On this blessed Mardi Gras, I'm contemplating ways that I might prayerfully journey through this Lenten season.
En route to Centering Prayer this morning, feeling joyfully rooted in our life together and calm in the face of our morning routine, I called my husband and asked him what we might do as a family to move through Lent together. I posed the question as a prayerful invitation, trusting some prayer practice or intentional action would surface. Et voila! The following writing from one of my favorite Franciscans gives me an idea:
"Let us compose litanies of satisfaction! Of abundance! Of enoughness! Let us start each day mindful of how much we have and how great is our God."
Will you join me?
A Prayer to Avoid Entitlement
by Richard Rohr
The Jewish people have a beautiful prayer form, a kind of litany to which the response is always "Dayenu!" (It would have been enough!).
They list, one by one, the mirabilia Dei, the wonderful works of God for their people and themselves, and after each one, shout out DAYENU! As if to say, "How much is it going to take for us to know that God is with us?!" It builds satisfaction instead of feeding dissatisfaction.
If we begin our day with any notion of scarcity, not-enoughness, victimhood, or "I deserve," I promise you the day will not be good--for you or for those around you. Nor will God be glorified.
Maybe we all should begin our days with a litany of satisfaction, abundance, and enoughness. God, you have given me another day of totally gratuitous life: my health, my eyes, my ears, my mind, my taste, my family, my freedom, my education, clean water, more than enough food, a roof over my head, a warm bed and blanket, friends, sunshine, a beating heart, and your eternal love and guidance.
To any one of these we must say, "And this is more than enough!"
(Adapted from a post to Fr. Richard's blog, Unpacking Paradoxes, on January 30, 2012)
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In his annual Lenten letter, Fr. Richard shares some of the blessings he celebrates this season, including the tremendous support of CAC donors. Thank you for sharing your gifts of God's abundance with CAC, allowing us to share Fr. Richard's teachings.
Read Fr. Richard's Lenten letter and participate in alms-giving out of joyous "enoughness"!
cac.org/lent-2013
