Today I was going on a nature walk in my neighborhood.  It was a great time to reflect on the lent season and try to hear from my God.  I have been thinking about the idea of giving something up for lent, and felt a little guilty that I couldn’t think of anything.  There are plenty of things I am trying to change and part of my new year’s resolutions, yet it didn’t feel like this was the same thing for me.  My egotistical mind even was thinking “haven’t I given up enough?”  I clearly was missing something.

As I was listening on my I-pod, the song “Beauty of the Cross” by Johnny Diaz came on, and I felt like I received another reminder of what I love about the Easter season and what Lent means to me.  The words of the chorus lit up my soul:

The beauty of the cross is that There’s One who has redeemed my soul
Beauty of the cross is that I’m finally free and letting go
Beauty of the cross is that Your grace has found me just as I am

When I let this sink in, it brings tears to my eyes.  It reminds me to hold on to the grace, love and forgiveness of my Savior.  In this moment, I am perfect before my God, and loved completely exactly how I am.- nothing I do or don’t do will take away God’s love for me. I can let go of is the shame, the mistakes, the addictions, the unworthiness, the anxiety and everything else that keeps me from living in the freedom in which my Savior has freed me from.

When I embrace the love and forgiveness of my Jesus, and the magnitude of the cross, I feel gratitude that I can be free.  The freedom allows me to connect with others, move towards reconciliation and to have more love for all people and things.  When I see my own pain, struggles and mistakes, I can have more compassion for others, listen more clearly and be more proactive in creating a world with more justice and unity.

Thank you Jesus for giving me freedom and bringing your Spirit to guide me in All things.

Your Servant, Elissa