Ok, so growing up Baptist has left me a little lacking in understanding lent. But in recent years, I've become more aware of it, participated in some lent fasting (no sugar on spring break mission trips is no bueno, btw!!) and have sought to understand better the ritual and tradition of the practice of lent.
Wikipedia tells us:
The traditional purpose of Lent is the penitential preparation of the believer—through prayer, penance, repentance, almsgiving, and self-denial. Its institutional purpose is heightened in the annual commemoration of Holy Week, marking the Death and Resurrection of Jesus, which recalls the events of the Passion of Christ on Good Friday, which then culminates in the celebration on Easter Sunday of the Resurrection of Jesus Christ.
Yesterday, believers all over the world began a 40 day journey with the receiving of ashes, symbolizing a repentant heart. I didn't start lent with that practice. But I do want to observe the 40 days of lent in a way that will be significant in my journey with Christ.
THIS is the best understanding of lent I have found: Lent = creating more space for Jesus in my heart and life.
Facebook was consumed with announcing lent beginnings yesterday. But I fear that most of those proclamations had more to do with a tradition than an actual preparation. I wonder, how often we fail to prepare to meet God? I prepare for a test, prepare for an interview, prepare for dinner, prepare for a race ... well, you get the picture. But do I ever stop and prepare for worship? Do I prepare for the celebration of what Christ did for us on the cross? Do I prepare, genuinely, for my day? We are a people who flock to tradition to satisfy a standard we believe we can fulfill. We talked about this last week at ASU as we began Mark Batterson's study, Primal. How we have gotten away from the primacy of God's word, replacing it instead with traditions and rituals ... not BAD things, not even unbiblical (maybe abiblical) ... and as we sat there discussing them, I was struck with the realization that we often do this to satisfy a need in us to meet a requirement. The law was much more comfortable for the early church because it was black and white, cut and dried, you did or you didn't. Love the Lord your God ... and love your neighbor as yourself. Tougher. You never arrive at proficiency at that. You are never done. No wonder we've filled in the spaces of our lives with traditions, rituals, and "rules."
I fear that lent is much this way. I don't really know ... this is a new thing for me. It's not something I grew up doing and just keep doing. But I dare to wonder how giving up chocolate or coffee is going to focus one's heart more on making space for Christ.
I realize that lent is not just about fasting from stuff ... it can also be about adding something to one's life for 40 days (hmmm ... enough time for it to develop into a "habit"). Sometimes we do have to get rid of something to make more room for something else (where your treasure is, there will your heart be also).
I am committing to make more room for Christ in my life these next 40 days. I have some disciplines I am seeking to add to my life, a book I am committing to read and a consciousness of giving Him priority in my time and attention.
I saw this on a blog yesterday and like the reminders of what we die to in this season when we are seeing life spring anew right in front of our eyes (75 degrees in February?? really?)
lent is a season of dying.
dying to the things that are robbing us of life.
dying to the things that continue to do us harm.
dying to the things that separate us from who God really is.
dying to the things that separate us from who we really are.
dying to the things that are robbing us of life.
dying to the things that continue to do us harm.
dying to the things that separate us from who God really is.
dying to the things that separate us from who we really are.
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