A Poem, A Proverb, A Painting, A Prayer: A Lenten Journey--Day 14: Tuesday after the 2nd Sunday in Lent

This is the fourteenth in a series of daily Lenten devotionals put together by Mother Leslie for this season of Lent, 2025. We hope this proves to be uplifting to you through your Lenten journey.

If you would like to see previous devotionals, Look under "Home Worship Materials" on the Site map, or click here.

Day 14: Tuesday after the 2nd Sunday in Lent

Today’s Theme: Gratitude to God

Poem: Once Blessed

So that I stopped

there

and looked

into the waters

seeing not only

my reflected face

but the great sky

that framed

my lonely figure

and after a moment

I lifted my hands

and then my eyes

and I allowed myself

to be astonished

by the great

everywhere

calling to me

like an old

and unspoken

invitation,

made new

by the sun

and the spring,

and the cloud

and the light,

like something

both

calling to me

and radiating

from where I stood,

as if I could

understand

everything

I had been given

and everything ever

taken from me,

as if I could be

everything I have ever

learned

and everything

I could ever know,

as if I knew

both the way I had come

and, secretly,

the way

underneath

I was still

promised to go,

brought together,

like this, with the

unyielding ground

and the symmetry

of the moving sky,

caught in still waters.

Someone I have been,

and someone

I am just,

about to become,

something I am

and will be forever,

the sheer generosity

of being loved

through loving:

the miracle reflection

of a twice blessed life.

----------- David Whyte (1955- ), Anglo Irish poet and philosopher, from The Bell and the Blackbird, 2019.

Proverb:

“It is good to praise the LORD

    to sing praises to your name, O Most High,

the declare your steadfast love in the morning

    and your faithfulness by night,

to the music of jthe lute and jthe harp,

    to the melody of jthe lyre.

For you, O Lord, have made me glad by your work;

    at lthe works of your hands I sing for joy.

-----------Psalm 92:1-4

Painting: Healthcare Hero, Austin Fowler, Denver 2020

One of a series of murals thanking healthcare workers. painted in Denver during the COVID-19 pandemic

Prayer: Prayer of St. Boniface

Eternal God, the refuge and help of all your children,

we praise you for all you have given us,

for all you have done for us,

for all that you are to us.

In our weakness, you are strength,

in our darkness, you are light,

in our sorrow, you are comfort and peace.

We cannot number your blessings,

we cannot declare your love:

For all your blessings we bless you.

May we live as in your presence,

and love the things that you love,

and serve you in our daily lives;

through Jesus Christ our Lord.

---------St. Boniface (ca. 672-754)