Going Slow with Dr. Low

The Holy Season of LENT

Today is Ash Wednesday which is the first day of Lent.  Many people are not familiar with Lent or don't practice it in their churches or their personal lives but most people are familiar with the Season of Advent.  Just like Advent helps prepare our hearts and minds for Christmas, Lent provides us a similar opportunity with Easter.  When we don't celebrate Advent Christmas can come and go so quickly and we can lose the meaning of it.  Easter too can come and go so quickly that it's easy to skim over the incredible sacrificial journey Jesus took for us.  When Easter is limited only to a day, or maybe a long weekend, it can end up being just another holiday where we get a break from school and work and go shopping with friends and family.

So one of the big advantages of celebrating Lent is it gives us a 40 day period, almost 6 weeks, to focus on the Easter miracle and the Good Friday sacrifice.  During this 40 days Christians are invited to spend more time praying, fasting, worshiping, serving and tithing than we usually do.  Focusing more on our faith in these intentional ways can help turn our hearts and minds towards Easter weeks before it's on our doorstep.

It's been traditional for hundreds of years for Christians around the world to give something(s) up for Lent such as chocolate, meat, liquor and other luxuries that are difficult for people to sacrifice.  In the past it was often food related because these types of foods were considered delicacies so people really missed them when they couldn't have them for 6 weeks.  Nowadays many people are giving up things technology-related because technology has become the comfort, treat or indulgence that special foods were hundreds of years ago.  For example, every year some of the students at Rocky Mountain College in Calgary go on a technology fast.  For the 40 days of Lent they give up social media, texting, gaming and/or movies in order to give more time and attention to their faith.

Why give something up for Lent?  Well, for starters, it's hard to add in more prayer, journaling, serving, tithing etc. when our lives are already so full of things that keep us busy and satisfied.  So sometimes we need to give things up so that we more time and energy for God, and seek Him to satisfy us rather than the usual things we use in our culture to satisfy or even sedate us.  You might be thinking, "Ya, but that sounds really hard!" - especially the technology fast.  Well, that's the point, it's supposed to be hard.  If giving something up for Lent isn't hard then you can't really call it a sacrifice.

Why sacrifice?  Partly to give yourself more time and energy for other things and partly to recognize your comforts and maybe even addictions so you can turn to God to comfort you, fill you and heal you rather than turning to other "gods" as we so often do.  The other reason for sacrificing during Lent is because Lent is largely modeled after Jesus 40 day fast in the desert before His crucifixion.  Biblical scholars agree that Jesus' time in the desert was about preparing Him and strengthening Him for the journey ahead.  He was tested and tempted in ways that strengthened His faith and trust in God rather than giving into worldly comforts.  Lent is an invitation for us to follow His example and symbolically join Jesus in His journey towards the cross.

I did not grow up practicing Lent in my church or my family but began following the tradition in my late teens.  Every year it is such a rich experience for me as it turns my heart and mind towards Jesus in a way that wouldn't happen if I just keep going about my regular life routines.  Every year I give up one or two comforts which forces me instead to turn to God when I'm tired, bored, obsessive, depressed, lonely or whatever rather than turning to my usual fixes.  This has become a very formative part of my Christian walk so every year I look forward to it even though it can be very challenging.  This year I will be giving up chocolate and Facebook Scrabble.  That means every time I gesture towards eating chocolate or playing Scrabble (several times a day for both) I will have to catch myself and turn my attention towards God to fill my desires rather than these instant fixes I am so accustomed to.

If you have any questions about Lent feel free to write me at coach@frombeginningtoend.org and I would be happy to join you in exploring Lent this year.