Forced to Observe Lent - Marnie Pohlmann

I don’t know what the situation with the coronavirus and Covid-19 will be when this post shows up for you because the news changes daily. At the time of writing this, we are to wash our hands every 20 minutes, stay two meters apart, self-isolate, and one site even says to avoid singing in a group.

For me, as an introvert, social distancing and self-isolation are like a dream. Sign me up! Yet for extraverts, all this may range anywhere from an inconvenience to extreme torture.

I have been thinking about how each of us tries to do our part to stop the spread of this new pandemic. As a writer, are others intruding on your creative space? As a Christian, are you struggling to find a balance between concern and faith?

As Spock from Star Trek said, “The good of the many outweighs the good of the one.” This time is one for which this quote applies. We are to sacrifice our own wants and needs to protect others, from the most vulnerable to those who continue to serve our communities.

Sacrifice goes against our natural grain. We have become, or rather always were, a society that wants what we want when we want it. So now, to be asked to share toilet paper and limit where we can go can be a new and uncomfortable experience.

The season of Lent gives us an opportunity to practice this very form of sacrifice. Not giving up what we choose to give up but by seeking ways to isolate some time alone with God and finding ways to sacrifice by serving someone else. The purpose of Lent has never been to simply give up for a short time a vice that would be good for us to give up anyway. Lent is a time that is meant to change us for good, and forever.

Lent is a time to focus on Jesus. An opportunity to focus on when He set down his Crown in Heaven to become man, to live a human life, to enter ministry focusing on others, and to die. At the end of this time of Lenten focus, we celebrate Christ’s resurrection. On Easter Sunday we remember how Jesus defeated earthly death, freed the prisoners, and became, on our behalf, the pure sacrifice needed to allow us to enter God’s presence. Lent is a time to identify with how Jesus served others, sacrificially.

At the beginning of His ministry, when Jesus spent 40 days in the wilderness, Satan taunted and tested Him. I see three areas that Satan used to tempt the Lord. Physical needs - food (Luke 4:3-4); emotional needs - riches and power (Luke 4:5-8); and spiritual needs – knowledge of Truth (Luke 4:9-13.) During Lent we may also sacrifice in these areas by giving up a favourite dessert, giving rather than taking, or spending more time than usual in Bible study. You may not usually take part in Lent but consider this present pandemic isolation as a “forced” lent.

Physically - give up some foods that you like – you may not have a choice about this, as grocery stores are unable to restock their shelves as quickly as they sell out. Give away excess (toilet paper) that you may not need.

Emotionally – consider others; those who are in the same situation as you and those who are continuing to serve your community. Staying together at home can be difficult for families when they are not used to being in one another’s way for this long. Mind your tongue. Be considerate. Don’t whine. Protect one another from illness by practicing good hygiene.

Spiritually – use this time apart from others to delve into God’s Word. We may not understand some Scripture or be mistaken in our thinking. Be open to God correcting your viewpoint by showing you what He means and desires from you on a personal level.

Social distancing and self-isolation are in direct contrast to what God instructs for His people. We are to “not forsake” gathering (Hebrews 10:25.) We are to be a family, a community, part of One Body. We are not to be afraid of persecution, illness, or death. Martin Luther said to be Christian was to not run away from a plague, while exercising common sense.

We must obey the laws of our land (Romans 13:1) and we must also not forsake one another. It may be safer, at this time, for churches to close to reduce the spread of Covid-19, but it is also sad, that churches are not available to those needing comfort and hope. How can we gather while remaining apart? Is it enough to watch an online sermon on Sunday morning?

Here are a few suggestions for maintaining Christ-focused relationship and community. 

•  Phone the seniors of your congregation or community. Our older members often treasure gatherings of the church on Sundays and during the week. They may not have a computer to visit with someone online. They could become very lonely when isolated.

• Check with the young families, as Moms and Dads worry about their children. You may be able to offer some reassurance from Scripture.

• Do an online or phone Bible study with a teenager, to strengthen their faith during the uncertainty of these days.

• As the weather allows for outside time, be available to talk with your neighbour over the fence or from across the road. Be purposeful in your conversation.

• Meet, but in smaller groups of 5-50, as your Province allows. Try to maintain physical separation as much as you can and remember to wash your hands. And of course, if you have even the slightest symptom or may have been in contact with someone who may be sick, stay home.

