Opening Prayer:
May I surrender to Your Loving Presence.
Scripture: Luke 11:10
For everyone who asks receives, and everyone who searches finds, and for everyone who knocks, the door will be opened.

Introduction:  
A time for introspection, Lent invites us to take a hard look at ourselves and to ask the heart-rending questions of how we respond to life, to God. When faced with temptation, do we turn away from our ego mind and surrender our will to God? Or do we give in, allowing our need to control, our self-centered desires, our longing for approval or status to win?
In the wilderness when tempted by the devil, Jesus turned to God because He never forgot God's Presence. He never forgot God was his All. Do we sometimes forget that God is with us? Do we consider God to be our All?
The Labyrinth is a sacred space where we can explore these questions, knowing that no matter what answers we find, we are always loved by God. We can remember that we are made of God.
Pause for Thought:
"To say that I am made in the image of God is to say that love is the reason for my existence, for God is love. Love is my true identity. Selflessness is my true self. Love is my true character. Love is my name."  Thomas Merton

Preparatory Prayer:
May I be open to God’s Presence.

Labyrinth Walk:  
Today, before you enter the labyrinth, walk slowly around its circumference. Think of this path as your ego, the place where your self-centered desires, need for protection, acceptance and status reside. The ego plays an important role in your life. Just as the outside line of the labyrinth is essential in identifying the labyrinth's boundary, your ego is a boundary, differentiating you from your neighbor. But your ego is not all of who you are.
As you follow the path around the circumference, consider the fact that as long as you're walking this ego path, you'll never reach the labyrinth's center. Think of the center as a sacred space, a place of awareness that God is with you. When you are not in the center but are focused on the ego, walking its path, it is easy to forget that. Even though God's love fills the labyrinth and beyond, spilling onto the ego's path, walking that path gives the illusion that you are separate from God just as you are separate from the center. As you walk, reflect on the times when you have felt separate from Him. Do you allow your ego to take control when faced with temptation because you feel disconnected from God?
When you're half way around the labyrinth, stop and look toward the center. Know that at any time, you can leave the ego path and walk to the center. Nothing is keeping you on this path except your own will. It is always your choice to open to an awareness of God's presence. You can go straight to the center from the spot where you're standing or from any point along the circumference. Or you can go to the labyrinth's entrance and follow the traditional path. There are many paths to God. There are as many ways to open to His Presence as there are points along the labyrinth's circumference.
When you're ready, choose your own way to get to the center. Once there, know that God is with you, Know that you are made of Him. Give thanks for His love. Stay as long as you like. Then, when you're ready, follow the path out. Know that whether you're walking on a path to the center or on the path of your ego, God is with you. Nothing, not even your ego, can separate you from His Love. As Merton says, "Love is your true character. Love is your name."