LENTEN DEVOTION FOR TUESDAY, MARCH 18

For everything there is a season, and a time for every matter under heaven. (Ecclesiastes 3:1) For a very long time the first 9 verses of Ecclesiastes Chapter 3 have been important and comforting to me and my life. I have come to feel that their message is very needed in today's world. It is so easy to say and to hear: "I'm so busy, I don't know where the time goes!" So often we live from one event to another, hardly taking time to notice the in between time. If we are not careful, the church's seasons may come and go with just such unawareness. We love the joy of Easter, the marvelous resurrection, but the 40 days before - the days of Lent - are a prelude to this special day. What an opportunity it is to use this season to slow down, reflect, and remember our Savior's life, and the meaning it has for us today. We can make it a blessed time for us under heaven. Dear God, Slow us down to live and appreciate each day of your seasons. In Jesus' name. Amen.
Sue Leydorf

Give and it shall be given unto you. Good measure pressed down, running over, will be put into your lap. For the measure you give is the measure you get back. (Luke 6:38) Recently, I was distressed when someone called me an Indian Giver. I have not heard that term in years. She meant I did not give freely that true gifts are given freely. There is another side to the story. The item in question was not meant to be a gift at all. I don't know if I should have given it to her; I wanted it myself. I prayed to God for a solution, and this devotion is it. I do not believe I am an Indian Giver, but I don't always give freely. In Joyce Rupp's Cup of Life, she says, "Anything is clutter that keeps me totally absorbed in myself and unaware of what God is offering me." My mind is not always free to receive God's gift. God's gift is grace, and he gives it to all of us, freely, if we are ready to receive it. Help me to see what clutters my mind and keeps me from being aware of God's gifts, so
I can give and receive freely. In Jesus' name, who sets the example. Amen.

Maggie Garza