A few years ago I was booked to speak at an event in Kiev, my first trip outside of Western Europe. Arriving in the airport I met with a few other participants and together we made the three-hour journey across the City. Taking a taxi, a train, the underground and eventually a public bus, we arrived hot, tired, dusty and fetid! It turned out the event was being held at an old Soviet era education center, most of the plumbing didn’t work and the balcony was detaching from the rest of the building and cordoned off with hazard tape! Desperate for a shower I grabbed the towel and immediately found myself regretting ticking the “Linen required” box on the booking form. The towel provided was a threadbare piece of fabric about the size of an A3 envelope! I sat on the edge of the very worn bed and wrestled with my feelings of wanting to jump straight back on the bus and head for home. But that simply wasn’t possible, all I could do was embrace the place that I found myself in and all that it brought with it. I looked down at my now empty suitcase and visualized myself taking off my European expectations and packing them in the case. I then zipped up the case and pushed in under the bed ready to retrieve when it came time for the homeward journey. Accepting the Lenten journey isn’t for me about giving up things as a form of penance or as some form of challenge, it feels more like choosing to release cultural and even religious expectations and welcoming what will be. If we truly want to embrace all that the journey brings we may need to release more than we want to, more than we find comfortable.
We are a diverse group of Christian freelancers who have collaborated to curate daily reflections during Lent. Each week will have a theme, explored 6 different ways on 6 days.
Andy Campbell – Coach, Trainer, Artist, Poet and occasional square peg. Andy helps people work out who they are, and what their next step might be.
James Fox Robinson – Creative, 3rd Order Franciscan, Dreamer, Professional Nuisance. James is passionate about curating spaces for people to engage with God’s story, physically and digitally.
Lucie Hutson – teacher and learner, created and creator, speaker and pioneer. Lucie is passionate about helping people to wander and wonder in the world around us.
Hasna Khatun – Ordained Pioneer Minister in the C of E. Teacher and Professional Actor/Presenter/Voiceover. Hasna lives to eat and laugh sparingly… She’d like to write an alternative script for Barbie, Ken and Cindy and adores the people who don’t fit in.
Sally Nash – Author, Researcher, Educator, Priest, Mentor, Spiritual Accompanier. Sally is passionate about helping people fulfil their potential and make a bigger difference in their world.
Mark Berry – Pioneer, Teacher, Speaker and Poet. Mark helps groups and individuals break boundaries, engage with culture and grow community.