Lent - Preparing for Easter

The last week has been one of those where you kind of go "ah!" or maybe "ah-has!" for me. I'm not sure how this relates to Lent, but it is food for thought. I hope this all makes sense to you as I bring together some of the things from my weekly readings...
My word for 2013 is LISTEN. I've not been doing a very good job of it however up to this point. But this week has changed everything; God has been putting things in my path at an unbelievable rate and giving me quite the challenge to put my listening into full gear.
First off over at Gotta Pixel I am in a book club. This month we are reading "The Art of Racing in the Rain" by Garth Stein. It is a book written through the eyes of a dog which is in itself an interesting idea; it is about loyalty & family and having troubles; it is about a race car driver - not something I would pick up & read for that idea; but it is so much more. I can honestly say that I look at Nikki in a whole new light. Some of it I'm not sure about - like reincarnation, but on the whole it does give one a new perspective of the idea of reincarnation. Mostly though I learned that a race, whether it's a race with cars or a race through life, must be met head-on with your eyes focused on what ever path that you find yourself on.
Then on Sunday I got my journaling prompts which I mostly just read & meditate on rather than journaling. Bud Katter's website is here. And here's a link to his newsletter from this week. Look especially at the poem in the art journaling section -- that was what truly inspired me.
Pastor Jean got in on the act with her sermon on Sunday entitled "Unveiled Understanding". Sunday was Transfiguration Sunday and we read in Exodus 34:29-35 about how Moses had to veil himself when he came down the moutain after talking with God because he literally glowed from being in God's presence. Then the sermon scripture was II Corinthians 3:12-4:2 where Paul is urging us to transform into the image that God has planned; follow the path He leads you down; be transformed into His image.  We live in the valley, don't ignore them. Sure we have mountaintop experiences, but we need to make the most of the valley of everyday life. We need to continually seek God's grace and His face as we train for eternal life. As we do this we do not lose ourselves, but we become more like Him as we travel up the mountain to meet Him. Do you feel the "Holy Glow"? Are you working your way up the mountain?
And one last thing was from today's Simple Truths -- Finishing Strong.