“The practice of Lent is a means of grace, but grace itself is a mystery that grips us however buttoned-up or sloppy our Lenten practice is.”
-Tish Harrison Warren
Redeemer Family,
We are in still in Epiphany, but Lent is coming soon (March 5th), and it is such an important season that it warrants some forethought and preparation. For those of you unfamiliar with Lent or in need of a refresher, keep reading!
What Is Lent?
Lent is a 40 day period of Christ-centered devotion between Ash Wednesday and Easter Sunday. The practice of Lent has been observed by Christians around the world since the early centuries of the church.
Why Practice Lent?
The most important reason to practice Lent is to draw near to Jesus Christ and become like him. Lent is a season of intentional discipleship under Christ and with Christ. We also practice Lent to bond more closely with fellow Christians who are on the same journey, not only in our local church but also around the world. Along the way, our sin and enslaving habits are put to death, and we learn to internalize and share in Christ’s resurrection power.
We Practice Lent Together, Not Alone
To the extent that you are able, practice Lent with your church family. Begin with an Ash Wednesday service and receive the sign of the cross on your forehead - reminding you of your own mortality. Participate in a Small Group and discover that you are not alone in your struggle. Remember to keep the balance between fasting and discipline on Mondays-Saturdays and feasting on Sundays. Plan ahead for Holy Week so that we can walk through Maundy Thursday, Good Friday, and Easter Sunday together as a church.
What we hope you’ll find is that, as we enter into these practices together, God’s grace for us is more abundant than we previously thought. We’ll try together and we’ll fail together, then we’ll confess our sins together and be forgiven together. When we come out on the other side, into a bright Easter morning, we’ll find ourselves closer to Christ and closer to each other.
What Specific Practices Do We Take Up During Lent?
In an age of endless tailoring and individualizing, consider keeping Lent the same way Christians have throughout history and around the world. Resist the natural impulse to think of yourself as special, and therefore requiring a specialized version of Lent. What makes you special is God’s love for you, not your particular struggles. So here is a simple list of ways that many millions of Christians will keep Lent this year. You are invited to join us.
PRACTICES OF EMBRACE (NEW THINGS TO TAKE UP)
PRAYER: Set aside more time to pray than usual. Consider pausing to kneel in prayer three times daily: morning, noon, and evening.
SCRIPTURE: Read the Bible with special attention: consider replacing a meal with scripture reading to remind you that you "do not live on bread alone, but on every word that comes from the mouth of God.” - Matthew 4:4
CONFESSION: Practice confessing your sins aloud to a priest, deacon, or otherwise qualified spiritual father or mother in the church.
SILENCE + SOLITUDE: Practice the foundational spiritual disciplines of silence and solitude.
GIVING: Give more away than you usually do.
To give directly to Redeemer, click here.
SERVING: Volunteer time to visit and assist the sick, the prisoner, or the outcast.
Suggestions: Retreat Doctors Hospital, Richmond City Jail, the Virginia Home.
PRACTICES OF RESISTANCE (THINGS TO PAUSE)
FASTING:
Fast from sunrise to sunset on Fridays, or (if too difficult) abstain from meat on Fridays.
Give up sweets and alcohol, except on Sundays, which are feast days.
Fast the whole day on Ash Wednesday and Good Friday.
DIGITAL LIMITS
Turn your phone completely off for 1 hour per day.
Turn your phone completely off for 1 day per week.
Remember, the purpose of keeping these spiritual disciplines during the season of Lent is to more fully enter into a season of preparation to remember the death of our Lord Jesus and to celebrate His glorious resurrection!
What Are Ways I Can Expect to Grow More Like Christ during Lent?
There are some themes that often arise when people describe their experience of practicing Lent, however this list is not exhaustive; God’s activity in your life cannot be predicted or controlled.
