It has begun!

Today is Ash Wednesday. Boy did that come quick!

This year, Lent has a few pretty cool twists to it. It begins this week with Ash Wednesday, and ends of Easter. Nothing different about that. But here are a few things that ARE different..

1. At the end of Lent, Jesse Burgard will be baptized into the Catholic Church! :)
2. At the end of Lent, I will be 21 years old. (Literally, my birthday is Easter vigil!)
3. This week was not only the beginning of Lent, but the beginning of our spiritual preparation for our mission trip to Honduras.
4. At the end of Lent, not only will Christ be risen, but our mission team will journey to Honduras and spend Easter week spreading the Word of the risen Lord!


With mission preparation coinciding exactly with the Lenten season, it's almost as if I'm embarking on two journeys. Both preparation processes, preparing for mission and preparing for the Risen Christ, require me to undergo a lot of internal reflection, self-denial, and sacrifice. Every Lent I discover new things about myself, both good and bad, and I know that this Lent will be no different in that aspect. Though it has just begun, I have already learned a few things about myself that I never realized.

First off, I am a lot more forgetful than I realize. This morning, I packed a huge bag lunch for myself before work, and it wasn't until I was on the BART train that I realized that today's a fast day. Now being forgetful may not seem like a big deal, but I've come to realize that one of the reasons I am forgetful is because I have too many things going on at once and let things fall through the cracks. This Lent, I am praying particularly for prudence, which will hopefully help me better discern whether or not I should take up another project.

Thank you all for your prayers! Please continue to unite with me in prayer as we prepare for these Lenten and missionary journeys. Here is a list of all our missioners. If you could keep all of them in your prayers, as well, it would be greatly appreciated.

2008 Honduras Easter Come and See Missioners
Christine Songy
Candra Parker
Kristen Hasseltine
Jenna Kellner
Jeremy Angeles
Cecilia Flores
Charic Myers
Bob Straub
Bob Young
Diane Young

Pray for me,
--Cecilia