We can try to ensure no one feels they are alone. I’m sure you can come up with many ways to offer the Hope of life in Christ during this time of illness and death that is causing so much fear throughout the world.

Some military spouses turn the porch lights on when their loved one is deployed and do not turn it off again until their safe return. Some communities are placing red hearts in their windows to encourage those walking by that they are not alone; we are in this together. Can we as Christians offer God’s comfort and salvation to our church family, our neighbourhood, our community, and the world?

I suggested we could keep our porch lights on. My husband suggests we hang a scarlet rope, ribbon, or banner on our home, like Rahab did to declare she believed in God (Joshua 2.) This will not keep our homes miraculously protected or free from the coronavirus, but will declare we are willing to go beyond the concern and fear to assist another, offering the Peace we know as our Lord Jesus Christ, and if able, to fill a physical, emotional, or other spiritual needs.

We are forced to practice sacrifice this Lenten season, and this may continue past when we usually celebrate our salvation at Easter. As Christians, we can willingly sacrifice for the good of the world, like Jesus did.

Be the church.

The Sacrifice Lamb by Joylene M Bailey

Photo by Matt Seymour on Unsplash

“Celebrating Lent was not part of my Baptist upbringing” was how I was going to begin this blog post. But then I thought, I don’t even know if ‘celebrating’ is the right word. That’s how much I know about Lent. Do you celebrate Lent, or practice it? Observe it? Maybe you just get through it.

And so …

Lent was not part of my Baptist upbringing. I remember hearing comments about it from some of my friends at school, but I never paid any attention to them.

As I got into my teen years, I learned a little more. You gave up something, like chocolate, for 40 days. I could never figure out why chocolate would have anything to do with the days leading up to Easter … unless it had something to do with those one-pound solid chocolate bunnies we always got in our Easter baskets. Could that be it? No chocolate, no chocolate, no chocolate. BOOM! Chocolate!

Image by pasja1000 from Pixabay 

It didn’t make any sense to me.

So when this month’s theme came up, I asked the Lord to teach me what Lent was all about. What is it about giving something up for 40 days? Sacrificing something.

And what is real sacrifice anyway?

That’s the question I was pondering when I had lunch with a good friend. She mentioned that her Bible Study group was learning about Jewish feasts and festivals. Passover is the next one.

“Did you know,” she said, “that in the Old Testament, when the Israelites were preparing to celebrate Passover, they chose the unblemished lamb five days before it was slaughtered? They brought it into the house to live with them.”

Then she calmly went on to take another bite of salad while I sat there stunned.

They brought the lamb into the house? Where the adults would trip over it? Where the children would play with it and then fall in love with it? This lamb that would be slaughtered five days later would break the children’s hearts.

Photo by Bill Fairs on Unsplash

In that split second I began to understand what true sacrifice meant.

So now, not only was I researching Lent, I was researching Passover.

Sure enough. The lamb was chosen five days prior to Passover, on Lamb Selection Day. It was brought into the house for those five days so that it could be inspected and proved to be unblemished. And then, slaughtered at twilight five days later.

To my astonishment, I learned that Jesus rode into Jerusalem on a donkey on Lamb Selection Day. Five days later he was crucified, on the day that the Passover lambs were being slaughtered. Our Sacrifice Lamb.

So, what is real sacrifice?

It’s what broke the children’s hearts to have their pet slaughtered. It’s what tore Mary’s heart to see her son beaten and crucified. It’s what God the Father and Jesus the Son were willing to go through for the salvation of all mankind. For my salvation.

Lent … sacrifice … Passover … sacrifice … My brain was making the connections. And it being MY brain, needed this all to boil down to the lowest common denominator.

I understand that there are many components to Lent, but for me it all comes down to one thing: Remembering the Sacrifice.

Now I know that those who choose to give up something for Lent do so to remind themselves, every time they find themselves reaching for the thing they’ve given up, that Jesus made the ultimate sacrifice.

I don’t know that I’ll start observing Lent now, but on this journey God has brought me to a fresh understanding. And all through the eyes of a child and a pet lamb.

Image by Thomas B. from Pixabay 

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These are some of the websites I went to in my research for this post. They are worth checking out:

https://whatthenwhynow.org/the-path-of-the-lamb/

https://acts242study.com/lamb-selection-day/

https://www.crosswalk.com/blogs/jason-soroski/passion-week-part-1-lamb-selection-day.html

http://jewishrootsofchristianity.org/pdfs/120329-jesus-triumphal-entry.pdf

https://www.crosswalk.com/faith/spiritual-life/lent-101-honoring-the-sacrifice-of-jesus-1382259.html

https://www.hebrew4christians.com/Holidays/Introduction/introduction.html

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Joy writes from her home in Edmonton where she is presently hunkering down with the Cowboy and Babe. Find more of her writing at Scraps of Joy.