Humility – Humility is the capacity to recognize who we are in relationship to the living God. The path of Lent reveals our mortality, sin and limitations. Often, the Holy Spirit reveals personal and corporate blind spots during Lent. Our hunger pains, headaches and failures during Lent become living reminders of our great need for the salvation offered through Jesus Christ.
Reordered Loves – The gentle harness of Lent is designed to loosen our unhealthy attachments to creation (including food, drink, and money) so that we may enjoy a deeper bond to the Creator. We learn to internalize and enjoy the love of Christ during Lent.
Purity – Soren Kierkegaard said that “purity of heart is to will one thing.” During Lent, we see the incompatibility between our commitment to Jesus and our dabbling in idolatry. We confess our sins and thereby take hold of the forgiveness that is ours in the Gospel.
Joy – As we give ourselves to him in our suffering, Jesus Christ supplies us with a lasting spiritual overflow and the consolation of the Holy Spirit. This is to be distinguished from a spiritual high which cannot be sustained over time or during suffering. Easter Sunday and corporate worship during Lent grants us a taste of heaven.
Renewed Imaginations – As we progress through events of Ash Wednesday, the 40 days of Lent and the drama of Holy Week, see ourselves and the world as they are in God. The events of Jesus’ life, death and resurrection become for us a window into the new creation (otherwise known as the Kingdom of God) in which we can participate and from which we can receive a secure identity.
Dependence – During Lent, we unlearn the lie that we are self-made, self-contained individuals. We learn to draw upon the life of God and the bonds of affection with our fellow Christians.
A Word to Parents on Helping Your Kids Practice Lent
Rachel and I know firsthand how challenging it can be to introduce your kids to the traditions and practices of the church, especially when they are not immediately enjoyable. How can we help our kids understand the value of keeping Lent? How can we assist them in experiencing God’s love and grace, even in the midst of spiritual disciplines?
What follows is by no means a comprehensive take on practicing Lent with young kids, rather this is simply a collection of suggestions to help us get started (and perhaps an attempt at overcoming some of the fears and hesitations we might have).
Practice #1: No sweets Monday-Saturday, but feast on Sundays!
Explanation: This isn't easy, but at least it’s straightforward! No sweets for breakfast (sorry Sugar Shack Donuts), or lunch, or dinner.
Hope: That our children would learn the value of self-denial and sacrifice for God; that they would learn to prize Sunday and, through feasting, taste and see that the Lord is good.
Typical Kid Response: Lots of griping and complaining! Why do we have to do this? Why doesn’t God like dessert? I hate Lent! Our church is the worst!
Wise Parent Response: We’re not giving up sweets because they’re bad or because God doesn’t want us to have fun. We are remembering that these are good gifts from God and sometimes we forget that. Sometimes we forget that all the good things in life come from God. Kids, we’ll have dessert together on Sunday and let’s make it a good one! When we feast together on Sunday, it’ll be like a taste of heaven.
Side Note: Practice this as a whole family (i.e. parents, don’t go and have dessert after your kids go to bed). This gives you the resource of empathizing with your kids. “I know honey - I want dessert too, but we’re fasting together.”
Practice #2: “I’m sorry” Prayers.
Explanation: During family prayer time, whether in the morning around the dinner table, or before bedtime, focus on repentance - prayers that begin with the words, “Dear God, I am sorry….”
Pro Tip: Kneeling around a candle can help kids focus.
Level 2: Once you make prayer together as a family part of your daily habit, you might consider adding some liturgical structure around it. The Family Prayers found in the Book of Common Prayer are very helpful. Use them regularly enough and your kids will have them memorized after a few weeks.
Hope: That our children would learn to practice regular repentance, and through doing so, they would become more aware of their own sin and therefore more aware of their need for the Gospel.
Redeemer family, as Ecclesiastes taught us last Sunday, for everything there is a season. Let’s prepare our calendars, pantries, bank accounts, and hearts to keep the season of Lent together.
After all, Easter is right around the corner.
In the Father’s love,
