Posted on

Why Lent?

pray and fastYesterday was Ash Wednesday which marked the beginning of the Lenten season. The United Methodist Church describes Lent this way:

During Lent, we enter into a season of preparation, self-reflection and repentance when we seek to literally “turn around” and realign our lives and focus toward God. It is a time to give up things as well as take on new life-giving practices, helping us rid ourselves of distractions and our own selfish desires. By doing so, we seek to live and love as more faithful disciples of Jesus Christ.

You can check out the page I took that quote from here.

Lent is a penitential season (thus the ‘turning around’) and is a time when historically, the church has fasted. So, why do I participate in Lenten fasting and prayer? Here are three reasons. Continue reading “Why Lent?”

Posted on

A Mid-day prayer

Midday prayer for this day in Holy Week:

Lord God, whose blessed Son our Savior gave his body to be whipped and his face to be spit upon: Give me the grace to accept joyfully the sufferings to the present time, confident of the glory that shall be revealed through Jesus Christ your Son, my Lord, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and ever. Amen.

It is because he suffered that we can endure suffering with hope. May your hope be firmly planted in Christ.

Posted on

Beyond what we see

“Finally, be strong in the Lord and in the strength of his power. Put on the whole armor of God, so that you may be able to stand against the wiles of the devil. For our struggle is not against enemies of blood and flesh, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the cosmic powers of this present darkness, against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly places.”
Ephesians 6:10-12

Have you ever had something happen that tells you that there is something else out there? What I mean is, do you think that there are aspects of our existence that we are not fully aware of? This sort of question is one I think about quite a bit in relation to our Christian walk. I am convinced that there is a lot of mystery in life, and that faith in Christ involves a great deal of trust – walking ahead when we cannot see, but trusting the hand that holds onto ours. This trust is what Paul is writing about in Ephesians 6, “Be strong in the Lord.” Our strength does not come from tangible things that we can control and see and use, but rather from relying upon the Lord alone and not ourselves.
Continue reading “Beyond what we see”

Posted on

Lenten Journey – Day 45

Well, I’m writing this at about 9:30 pm on Good Friday, which means I’ve almost made it to the end of this fast. Tomorrow evening, after the Easter vigil, where we’ll begin to celebrate Easter, baptize 5 people, and welcome 3 more into membership, I’ll break my fast. I began it on Ash Wednesday when the ashes were imposed on my head. I’ll end it with communion tomorrow night. Wow.

I really meant to blog today about last evening’s worship and didn’t get a chance to, and now it’s after the Good Friday service as well. It’s been a crazy and amazing two days. I absolutely love Holy Week. I’ve also been pretty weak at different spots during these two days, so I’ve really had to pace myself and rest occasionally. Let me begin with Thursday. Continue reading “Lenten Journey – Day 45”

Posted on

Lenten Journey – Day 43

It just occurred to me, if you’ve picked up this series somewhere in the middle you may wonder why I’m in the 43rd day of Lent when Lent is supposed to be 40 days. It’s because Sundays aren’t counted among the 40. Just a few days left.

Today’s prayers from the Divine Hours have had some readings with them that focused me on this part of Holy Week. The first reading was of the anointing at Bethany as recorded in Mark 14.  At the end of that scene, Judas goes to the chief priests and agrees to turn over Jesus. That kind of hit me today as I prayed and read. Good Friday isn’t here yet, but the seeds of that tragedy are already sown. Many times the fruits of our sin, in all their spectacular grotesqueness, are just that: fruits. Where is the root? Where are the seeds planted. One part of the journey to the cross started a few days before the crucifixion when Judas decided to hand Jesus over. What sorts of things are taking root in your heart? Continue reading “Lenten Journey – Day 43”

Posted on

Lenten Journey – Day 42

Wow, I can’t believe I’ve made it this far eating only once a week.  More importantly, I’ve really prayed a lot during Lent.  This is the last Tuesday of the fast, and I’m really grateful.  My biggest concerns now are physically.  I don’t want to be out of energy by the end of the week because it’s a busy week.  Spiritually I feel pretty good.  I missed vespers today (dinner time) due to my schedule, and it bugged me.  I’ll do the compline tonight shortly before I go to bed.  As I enter this last week of the fasting I realize I haven’t found any huge, miraculous theophanies.  Rather, I feel my faith simply deepening.  It’s not that I am completely holy and always have my mind where it needs to be, uttering prayers all the time.  I’m more centered (maybe) – that could be a way to describe it.

I’m excited for Easter, but I’m also excited for worship on Thursday, Friday, and Saturday.  I love Holy Week.  I love telling and reliving the story.  I love the heartrending story of the crucifixion and the amazing turn of events on Easter morning.  I’m thankful we are in the midst of these celebrations.  The stories we tell and live into shape us.  These stories are central to the Christian people, my people.

I have a couple of links for you.  First is the Palm Sunday sermon I gave last year.  It’s a meditation on the passion that considers Mary, the mother of Jesus.  It’s one of my favorites, and a good thing to think about this week.  The second is by a friend named Joel Watson and it’s on his facebook account.  I’m not sure if everyone can get it, if not let me know and I’ll find another way to get it to you.  You can find the link here.  It’s on the atonement and it raises some good questions about what the atoning work of Christ was, as well as what exactly it means for us to be sinners.