On Wednesday, February 14, the church calendar turns yet another page as we move from the “Season after the Epiphany” to the “Season of Lent.”

Between Ash Wednesday and Easter, Christians observe a 40-day period known as Lent. This name comes from the Old English “lencten”, meaning springtime or spring and from West Germanic, “langitinaz”, meaning long-days or lengthening of the day. It was regarded as a time of fasting, however there are many ways to make the Lenten period meaningful without missing meals. What is Lent and why should one take part? Read on…

Lent is meant to be a time of repentance. That’s not a feeling of shame but an awareness that sin separates us from God and of what it cost Him to be reunited with us. Shame has its place, but feeling shame over sin is not the same thing as repentance from sin because Satan can take our obedience to God and turn it into a source of pride. That’s when our faith turns into religiosity. When we begin to associate our practices with a sense of earning God’s love and forgiveness, our hope then becomes misplaced as we turn to practice rather than providence. That is why tying Lent to our New Year’s resolutions is dangerous. This time of observance should not add religious encouragement to a difficult goal: to lose weight, stop watching pornography, or to give money to charity. Lent is the opportunity for us to contemplate what Jesus really did for us on the Cross.

And it is that contemplation that many of us choose not to do. I’ve often wondered why we choose not to enter into this season thinking about what Jesus did for us. Could it be that the knowing someone chose to die for us makes us feel “unworthy” or “uncomfortable?” Could it be that watching Christ deny Himself of the worldly pleasures in which we tend to indulge leads us to think that we must choose between Him or them? Or perhaps it’s just the fact that we really don’t know much about “what” He did for us in the first place. Whatever your reason, I ask that we enter this season of Lent with open eyes, listening ears, and a well of a spirit that can be filled to overflowing this special time.

Welcome to Lent.

Until we meet again, journey on in His name…

pH