What are You Giving Up for Lent? by Nina Faye Morey

It is written: ‘Man shall not live on bread alone,

but on every word that comes from the mouth of God.’

~ Matthew 4:4 (NIV)

The concept of Lent runs contrary to our mainstream North American culture. We live in a society that prides itself on having plenty, and we’re driven by an insatiable need for immediate self-gratification. We constantly run to and fro, pride ourselves on always being busy, and our lives are full of stress.

However, Lent should mean much more to us than just another ritualistic event in the liturgical calendar that we must dutifully observe. It is meant to be a solemn season of reflection, prayer, penance, self-denial, and spiritual preparation for Easter. We are to deprive ourselves of something we hold dear in recognition of the ultimate sacrifice Christ made for us on the cross—His life for ours. We are also to share in the suffering and self-sacrifice He endured during those long 40 days spent in the desert depriving Himself of any form of sustenance (Luke 4:2, Matthew 4:2). That is the origin of the Lenten tradition of commemorating our Lord’s suffering and sacrifice with a forty day period of fasting.

We get several perspectives on this practice of fasting from the Bible. It can be practiced for a variety of reasons, but it’s usually interpreted as a complete abstinence from food from morning until evening as a means of seeking the Lord through reflection and prayer (Daniel 9:3). Fasting is observed on the Day of Atonement as an expression of sorrow and repentance for sin (Leviticus 16:29-30). Fasting and prayers are also used to petition for God’s intervention. David’s fasting and prayers were a plea for God to spare the life of his child (2 Samuel 12:15-17.22).

I must admit that I don’t always observe the season of Lent. Not having grown up observing this religious tradition, it often passes by without my giving it the consideration it deserves. It will be half over before I overhear it discussed in other’s conversations or someone asks me that inevitable question, “What are you giving up for Lent?” Then rather embarrassed about my laxity, I’ll commit, rather late in the season, to deprive myself of something that I would normally enjoy indulging in.

I don’t pretend to have the willpower to fast completely for 40 straight days like our Lord Jesus. However, I have often committed to fasting for one or two days a week during Lent, allowing myself only the conventional small evening meal—meatless if it happens to be a Friday. Although for several years now I’ve been mainly a vegetarian, so perhaps I shouldn’t really count the latter as a sacrifice. Although Ash Wednesday and Good Friday are supposed to be full fast days, I confess they are not always ones I’ve managed to strictly observe. Nevertheless, fasting does seem to have become my usual form of sacrifice for Lent.

One other Lenten sacrifice I’ve occasionally observed is giving up all fast food for the duration. I attempted that one last year but lost the battle mid-April during a visit to A&W with the grandchildren. Sweets and deserts are another indulgence that I’ve managed to successfully sacrifice—with the exception of chocolate. I have also considered sacrificing my morning coffee for Lent, but have so far failed miserably to develop the degree of self-control that requires. I suppose if I tried a little harder, I could come up with more cravings or desires that I might forgo to remind myself to focus more on prayer and spiritual matters during this period of penitential preparation for Easter.

Recently, I read about someone choosing to give up all forms of social media for the duration of Lent. I thought that sounded like a great idea at first, until I realized that I don’t actually engage often with social media. So, I guess I couldn’t really count that as a meaningful sacrifice. As Bob Jones mentioned in his blog, I’ve also considered giving up TV watching for Lent. But I haven’t yet mustered up the fortitude required to give up my favourites—the movie channels and various news programs on CNN, CBC, CTV, BBC, CNBC . . . umm, better make that my addictions!

But perhaps the best suggestion I’ve read for observing Lent is to put the focus on others rather than on ourselves. This form of “fasting” would involve sacrificing our time and talents to undertake such things as working towards remediating the injustices of hunger and homelessness, offering help and healing to those in need, donating clothing to a thrift shop, or making amends for any wrongs or sins we’ve committed.

Whatever form of fasting we choose to observe for Lent, Jesus reminds us that our fasting is not to be a viewed as a prideful exercise of show and tell (Matthew 6:16-18). Rather it is a time for us to pray, to ponder our sins, and to turn to God in genuine repentance.

