The Church of the Good Shepherd

Dear Friends and Neighbors,

The devotions in this booklet were written by the people of The Church of the Good Shepherd, a community of believers in the United Methodist tradition located in Vienna, Virginia.

We offer you these reflections as a gift. Our hope is that our thoughts and prayers will help you to experience Lent as a spiritual journey toward the glory of Easter.

Over the course of seven years, writing and distributing a Lenten devotional has become an important part of our ministry. The responses we have received testify to the power of this little booklet. From this experience we have developed a larger "writing ministry," and on November 11, 2006, we will host our second annual "Alive in Words" Christian Writers Workshop. Let us know if you would like to attend.

This collection of thoughts and prayers speaks in a variety of voices and comes from a range of personal perspectives. But they have this in common: Each one comes from the heart. Each offers a glimpse into the faith journey of a person seeking to know and to follow Christ. Together, they also reflect the vitality and the extraordinary range of interests of our church family.

If you do not have a church home, we encourage you to visit us on any Sunday. You will find that our hearts, our minds and our doors are always open. Our worship services are at 8:30 and 11 a.m. We especially invite you during Holy Week. We will have special services on Holy Thursday, Good Friday and, of course, on Easter Sunday. Please see the schedule of activities for further details.

In the meantime, we hope you will find this booklet a rich and helpful guide to your own daily devotions through the Lenten season.

May God bless you richly!

Yours in Christ,

— Dr. James R. Noland, Pastor
The Church of the Good Shepherd