IN THE PASSOVER MEAL we have come to call the Last Supper, Jesus chooses to share himself – his very body and blood – with his dearest friends. Christ gives not only bread and wine to his disciples present in that moment, but he also gives them a ritual of remembrance. . His intimate, self-giving gesture meant they had something to hold on to, something they could touch and taste, something to keep Christ close. In the Last Supper, Jesus gives the gift of himself not only in that moment but for all generations to come, promising his intimate presence to all who reenact this supper.

- Sarah Parsons
A Clearing Season: Reflections for Lent

(via Upper Room Daily Reflections)

Zewt is the fastest one to blog about Maundy Thursday at BLC.

Maundy Thursday

It was my first time celebrating Maundy Thursday. I have never heard of it, and it was also a maiden celebration for my church. I was told that Maundy Thursday is the celebration of The Last Supper; bearing in mind tomorrow is Good Friday.

We had a proper meal though, with rice, potatoes, salad and roast lamb. Of course, it was not exactly a dinner fellowship. The meal went through a full liturgy with reading of the The Word. And yes, I enjoyed the meal very much. I didn’t bring my camera and that was the best shot I got with my phone. The lamb was yummy!

But you know what is the best part?

Jesus washed the feet of his disciples before he went on to be arrested and crucified, and we had the “feet washing” ceremony too. To symbolise a master washing the feet of a servant, we had.

An employer (a boss) washing the feet of an employee.
A person who has a library at home washing the feet of a student.
A husband washing the feet of his wife.
A professional working in KLCC washing the feet of a refugee social worker.
The pastor washing the feet of church council.
And a few more.

We then had holy communion (with real wine) and ended with a blessing toast.

Jesus - we partake the bread and drink the wine in remembrance of Your body broken for us and Your blood shed for us. We remember your death on the cross tomorrow, and will celebrate your resurrection this Sunday.

Here’s some pictures with some insights from Frederick Buechner:

If the world is sane, then Jesus is mad as a hatter and the Last Supper is the Mad Tea Party. The world says, Mind your own business, and Jesus says, There is no such thing as your own business.

The world says, Follow the wisest course and be a success, and Jesus says, Follow me and be crucified. The world says, Drive carefully-the life you save may be your own-and Jesus says, Whoever would save his life will lose it, and whoever loses his life for my sake will find it.

The world says, Law and order, and Jesus says, Love. The world says, Get, and Jesus says, Give.

In terms of the world’s sanity, Jesus is crazy as a coot, and anybody who thinks we can follow him without being a little crazy too is laboring less under a cross than under a delusion.

"It’s not about feeling gloomy for forty days; it’s not about making yourself miserable for forty days; it’s not even about giving things up for forty days. Lent is springtime. It’s preparing for that great climax of springtime which is Easter – new life bursting through death." – Rowan Williams

On Ash Wednesday, I was marked with the sign of the cross with Ashes, a clear link to the whole issue of death, fragility and mortality.

When I was baptized (in my case as an infant), I was marked with the sign of the cross, a clear link to life, salvation and belonging to Christ.

This Lent I’m connecting both themes more consciously, acknowledge the reality of suffering, denial, and taking up my cross to follow Christ. But not without a keen eye on the climax of Easter ever invading my todays.

Your voice has stilled the raging storms
The wind and waves bow down before
Your still small voice brings hope to all
Who wait on You, we’ll wait for You
To lead us to the place where You’ll restore our souls
And all our earthly strivings come to cease

Take from our souls the strain and stress
And let our ordered lives confess
The beauty of Your peace
The beauty of Your peace

Bright skies will soon be overhead
We’ll enter in to Heaven’s rest
There’ll be no death, there’ll be no pain
The things of old will pass away
You’ll lead us to the place where You’ll restore our souls
And all our earthly strivings come to cease

- Tim Hughes

If there’s one modern song this season of Lent I think many might relate to would be this one by Tim.

This song together with the excellent hymn  forty days and forty nights (Words: George Smyttan, 1856. Music: Nurnbergisches Gesangbuch, 1676.)   which I sang during BLC’s Ash Wednesday Service and also St. Paul’s Anglican Church evening service.   would be just right.

REPENTANCE IS not so much a condition for forgiveness as a consequence of it. We human beings often hold back our forgiveness for some slight or hurt until we at least see signs of contrition. Not so with God: on the cross, the word of forgiveness is spoken first; it gives birth to one felon’s contrite cry. This truth changes the equation of salvation. When will we learn that we do not repent in order to find pardon? We repent because we discover how deeply we have been pardoned – how much we have been forgiven.

