March is here.  Lent is here.  Centering Space is 20 years here.

2023 March Blog by Anne Butts ~ When I thought about writing this blog I was also pondering how I wanted to journey spiritually through Lent.  I am a “fasting from and feasting on” kind of person.  If I am going to give up something I want it to create space in me for something more.  If I give up watching TV it will be to make more space for prayer or journaling.  It also means I want to cultivate this better use of time after Lent is over.  This choosing asks me to listen more during prayer so I can align with the Loving Presence of God.

For any gardener, March is a time of anticipation and planning.  I am looking for the first signs of growth from my daffodils and noticing the early snowdrops and crocus.  I’m planning when to prune my hydrangeas and rake away protective mulch.

That brings me to the offerings of Centering Space this month.  I will continue in the Bible Study with Reverend Stilski to deepen my listening for the wisdom of Scripture.  The reflective Lenten Mondays are my opportunity to pause and reflect.  I am beginning to read Sacred Nature: Restoring Our Bond with the Natural World to be ready for the program with Patrick Gibbons.

Nature is my pathway to God and my deepest felt connection to Creation.  Every year I experience the death/renewal cycle of Creation.  I prepare the soil; I weed out that which endangers my flowers; I prune the dead and diseased; I fertilize and transplant for supportive growth.  I let go of my need to control when the garden grows in surprising ways.  I grieve the losses.  I celebrate abundance.

All of this reflection is from my own tiny plot of land.  What of the entire Earth?  Can I open myself to a wider concern for Nature?  How will this affect my Lenten desire to become more of who I am called to be?  I don’t know.

I am confident though, as I enter into the invitation of Centering Space to “renew, refresh, refocus” which has carried this ministry to our 20^th Anniversary Year, I will celebrate Easter with a transformed heart.