Monday, Feb. 23, 2026 — Colossians 3:12–13

Therefore, as God’s chosen people, holy and dearly loved, clothe yourselves with compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness and patience. Bear with each other and forgive one another if any of you has a grievance against someone. Forgive as the Lord forgave you.

RESIST HURRYING, TAKE TIME FOR FORGIVENESS

Lent invites us to slow down in a world that constantly urges us to hurry. Colossians reminds us that we are God’s chosen ones, called to clothe ourselves with compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness and patience. These are not hurried virtues. They cannot be put on while rushing through life.

Perhaps you remember the Alabama song “I’m in a Hurry (And Don’t Know Why).”* It’s an early ’90s country music song. The chorus goes like this:

“I'm in a hurry to get things done
I rush and rush until life's no fun
All I really gotta do is live and die, but
I'm in a hurry and don't know why.”*

These lyrics feel uncomfortably familiar. We move fast, pack our schedules and rush from one obligation to the next, often without stopping to ask, what we are really chasing? Lent asks us to press pause on that mindset. It calls us to notice how easily hurry crowds out patience, how noise drowns out gentleness and how busyness makes forgiveness feel inconvenient.

Stillness during Lent is not about doing nothing. It is about making room for God to work in us. When we slow down, we see more clearly how quickly we react, how easily we hold onto resentment and how much we need grace. In the quiet, God invites us to remember that we are forgiven people, called to forgive others in the same way.

Forgiveness takes time. It requires space to breathe, pray and reflect. Stillness helps us remember that God is not in a rush with us, and we do not need to be in a rush with others.

This Lent, resist the hurry you cannot explain. Let stillness be an act of trust. As you slow your pace, allow compassion and patience to settle into your life, clothing you each day in the love that God has already given.

God of grace, slow my steps and quiet my heart. Free me from the hurry that pulls me away from you. In this season, teach me to live with patience, compassion and forgiveness, resting in your presence. Amen

Dulcinea Rakestraw

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Reformation Lutheran Church A Congregation of the ELCA

RESIST HURRYING, TAKE TIME FOR FORGIVENESS