And oh, doesn't the sound of the rain make it all so cozy to stay in bed just a little longer this morning!
With the temperatures sitting at above zero these past few nights, I've cranked open the window for some fresh-air sleeping. Yes, I know some of you do this all winter long, but for me this is a significant sign of spring. And this morning it meant I woke up and lay in the lovely of it for a bit.
"March Showers" are admittedly a different deal than "April Showers." It's not supposed to be until May that we get to the flowers part of the rhyme. We'll have to wait until late April, early May to catch those fleeting Trilliums, resurrected from the earth in all their triune glory. But this morning I thought ahead to them, glad for this good soaking to get things started.
Rain seems appropriate for Lent then. A dark sky overhead to prepare for what's coming. But first, Hosea.
As prophets go, Hosea holds a fair bit of what we might call 'moral authority' given how he lived out in real time anything God asked him to say to the people. Knowing that this one text is actually in the middle of a fair scolding helps me see the call to 'break up your unplowed ground' as something of a challenge to identify places in my soul that might be resistant to God's redeeming work in me. Specifically, where am I being stubborn, narrow, unmoved?
I've mentioned before that I am attempting to 'give up productivity for Lent.' This has allowed for unassigned spaces where I encounter myself in different ways than when I am robustly occupied. It's been good for me, although somewhat squirmy. There is still unplowed ground in me. I shouldn't be surprised, and I'm not. Such is the ever-deepening process of spiritual formation.
Lent is a good opportunity to heed Hosea's admonition "for it's time to seek the LORD."
And a good opportunity for March rains to soften the earth a bit, and get ready for the Trillium resurrections.
Praying showers of goodness on you this wonder-filled Wednesday.
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