What form of fasting will you practice this Lenten season?

What Norma Wouldn't Give Up For Lent by Bob Jones

When I think of Lent, the name Norma comes to mind.

Norma was a passionate fan of the Olympics – summer and winter. In '88, television was the only media source for watching the Games. Norma glued herself to her TV everyday during Olympic coverage. She paused all of her usual activities to pursue her passion.

1988 was the year of the XV Olympic Winter Games in Calgary, Alberta. Did you watch Eddie the Eagle, the unlikely British ski jumper? I didn’t. That was the year I had a golden idea for Lent. What if everyone in our congregation gave up watching television for Lent? Forty days without TV and all for Jesus.

I wasn’t the biggest Olympic fan at the time so it never occurred to me that Lent would fall during the two weeks of the Games.  Norma was in our congregation. Can you see where this is going?

In January, I challenged our congregation to turn off the TV and tune into Jesus. What a great way for everyone to sacrifice something that was integral to their daily routine so they could get closer to Jesus. We posted a sign-up list to show who and how many were participating. That’s when I noticed Norma.

As the list of participants grew longer, Norma grew distant. The beginning of Lent neared. She started to avoid me on Sundays. The day before Ash Wednesday she phoned me. “Pastor Bob, I have a predicament.” Norma loved Jesus and was quite happy to give up anything for Lent, except the Olympics. My good intentions put Norma in a vice grip between Jesus and the Olympics. She wanted to support my idea but wouldn't be participating. I told her that was OK with me, as I was sure it was with Jesus. 

Lent is about giving up something important to be reminded that Jesus is ultimately important. It’s one thing for a person to voluntarily give up something as an act of devotion. It’s quite another to feel the unintended pressure of a community to conform.

Pressure can turn passion into poison.  

In 1988 Norma chose to give up chocolate and TV for Lent. She cheered on Eddie the Eagle and his fellow Olympians and when the Games were over she turned off her TV. She got closer to Jesus through it all. And she helped me become a better pastor.

What aren't you giving up for Lent?

Read more from Bob at REVwords,com

White as Snow - Marnie Pohlmann

The little girl skipped out of the house into the yard. She wore a new dress, a white Easter dress. In her curly hair was a white ribbon. On her feet were white knee-high socks and polished white Mary Jane's with the slightest heel that tapped when she walked on hard floors, which is why she was sent outside.

"Stay clean," Mama directed. "No hanging upside down from the cherry tree!"

Trying to be obedient, she tap-tapped her way down the paved driveway and onto the sidewalk. She twirled, enjoying how her beautiful new dress flared open like a flower blooming.

Suddenly, she was pushed from behind. She hadn't seen the bully approach. He always seemed to take pleasure in tormenting her and she didn't know why. She was off balance from twirling when he shoved her, so she landed hard, right in a mud puddle beside the sidewalk. Thick brown water climbed onto her lap.

"Why?!" she demanded.

He shrugged his shoulders and smirked an ugly grin. "I like it," was all he would say.

"Well, I don't!" she retorted.

"So, I'm bigger and I like it!" He laughed and walked away.

There was no tap-tapping as she shuffled back home. She knew Mama would be angry. Her new dress was ruined. She knew she would be the one to be punished, and he would not.

Opening the door, she slowly tip-toed to the kitchen where Mama was busy slicking back the rooster tail above her brother's pouting face. Mama turned to look at her.

"We're not quite ready to go yet, honey. Go back outside for a bit more."

Mama didn't notice the ugly stains? She looked down at herself, confirming the mud did show. But all Mama did was give her a hug and steer her gently back outside. Outside where the bully was.

He was still there, standing beside another mud puddle. Where had the mud come from? Before she had only noticed blue sky, birds singing in the trees, the green grass, and the start of Spring flowers in Mama’s garden. But sure enough, muddy water rested in pools throughout the neighbourhood.

She watched as he jumped in one, glorying at how the mud sprayed up around him. He hadn't noticed her yet, but his splashing threw up more mud; this time it reached her face and hair ribbon.

He seemed to be having so much fun jumping in the mud, and Mama had not even noticed the stains on her, she thought. "And he's just going to push me into the mud again anyway," she reasoned.

She stepped into the nearest puddle and sat down. She gathered mud around her, bathing in the dirt to cover herself before he threw more at her. She knew it was wrong. She knew she was ruining her pretty Easter dress. Yet somehow, she liked the squish of mud as it seeped inside her shoes when she stood up to run from puddle to puddle. The tap-tapping had turned to squelch-squelching.

