During this Lenten season, I’m reading Henri Nouwen each day. This reflection—written 39 years ago, I think—stuck with me this week:

Sometimes despair seems an attractive choice, solving everything in the negative. The voice of despair says, “I sin over and over again. After endless promises to myself and others to do better next time, I find myself back again in the old dark places. Forget about trying to change. I have tried for years. It didn’t work and it will never work. . . .”

This strangely attractive voice takes all uncertainties away and puts an end to the struggle. It speaks unambiguously for the darkness and offers a clear-cut negative identity.

But Jesus came to open my ears to another voice that says, “I am your God, I have molded you with my own hands, and I love what I have made. I love you with a love that has no limits, because I love you as I am loved. Do not run away from me. Come back to me—not once, not twice, but always again.

—The Road to Daybreak: A Spiritual Journey, Henri Nouwen

I have heard the voice that says, “Go ahead and just give up.”

But I have also learned to trust—perhaps just recently—that I don’t have to give up; that there is welcome; that I can come back… always again. In coming back, I find rest.

And I’m invited to make my life this welcoming and safe for others.

Come back to me—not once, not twice, but always again.