Don’t let the sacred time of Lent, pass you by.
Today is the first day of Lent. It comes early this year, because Easter comes early this year and Easter is on March, 27th. Christians look at Lent in many different ways. Some religiously give up something that they love until Easter Sunday, like wine, or coffee, or social media.
I did that one year. I gave up chocolate. At the time, I was a huge chocoholic. A day rarely went by when I didn’t have at least a bite. It was tough to give it up. Interestingly, I’m no longer a huge fan. I like chocolate; but I’m no longer obsessed with it.
There are Christians who pick something up, like reading the Bible everyday, or take a set amount of quiet time, or attend a Bible study. I’ve done that too. I actually did a Lent study here on Graceful Gaines one year, on the Gospel of John. You can access it, if you are interested in reading through one of the Gospels for Lent.
There are also Christians who don’t observe Lent at all. My church never talked about Lent when I was growing up. It’s not in the Bible. It’s more of a “Church Universal,” doctrine. I’ll have to admit that there have been years that I haven’t given Lent much thought. There have been years where I was just too consumed with other things, or too tired, or really just couldn’t wrap my head around Lent.
I couldn’t think of anything to give up or pick up. I just couldn’t think of anything to do.
I’ve come to understand that therein lies my problem. When I kept asking myself what I could do, I kept coming up empty. I’ve learned over time, that when I don’t know what to do, is when I need to spend more time in prayer. Those are also usually the times when I’m feeling the most overwhelmed by life in general.
At some point, our wise Father, revealed to me that Lent isn’t about doing something for God. The idea of giving something up or doing something extra because Jesus died for us, is kind of ridiculous. We can’t do anything to earn grace. Think about it. I’m going to give up chocolate, because Jesus gave up His life?
Lent is a gift from God to us, an invitation to draw closer to Him. It’s a relatively short period of time for Christians to be intentional about our walk with Christ. It’s about putting our faith first and leaning into Jesus and into grace. It’s a special time. It’s a sacred time.
However Christians decide to observe it, the important thing is that we observe it, because when we really make Lent a priority, Easter Sunday has a brand new meaning and truly embracing the miracle of Easter, is what we are all about. Don’t let Lent pass you by.
Have an awesome day!
Wendy 🙂
P.S. This song is such a beautiful reminder of Jesus’ love for us. Enjoy!