The legend of the Dogwood

Workers traveled through the woods of Jerusalem looking for wood to make crosses for the crucifiction of criminals.  Today was a different day that any other day, word had traveled that the “King of the Jews” was to be crucified and they were told to find heaviest piece of wood as the King was to travel carrying the cross.

God spoke to the trees asking them to provide the wood for the cross, the trees did not want part of this, “We will be forever remembered as the tree that crucified our Lord,” they said.  God asked the tallest, the strongest, the noblest of trees – the Dogwood.  This tree was prized for its wood, being the preferred wood of construction at the time.  The Dogwood a good tree, a devout servant of God and immediately replied, “Lord if you ask of me to do it, then I will do it.  I will be forever tied to the death of our Lord and Savior.”

The tall Dogwood was cut and made into a large and heavy cross and taken to when Jesus was held.  The tree once proud of his strength shuddered as he touched the gentle shoulder of his Lord.  As Jesus carried his cross through the streets, the Dogwood felt the spit that touched him and his Lord as the people cried out at them waving their fists, he felt his Lord’s shoulders weaken under the weight of the wood that was him wishing he was lighter.  The blood that flowed from our Lord with each touch of the whip touched the wood, searing this mighty tree and leaving it crying with pain each time our Lord fell.

The Dogwood felt all the anger and bloodlust of the crowd that surrounded, it felt the compassion of Simon as he was brought to help our Lord, he felt the resolve as the man he loved moved slowly to his death.  The nails tore through the soft skin of Our Lord and into that tree, splitting the wood, the Dogwood felt all the weight of the worth as the cross was heaved up and for once the tree did not want to stand tall.  This mighty tree was sick and tired when Jesus finally died and fell limp against the wood.

Upon the Resurrection, God felt pity on the poor tree, forever scarred from his journey as a cross.  He said, “Thank you mighty tree, this is a task you will never do again. In gratitude for your loyalty and steadfastness of this journey and I will make sure you are the symbol of the Resurrection and not the death of my Son.”

He breathed on that might tree and all the pain the tree fell went away as those strong limbs softened and turned from tall and straight to gnarly.  The wood once strong  and prized for the construction of criminal crosses for crucifixion turned soft and unusable, the echoes of the cries of the people, the crying of our Lord turning whispering then silence as peace came taking away the horrors of that journey.

The once mighty tree, treasured for it’s strength became small and gnarly, as it sighed from a job completed.  No one would ever make a cross of that wood again.  Pain became joy as it’s blooms were stained with red representing the blood on the hands and feet of our Lord,  the flower in the middle of the bloom represents the crown of thorns our Lord wore at the time of crucifixion.  The Dogwood would only bloom around the time of the celebration of Easter, a reminder not of that night of darkness but the beautiful light of the resurrection that saved the world.

The dogwood softly felt the cleansing breeze on its soft gnarly limbs, its blossoms opened and worshiped our Lord it smiled at peace as workers passed the unusable tree for other pieces of wood.  The Dogwood did God’s will and with the blessing of our Lord it did what it wanted to do – it rested.

A Giant Hug from heaven . . .

In the past, the Lenten Season (40 days before Easter), left me feeling sad and ashamed of the world and of myself. I now view the season of Lent very differently.  Now, I feel incredibly loved, loved by the Creator of the universe. These days, Lent is like a giant hug from heaven ending with a great celebration on Easter Sunday!  What has changed and what is Lent?

I suppose I never really understood the significance of the cross (I probably still don’t), but one thing I’m coming to understand is that it is all about love, a love that is beyond my comprehension, a love that is humble and a love that has depths I will never fully understand.  This Love makes me want to be a different person and this Love invites me to change.   For me, Lent is a season of listening . . . and I am convinced and have experienced that when we are still, when we are quiet and when we listen . . . we will hear whispers from the Creator of the universe.

What plans do you have for the Lenten season?

 Here is my plan:

READ:    The Power of a Whisper    &    40 Day Devotional: Jesus Calling

SING:     Like an Avalanche    &     Bones    (click on the links and listen to these songs!)

WELCOME:   Silence & Stillness into my home and life in greater ways

LISTEN:  Listen for Whispers  .  . . . .

Dates to remember this season:  Lent begins today (March 9, 2011), Ash Wednesday (March 9, 2011), Good Friday (April 22, 2011) & Easter Sunday (April 24, 2011)

We need to find God, and he cannot be found in noise and restlessness. 
God is the friend of silence.  See how nature – trees, flowers, grass-grows in silence; 
see the stars, the moon and the sun, how they move in silence . . .
(Mother Teresa)

Holy Week

What traditions are special to you during this time of the year?   Christians throughout the world are celebrating and remembering Holy Week this week.  It begins with Palm Sunday and concludes on Easter Sunday.  

It has always been fascinating for me to hear about individual and family traditions that occur yearly.  Lent, Tenebrae, Good Friday, Maundy Thursday, fasting and other traditions and terms common to others, were mostly unknown to me growing up.  With the exception of our yearly Easter Cantata, which generally occurred the Sunday before Easter, our family’s focus was on the celebration of Easter Sunday.  To me, as a child, this meant a new dress, hat and white gloves!  It also meant chocolate marshmallow bunnies, malted Easter eggs, Easter baskets, Sunrise services, inspirational and celebratory worship services, lunch at my Grandparent’s house and a big Easter Egg Hunt with my cousins.  Other than dressing up, it was a simple and joyful time of celebration. 

Shortly after getting married, I remember hearing the terms Lent and Maundy Thursday.  My husband explained these terms to me because they were part of his family traditions.  Since that time, I’ve come to appreciate many different traditions.  One thing still puzzles me though, why is the day Jesus was crucified called “Good Friday?”    

What traditions, celebrations and remembrances are special to you this season?  By the way, I was quite proud of that little pocket book and my hat!  My older sister thought she was pretty special too!

Lent begins today!

What is Lent? Are you giving up something for Lent? Perhaps you are part of a new thought pattern and you are going to be “Doing Something” for Lent.

In the Christian tradition, Lent is 40 days of fasting and prayer beginning with Ash Wednesday and concluding on the Saturday before Easter. I can already hear all of you math whizzes right now . . . saying, “Wait there is more than 40 days during that time period!” Your right! Sundays are not included in the 40 days of Lent. So for all of you folks who are fasting during Lent, did you know that you could take Sundays off? Yes, that is right; in fact, you should never fast on Sundays because Sundays are celebration days (or feast days) in the Christian tradition. Every Sunday is considered a “little Easter.”

Today is Ash Wednesday and you may see people walking around town with a dark smudge on their foreheads. This indicates that they have likely attended a worship service where a black cross, made of ashes was put on their forehead. This worship service marks the beginning of the Lenten season and reminds the worshipers “from dust they came and to dust they will return.” It is also a symbol of repentance. So if you see someone, with something on his or her forehead today, you might want to ask before you try to wipe it off.

There are many traditions for families and faiths that surround the Lenten season.  Do you have any special memories of this upcoming season?