Over the last seven weeks we’ve looked at a new word for every week of Lent. I’ve thought a lot about these words… Invitation, Expectation, Contrition, Contemplation, Gratitude, Transformation, and today it culminates in Relationship!
Relationships are not always easy. I see it every day in my work, in my world… and yet we long for relationship that is loving and kind. I often have said that the best gift my husband has ever given me is the gift to be myself. I flourish in that! But that too, as in any relationship, has to be worked on. There are the ebbs and flows, and the challenges that come our way… no relationship is exempt.
The amazing thing to me… and I think of it often… is that the God who created the universe… more than we can think or imagine… from the farthest of the galaxies to the tiniest micro-organism… this Creator God desires to have relationship with you and me!
This comes back to the first word… Invitation! We are invited into relationship with a Heavenly Father who loves us! There is mystery to this… there are things we cannot grasp or understand… but there can also be a deep knowing… that we are loved deeply. There is a verse that says God sings over us with love! And Jesus has called us his friends!
This is the kind of relationship I long for, and delight in.
There are some other verses I love from Ephesians… talking about Christ dwelling in our hearts… so that we may be rooted in love. In this spring-time, Easter time, I think of God’s invitation to us. I send an invitation back in response… O Lord, I invite you and thank you for dwelling in my heart… may I be rooted in Your love. Thank you for desiring a relationship with me!
This is the heart of Easter… God, who in the form of His Son Jesus came to be one of us… to redeem us… that is what the cross is all about. But Jesus didn’t stay on the cross… Easter Sunday is coming! Jesus was resurrected and provides us with the Holy Spirit to indwell us… to give us strength and courage and a purpose for living.
One of my favourite things in my work is to share with people that they are loved… and that God loves them deeply. So we rejoice in the story of Easter, in the story of God reaching down to us, to dwell with us, so we can have relationship with our Creator!
You will note that in each of the word art pictures of the seven-part series, the T is drawn to resemble a cross… this was very symbolic for me in my devotions.
I have also created a little booklet with these art pieces about Lent… and it is available for a minimal cost if you are interested. Just e-mail me at grace@gracewulff.com Thank you for sharing these thoughts with me!!
