Lent and Ash Wednesday

Am I the only one who feels like Lent came early this year? It feels like we JUST celebrated Christmas and the New Year and now it's already time for Lent. I suppose it's feeling this way because of the move and transition we're going through.

I did not grow up practicing Lent. In fact, I'd never heard of Lent to my recollection until we came to Abilene in 2007. It was then that I was introduced to the lectionary and the church calendar. It's only been a few years for me so I am truly still a babe in this part of my journey. I've been very pleased to see so much writing in the blogosphere this year about Lent. I wanted to share some of these amazing reads with you:

From Ann Voskamp at A Holy Experience ~ How to Prepare a Family for Lent {Create a Forgiveness and Fresh Start Place}

From Rachel Held Evans ~ 40 Ideas for Lent

From Amy Laura Hall, guest writer at J. Kameron Carter ~ On Eating Chocolate for Lent

From Ann Voskamp at A Holy Experience ~ What Lent Really Means

From Sarah Bessey at Emerging Mummy ~ In which [it is Lent] words need flesh

What does Lent look like for me this year? This year will be different than any of the other Lenten seasons I've journeyed through.

First, I am working to make my gluten free diet more consistent. With the move and such, I've not behaved very well and my body is paying for it.

Second, I am praying the daily offices (morning prayers, midday prayers, evening prayers, and nighttime prayers) using an amazing book, Common Prayer: A Liturgy for Ordinary Radicals.

Third, we began our Lenten journey this evening by participating in the Ash Wednesday service at Episcopal Church of the Heavenly Rest. We'll continue journeying with them the next 5 Wednesdays in Evensong, a choral service of Evening Prayer. Each week will feature the works of important writers including George MacDonald, Dorothy Sayers, J.R.R. Tolkien, T.S. Eliot, and C.S. Lewis.

Those are my plans. What about you? How are you journeying through this Lenten season?