Tomorrow is Valentine’s Day. But as you may or may not be aware, it is also Ash Wednesday. I wonder when was the last time those two fell on the same day.

But with that, I’m posting a beautiful prayer that marks the beginning of the season of Lent which lasts from Ash Wednesday up until Easter Sunday:

“A lenten prayer to avoid entitlement from Richard Rohr:

‘Maybe we all should begin our days with a litany of satisfaction, abundance, and enoughness. God, you have given me another day of totally gratuitous life: my health, my eyes, my ears, my mind, my taste, my family, my freedom, my education, clean water, more than enough food, a roof over my head, a warm bed and blanket, friends, sunshine, a beating heart, and your eternal love and guidance.

To any one of these we must say, ‘And this is more than enough!'”

In reality, it’s been raining for 4 or 5 days. It feels like it’s been raining since January.

For a brief and glorious moment, the rain stopped and the sun broke through the clouds. For a second or two, I could see clear blue sky.

Then it rained again.

As of this moment, it’s still raining.

I almost feel like I should start checking on the prices of arks and how to take care of animals in pairs of two. But thankfully, that scenario won’t ever be repeated.

Yet still it rains.

So I hold on to hope along with that little orphan Annie that maybe the sun’ll come out . . . . tomorrow. Maybe.

Have you ever had those moments when you find something riotously funny? Typically, it comes when you’re sleep-deprived or anxious. It’s a moment when you’re laughing so hard that you make no noise and sometimes you clap like a seal for special effect.

I have.

Have you ever gone to bed feeling hopeless and despairing and then awoke to find that all those problems that seemed overwhelming the night before don’t seem as daunting?

I have.

Sometimes, the best cures for just about anything are a good belly laugh and a long sleep. And I don’t mean a polite chuckle or even a loud laugh, but one where you have tears streaming and your sides hurt and you can’t breathe. The kind where if anyone seeing you will think you have gone and lost what little of your mind you still had left.

And a good night’s sleep. That’s when you turn off the alarm. You even might feel a little guilty for sleeping so long. But sometimes that’s just what you need, so don’t listen to the guilt.

Remember, Jesus took a nap in the boat in the middle of a storm, so you’re allowed. And I’m sure the disciples had plenty of reason for laughter with Peter constantly sticking his foot in his mouth.

So there.

I think if you’ve got nothing else to pray, you can always go with something along the lines of “God, you know what’s going on and I don’t. Have Your way.”

Put another way, you can always pray, “Thy will be done.”

Here is a prayer that Elisabeth Elliott offered to God throughout her lifetime that also works:

According to the tab that reads About This Mac, my little MacBook Pro was built in early 2015. According to my math skills, that makes it nine years old. I believe in the world of electronics and technology, that’s considered at least vintage if not antique. It’s old.

I bought it refurbished in 2016 and have written thousands of blog posts on it since then. I don’t have to worry about all those annoying pop ups that used to plague my old laptop. I don’t have to worry about waiting for it to boot up when I first turn it on.

I don’t say all this to humble brag but as a way of being thankful. I’m grateful for this trusty old mac that still works. I’m thankful for my 51 (almost 52) year old self that still works. I’ve learned over the years never to take anything for granted — even the smallest stuff — because sometimes when you take things (and people) in your life for granted, what you’re granted gets taken.

By the way, I still have that old laptop. It still works, but it’s a bit slower and has all those annoying pop ups.

This is my absolute favorite verse because it’s a reminder of God’s heart toward His children. It’s a promise that belongs to everyone who has ever trusted in God as revealed in Jesus: