Making Good Food Accessible for All
February 25, 2025
"Behold, I am doing a new thing; now it springs forth, do you not perceive it? I will make a way in the wilderness and rivers in the desert.'"
~ Isaiah 43:19 (English Standard Version)
An Invitation to Cultivate and to Let Go
Houseplants need to be particularly hardy to survive under my care: I have killed more plants than I would like to admit. In seminary, with great hopes, I added a tiny plant to my desk in the library, and that cute fern didn’t even last a semester. Nowadays, when I excitedly bring yet another beautiful plant home, my sweet spouse tries to take it into his care to preemptively thwart its demise. When a plant dies, to ease my woe, he has perfected a gentle (and pretty funny) burial ritual for adding plants to the compost bin. Needless to say, with my track record, I am apprehensive as we enter into a seasonal series with the metaphor of plant-tending.
This season of Lent – the 40 days between Ash Wednesday and Easter Sunday – we are focusing on cultivating and letting go. As the design team of A Sanctified Art describes, “Lent is a season of spiritual gardening, of inviting God to unearth in us what lies fallow, what needs to be tended, and what needs to die for new life to emerge.” With the hope of Easter, we know that God is at work, bringing new life and possibilities in the midst of seemingly barren spaces. We also know from countless stories in scripture and in life, that God asks us to partner in co-creating what is to be. Preparing our hearts, minds, and whole selves for this co-creating with the Divine – this is the work of Lent.
I wonder what you are being led to let go of and to tend to this season. For me, I feel a push to let go of noise, of fear, of certainty. I feel drawn to cultivate silence, intentional community, creativity, and curiosity. Through this season, there are many opportunities to be supported and to lean into this “spiritual gardening”:
Contemplative Retreat - If you are feeling a need to prune the noise surrounding us and to tend to silence in which to connect with God, join us this Saturday for our Contemplative Retreat (click link to register). With prayer practices using our breath, bodies, words, and silence, we will create sacred time to ground ourselves in the love of Christ.
Churchwide Sunday School - If you are curious about what the United Methodist Church has to say about what is going on in the world, come learn about our Social Principles in Churchwide Sunday School beginning this Sunday. These newly revised principles help set a vision for how we as followers of Christ are to take action in our world today. As the Council of Bishops wrote in a letter last month, love of neighbor “requires responsible political action and engagement aimed at the betterment of society and the promotion of the common good.” If you are looking to let go of fear and cultivate justice and peace, this is a great way to step into that work. See below for a listing of each week's focus.
As we begin Lent, I hope you accept the invitation to intentionally let go of what is hindering new life and to mindfully cultivate what God is bringing forth. And I hope that if my husband quietly hands you a houseplant, you give it a home so it can thrive.
