faith.  Fat Tuesday is a day of celebration and frivolity followed by the austere attitudes of piety to be displayed throughout Lent until Easter Sunday.

Many people do not realize that the Sundays in Lent are not a part of Lent.  There are 40 days of Lent but Sundays do not count as part of them so if you give up a food or custom for Lent you can have it on Sundays but not the other days of the week.  That should have chocolate lovers everywhere who routinely give it up for Lent.

Yesterday, I introduced you to the book I have chosen for my Lenten devotions, Holy Adventure by Bruce G. Epperly.  Today I am going to give you the main ideas from the rest of the introduction and then tomorrow will begin the 41 days of adventurous thinking proposed in the book.  Today, the author gives six affirmations that provide a spiritual pathway to choosing God's own adventure for your life.

1. You are created in the image of God.  You embody the traits of a God who is loving, just, and innovative in response to the world.

2. You are the light of the world.  You are a child of light, radiating God's wisdom and love.

3. God inspires you in every moment.  God is a fountain of possibility and inspiration for your life.

4. God is always with you.  This means that your life is always centered in the One True Center in whom we move and have our being.

5. Your life truly matters.  The quest for meaning has always been a challenge for humans.  If God is truly present with you every day you live, then your life has meaning for you and for the world.

6. Our lives are woven together for wholeness of self and for the universe.  We are God's partners in mending the world.  We are co-creators with God and called to heal the world by the living of our lives.

A Prayer for our Adventure for the Next 40 Days:
Holy God, like Abraham and Sarah, we do not fully know where the adventure will lead.  But we do know that your love and inspiration never ends.  As we begin this journey of spiritual growth, inspire us to live by your vision.  Awaken us to new ways of living out our faith.  Give us courage when the way is uncertain.  Give us open hearts so that we might bring beauty and love to those who journey beside us and to this good earth.  In the name of Christ we pray.  Amen.