"Let's go," called Mom. Climbing into the back seat of the station wagon, she huddled against the far door, expecting at any moment that a brother would tattle about her being so dirty.

No one noticed her, though. She was confused. Wasn't the sight and stench of the mud obvious? Couldn’t they see it covering everything?

At the Easter church service, she saw the other girls, all dressed in new dresses, soft shades of pink and green, and white. "If I stand beside them someone will certainly notice how dirty I am," she thought, so she stayed close to her mom, trying to hide in the shadows.

In the sermon, the minister described how the Jews had been slaves for hundreds of years in Egypt, and how God told them to mark their doors with the blood of a pure lamb.

“God said, ‘Eat standing up, with your coat on, ready to leave for the Promised Land.’” She remembered the story from Sunday School. The Angel of Death came that night to kill the oldest boy in each house, but not in the houses marked with blood. The blood showed the angel all the families who believed God could and would rescue them.

The minister then described the week leading up to the death of Jesus on the cross. How Jesus was beaten, with blood pouring over his face from a wretched thorny crown forced onto his head. And then they put him on the cross to die. The minister paused and turned to the wooden cross hanging on the wall behind him. It was draped with a black cloth.

She looked down at her dress and saw the mud had dried to a colour that matched the cloth on the cross. The minister pointed to the cloth and her eyes grew wide as he looked directly at her.

"That black cloth is your sin," he exclaimed. "The sin of history, the sin that has been thrown at you through circumstances, and the sin you have chosen yourself." She lowered her eyes in shame.

Tears streaked over the mud on her cheeks. She wiped her eyes trying to wash her face but knew she was just mixing the dirt around more. She quietly tried to wipe her face on her short puffy sleeves, but the material was already soaked through with dirt and wasn't helping at all. Being sorry was not enough.

The minister's voice had become quiet and she looked up to see him draping another cloth over the black one. This cloth was a deep red. He made sure it covered every bit of the black cloth.

"You don't have to stay in sin. Remember the blood of the lambs at Passover? It was the blood of a sacrificed lamb painted on the door that showed the Angel of Death who believed God could rescue them. Jesus gave himself on the cross as that sacrifice, at the exact time it was needed in the world because he was the perfect sacrifice. His blood can be poured over you just as it was on the doors so long ago. Do you believe God can and will rescue you from sin? Will you ask God to allow the sacrifice of Jesus to be accepted in your place?"

"Oh, yes," she whispered. "I would rather be covered with Jesus' blood than with all this mud. Then God will see the blood and know I believe He will rescue me."

The minister continued. “It doesn’t end there. Jesus’ blood covers the sin that keeps us from God, but then Jesus did even more. He rose from the grave. He conquered death so we can live for eternity with God. Hallelujah! Isaiah says, 'though your sin be as scarlet,' yes, even as your sin is covered with Jesus' blood, 'it will be white as snow.' Jesus' blood washes us clean. Jesus makes us white as snow so we can live in the presence of God. Do you believe?"

The minister paused as he hung another cloth over the red one. This cloth was white. It did not cover the red but seemed to be framed by the red cloth, as if tucked into and protected by the blood sacrifice.

“Only by the blood of Jesus can we live today, tomorrow, and for eternity in holiness, washed as white as snow.”

Her heart filled with wonder that God could cover her with Jesus’ blood to make her white as snow. She looked down again and fingered her lacey white Easter dress.

"Look, Mama, I'm white as snow."

This Lent season, Marnie Pohlmann is reflecting on the seasons of winter, mud, and spring, and how Christ's blood washes us white as snow to give new life, even though we have jumped into mud puddles of selfishness and sin. Read her blog, Phosphorescent, to see how God continues to teach her of His presence and love.

My Journey With Jesus by Nina Faye Morey

The story of the two men “On the Road to Emmaus” reflects the journey that many of us experience in our walk with Jesus (Luke 24:13-32). They were preoccupied with feelings of sadness, grief, and disappointment because of their own failure and their leaders’ betrayal of their Lord. They neither recognized Jesus nor realized the true meaning of His crucifixion. They’d hoped that Jesus was the Messiah who would redeem the Israelites from Roman rule. They failed to comprehend the spiritual significance that His death and reported resurrection held for the remission of sins (Matthew 26:28). They hadn’t yet connected all the dots between the events they’d just witnessed and what Jesus had revealed to them through His teachings.

