Lent is a time of preparation. 

Originally, it was a time of fasting and heart-preparation for newly-discipled Christians that climaxed with their baptism on Easter Sunday. It begins 40 days plus Sundays from Easter Sunday. This 40 days coincided with the period of fasting and prayer that Jesus experienced in the desert following His baptism, and also with the time when Jesus turned from his Galilean ministry, “setting His face like flint” toward Jerusalem and toward the cross. Over time, already-baptized Christians joined in the practice to remember their own spiritual journey and re-commit to intentional submission of their whole lives to God through the practice of the spiritual disciplines. 

 

Today, in place of complete fasting for 40 days, Lent is often practiced by restraining one cherished appetite by voluntarily abstaining from its satisfaction, for a time. This is more than just ‘not eating chocolate’; the disciplines are meant to facilitate the “dying to self – alive in Christ” pattern of baptism: ‘putting off one thing,’ or fasting, and intentionally ‘taking on’ Christ, filling the time/void with focusing on Christ and His priorities. As we wrestle with the difficulty of ‘doing without,’ we are reminded that Christ made Himself nothing for our sake, and deprived Himself of spiritual privileges for the superior joy of fulfilling His Father’s will. As our hunger/longing makes us more aware of Him, we are reminded that God wants us to be satisfied in Him, and that His first priority is that we would be transformed by His Spirit into people who reflect the character of Christ.

 

As a Church, our Lenten sermon series focus is “A Walk with Christ to the Cross” as we endeavor to follow Jesus Christ Together.

We encourage you to take this journey with others such as your family or your small group.   We recommend:

-       “A Journey Into Wholeness” by Christine Sine to guide you (available from www. godspace.wordpress.com)

-       “The Way of the Cross” display and scripture-led prayers in our sanctuary

Many Christian traditions have allowed for the enjoyment of the otherwise restrained appetites on the Lord’s Day, as a remembrance of the joy, forgiveness and freedom that comes from the death and resurrection of Christ.

 

LET GO OF eating one meal per day & spend that time in prayer for your spouse, your church, your country, the world...

 

LET GO OF beverages other than water & donate the money you save to a water program

 

LET GO OF additional purchases (other than groceries/gas) & begin tithing / giving things away.

 

LET GO OF eating out & donate the money you save into a food hamper for the Food Bank.

 

LET GO OF 20 minutes of sleep or reading the paper & read your Bible instead (consider “Bible 365”)

 

LET GO OF complaining & replace it with gratitude ~ express thankfulness verbally and through written encouragement every day

 

LET GO OF watching television/surfing the internet and instead spend that time as a family

 

LET GO OF debts that others owe you (money, apologies, things) and offer complete forgiveness, remembering that Christ has forgiven you.

 

 

Disciplines aren’t easy... they take discipline. Choosing something that requires a conscious decision will help you grow more in your dependence on Christ.

 

Don’t beat yourself up if you “fail”... spiritual disciplines are intended to make us more available to Jesus’ loving and transforming presence, not make us feel guilty. Christ assures us that our salvation is based on faith, not works and that there is NO condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus. His mercies are new every morning, so start again.