- Peter Storey
Listening at Golgotha: Jesus’ Words from the Cross

(via Upper Room Daily Reflections)

Wow . . .  I’m speechless. Nothing much to say. But thank you . . .

Fasting, along with prayer and almsgiving, are the three spiritual disciplines that are taught in all of the monotheistic religions: Judaism, Christianity, and Islam.  Jesus himself repeats these in the Sermon on the Mount, in Matthew 6:1-18.  They are three ways of "de-centralizing the self":  Prayer de-centralizes my mind, almsgiving de-centralizes my heart, and fasting de-centralizes my body.  (Almost enneagramatic!)

Fasting seems to be the one discipline that has been most neglected as a strong tradition in Christianity, whereas Moslems would still practice it quite seriously during all of Ramadan, and Jews on special high holy days.  For us, it is largely forgotten before Eucharist, in Lent, and even on the two "required" days of Ash Wednesday and Good Friday.  Maybe that is partly because we trivialized it in terms of "giving up" candy or dessert during Lent.  The negative "giving up" notion lost any positive meaning-like seeking God or solidarity with others.

What we hope to do this Lent is to try to work together in a more positive form of fasting.  Each week of Lent, we will consciously try to let go of INNER PATTERNS that keep us in our wrong head, our small heart, and outside of our bodies.  The notion is not "sacrifice" as if this, of itself, somehow pleases God, but rather consciously letting go of ATTITUDES and BEHAVIORS that are in the way, that keep me from loving God, loving one another, and loving my own dignity.  We invite you to join us on this journey.

~Richard Rohr, ofm

THE GOAL OF LENT is not to make a plan for change and follow it to the letter. Rather, the goal is to make a change that sinks deeply into life, drawing us closer to self, others, and God. Lent is about intentionally opening ourselves, preparing to receive God’s goodness.

- Sarah Parsons
A Clearing Season: Reflections for Lent

(via Upper Room Daily Reflections)

It’s raining cats and dogs right now.  Nice and cooling though.  Just the right temperature for the 3pm prayer everyday.

Today, I will simply enjoy the silence and the round of the rain drops. Our denomination came out with this simple Lenten Guide. It’s simple enough.  My prayer is that especially for beginners they will find it easier to enter in this Lenten season and encounter Jesus.  For oldies, they will renew their love for Christ beyond any cause no matter how legitimate it may be.

THE SEASON OF LENT invites us to focus on the condition of our hearts. We have many options when our physical hearts deteriorate – repair, bypass surgery, transplants, medication. However, God is interested in our whole person, our whole being, expressed in Hebrew Scriptures as our heart.

It does not take long on our Lenten journey to discover that we cannot repair some parts of our “heart” – we need a new heart altogether. In God’s mercy, God promises us a new heart. The prophet Jeremiah first made the promise to a people in trouble, a people separated from their first love and loyalty to God by their behaviors of indifference, callousness, and loving other seducers (Jeremiah 31:31, 33). Yet God still loves those people called by God’s name and wants to make it possible for humans – individually and as a community – to reciprocate that love. God promises a new covenant so that those who have lost their way of loving will have a new heart.

- Elizabeth Nordquist
The Upper Room Disciplines 1997

(via Upper Room Daily Reflections)

The Scripture for today is Psalm 32:5

Then I acknowledged my sin to you
       and did not cover up my iniquity.
       I said, "I will confess
       my transgressions to the LORD."
       And you forgave
       the guilt of my sin.

The focus is on Repentance.

And where else can we start but ourselves. This is a time to examine oneself, and begin confessing any hidden sins.

I wonder how many prayed with me at 3pm?

A voice cutting through the rhythm of the rain.

“You, Follow me”

We have so much fear in all of us. 

In the secret places of our hearts,

Only God and we know what is going on there.

Sometimes, we don’t even know ourselves

But we only know fear.

The fear of sin taking over our lives.

The fear of death and the unknown.

The fear of a future which looks dark and dim.

The fear of evil and  wicked forces pounding us again and again.

We can’t run away from facing all these fears,

But we hear a call to walk – walk by faith.

Faith in someone who sees us just as we are,

and promises to lead us where we should really be.

He’s done it before, and he’s still doing it today.

Join me to walk with Jesus the next 40 days,

together we can hear him say again,

“Do not Be afraid . . .

. . .  you are free!

You can be free in me

You can be free through me!”