Resources for This Lenten Season
Tomorrow is Ash Wednesday, which marks the start of Lent. Ash Wednesday reminds us of our sinfulness and our frailty, but more than that, Ash Wednesday and Lent remind us of God’s goodness and faithfulness. Only when we reflect on our full humanity, do we fully realize who God is and who God made us to be through the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ. It’s through this season of reflection that we recognize the magnitude and magnificence of God’s great love for us.
This season serves as a disorienting rhythm. Lent invites us into something different from the rest of the year.
And we may not always think about this, but rhythms hold a powerful place in our lives. Ranging from the most menial, such as brushing our teeth to holidays and annual outings. Rhythms aren’t just something that we observe, but they shape who we are and how we interact with the world. Ash Wednesday and Lent are ancient rhythms that Christians observed in their pursuit of Christ. Observing them isn’t meant to be morbid, legalistic, but rather any opportunity to lay things down so that we might focus more on Christ. It is an invitation to make space for more of God in our lives.
Practices to Engage During Lent
As we enter into this season, here are a few suggestions to engage with Lent:
FAST.
Say no to something. It could be chocolate, certain beverages, social media. (P.S. Sundays are feast days. They are meant to be mini-resurrections so you can break your fast each Sunday. If you count, Lent is actually forty-six days including Sundays).
ENGAGE.
Say yes to something. Don’t just cut something out of your life, but add something in that helps you connect with God.
GIVE.
If you say no to something you spend money on, gift that money away to a cause close to your heart.
A Few Extra Resources
If you want something more, here are a few ways I will be engaging:
The Common Rule. This seasonal Rule of Life was created by Justin Whitmel Earley, and it’s both powerful and simple. More than that though, it’s relevant. Many of his suggested practices help us disengage technology and media, breaking the hold they often have on our lives. On his website, Just created a guide on how to practice the Common Rule as well a Lenten guide for practices to try in this special season of the church calendar. The best part is, you can do this with friends and/or family. Rachel and I led a group through this in the fall and I will be following this again for Lent. You can find the website here: https://www.thecommonrule.org/resources
Lenten Prayer Website. This site has a guided devotional for each day with Scripture (the Revised Common Lectionary, I believe), meditation questions, a prayer, and space for silence. I used this last year and will use it again this year: https://lent.eastlake.church/introduction/
Inhaling Grace Devotional. Alan Fadling also created a Lent Reading Guide, which includes short devotionals. You can get it here (also hasn’t been updated for this year): https://www.unhurriedliving.com/blog/exhaling-hurry-inhaling-grace
The best news is that you can use these in conjunction with each other. For example, you could use Inhaling Grace as your morning prayer, and the Lenten Prayer website as your evening prayer exercise for the Common Rule.
However you practice Lent, we pray that you would experience the height, the depth, the length and width of God’s love in new ways this season. Grace and peace to you!