Lent
Growing up Baptist, I never really learned much about Lent and initially thought it was only for those who were Catholic. Fast forward to my adult life, I have never really questioned that. Knowing what Lent stood for has never been something I felt the need to learn about until recently. This lack of desire was not for any particular reason except life was busy. My time is typically filled with all the other things required of being a mom or three, wife and physician. But the time has come and for me to dig deeper and learn about Lent. Lent is 46 days total. Of those 40 days are “fasting” and the 6 Sundays for feasting, thus 46 days. I’m going to attempt to unpack the meaning behind all of this and see what scripture says. If you have anything to add I would love to hear.
So here goes. Ash Wednesday is a day that is mainly observed by Catholics, Methodist, Eastern Orthodox and some protestants. It is the first day of Lent and is a day that focuses on prayer and fasting. I’ve noticed that “fasting” can mean not only from food but removing something that is not needed in your life. Some say it is a day of Penance. The word penance is derived from the Latin word paenitentia, which is derived from the root meaning repentance. Repentance is when we ask God to forgive us for our sins and then we turn from them. I also red that penance is more of a focus on “good deeds,” while repentance focuses on the “heart change.” For me, repentance does not only have to be during Lent but can be done anytime I find myself acting in a way that I know is not pleasing to the Lord. I think this tradition of Lent helps people to remember all Christ did for us by dying on the cross.
After Ash Wednesday there are about six weeks to Easter. These 40 days symbolize the 40 days that Jesus fasted in the dessert and was tempted by the devil. This can be found in Matthew 4, Mark 1: 12 briefly mentions it and in Luke 4. If we look at these gospels, we see that Jesus must have already been fasting into the 40 days when the devil approached him. It is written in Matthew and Luke that he was tempted three different ways and was already hungry when tempted. The first way was when the Devil asked Jesus to turn a stone into bread. Second, if you worship me, I will give you all the power and splendor in the world. Third, the devil asked Jesus to “throw yourself down from here.” They were at the highest point in Jerusalem. The devil goes on to say Luke 4: 10 “For it is written: He will command his angels concerning you to guard you carefully, they will lift you up in their hands, so that you will not strike your foot against a stone.” Did you catch that, the devil tempts Jesus by twisting the gospel and using it to try to manipulate Jesus into sin. This is so common in today’s world. Temptation more often than not is very subtle. Jesus being perfectly God and perfectly man does not fall for it. I have to believe it was a lot easier for him to know the truth since he spent a lot of time in prayer away from crowds. After all he was spending 40 days in the dessert with the Lord praying when the devil approached him. I believe there is a direct correlation between truth and time in the word. I think this is one of the reasons it’s so hard to have quiet time. Because the devil makes us believe we need to fill our days to the max to distract us from God’s calling. If we won’t fall to obvious temptation, the devil will at the very least try to keep us from being effective for his Kingdom.
The last week of Lent starts on Palm Sunday and ends on Good Friday. Palm Sunday is a day of celebration meant to represent the day that Jesus arrived in Jerusalem. The Palm branches represent those that were scattered on the ground as Jesus entered the city. Good Friday represents the day Jesus was crucified on the cross. Which then leads us to Sunday where Jesus rose from the dead! Praise the Lord!
I have to say I have really enjoyed learning about Lent. I love the fact that this magnifies the concept that there are things in our lives that we need to give up and get rid of. It takes about 30 days to build a new habit so 40 days is the perfect length to implement things that will promote and push us to be our best self with Christ. I made my list of things I’m going to do. I wanted to share 2 of them. The first is extending my daily quiet time and the second will be hard but I will not allow myself to snack at night. Have you set any goals for the next 41 days? I would love to hear about them. If you don’t participate in Lent don’t worry, I never had either. But I encourage you to pray and asked God to show you what things need to change your life. This is what I did. I know that if we aren’t constantly trying to learn and grow we will not reach our maximum potential that God has for us.
Heavenly Father, thank you for traditions that remind us of how much you gave up and how perfect you are. Not even the Prince of this world has a hold on you. What a comfort it is to rest in this truth. Thank you for caring for us so much. I pray you continue to reveal your will to us. In Jesus name, Amen.