Just as Jesus came to meet and walk beside these downcast men on the road to Emmaus, Jesus comes to walk alongside many of us on our painful journeys through darkness and despair. We’ve all walked this road to Emmaus at least once during our lifetime. We’ve all experienced fear, failure, disappointment, sadness, hopelessness, uncertainty, and death. And just as He did for these men, Jesus comes to us and opens our eyes to reveal Himself as our true Lord and Saviour. The road to Emmaus is whatever road we’re trudging down when we encounter Jesus, resolve to walk and talk with Him, and open ourselves up to His radical transformation of our lives. It may be a calm experience like the one described in Luke, or it may be a more dramatic encounter like Paul’s on the road to Damascus (Acts 9:3-9).

As we travel life’s road, Jesus joins us on our journey even though we may fail to recognize Him. It is His Spirit who arouses our curiosity and draws us towards Him. Like Moses, wonderstruck over the miracle of the Burning Bush, we find ourselves drawn aside from our usual path by a deep desire to explore a slow-burning but imperishable fascination with a spiritual world that’s difficult to fathom (Exodus 3:1-3). Our curiosity to know more about God leads us on an incessant spiritual quest. We find ourselves seeking fellowship with Him through His Word, prayer, devotionals, and meditative readings.

It’s at this point in our spiritual journey that we discover God is not some unseen, passive, “abstract” deity, but a very real and holy being who demands our complete loyalty, commitment, and devotion. Like Peter, it’s the crucial moment when we decide to “drop our nets,” to leave our former lives behind, and commit ourselves to Him (Matthew 4:18-20). It’s the moment when we open ourselves up to spiritual change.

At this stage in our spiritual development, we come to realize that this new life to which God is calling us is not only full of promises, but it’s also full of demands. We have not only accepted Christ, but the bonds, vows, and responsibilities that come with our spiritual conversion. God desires us to be active and fruitful in our spiritual lives. He’s given us gifts that He wants us to use to help and encourage others, open their hearts and minds to Him, and help direct them down the path in life that He’s chosen for them.

The Lenten season allows me to set aside extra time to walk and talk with Jesus. It enables me to focus more fully on my risen Lord and Saviour, reflecting on and renewing my relationship with Him. Lenten practices like Bible study and prayer open my eyes, move my heart, deepen my faith, and help me grow on my spiritual journey. Above all, Lent is a time for me to meditate on the profound meaning of Christ’s sacrifice and celebrate His eternal victory over sin and death.

Photos: Pixabay

Weighing in Your Writing by Pamela Mytroen

A while back I decided I needed to lose some weight. I stepped on the scale the next morning and took note of where I was at. The next morning I did the same thing. I carefully followed my ritual every morning for a full year, fully expecting to see a change in the numbers. I did manage to wear two perfect footprints into the rubber pad, but alas, I did not lose a single ounce.

The other routine I followed religiously was that I continued to eat all my favourite foods, especially my hot buttered popcorn and potato chips. Yet I kept hoping that I would see a new mark on the scale. What is the definition of insanity? Doing something the same way repeatedly and expecting different results every time? If I expected to see a change, then my routine needed to change.

So it is with writing. If we are not progressing, something needs to change. The same old routine is not going to magically produce results. I would love to wake up a writer with a published book and several more writing credits to my name but I have discovered it’s not enough to think, talk, and dream about being a writer. Strong desire does not equal amazing results. It’s not enough to ‘weigh in’ every morning and see if I have magically written anything in my sleep. Something has to change. Something needs to be sacrificed.

My writing strategy this past year was to write first and THEN check my email and facebook. It worked. I was able to have many non-fiction pieces published. Funny how just that one little sacrifice had to be made. My writing plan for this year is to give up that first golden hour after supper – from 7:00 to 8:00 p.m. when the couch is calling after a day at work. I have started this routine and have discovered that once I get writing it is often 8:30 or 9:00 before I need a break. I am also part of a small facebook writing group. We write for 30 days and then choose our best rough work and send it out to each other for editing. We have had a few stalls but we’re still going and I find I am motivated to write just knowing that they will be waiting to see a piece.

These days when I weigh in my writing, and on the scale too (the popcorn machine doesn’t come out as often) I am seeing a new balance with more credits to my name.

What are you willing to give up to see change?

Pam Mytroen