What time is it, again?

Our friend Margaret Adams told us about her youth group's "Welcome to Lent" skit, full of sufferings to be patiently borne and people in haircloth shirts carrying signs saying "Welcome to Lent,"  At the end, someone wearing a Hawaiian shirt and carrying a faux margarita strolled by with a "Welcome to Easter" sign.

Monica enjoys additional prayers and Gloria thinks almsgiving is always in good taste, but Allen likes to emphasize that we are LOVED SINNERS, and the angels rejoiced when we were born.  Otto says this is true, we are not the "dung heaps covered in snow" that Luther talked about, because our fallen human natures are redeemable.  Daniel chimed in that you have to want to be redeemed for God to do anything, since forcing someone do something is not a loving act. Monica embraced everyone's take on the subject by pointing out that John of the Cross used the analogy of a bowl (made by The Potter from human clay), which needs washing because of sin.  We clean the outside as best we can, then God cleans the inside.  

Fasting was apparently everyone's least favorite part of Lent, but we all liked the idea that fasting is preparation for the wonderful Feast of Easter - with or without Hawaiian shirts.