Pack Light
Dear Savannah and Sutton,
I have been reminded this week of how much attention our culture gives to the container that holds our spirit, our personality, our soul. We make so many judgements based on the body (the container) when its primary function is simply that it provides the framework within which our being exists. I think the body is important, but only in that it provides a form through which love is expressed. Giving attention to the health and wellness of the body is valuable, but it should never infringe on the effort needed to tend to the soul.
-Dad
Inside Out Lectionary Letters
Year A - 2nd Sunday in Lent (Texts, Art, Hymns)
Readings for March 1, 2026
Genesis 12:1-4a / Psalm 121 / Romans 4:1-5, 13-17 / John 3:1-17
Psalm 121 is the second of a group of fifteen psalms (120-134) that are given the title, “Song of Ascents.” Jewish tradition indicates that they were likely sung by people making the pilgrimage to Jerusalem for the three pilgrimage festivals described in Deuteronomy 16. As a caravan would wind through the hills and back country on the route to Jerusalem, these Psalms would keep the traveler focused on the faithfulness of God rather than on the intimidating circumstances.
A pilgrimage is a wonderful metaphor for the inward journey. With quiet imagination we might be able to create an inner landscape of our own personality that resembles the ascent to the sacred space of our inward Jerusalem. Think of the following:
The joy of starting a new adventure.
The concern about the best route.
The strength of the ego, and its reluctance to give over the reigns to any other part fo your personality.
The strong pull of the dysfunctional ways whose patterns are known, versus the uncertainty of walking a different path.
The fear of what lurks in the shadows and crevices along the hillsides of this inward trek.
The psalmist poses questions of focus: Is your focus on what villainous traps may be awaiting in each turn of the hills, or on the One who created the hills (v.1)? Is your focus on the promises of heaven, the stumbling blocks of the earth or the One who laid the foundation of both (v.2). Is your focus on what might trip you up or on the Voice within that guides your steps (v.3). Is your focus on the concerns of the day, the fears of the night, or the Architect who set the sun and moon in place (v.6)? Is your focus on trying to avoid what lurks in the shadows, or on embracing the dance of both light and shadow (vs.5,7)?
The pathway to the spiritual center of our inner soul requires that we leave some of the comforts of the familiar parts of our personality, taking only what is essential, and explore parts that feel unfamiliar and unwieldy. Some parts have been unwelcome and have been banished to the wilderness of the unconscious. However the journey to the spiritual center beckons us through the wilderness, often requires some days in the desert, and inevitably brings us face-to-face with the shadows and all that lies therein. The journey is every bit as important as the destination, because here we learn that the sacredness we seek in the destination is already present within us on the journey.
Prayer
Lord, I’ve probably packed too much for this journey. I pray for my own patience toward myself as I stumble under the weight of my own baggage. Letting go of how I want to be seen by others is not easy. But clinging onto it no longer works. So I guess it’s time for my focus to change. Amen