Elder Wisdom by Jeanette
The three pillars of Lent—prayer, fasting and almsgiving—serve as guideposts on this 40-day journey. Prayer, in particular, holds a special place in this season of repentance and renewal. Whether you are new to praying or seeking a deeper prayer life, Lent offers a perfect invitation to begin wherever you are.
For me, it is a time of deep introspection. A way to search my heart pondering who I am, that I might widen my connection to spirit.
Part of this process involves examining my weaknesses that act as stumbling blocks as I prepare to receive God's reconciliation in Christ Jesus on Easter as we celebrate Jesus' glorious resurrection.
May I share with you a poem that I am reading each morning during my time of silent meditation…each time I read it, Spirit sends me something new to reflect on. My prayer is that it might speak to you as well.
This poem was written by Dietrich Boenhoeffer in 1944 as he was imprisoned by the Nazis.
Who Am I
by Dietrich Bonhoeffer
Who am I? They often tell me I stepped from my cells confinement
Calmly, cheerfully, firmly, like a Squire from his country house.
Who am I? They often tell me I used to speak to my warders
freely and friendly and clearly, as though it were mine to command.
Who am I? They also tell me I bore the days of misfortune
equably, smilingly, proudly, like one accustomed to win.
Am I then really that which other men tell of?
Or am I only what I myself know of myself?
Restless and longing and sick, like a bird in a cage,
Struggling for breath, as though hands were compressing
My throat, yearning for colors, for flowers, for the voices of birds,
thirsting for words of kindness, for neighborliness,
tossing in expectation of great events,
powerlessly trembling for friends at an infinite distance,
weary and empty at praying, at thinking, at making,
faint, and ready to say farewell to it all.
Who am I? This or the Other?
Am I one person to-day and to-morrow another?
Am I both at once? A hypocrite before others,
And before myself a contemptible woebegone weakling?
Or is something within me like a beaten army
Fleeing in disorder from victory already achieved?
Who am I? They mock me, these lonely question of mine,
Whoever I am, Thou Knowest, O God, I am thine
