What is Lent?

As we approach the Lenten season some of you may be wondering what Lent is. Why is Lent important and more so, what does this have to do with me and my relationship with Jesus Christ? Lent is meant to be this time of personal self-reflection many times done through spiritual disciplines such as prayer, meditation, or fasting. As we approach Ash Wednesday and the start of Lent, we see that Lent takes place over the forty days before Easter and is traditionally a time of repentance and preparation for the celebration of Easter as we remember and reflect on the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ.

The goal of the Lenten season is to draw closer to God. There are many traditions surrounding this season, but whatever you do, it’s great to start by reflecting on your life, and the parts of your life where you feel disconnected from God and his people.  You may have heard about people giving something up for Lent and often these are things that bring pleasure, like sweets, TV, pop, etc.

When I was in college, I tried to give up coffee for Lent. It didn’t last long and one of the reasons I did it was simply because I knew caffeine wasn’t good for me. It didn’t have much of anything to do with my relationship to Jesus. If you plan to give up something, I encourage you to take a different approach. If you are giving something up, do it as an intentional act of worship and sacrifice to God. This year, I am going to take social media off my phone and choose to be more intentional with my time. Giving something up is just one way to observe Lent. Maybe you hope to add something into your life such as a time of prayer, or Bible reading.

Another way of observing Lent is through the sacrifice of time, money, or talents. Your goal should be to see this as an act of worship and sacrifice, not just as a good thing to do. What is it that God is calling
you to give up so that you can live a more intentional life for the sake of the kingdom?

Prayer:
Thank you, Lord, for this time of preparation as we look forward to celebrating your resurrection on Easter. Help us to stay focused on you and the sacrifices you made on our behalf. Amen.